Secrets That Help You Hire A Top Notch Copywriter

When you are looking to hire a copywriter, to be able to find a good one is a challenge all businesses face. Apart from writing articles and blogs, your chosen copywriter should be capable of handling the supporting content like landing pages, social media lead-ins, Meta descriptions, web content, CTAs, marketing emails, and more.

So to ensure you are choosing the right candidate for your copywriting that can contribute to the growth of your business, be clear on the questions to ask while you hire a copywriter in the interview process.

Below is a list of questions to ask while you hire a copywriter :

• What can you tell me about my company?
• Are you familiar with my industry?
• What are the means you employ to research the market on the topic before you write?
• Are you comfortable to receive criticism and feedback on your copy?
• Do you understand SEO optimization techniques? 
• Have you worked under tight deadlines?
• Can you write in someone else’s voice?
• Have you worked on a writing team?
• What types of content have you created?
• Is English your native language?
• Do you continuously work on developing your copywriting knowledge and skills?
• Are you keeping abreast of the latest trend in the copywriting world? 
• Do you understand the whole process of content marketing and where your copy fits into an overall marketing campaign?
• What checking parameters do you pass your content through before submission?
• Are you comfortable to create content in different writing styles?
• How comfortable are you in collaborating with a designer when the project demands it?

Qualities to hire a copywriter

Copywriting may seem like an easy task, but it actually isn’t. Strong copywriting plays an extremely important role in the success of a business. Only compelling content is capable of holding the attention of a reader in this digital world, where most of the business happens online.

Here are some qualities of a copywriter-  

Persistence

Writing good content is a time-consuming job. And to be able to do it well, a good copywriter should possess the quality of patience. Writing unwillingly, or in a haste to finish often leads to poor results.

A fresh viewpoint

Every individual comes across thousands of marketing messages on a daily basis. So in order to grab the attention span of your prospective clients, the content you present in front of them should be such that it catches their attention and they decide to read through the whole write up.

The first line should be convincing enough to make the reader want to read the next and next and so on.

Willing to learn

A good writer never stops learning. To be able to write well, one needs to have the zeal to keep learning new things daily.

One should be able to accept constructive criticism and able to overcome the drawbacks. Copywriting is a field that has options for technological advancement with each passing day.

The willingness to learn about newer concepts and to have the acceptance to understand own drawbacks is one of the star qualities of a copywriter.

Connection

Convincing the usability of the product/ service to the audience isn’t an easy thing to do. Only a strong piece of writing can connect the product to the reader’s lives.

A good copywriter not only needs to speak in a way that the audience understands but also convince them how the product or service will enhance their lives. 

Develop an expertise

It is a good thing to be able to write on a wide variety of niches. But an even better thing is to develop expertise in one or two fields. When you have a narrower span on expertise, you become an expert in that niche and can churn out high-grade content.

When you know a particular area well, you share knowledge and write out yourself rather than reframing and rephrasing already existing content. But this doesn’t mean you do not branch off to other topics.

Writing for other areas would help you to fill in gaps, and give you opportunities to expand your knowledge and expand your career, but having expertise would make you unique and sought after.

Trendy and knowledgeable

A good copywriter also needs to have a great understanding of the existing trends in SEO copywriting, general writing, and marketing content. He needs to generate write-ups that rank high in search engine results.

Too much stuffing of keywords or a very pushy tone to buy works more as a drawback than a benefit. The content needs to be marketing-driven, neither high-minded nor too detailed. The focus of the content should be educating the consumer.

Language and formatting

A copywriter needs to be able to curate content based on his audience. You cannot speak to the experts in the same lingo that you speak to a layman in. Quality content is more effective when the writer has a fair understanding of how the intended audience thinks, communicates, and searches for. Also, it is vital that you format the text well.

Too much writing, or using complicated language, not having appropriate breaks in the form of paragraphs, not dividing content into topics and sub-topics can turn off the reader and cause them to waver away from the write-up. Creating content that is clear and concise is the key. The content should also be free of wordy phrases and vague wordings.

Storyteller

Another of the vital qualities of a copywriter is the art of storytelling. The stories can be fact or fiction, it doesn’t matter. He should be able to write in a way that generates excitement and enthusiasm and the reader is willing to agree with the content.

A good copywriter is one who can write well even on dull topics and grab the attention of the reader. For being able to be a storyteller, a lot of creativity is required.

Not a perfectionist

Yes, quality content is essential, but hiring a perfectionist won’t help. A copywriter should be able to produce a good volume of content too, which is impossible with a perfectionist. He should be able to understand when a piece of content is strong enough to be accepted and is publishable.

Things Businesses Need To Keep In Mind

Pointers you need to keep in mind when you are planning to hire copywriter online-

• Ascertain your copywriting requirements. Have a clear picture of what kind of copywriting you need before you set out to search for a freelance copywriter. Once your project and your expectations are well defined, it becomes easier for both the parties involved to discuss the project.
• Find the right writing specialist. Like any other profession, freelance copywriters also have specialties. Some are a specialist in sales brochures, some in press releases, some website writing, while some are experts in particular industries and sectors. You would have to choose your freelancer based on such parameters. Also, understand that hiring veteran copywriting professionals comes with benefits like experience but would also cost more.
• Check out their prior writing samples of the shortlisted freelancers. Also, ask for references and testimonials from past clients regarding the quality of their work.

• Often copywriting projects can go on for months. So considering the personality of the copywriter is important before you hire a copywriter. You and your team would have to interact on multiple occasions and doing so with a personality you like can be an enjoyable experience. If things between both parties work out, you may even consider getting back to the same freelancer for future projects too.
• You would have to have a clear range in mind about your budget. Do not forget that in a freelancing scenario, the quality of content you get depends heavily on what you pay for.
• Ask for a quote from the freelancer. Decide on terms like hourly pay/ project basis pay/ pay per word etc. The quote may also depend on the complexity of work, and the niche you want to get writing done for. Also, decide on what happens in the situation when re-writing is required.
• You would have to ensure you brief the copywriter about your industry, your previous marketing material (if any). All such data would help them to write for your business.
• Ensure that both you and the copywriter are clear on who the expected audience of the content is. The style and material of the content vary depending on if the audience is a layperson or someone with a high level of expertise.
• One also needs to be clear on where the intended content is used. For example, the information, language, and tone of the content is different when on a website and different on technical manuals.
• What is it that you want readers to do on reading your post? It is an awareness post or you are luring them to buy your product service? It is vital when you hire a copywriter online to make them aware of your marketing strategy so that he can keep that in mind while drafting content for your business.
• You also need to ensure your copywriter and designer work together. It is vital that the copy and the designs complement each other. You may even have to let them coordinate with your vendors so as to ensure they create their best-combined work.
• Deadlines are vital. Having pre-decided rough timelines of the project would set tabs on the project and ensure the healthy progress of the project. When you hire a copywriter online, ask him to provide an outline timeline for the project. Doing so works beneficial for both parties.
• All said and done, when you hire a copywriter, you would have to give the copywriter the freedom to write (after you have provided all information you want to). Micromanaging the writing project would mean stifling the writer’s creativity. And that would not let him create an incredible copy.

Parting Words

Now that you know what to look in at when you hire a copywriter, it is time you contact our team at Towards 90, we can assist you by providing the perfect solutions for all your copywriting needs.