I’ve noticed uncertainty and misplaced expectations when marketing professionals look to hire a B2B copywriter. At worst, the result is a bad fit between company and writer. At best it’s not making the most of what could be a great relationship.
Myth #1: Go cheap or go home.
Money is not always an indicator of quality by any means. However, charging too small an amount is a dead giveaway that something is wrong. Going to cheap services like eLance or oDesk doesn’t even work for content mills anymore. It’s not going to work for a legitimate B2B business that needs good, reputable content to attract the right customers. (A writer who charges $15 for a blog post is going to give you that exact value.)
Myth #2: The copywriter should be able to read my mind.
Sadly, there is no International Brainwave to replace upfront discussions with your writer. It’s true that the more experienced a writer is at a) writing, b) your industry, and c) your company, the less upfront time you’ll have to spend with them. But every company is different, even the ones competing against each other. You will need to discuss your key positioning, top marketing statements, differentiators, customer segments, and what you hope to achieve with a piece of content.
Myth #3: The writer should give me an hourly rate so I know what I’m paying for.
A very, very few writers may give you an hourly rate. Here’s why: the better the writer is, the better and faster she is. The better she gets, the more value she gives – but if she’s charging hourly, the less money she makes! Um, no.
Myth #4: I can’t afford a writer and will do it myself.
It’s not that you can’t do it, many marketers are good writers. The question is: what do you have to give up in order to write that blog post, article, email, or white paper? Chances are you’re going to give up your most strategic functions; the ones that you don’t have to do every day, but that if ignored will get you in real trouble. What kind of money have you saved? To the contrary, you have lost money by losing opportunities. Let a writing professional write your content for you while you concentrate on your highest value activities.