Hire a Freelance Content Writer Vs Agency

Have you finally decided that enough is enough and you need to outsource your copywriting?

Hurrah – you’re halfway to content freedom. 

But since you’ve decided you don’t want to try to battle through your own content, you might have also realised that this means you have some decisions to make. 

Should you hire a freelance copywriter to produce your web copy for you?

Or should you partner up with an agency to get the work done?

There are pros and cons to using both – and lots of this depends on how youlike to work and how involved you’d like to be. 

Here, I’m looking at hiring a freelance content writer VS hiring an agency. 

Then, you decide. 

Are You Niche?

Every brand is niche in its own way. But think about your specific niche. 

Having a writer that is experienced, knowledgeable and passionate about your niche is 100% better than a generalised writer who is a “stickler for grammar” but doesn’t know about sustainable fabrics or next season’s biggest beauty trend. IMO. 

When hiring an ad agency, you’re likely to get professional copywriters that function on mistake-less copy. While that’s great, often a specialised freelance writer is the one that comes with passion, a background in the industry and an obsession with your product. 

Consider Retainers

It’s not all about money. 

Sorry, scratch that. 

Money is important! Your bottom line will dictate how much you’re willing to spend on copywriting, content creation, social media and any other digital marketing idea. 

Copywriting agencies usually charge monthly retainer fees and offer a minimum charge – eg. 3 months. 

Freelance writers, in general, are more flexible. They will offer you retainers but they will also offer hourly, daily and weekly charges. As well as for individual projects. Perfect for ad hoc work and smaller projects. 

Consider Your Product Line

If your brand sells a huge variety of products and doesn’t fall into one niche, you’re going to need a copywriter or agency that can handle your diverse areas. 

Some freelance copywriters are very niche. This can be great when your product is equally niche. But this doesn’t help if they struggle to write about your other product lines. 

Often agencies can help here because they’re less specialised. 

How Much Work Do You Have?

Another thing to consider is the amount of work you actually have to hand over.

People will often choose to hire a freelance copywriter if they only have ‘bits and bobs’ and brands with huge projects on the horizon will look to a copywriting agency. 

Here, it’s all about research and transparency. 

Many freelance copywriters can handle huge projects without micromanagement. (oh hey – never missed a deadline, just saying). But some prefer smaller jobs. 

The scale of the job is something you’ll want to consider and discuss from the beginning. Plus, how quickly do you need to achieve it?

Freelancers will tend to be very honest about achieving these deadlines for you because they know if they overpromise and run over, it’s not a good look. 

And their reputation means everything to them. 

If you want to hire a single freelance writer but you’re worried about managing, strategy, planning, proof-reading, publishing or any other part of the process, choose a writer with a digital marketing background.

A copywriter with a marketing and business background can help with these things too. This means you don’t need a content manager on top of a writer. 

Having looked through the options and tallied up your pros and cons for both a freelance copywriter and a copywriting agency, you’ve likely made up your mind. 

If you’ve made the right choice and opted for a freelance writer to help you through, get in touch and let’s discuss your fashion, lifestyle or beauty brand today. 

Until next time…