Marketing

How to Find Excellent Freelance Writers

October 29, 2010

Write In Journal


This is a part of a series that was created to help you create case studies for your company. This series will walk through the process, necessary roles, in addition to guides for each role to help your company get started quickly.

If you don’t have internal resources available (and most expansion stage companies do not), the best way to find content creators is through referrals from people in your network.

How can you get the word out that you are looking for a content creation freelancer?

Try posting a description of the freelance role on:

  • LinkedIn (status update, discussion threads in groups you are in, etc.)
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

 

Another great resource is Junta42. Essentially, Junta42 is a content vendor matchmaking agency. The best part is that it’s free for the company looking for the content creator. You simply post a project description, and Junta42 directs your post to the appropriate resources. Those who are interested in bidding on your project reach out to you directly within a matter of days.

Hiring a freelancer is obviously less risky than hiring a full-time employee. However, make sure you don’t waste your time, energy, and money working with someone who does not have the right skill set, or who does not take your assignment seriously.

To make sure you are working with a quality content professional, gather the following materials during the interview (phone screening) process:

  • Professional references (3 minimum)
  • Samples of his/her work
  • A design mockup

During your phone screen with your top freelancer candidates, particularly with the writers, it is important that you get a sense of whether they are able to communicate well verbally – not just in writing. Why? Because a huge component of their role will be to conduct thorough phone interviews with the internal and external case study participants. If your candidate has a great resume and great samples, but can barely mutter a sentence during a phone call, end the conversation immediately and move on to your next candidate.

OpenView Recommends:

Writers:       Josh Zywien ([email protected])

Kranz Communications, Jonathan Kranz ([email protected])

Designers:   Xceed IT Solutions, Deepika Laxmi ([email protected])

Kate Knowlton ([email protected])

Ciano Design, Patrick Ciano ([email protected])

Next week, I’ll explain how to finalize a freelancer budget proposal and get approval from your CEO/Executive team.