When you are new to hiring writers and need help effectively communicating what exact message you would like to convey through their writing, then we are here to help. Getting your idea across to another person and hoping they send an e-mail back with the picture-perfect blog article you imagined is hardly the norm, especially for first-timers (whether it’s your first time or theirs).
Even if you are not new to writers hiring, you might still have problems getting fully what you wanted in the first place when the job proposal was sent out. We are not doubting the amount of work and effort that has gone into both parties’ sides of the job, but there just might be some things missing from the communication.
Whether the focal point was missed by inches or if the writer completely wandered off topic, it isn’t the first time that an article isn’t what it should be, and it is not going to be the last. Here are a few of our tips and guidelines to help you get your point across and connect completely with your freelancer, thus connecting with your future clients.
Set the Tone.
Style can differ from person to person, just like an ice cream flavor or music genre. Depending on what type of voice you want your article to convey and how you want to make your clients and future clients feel while they are reading the article, it’s important to get this info to your freelance. It’s best to do this from the start.
When you are trying to relay this message, and tell the writer what it is that you want from them, it might be a bit difficult to put a tone into words. To send them what you want to see from them, your best bet is to use previous examples. This is really helpful when working through a broad span of writers. Giving them an example, or even a few, can help dictate the voice you want and keep it consistent, though the writer may change.
Don’t Go Strict on Those Keywords.
Though your radar might be going off because keywords are what optimize research and are one of the most important parts of your articles, don’t sweat it too much. Google is so much more advanced than it once was, and rigid keywords are really no longer necessary. These search engines have become so smart that they can constitute a relevance even if a pair of keywords is written 17 times in your article.
The key here is to keep your readers in mind. Stuffing your article with keywords, which means the same words repeated over and over again can make your article less readable for your prospective clients. Keep it smooth and flowing, and use “inflexible keyword strings,” which are keywords that you need in your article but spaced out in a less cringe-worthy way throughout a paragraph or sentence.
Creating a natural voice while still inputting in the keywords is an art form, but crucial for your articles to be successful.
State Your Goal.
It is important to tell your writer exactly what you want this piece of writing to accomplish. Whether it is to persuade, inform, build a social media platform or increase followers, it is important to get your main purpose across.
Pretend You Are Writing to an Average Intelligence
Articles shouldn’t be a bragging platform where you show off all the fancy words that you know. Keeping the article simple, easy to read, especially since time and attention-span is really of the essence, is crucial to be understood over a span of your clients, no matter if they finished high school or have a Ph.D.
This doesn’t mean that you should dumb yourself down, but there is so much research that backs up keeping your text from a third-to-sixth-grade reading level. This makes your point much more comprehensible and easier to become widespread and enjoyed. Keep your audience in mind, however. If you are writing for college professors, for instance, using language from your son’s English book isn’t really necessary.
Do the Extra Background Work
You are probably a near expert on the topic you are sending to your freelancer. They are most likely not. Giving a few links that have the information that you know that they should know is a helpful start to keep your writer on topic and put those pieces of information in their writing. Virtually, you want to give the impression that this article represents you and your company, so the writer should have a basic knowledge of what those two represent.
Feel free to comment below on other tips that you have used when communicating the needs of your project with your freelancer.
