Hiring a writer is like hiring an architect to build a house. You don’t just say to an architect, ‘Great – go build me a house.’ You discuss the style and size of the house, what things are important to you, what local building regulations are, etc.
There’s a partnership of sorts between you and the architect, with both of you bringing things to the table to produce the house you want.
Working with writers is also a partnership. So here are a few tips for clients working with writers and writers trying to address common client concerns – all to help ensure that partnership produces the results you want.
Working with Writers
Sharing is caring.
Sharing is also VITAL if you want content that works for you. Tell the writer:
- Who they are writing for: The more we know about the audience, the better we can tailor our words to connect with them.
- Why they are writing it: What do you want from this content? Is it to entertain social followers, educate using your expertise, or entice new customers?
- The facts and details: Got relevant quotes, FAQs, research, or stories? The more the writer knows, the better they can ensure the right story is told.
What’s your vibe?
You want content that aligns with the rest of your communications and sounds like it comes from the same place, so make sure your writer knows your brand voice and, where relevant, important terminology or industry terms. It can also be helpful to provide examples of things that resonate with you to give the writer a sense of what you are thinking.
Get the conversation started.
It’s your content, so your ideas and input are key parts of the process. A bit of mutual brainstorming can produce directions that get everyone excited about the next steps—as well as reveal potential gaps.
Take a breather.
You’ve delivered a lot of info and generated some ideas—so the writer will go away to process all that and start weaving some words together.
Adjust the fit.
Like great tailoring, great content is the result of quality work and important final tweaks. When the draft comes back for review, be ready to give specific and actionable feedback, and the content will be adjusted to fit.
Common Client Concerns
“We could just do this ourselves.”
They absolutely could—they could also, in theory, build their own house (to hark back to the beginning of this post) but isn’t it easier, safer and – in the end – better to hire an architect?
Now, they may very well be perfectly decent writers in their own right. But there is a value to professional writing expertise and pointing this out is not an insult to their writing skills. You don’t have to go into the nitty-gritty details of narrative structure, the rhythm of language, or the psychology of word choice. I mean, you can if you want, but experience tells me they will either fall asleep or roll their eyes.
Use examples of other engagements to show where your experience brought value – and explain how a fresh perspective can lead to more engaging and effective content.
“I don’t really know what I want but I’ll know it when I see it”
Proceeding on that basis is inefficient, frustrating (for everyone), and can eat up more than its share of goodwill. Why not suggest a brief discovery call to help bring their goals and target audience into focus? It’s also a good time to make sure everyone sees this as a collaborative process.
“It’s too expensive.”
As the great Red Adair once said, “If you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur.”
Of course, these days, very few people will know who Red Adair is, but never mind. The point remains valid even if I am as old as time.
The bottom line is this—your knowledge, abilities, and experience have inherent value. And having someone come in to do the job right the first time is less expensive than paying someone to do it wrong and THEN paying someone else to fix it. Point out that expertise is a good way to save money in the long run.
“But I gave you feedback already.”
Did they? Was it specific and actionable? Or was it more along the lines of ‘Hmmm… not really feeling this.” For an answer like that, there are two responses.
- A quick reminder of who the content is for. The content isn’t actually FOR them. I mean, it is being created for their use. But they aren’t the target audience. It is worth prompting along the lines of, ‘But will your target audience feel it?’
- A discussion about what constitutes feedback. As opposed to opinion. Examples are always helpful here. Something along the lines of “I don’t like the tone” is an opinion, while “The tone isn’t aligned with our brand voice” is feedback.
Additionally, make sure everyone knows what sort of feedback is needed, when it is needed, and how it is most effectively given. If you are getting feedback from a group, the when and how can be critical—you don’t want endless dribs and drabs coming in on multiple platforms. In such cases, feedback form might be useful.
Include an overview of the feedback process as part of the earliest discussions so clients are clear on what constitutes feedback, as well as when and how to share that feedback with you.
“We’ve worked with copywriters before and it didn’t work out.”
Well, we’ve all had disappointing relationships, so we can definitely empathize with that experience. So by all means, empathize away. But also make sure to distinguish yourself from ‘copywriters’ as a whole by highlighting your unique approach and expertise.
So, what have we learned?
- We have learned that both the client and the writer want to content to be an good as it can be – everyone wants the same thing in this partnership.
- We have learned that working with writers requires working WITH them.
- And we have learned that addressing common client concerns constructively and as early as possible smooths potentially bumpy roads.
Now, if you don’t already know – go look up Red Adair