Copywriters the ups and downs
-
We use several copy writers for regular blog posts and they do a great job. They rewrite breaking news stories and keep them as unique as possible to avoid duplicate content.
When it comes to writing text for pages on websites they dont half take there time.
I will need one to write a page of 2000 words at some point. Do you think that is a unfair task and what time limit would you look for on this.
I am thinking 7 days.
Whats the best ways of managing Copywriters to get the best out of them and making sure they keep content fresh.
-
Ok question is how can we hire wikipedia writers I see the logic but realistically trying to find someone with a genuine experts view for each industry you work in within seo is blooming difficult What's your way around this ? Do you just do it yourself ?
-
I try to avoid communicating by PM.... but... go to Google.... search for any keyword... examine the very best informative content on several different sites... then make content that will clearly beat all of them combined.
That is what I think it takes to get links... why should someone who wants to link to an article about Philadelphia link to anything less than this.
-
when you mention getting link content . I presume the content would have to be a totally new story or expert view. Maybe you could PM me some examples as content has been up to now very much a commodity and I am finding it hard to see the major benefits of having someone that can create content at an expert levels.
-
I don't have any opinions on how to "manage" copy writers, but I do have strong opinions on who should be writing for your website if you are picky about your content.
I shudder when I hear the word "copy writers".
They are probably OK if you need yada yada content for a topic that is essentially gossip, opinion or storytelling.
They might also be OK if you need pedestrian-quality non-technical content for consumption by visitors to your site.
But if you are hoping to earn links on a technical subject then, in my opinion, you need an expert in the field who is also a great writer (and maybe an editor to improve the clarity). You don't want Joe Schmoe copy writer (who doesn't know how to hold a wrench) producing an article on how hydraulic jacks work and how to use them safely. That's how you get flogged in the blogs.
About the 2000 word assignment..... I think that giving someone a word count requirement is a great way to screw up an article. When I start working on an article I don't know how long it is going to be and the answer to that question is irrelevant. The article should be long enough to do the job properly. It's hard enough to do that without trying to fit the content into a certain size box.
.... but for a piece of about that length, I could hammer it out in a day if I am very conversant about the topic and I don't give a damn about quality.... the type of writing that most students put into a essay for their history course.
However, if you are writing to earn links then I think that you need to beat the best content on the web. And that usually isn't easy. For a subject that I am close to expert level myself I would probably spend a few days for research and about a week to write it and work with an artist on illustrations and photos.
Great content isn't fast and it isn't cheap in my opinion.
Too many people think of content as if it is a commodity. Filler content might be a commodity but link-getting content isn't.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
What's a good WPM for a copywriter?
My copywriter is currently hitting 2,100 - 2,500 words over three articles on an average day. He is employed full time, 7.5 hours a day with a 30 minute lunch break (He has the choice of a 1 hour lunch and leaving 30 minutes later). Let's say only 6 hours are spent researching and writing: 2,500 words / 360 minutes = 6.9WPM The content is generally rewritten from other websites with a little bit of unique content, on topics that are usually not complicated - the articles themselves are along the lines of a broad summary of what the other website offers/does. The content I receive is fairly generic and doesn't really say anything more than the source material. No formatting is done and generally I receive very large wall-of-text paragraphs. The content is written in one program and then copy/pasted into word to be delivered. All keywords to use are provided, as well as ~50 words and phrases related to the topic. The ~50 words and phrases are usually presented in a list ("they offer x, x, x, x and x, as well as x, x and x" etc), so this part of the task shouldn't be taking long. I am trying to gauge whether this is typical and what I should expect from someone who does this each day, as from previous roles I know more is definitely doable, but as for whether it's doable every working day I'm not sure. What do you usually receive from your copywriters for a day of work?
Content Development | | helenlorettahasan0 -
Copywriter Recommendations?
There are a handful of pages, I'd like to get a fresh perspective on content-wise. They rank well and get traffic. However, we are not seeing the conversions we want to see, so I'm thinking a fresh pair of eyes could help write something more compelling. Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas on pricing (yes, feel free to self-promote)? Thanks, Ruben P.S. I'm really not looking for any ESL elance type solutions unless there are some strong writing samples.
Content Development | | KempRugeLawGroup0 -
Recommendations Content / Copywriter
We are based in the UK & have used alot of content / copywriters & so far have struggled to find someone we feel meets our needs? Can anyone recommend a content writing company or freelancer? Thanks
Content Development | | webguru20140 -
Digital Marketing Copywriters
We are still in the hunt for "expert" digital marketing copywriters. While some previous mozzers recommended websites to visit, we're really interested in names to directly contact them. Help is much appreciated guys and girls! Thanks Gary
Content Development | | GaryVictory0 -
Copywriting Services for Whitepaper Creation
Can anybody recommend a particular company or website where I might be able to find some help in creating a whitepaper for lead generation? We have a few subject identified, and we've written a handful of blog posts about these subjects already, so we have some content. We're just struggling with compiling it and formatting into an effective whitepaper format. I was hoping we might get some professional help with this first one.
Content Development | | _JP_0 -
Need Legal Copywriting Services
I am looking for a legal copywriter to write 400 - 600 word articles for me on various legal based articles. In addition, I'm looking for other legit industry sectors. Do you know of the legit "quality" sources to locate copywriters? Let me know your thoughts. Thanks. Justin
Content Development | | JQC0 -
How much do you pay your copywriters?
Hey friends. How much do you pay your copywriters? Is it be piece? I'm looking to do three different price points: Paying for just the copywriting Coming up with ideas and the copywriting Copywriting and finding a source to publish said blog post Thanks for your help! 🙂
Content Development | | 352inc0 -
Finding a copywriter
Hi seomoz, This is not quite a SEO issue, but I have a feeling you may be able help. English is a second language to me and copywriting is not my favorite sport. So, I've decided to find a copywriter. But have no clue how to look for one. I have hired ton of programmers, designers, and other technical resources in the past. People that have concrete skills - programmer where I could say do X, Y & Z and I can check if X, Y & Z were done - are no problem for me to hire. It still takes a long time, but that's not an issue. I know I want the copywriter to write in certain style (style of seomoz.org, woot.com or doubleyourdating.com). How do you define writing like that? Can writing like that can be defined? And put into requirements? Do you need 'customer avatar' or 'marketing voice' document or something similar? How do I find a kick ass copywriter? Optimisticly hoping there is a better answer than just 'test bulkload of them'! Thank you,
Content Development | | AverageJoe
Your big fan!0