Nine strategies for finding (and successfully partnering with) an experienced SEO copywriter
by Heather Lloyd-Martin
Back in 1999, I wrote an article entitled, "Seven Steps for Finding an Online Copywriter You'll Love." Just four short years ago, the title of "SEO copywriter" didn't exist - and only a handful of people dabbled in the craft. Writing spider-friendly text with a conversion focus wasn't important. It was all about getting hits to a site by whatever means possible.
And then, the dotcom crash changed everything. And conversion became key.
Now, in 2004, more businesses understand that properly-created SEO content truly is key. However, determining whether to keep their SEO writing in-house or outsource can be a major sticking point. Do you train your existing writers in this new skill? Or, do you outsource it all to someone with experience? In the meantime, nothing gets written, and the existing copy doesn't position.
Is it any wonder why marketing and technical teams don't know how to proceed?
This updated article seeks to help marketing teams determine how and why to outsource their SEO copywriting - and how to successfully partner with your outsourced SEO writer. Whether you choose to outsource it all, or let your outsourced writer train your existing staff, a savvy SEO writer can help your business realize the positions - and the ROI - your site deserves.
Why outsource your SEO copywriting?
Many enterprise-level clients - as well as small businesses - prefer to initially outsource their work to an experienced SEO copywriter. This could be for a variety of reasons:
- Your business may have a marketing team, but your staff is not experienced with SEO writing;
- Your business has boomed and you (or your marketing team) don't have time to create new pages.
- You're launching a new site, service or product - and you need to ensure everything is done perfectly for the engines;
- You want to train your existing copywriters in SEO copywriting, and you require "template" pages that mirror best practices.
How an outsourced SEO copywriter will add value to your business.
Many organizations have valid concerns about letting another person create their Web site copy. After all, the writing reflects your corporate culture - and your organization's online branding and messaging is crucially important. A poorly-crafted tone and feel - even if the page positions well in the engines - will not help with your messaging nor your actual conversions.
Most SEO copywriters are accomplished with all forms of direct marketing writing, and writing for search engines is an advanced skill set. An experienced search marketing copywriter will view your product or service's benefits from the customer's perspective and communicate that excitement to your prospects - while still gaining the positions you require.
Additionally, SEO copywriters seamlessly weave crucial keyphrases into new marketing text without sacrificing a conversion flow - plus strategize how new pages should be structured for maximum keyphrase saturation. Knowing another person brings that expertise to the table (especially for time-challenged marketing departments or sole entrepreneurs) can help immediately increase your site's return on investment and your rankings.
However, not every SEO copywriter is right for every client. And, some SEO copywriters are better than others. If you're ready to hire a SEO copywriter for a one-time or an ongoing project, here are seven tips on how to choose and work with your new online copywriting expert.
Check their SEO writing experience. The way you write for search engines is much different than writing for print or non-SEO online writing, so specific SEO writing experience is crucial. You need someone who can switch hats on the fly, write in a Web-friendly manner, integrate call-to-action hyperlinks and think about usability issues. Sure, writing for search engines isn't rocket science - but if you hire someone with straight print experience and no online or search marketing experiences background, they'll be learning about SEO on your dime.
Your SEO copywriter should have at least one year of intensive SEO writing experience - preferably more - and know HTML basics. They should have also trained under a search marketing company or Master SEO copywriter to gain advanced skills. If they are new to the skill, or haven't trained with someone, search for someone with more experience.
Ask for SEO writing references. This sounds like a no-brainer, but checking your copywriter's references is extremely important. There's nothing worse than hiring a new writer and then find out that they regularly blow off deadlines, don't answer your emails and turn in shoddy work. Most good copywriters have a fan list of satisfied clients, so getting a reference should be a snap (and if it IS a problem, run away fast.)
Be sure to ask how the individual pages positioned, and for what keyphrases. It's not important if the writer doesn't have #1 rankings for all their pages. What is important is that a single page positions for a number of keyphrases and the page still reads well. It's common for well-written SEO pages to position in the top-20 for four keyphrases or more. If you want your SEO writer to train your staff, confirming that they "know their stuff" and their pages position is crucial.
Request multiple SEO writing samples. Review the writing carefully and see how it makes you feel. Does the text tempt you into taking action - now? Or does it put you to sleep? Are the keyphrases skillfully woven within the copy? Or does the text read like, "Our cashmere sweaters are the highest quality cashmere sweaters of all cashmere sweater stores." If the sample text doesn't resonate with you and excite you now, don't figure things will change later. It won't. Find another copywriter.
Be prepared to pay for quality. Good SEO copywriting does not come cheap. Experienced copywriters can charge anywhere from $75-$500 an hour, and they are worth every penny. Just as your attorney protects your legal assets, your SEO copywriter is fiercely protective of your Internet image. Think about how many Web sites you've left because the text was so bad, you couldn't tell what they were selling. Or, you noticed so many grammatical typos that you couldn't seriously buy from that business.
Additionally, an inexperienced SEO copywriter may inadvertently spam the engines by overstuffing the text with your important keyphrases - which could cause your site to be downgraded in the engines. Why pay low-dollar for that kind of "quality?"
Give your new SEO copywriter plenty of information to work with. Once you've signed on the dotted line, your SEO copywriter will probably want to interview you and other key personnel about your business. From a copywriting perspective, this is a crucial step - in order to write about your business, your copywriter needs to understand all the ins and outs. Asking for business plans, demographic studies, focus group results and click-thru ratios is not uncommon. If you block their every move and say that's "proprietary information," they won't get a good feel for your business - and the copy will show it.
Work with your copywriter when choosing keyphrases. Depending on the page's slant, tone and feel, some keyphrase variations may be easier to naturally include within the text. That is, using the keyphrase "Hawaiian adventure tours" may sound more natural within the text than "Hawaiian vacations." If you tell your SEO copywriter what your keyphrase priorities are, and give them five phrases per page to choose from, they can construct copy that specifically meets your positioning and messaging needs - and use the terms that work within the text..
Plan ahead - and avoid dumping "rush jobs" on your copywriter. No matter how wonderfully talented your SEO writer is, first writing drafts are typically unfocused - and that's what you're getting when you order a rush job. Strong copywriters are perpetual copy-tweakers, needing time to figure out the right writing angle and create killer benefit statements. Would you dump your income taxes on your accountant on April 14th and say, "I'll need that done by tomorrow morning." Don't do that to your copywriter unless you want bad results.
Appoint one person as your copywriter's contact person. One way to drive your copywriter slowly insane (and cost you more money) is if five people on your staff all have a different idea of how the Web page should read - and they all want a separate revision. Figure out the salient points before you talk to your copywriter and have one person handle all communications.
Tell your copywriter what they did right - and wrong. Copywriters have writing egos of steel, and are used to constructive criticism. Changing the text for your writer without telling them why you are changing it will frustrate the writer - and cost you time in-house to make the revisions. No, you will not hurt your copywriter's feelings if you don't like a particular headline - feedback like that is incredibly useful. On the flip side, if you love their work, tell them about it. You'll make your SEO copywriter's day.
Outsourcing your SEO copywriting can have a tremendous impact on your site's ROI and rankings. By simply determining how a writer can best help your business, you can realize improved search positioning and top conversions. Plus, the writer can train your existing in-house staff, so you can replicate the results on your own. Isn't it nice to enjoy the best of both worlds?
Heather Lloyd-Martin is the President of SuccessWorks Search Marketing Solutions, and is considered the pioneer of search marketing copywriting. She's the author of the book "Successful Search Engine Copywriting," and co-chair of the Association for Interactive Marketing's Search Engine Marketing Council. Heather organizes search-marketing workshops for top organizations, including the DMA and Primedia. She is also a featured speaker at industry conferences such as @d:tech, Search Engine Strategies and Seybold.
Contact Heather at heather@searchenginewriting.com or (503) 922-3627.
How can we help you with your search engine marketing copywriting? Contact us today for your customized quotation.
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