This blog post is actually about why you should outsource the creation of written content for your business, but first I wanted to share with you something I saw the other day that blew my mind.
Maybe you’ve seen it before. Heck, maybe you’ve even eaten it. I sure hadn’t.
Did you know that in the 1980s Colgate released a lasagne TV dinner?
I’m a huge Colgate fan. I never use any other toothpaste. I’m a rusted-on brand advocate. But do I want to eat their lasagne? No, ma’am, I do not. Nor did anyone else. The product failed and was pulled from supermarket shelves and now Colgate pretends it never happened.
My point here is that, while I support the entrepreneurial spirit this TV dinner represented, it’s important to know what you’re good at.
It’s important to know what you’re good at. And if that’s not writing, maybe it’s time to outsource your writing?
Many of us in business are brilliant at what we do. We’re champion widget makers and market-leading doodad purveyors and, according to Google Reviews, the best place to get high-quality such and such in the local area.
But we’re not writers.
Yet writing is an everyday skill that, for most us, is absolutely crucial to our business success. We use it in emails, in signage, in our marketing. We write blogs for our website to help generate traffic and grow customer engagement and loyalty. We craft tweets and Facebook posts, and send out thank you letters and final demands. It’s a major way we communicate with customers and potential customers. So it’s vital we get it right.
And that’s why outsourcing your writing is an excellent idea.
In fact, according to soon-to-be-released research by Typeset and Mantis Research, the organisations that use writing most effectively outsource their writing to specialist services.
Why does it work so well? Here are 6 good reasons to outsource your writing.
A professional writer is going to have a truckload of ideas for different ways to approach a topic. They’ll also know how to write in a way that appeals to your audience. What’s more, they enjoy it. (Which is something to keep in mind if you hate it.) Why not leverage someone else’s expertise and passion to your advantage?
Professional writers will know how to create content that speaks to your audience.
Outsource to the right writer or content marketing services agency and you’ll get a level of professionalism that ensures you’re not sending out emails riddled with spelling mistakes. Professional writers use qualified and experienced proofreaders. (And if yours doesn’t, find another supplier!)
READ MORE: The high cost of poor writing (and what to do about it)
Writing is hard. It can soak up a lot of time and, in the end, it still might not be as good as you’d want it to be. You could miss your target, mislead your audience, or leave them distinctly unimpressed. Why not spend that time and effort working on your business instead?
Coming up with ideas for content can be hard work. If you outsource to someone who not only is a writer but also has experience as an editor or managing editor, you get access to their ability to generate content ideas. Whether you’re blogging once a month or twice a week, a managing editor will never run out of ideas your audience will love. Need to increase production? No worries; just ask for more ideas and more content. They’ll have plenty – and they’ll always meet your deadline, too.
If you outsource your writing to a professional they’ll know all the little tricks of the trade to help you rank well in Google.
Chances are you’re publishing at least some of your written content online. In which case, a professional writer is going to have about a thousand little tricks (from understanding SEO to testing headlines to knowing how to label a photo) that will help Google and your customers find you (instead of your competition). Using someone who knows all this stuff is going to save you a lot of faffing about.
READ MORE: How to improve your blog’s Google ranking
Do you have a way you like things to be written? Maybe you prefer “programme” to “program” or want job titles capitalised or want to use US spelling and grammar. Perhaps you want all your content written as feature-length interviews or you want your product profiles to include humour. A professional business writer can do all that, and ensure your copy is consistent throughout your website, marketing collateral, and any other written material you produce. Whatever your overarching strategy is, a professional writer will be able to create content that meets it.
The State of Writing research into writing effectiveness showed business communicators who outsource their writing are more likely to report success. The most effective communicators outsourced their writing 50 per cent of the time compared to only 39 per cent of those communicators who say they are only moderately effective.
Whether your writing is as sloppy as a microwaved lasagne, could just be better, or you could just be doing something better with your time, consider outsourcing the work to a professional writer.
It could be the best investment you make all year.
And it’s certainly better than a TV dinner.
If you want to work with professional writers, managing editors and proofreaders, get in touch with one of the Typeset team. We’re in Australia, the US and the UK – and we’re happy to help.
2021 global survey into writing effectiveness is now open: If you’d like to contribute to our State of Writing research for next year, please take the State of Writing 2021 survey. All participants will receive an early copy of the report (before publication).
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