You need to have fresh content on your blog, consistently. That’s what you keep hearing from your business coach, your accountability buddies, your competition. But where to find the time?
Sometimes, creating consistent content means hiring someone to create it for you. Whether it’s because you don’t have time or because you don’t want to find the time (because writing really isn’t your thing anyway), there’s nothing wrong with getting some expert help to grow your content bank.
But what does it look like? And can someone else really write in a style that sounds like you?
I’ve been working with small business owners to create the content they need to market their businesses for the last 10 years. While every business is a bit different, the actual process of blogging for someone else is essentially the same.
[bctt tweet=”Hiring someone to write your blog shouldn’t be scary, and you won’t lose control of the process.” username=””]
Hiring someone on your team to help you create content shouldn’t be scary, and you don’t lose control of the process just because you’re delegating. Instead, it should be a true joint process where you’re being guided to make informed decisions about your content and, ultimately, your business
Here’s what it might look like:
Meet & Greet
Personally, I don’t like to hire anyone for something unless I already have a relationship with them. I mean, they need to know who I am and hold similar belief systems before I give them the keys to some of my business tools.
This care and concern goes both ways. I don’t want anyone to commit to hiring me as a strategist, coach or copywriter unless they’re sure they are ready to—and that means getting together for a quick chat. When you’re hiring anyone in your business, be sure you’ve taken the time to have a conversation with them and that you have similar philosophies in business first.
[bctt tweet=”When you’re hiring anyone in your business, be sure you’ve had a conversation with them first.” username=””]
Get to Know You & Strategize
You’ve found “the one” and you’re ready to hire someone to blog for you. Great! The first thing you should do is have a longer conversation with your copywriter, one that allows her to get to know you better. Your writer needs to get a good handle on your voice and personality. She needs to develop your tone and hone in on some of your belief systems so they come through in the blogs she’s writing for you.
During this conversation, your copywriter will want to talk about long-range plans and strategy so she can help you develop a plan of action for your content. This ensures that you are addressing what you want to promote in your business or the questions your audience is asking you. You may also begin to map out a content strategy during this conversation, though your copywriter may take the information gleaned here and start developing the strategy separately.
Develop Topic Ideas
You have a plan in place, so you know what content you’re publishing, where, when and (probably most importantly) why. Your writer isn’t (or shouldn’t) take your ideas and run. Nope.
It’s your business. Your ideas. Your paycheck. A good copywriter will take the time to talk to you about each of the ideas and garner some of your words for the blog post. So it’s told from your perspective, with your ideas. So when your readers digest the content, they hear you in it.
[bctt tweet=”A good copywriter will take the time to talk to you about your ideas so your content tells your perspective.” username=””]
Time to Execute
Now that your copywriter has notes from your ideas, she can write your blog posts from your own perspective. Depending on her caseload and any prior agreements, it might take her up to two weeks to come back to you with drafts of the blog posts. Know when they’re coming to you and what your responsibilities are after they arrive.
It’s Your Turn
Be sure to review all copy you receive from your copywriter. Check it over for typos, voice and content. And communicate with your writer to ensure she receives feedback on what you liked and what might need to be changed. The more specific the feedback, the better because she’ll be better informed about what you’re looking for in the next round of blogs.
What Comes Next
Some copywriters will load the content for you, while others let you or your virtual assistant take the reins. Be sure to post the blogs with branded images and then share away. Sharing is probably the most important step in the process because if you’re not telling your audience that you have new content, what’s the point of creating it in the first place? And don’t be afraid to share it more than once—especially on platforms where content disappears quickly, like Twitter.
Hiring someone to help you create content for your business shouldn’t be scary. In fact, it just might be the reason you start creating and publishing consistent content. And that’s never a bad thing, if you have the right person on your team and the right strategy!
