{"id":12264,"date":"2017-04-19T07:28:36","date_gmt":"2017-04-19T05:28:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/authorityhacker.com\/?p=12264"},"modified":"2023-09-14T21:07:19","modified_gmt":"2023-09-14T21:07:19","slug":"hiring-content-writers","status":"publish","type":"podcasts","link":"https:\/\/www.authorityhacker.com\/hiring-content-writers\/","title":{"rendered":"#68 \u2013 Our Exact, Step-By-Step Process For Hiring Talented Content Writers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
In this week’s podcast, we’re talking about hiring talented writers<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Content creation is fundamental when it comes to building an authority site, and unless you’re doing all the writing yourself, it’s important you know how to properly outsource this stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this podcast episode, we reveal our exact screening process to hire marketers<\/a> and high-quality writers, regardless of the niche.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So let’s dive right in!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before we talk about the actual hiring process, let’s first discuss when it makes sense to outsource your work, because it’s not always the best move for everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The obvious starting point is whether or not you’re a native speaker. If you need content written in English but English isn’t your first language, it makes sense to consider outsourcing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And if you’re in a niche where a high-level of expertise is generally required, then hiring someone with that knowledge\/background can be a no-brainer… particularly if you’re really lacking that expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another aspect to think about is money. If your site is already generating profit, it often makes sense to allocate some of that budget to writers so you can spend time on higher-level tasks – like keyword research and developing new content types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Removing yourself as the bottleneck is key, and ironically, this is when most people struggle to hire because they’re already overwhelmed. Don’t forget, you still need to account for on-boarding and training for a period of time after the hire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even when you do decide to outsource, you should ALWAYS write a few article yourself to get a feel of what’s required and gain familiarity with the niche. Not to mention building a process with templates that someone can easily follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you skip that part, the content you get back from writers might be ‘good’, but it wont be ‘great’. You need to be able to shape your content and you can’t do that without having been in the trenches yourself. We really can’t stress the benefits enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Okay, now on to the hiring process and we generally look at this as a big funnel, filtering applicants out at different stages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before you can do any of that, though, you need to get applicants in the first place. That not only involves posting a job ad , but also spreading the word about it too. The more applicants, the better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Initially, you simply want to remove any “bad eggs” by looking for reasons to remove unsuitable applicants. That could be anything from bad spelling and grammar, lack of experience, and also salary expectations. We even filter by country because 99% of the time, non-native speakers write lower quality content. (Sorry, but it’s true.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Doing this alone allows you to filter out around 50%-70% of the original applicants. At this point, you’ll want to create specific stages for remaining applicants to progress through. And if at any point they don’t respond in a timely manner or meet deadlines, they’re out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next, have all the remaining applicants write an article on the same topic, with the exact same brief. This allows you to compare like for like and makes it MUCH easier to compare the ability of multiple writers. Alternatively, you can have them edit the same article, but it’s the same principle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Paying applicants for this task is up to you, but unless you have a strong reputation in your niche, you’ll be met with some resistance by some of the better, more established writers if you choose not to offer a financial incentive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you do eventually hire the “winner”, it’s important to assess them over a set period. Even the most promising writers can turn bad given enough time. That said, you should allow some time for writers to adapt. In the beginning, you need to develop an eye for potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your job advert\/listing is a crucial part of the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, your ability to create an effective ad will be often be the difference between 5 applicants and 50 applicants. This isn’t an exaggeration, either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first thing you need to do is introduce yourself. Let people know who you are and what your position is in the company. It’s also a good idea to include your name, as this will help you filter writers who don’t address you by name in their application.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next, give some information about your website. You can say how many readers you get, how long you’ve been established, etc. After that, you can explain what the job is… exactly. Is it a part-time or full-time position? Is it long-term or short-term? And don’t make it longer than it needs to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, explain what type of person you’re looking for and avoid the usual “team player”, “quick learner” BS. It’s been beaten to death. This is an opportunity to call out specific requirements, like access to certain tools or hardware, or a background in weight loss, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the very end, you need to give them a way to apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For many roles, a resume is useful, but it’s a pretty bad indicator for writers. Comparing people’s ability to write a resume doesn’t really correlate with writing high-level content in your niche. It’s just irrelevant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We prefer an application form, and we tend to use Google Forms<\/a>. Alternatively, you can use something like Wufoo<\/a> or Gravity Forms<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhen To Hire A Writer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Our Filtering Process<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Crafting Your Job Advert<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Your Application Form<\/h2>\n\n\n\n