Great writers make or break your operations.
Good writers:
- Spend 10x more time on research
- Maintain high standards for content quality
- Adapt easily to new tones of voice
Great writers:
- Do all that and...
- Consistently deliver on time
- Follow instructions meticulously
- Support efficiency in your operations
(And, a bad freelance hire? Has set me back days if not weeks, with a whole lot of panic and stress).
So, how do you find "great" writers?
The answer, truthfully, is to have a thorough hiring process and do a hell of a lot of testing.
In my eBook on building scalable content operations, I introduced the "hiring funnel" used by many top-tier content production companies.
Nailing this funnel is critical if you want a steady flow of exceptional writers to help you scale quality content.
My #1 tip for improving this hiring funnel?
Vet rigorously for "ability to follow instructions" at every stage.
Here’s how:
Let’s start with your very first stage, the job advert.
You’ll likely receive hundreds of applications, and testing everyone is costly and time-consuming.
So, I usually eliminate 95% of candidates based solely on their application responses, allowing me to focus on potential "great" writers.
To do this, include two simple instructions in your ad:
Instruction #1: Ask applicants not to use AI. On platforms like Upwork, 50-70% of applications will use AI to generate responses to applications. Asking them not to isn’t foolproof, but it helps you identify those who pay attention to instructions.
Instruction #2: Request something specific. This serves as a filter for generic, templated responses. I like to ask something simple, such as, "Tell me about your favorite pet in 80-100 words." It’s straightforward and gives a glimpse of their writing ability.
Here's an example of job ad:
90% of applicants will ignore one or both instructions—instantly saving you time by weeding out those who aren't a good fit.
A further 5% will give poorly written responses.
Both tell you all you need to know about how it will (likely) be to work with that applicant.
This fail-safe has honestly saved me 100s of hours. Try and let me know how if it's useful for you.
—Benny
For a more in-depth guide to hiring great, affordable writers on Upwork—including email templates for every step of the funnel—check out my eBook & SOP package on content operations.
How the F*ck subscribers can get 10% off this week using the code: FRIENDS10
