SEO writing services: What to look for when you're hiring
When it comes to hiring an SEO writer, you may not know what to look for. Not to worry, that’s why I’ve created this blog post. I also wrote a post on the SEO acronym meaning, if you’re not sure what “SEO” means.
Let’s start with the basics:
What is SEO writing?
SEO writing is designed for attracting readers to a webpage by writing in a way that improves the page’s chance for ranking for specific keywords. Prospective page visitors enter these keywords into a search query in Google search (or any search engine).
SEO writing improves a website’s “on-page” SEO, meaning all of the ranking factors covered in this activity are related to publishing a specific webpage.
Some of these factors are slightly technical in nature, but they don’t deal with the website’s structure, which is covered by technical SEO, nor do they aim directly at backlink acquisition, which is covered by off-page SEO.
Usually, tracking and monitoring page analytics and ongoing improvements to the page are not covered but they can and should be, in my opinion, which I’ll get to later.
High quality SEO writing requires the following skills:
Clear and engaging writing
Effective SEO keyword research
Planning SEO elements such as the title, meta-description, url and headings
Sensitivity to your content marketing strategy aims
Top reasons to hire someone for SEO writing services:
improve organic traffic
improve brand awareness
compete with popular websites in your industry
develop a library of useful content for overall marketing strategy
It’s important to remember that not all content needs to prioritize SEO as its main aim. I usually recommend including a mix of SEO content, brand storytelling content and content aimed at boosting engagement. It’s almost impossible to prioritize all of these factors in one piece of content, so it helps to choose a main emphasis and optimize a piece of content for one top area: whether it’s search, PR, or social media.
Understanding your own aims better for each piece of content will help you when you hire and work with writers to help you. This is one of the reasons I always include an on-boarding questionnaire when I begin working with clients.
What makes a good SEO writer?
A writer may claim they know how to write for SEO, but you may want to ask for some form of proof. The tricky part about asking for proof, however, is that there are a lot of factors out of their control that impact SEO ranking: the pre-determined word count, editorial guidance and review, domain authority (the existing popularity of a particular website), backlinks, coding and design are just a few.
That said, I still recommend looking at samples of their work. If they give you links to samples published online, you can also check its ranking using an SEO tool like Ahrefs. Here’s a checklist for seeing if a writer is a good fit for your brand:
Do you like reading their work?
Is their work clear and easy to follow without much jargon?
Does the title cover one main idea, and do the headings reinforce the main idea?
Do the title and headings contain specific keywords in the language people use in search?
Does the writer have access to analytics on their post? If so, you can check for the following stats:
average monthly page visits from organic search
organic keyword ranking in organic search
average reading time
engagement metrics like shares and comments
Additional considerations
Beyond these standard considerations, here are a few more things to think about when choosing a writer or agency for SEO writing services.
Are they easy to work with?
Beyond their skill as an SEO writer, you’ll want to make sure the person you hire is easy to work with. For instance, if you’re not an expert at SEO, you might want to consult with them for additional planning skills like a site audit, domain-level keyword research, and content planning in an editorial calendar. These are all skills I offer, and I’ve found it’s especially helpful for companies that don’t have a cohesive marketing strategy in place for their content scheduling.
Do they catch your mistakes?
A good SEO writer can also give you feedback on your selection of topics. Sometimes, they are able to find better opportunities to rank by adjusting the topic and keywords slightly.
I’ve found this to be true in my own work, since sometimes clients choose keywords that are either too difficult to rank for or don’t receive enough traffic. A good SEO writer can help guide you to content ranking opportunities you might not have thought of before.
And when they do, it’s important to listen sympathetically. I say this because just 5% of all webpages published rank in positions 1-10 for keywords in Google search within a year of being published. Thanks to my careful keyword research and planning, 14 of my piece ranked that well last year, and I’ve developed a sixth sense about a content’s ability to rank.
Can they provide help with content updates later on?
On the other hand, you shouldn’t see content publishing as a done deal as soon as you post it onto your site. It helps to track and monitor your content’s performance to improve it over time. A good SEO writer will be able to step in and make improvements and updates to a piece of content, so that it ranks better based on the data from Google analytics or an SEO tool.
Can they write for different page types?
Another thing that good SEO copywriters know how to do is to optimize different page types. For instance, a landing page and a product page will differ substantially in their approach to SEO from a blog post.
Read more articles like this one:
Inbound content marketing: How to strategically take advantage of its many benefits
Warning signs for bad content writing services
In addition to the positive indications that a writer will be great to work with, there are some red flags to watch out for. Here are the top red flags on my list:
Their rates are very low
A good SEO writer will charge at least $0.30 per word. Anything less than that suggests they are not very qualified.
They stuff keywords in the content
While there are key places to include keywords, Google search engines are capable of “semantic search” meaning they understand topical keywords and synonyms, so you don’t have to repeat keywords. In fact, repeating keywords too often will reduce the chance that a piece of content will rank in search. Instead, keywords should mostly appear in the appropriate places: titles, headings and intro paragraphs. Otherwise, the content should sound natural and reader-friendly.
They include keyword tags
Keyword tags are no longer scanned for consideration as a ranking factor by Google’s search algorithms.
They carelessly insert links
A seasoned SEO writer should be very careful about the links they choose to include or not to include. Internal links to higher-importance pages are always welcome, while links to low-authority sites or too many links can not only send your reader away, they can distract the reader and even reduce your page’s ability to rank. This is something that can be handled with a style guide, which I’ll come to in the next section.
Tips for helping your SEO writer help you
Here are a few tips for setting your SEO writer up for success.
Give them a style guide
In my opinion, every brand should have a style guide. They’re not hard to make, and you can even hire a writer to develop one. This makes working with different writers and designers much easier, and it will improve the branded “feel” across all of your channels. Things to include for SEO writers are: do’s and don’ts for language style, capitalization, punctuation and mechanics preferences for the gray areas, expectations about links, calls to action, and citation formatting.
Give them a content brief
A content brief is a simple document that outlines the goals (KPIs) and purpose of the piece, the intended length, the audience, the suggested editorial angle, outline and any notes and research that you definitely want to include. This takes away the guesswork when you hire a writer for a piece of writing. You’ll have a better chance of getting the kind of content that you want. If you’re not sure, you can ask the writer to create a brief for you to review before they write your content.
Provide a clear deadline
When working with freelancer writers, you should understand that they are constantly juggling multiple clients and projects. Having a clear expectation for when the first draft should be completed and your editorial process after that will help give the freelancer peace of mind.
Connect your writer to your team and project management tools
This one goes without saying, but it helps to get your writer on board with the rest of the team.
Provide clear expectations about additional needs
Ask yourself whether you have assigned the following responsibilities for written SEO content: uploading the text to the website, finding or creating images for the page, promoting the content on social media, managing and responding to comments on blog posts or other pages with comments enabled. If you need help with these areas, check to see if it’s something your SEO writer can take on for an extra fee.
Don’t hesitate, hire an SEO writer ASAP
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading these tips from a seasoned SEO writer and hopefully it helps you understand what to look for the next time you need to bring on a writer to help you meet your SEO goals.
SEO writing is one of the most effective ways to increase your organic traffic, so the decision to hire someone for their on-page SEO services should not be taken lightly.
Are you new to this site? Hi! I’m Erica Eller, a content marketing writer specializing in SEO for sustainable companies. This year, most of my work is either in ESG, climate solutions, or the circular economy.
If you’re interested in getting started working with me as your SEO writer, contact me to inquire more about my rates and services. :)