The age old question, should you have in-house writers or outsource content creation? We reached out to marketing experts to get their hot take…
#1 Collaboration
Two or three sets of eyes are better than one. When you outsource your writing, you’re probably going to end up proof-reading and making revisions to the content you receive. The nice thing about taking care of this process in-house is that you’re getting the input of multiple people who are tied to your industry. Not only that, but if there’s a certain quality standard or format you’d like every article to follow,training an in-house writer to adhere to those standards is a lot easier than asking different outsourced writers to comply with what you want.
Contributors: Kyle Strong from Tradogram
#2 Clear and Sustained Content Strategy
Having in-house writers and a dedicated strategist (or a writer and strategist in one) allows a business to have a defined and consistent content strategy. They can actively monitor and respond to analytics to push traffic to a site, developing the top of the sales funnel for your the business. When a company does not stay on top of this, their traffic declines and this can hurt the brand's awareness and their overall sales.
Contributors: Sean Flannigan from coolblue web
#3 Familiarity With Industry-Specific Subject Matter
Spinstak Growth Agency is a boutique marketing agency for safety and industrial MRO professionals. Spinstak believes that it is crucial to have in-house content writers for any small to medium-sized business in a niche industry. In-house writers are extremely advantageous for these types of businesses because they’re able to be completely immersed in the subject matter for which they will be writing.
In-house writers are able to become more familiar with their subject matter, their company’s brand, and brand guidelines. Freelance writers often require a lot of additional research to understand the company’s style, industry, and position in the market. On the other hand, in-house writers experience this company and industry-specific information every day, improving their knowledge of the subject matter and, in turn, improving their writing.
Contributors: Stephanie Kidd from Spinstak Growth Agency
#4 Fresh Perspective
Through personal experience, I have found that in-house writers bring a fresh perspective to the pieces they work on. They tend to be great researchers and fact-checkers, but also think outside of the box in creating content. They're mindful of trends and usually find a way to work pop culture into the mix to illustrate points and provide working examples.
Contributors: Deborah Sweeney from MyCorporation
#5 They’re available when you are
One of the main benefits of having an in-house writer is that you set their hours and they are available when you need them! Need some new content that needs writing urgently? An in-house writing can stop what they are doing and jump right on it. Whereas with a freelance writer you are at the mercy of their schedule, as well as the possibility of increased prices for 'urgent' jobs.
Contributors: David Linder from Product Mafia
#6 You Don’t Have To Share
When you have an employee, there are certain contract that protects both parties. Protections like having to give notice before they leave can be a lifesaver. Whereas freelance writing can stop working for you at a moments notice, often time leaving you in a difficult situation. Join any freelancer forum or Facebook, firing your client is a humblebrag often used freelancer when they inform a client they will no longer be working for them. When you have an employee, there is contractual obligations that prevent this.
Contributors: David Linder from Product Mafia
#7 They are no longer limited to just writing
Having a writer and an employee often times means you can ask them to perform other tasks outside of only writing. For example, writers are often asked to liaise with clients, manage social media or manage general office administration. Tasks that would be 'unreasonable' to ask of your freelance writer.
Contributors: David Linder from Product Mafia
#8 Brand Identity
I have tried outside writers that were great at writing, but didn't know the industry well enough and couldn't write with our company's personality. So for the past two years we have hired writers in our industry and have them come into the office every day. The outcome has been much more interesting content and it fits with our company's other marketing initiatives. I believe that is the biggest advantage. They get closer to your business and write more effectively because they are part of your company.
Contributors: Jeff Moriarty from MySupplementStore
#9 Increased responsiveness and decreased ramp-up time
Fewer things get lost in translation from process documentation to draft deliverable, and if bi-directional feedback can happen in real-time instead of by email. In-house writers are also usually a little more invested in the longevity of your company, and for early-stage companies having additional sets of critical eyes on your product and user experience can be a huge help.
Contributors: Graham Shorr from SquareFoot
#10 Cost Effective
Freelance marketing can get very pricey. Everything is billable and project based. An in-house marketing team means that all your needs are met under their agreed upon salary, with no hidden extras and invoices.
Contributors: Nate Masterson from Maple Holistics
#11 Risk Management
An in house marketing team has a personal investment in your company. That means that they are aware of the highs and the lows, and are on the scene as soon as a crisis arises. Whether it's a PR issue or a copy issue, your in house marketing team is more likely to project risk and handle it smoothly should disaster strike.
Contributors: Nate Masterson from Maple Holistics
#12 Control
The key advantage of having in-house writers is control. Direct, daily access to your content team can make it easier to manage your content strategy. From discussing topics, scheduling content, and formatting each piece.
Contributors: Chris Hornak from Blog Hands
#13 Quality of Work
Writers who work in-house typically have a higher level of buy-in than freelancers and are more invested in both the company and the work they produce, leading to better quality content.
Contributors: Sarah Hancock from BestCompany
#14 Face-to-Face Communication
Being able to converse and collaborate face-to-face with your writers every day leads to more engagement and idea generation, which usually helps propel progress. Plus, you can easily talk about projects and make adjustments and edits to work quicker.
Contributors: Sarah Hancock from BestCompany
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