Any tips on hiring copywriters?

1. I would say Yes. You want someone experienced in the field to capture the essence of what you do. Otherwise you will be wasting time.
2. If you are just using the copywriter for your product information and one person can handle the job, use just one. You don't want different products/services to have a different tone from each other.
3. Let them stick to what they do best, writing
4. Copywriters will likely work on a per project basis
5. Will vary

Your welcome. Sent you a PM.

My advice, for what it's worth, is to pay in two to three instalments.

Don't give them 100% at the start.

I recently hired a well known copywriter and a student of his and they've run off with my money.

Worse than that, they've wasted over 3 months of my time.

So, never give them all the money. Keep back enough that will act as protection and an incentive for them to finish the work.

This might be useful:

How To Hire A Copywriter - by Kevin Halbert

Should you hire multiple copywriters?

It depends.

Unless you're a HUGE business, selling multiple products simultaneously, I doubt it's necessary.

Should you hire a copywriter with SEO experience? No. You should hire a copywriter to focus on the emotional side of marketing (i.e. creating a connection with your audience, communicating the benefits, driving up the value of your offer and making it FEEL wrong for prospects to walk away without pressing the BUY button.)

Graphics? UGH! No. Hire a proper graphics/web designer and your copywriter will communicate how the design should compliment the copy and branding.

Timeframe?

Are you paying copywriter to work full time for you?

Or...

Are you simply hiring them and getting yourself in their queue?

But the answer is...

Each project varies.

You should NEVER rush a project.

Any copywriter worth his or her weight in gold knows getting to market in a timely fashion is always a consideration to keep in mind. However, if you're the type of client who puts way too much emphasis on getting the project done, rather than making sure the positioning, branding and copy is connecting with the people who are ready to buy, RIGHT NOW, you'll very likely come to the table with irrational demands...

...and that type of approach will almost always lead to failure.

Payment?

You should always know what you want to invest. No exceptions.

Let's say you determine that you could produce $250,000 in the next fiscal year with the right copy.

How much is that worth to you?

You should never approach a copywriter - unless you've determined your product or service is in demand...

...and you've taken the time to summarize the amount of dollars that are in-flux (i.e. the estimated monetary size of your niche) you can positioning your company in front of.

If your company brings multiple products to market in any given month, put him or her on retainer. You should expect to plunk down $5000 - $10,000 a month.

Mark

@Mark

Oh, it's someone you all know alright. Absolutely certain.

On the topic, though, if I hire a builder he doesn't require 100% financial commitment up front. He gets paid in instalments, usually. Why should copywriters be any different?

If a job is $1000, there should be no issue paying two payments of $500, or something similar.

To me, that's equal commitment. Paying in full doesn't guarantee the copywriter is going to give his all for the project. Paying 50% and having to wait for 50% seems fair for both sides.

At the end of the day...

Everyone has their own business models.

If a prospect approaches me because they appreciate the way I work with people and want to work specifically with me, they have to honor my way of doing business.

Or...

They're obviously free to take their business elsewhere.

The clients attracted to do business with me might be very different than someone who wants to work with... say Daniel Scott (and appreciates HIS business model.)

That being said...

I wholeheartedly apologize that you fronted an investment for copywriting and didn't receive what you paid for. That's never okay.

I'm sure with the pressure of the CW community, you can sort it out.

Mark

I don't want to use the pressure of the community, though.

I think I'm going to resort to the copy my husband did for me but didn't feel confident enough to try it. When it was read over by a copywriter they said it was pretty good. A minor issues like including a big promise at the start, etc.

Hopefully it converts okay.

1- Should we work only with people who have SEO sales experience?
Nah, any copywriter worth his or her salt can do the research to get the job done. Half the fun of writing is learning new skills.
2- Should we work with only one copywriter at a time or several?
as few as possible so that your site maintains continuity of content.
3- What can we expect from copywriters, can they create a sales banner, should we provide graphics, photos, etc?
for the most part, writers write. It isn't hard to make a decent table or chart though. If you need graphics, hire a graphic designer. It is easy enough to insert photo's after you get the copy, but just as easy to ask your copy writer to find appropriate non-copyrighted images.
4- What is the best pay scale, by the page, hour, etc? How do we incentivise the copywriters, with percentage from sales, perks, etc?
No perks or incentives are needed. Just pay promptly and generously. Hourly rates are useless- can you prove how long they worked? would you hurry on an hourly pay? Pay per project instead. That way, if they want to doddle over a bit of interesting information, you won't be penalized for it and they can feel free to take potty breaks whenever the feeling strikes.
5- What is the writing time frame, how long should we expect things to take, in terms of per page, etc?
It all depends on how much you are willing to pay and how high of quality you expect. Ay writer can churn out crap fairly quickly. If you are paying enough to expect them to work on YOUR schedule, they can churn out some pretty damned good copy quickly too. Just don't expect them to hurry literary masterpieces for pennies. fair pay is a hell of an incentive.
6- This would be where I plug myself, consider me plugged.


Don't give them 100% at the start.

The question of payment is a double edged sword.

I have both hired freelance writers and contracted out as one. I have been screwed over by more clients than writers. It is a nasty game, but as with any contracting job, there are no guarantees. Is your reputation so impeccable that they should trust your word that you won't take their hard work and conveniently forget to pay them?

In place of *paying upfront* versus *milestone payments* try starting off your relationship with your new copywriter with bite sized projects to build the trust. Any $1000 project can be broken up into baby steps thereby cutting out the need to gamble or insult.

Hey Melanie,

I'd love to do some copywriting work for you for free, in exchange for a testimonial. If you're interested, please let me know.

-Nadia

Hey Im going to try to answer some of your questions in order below. =-)

1. No. If your looking for a copywriter/content writer then it's not essential that they know SEO. You just need to let them know what words you want in the content. Don't try to over complicate things for them.

2. At first you may need to work with many, but narrow it down to a select few. The longer you stay with someone, usually the better they get and more they trust you.

3. Some copywriters can produce those things, but I like to find people who are SPECIFICALLY comfortable with doing 1 tasks. So if I am looking for someone to write content, I want them to be the best at that.

4. Depends on the person and the quality. Also depends on the customer service. I wouldn't mind EVERY paying a little extra for awesome customer service.

5. This also depends on how much work you need done, but probably 4-5 days for 100% unique content.

6. You will find some awesome content writers here at the warrior forum, hire section. No need to look all over the internet. Make sure you write them and see if you get a response back. Look at other warriors reviews on their service. For example for our writing service, you will see many people are happy with what we offer.

Hope that helps my friend!

-Omar

Copywriters will provide you with unique and interesting content for your website. However, choosing the right professional may take longer than you may think. Do not make the mistake of rushing through the process of choosing the right candidate. As per the payment, pay them 50% of the project cost at the beginning and the rest after it gets completed.

Hi there,

One thing about hiring a copywriter or any interviewee is that YOU SHOULD ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS, they will give both parties a head start.

You Can PM for more details!

-likeaboss-