A new blog post every week, fresh content for your website on a regular basis, sales texts for the landing page of your new product: writing the content for all these content formats is time-consuming.
Maybe you are like many companies and you are wondering whether you should outsource content writing or rather create it yourself.
Hiring a professional initially costs money. On the other hand, you may have already noticed that creating content takes a lot of time. The time that you cannot free up in your daily business.
In this blog article, I have summarized the biggest advantages and disadvantages for you.
Write the content yourself – the advantages
What do you have over professional copywriters if you write your content yourself?
Your knowledge about your company, your services, and your products. You could probably enumerate your product range and all its features like a rocket if you were woken up at night.
A copywriter must first read up on your business. She doesn’t know your products and first has to sift through a mountain of documents and read briefings.
And even when it comes to writing, you are probably faster than someone who has yet to get a feel for your business, your industry, and the needs of your customers.
Write texts yourself – the disadvantages
Of course, you can whip up your own company texts in no time at all, because after all, no one knows your company as well as you do. But in contrast to an experienced copywriter, you need a lot more time to prepare.
Because you should never just start blindly with your text. Whether you want to write content for your website, landing page, or your next blog post, your content needs planning.
And then there is the operational blindness. You know your product, the recurring themes, and formulations by heart. At some point, it becomes difficult to create texts with creativity and freshness that are varied and take on new perspectives.
A professional copywriter has an unbiased and objective view of your company and looks at your offer from the perspective of your customers. His or her approaches offer you completely new possibilities for your marketing and communication with your customers.
Good writing follows a plan
Who exactly should feel addressed by the blog article and what solution do you offer them?
What challenges do your website visitors want to overcome with your offer and how do you strategically guide your readers to the desired action on your landing page – for example, to buy your product or contact you?
So before you hit the keys, it’s important to have a plan. First comes the concept, then the text. I’ll give you an example: If you want to write the texts for your website yourself, then don’t make the mistake that I see with many of my clients. They start writing without a goal in mind.
Take the time to plan the content and think about what goal you want to achieve with your website and the texts.
Just as important as knowing the goal of your website is knowing who you want to target with the page. What does your target group want and need and what can you offer them?
You have to use the right arguments and the right strategy to bring the benefits of your offer together with the needs of your target group. Your content must accompany your desired customers from the first information to the purchase and offer them exactly the information they need on their way there.
Strategy instead of brooding over a topic – copywriters pursue goals with their content
What you need is a strategy. You don’t want to spend valuable working time week after week pondering what you could blog about today. Each of your texts must contribute to your company goal.
If you don’t have a clear idea of what your text is supposed to do, then it becomes difficult to make an impact with it. If you don’t know exactly who the people who should read your text are, how can it hit the mark?
If you don’t do everything you can to answer the exact questions your prospective client is asking, how are they going to feel like you’re the right person for them?
So if you want your lyrics to rock and win customers for you, then you have to acquire this knowledge. And that costs you – you guessed it – a lot of time.
If you’re unsure about these questions and are struggling to create a solid foundation for your copy, then I encourage you to get a copywriter on board or even outsource content writing to a professional content creator.
Because someone who has a lot of experience with writing will consider all these aspects before he or she starts researching and finally starts writing.
Anyone can write, right?
The following situation is one that I keep seeing. And which makes my heart cry a little every time:
A company is planning a website or the relaunch of its existing website.
The employees responsible spend months looking for a suitable agency. A web design is developed, colors and the world of images are discussed in many tough meetings – everything revolves around the look of the new website.
Eventually, the design will be available, which looks great but was somehow also quite expensive.
Now only the text is missing.
And then?
Then comes the decision that turns the chic, informative, user-friendly, and search-engine-optimized (SEO) website into a pretty one at best. Because everything was so expensive now, you just write the content yourself.
After all, anyone can write. And if there is no one who has time, the intern or working student can take over.
Even the self-employed often decide to write their own texts out of concern about the costs.
Well-armed with copywriter tools
This is understandable, but a great pity, because entrepreneurs are giving away the chance to get the most out of their website and attract readers like a colorful, fragrant spring meadow attracts bees.
I’m not saying that you should leave your lyrics to others. On the contrary. If you have the necessary knowledge and the tools (because writing is ultimately a craft), you can write excellent texts. Many just don’t know what it takes to make texts work and sell.
Because in order to write content that ignites, convinces, and sells, you need knowledge in the areas of marketing, sales psychology, strategy, search engine optimization, and much more.
Before designing a website, a copywriter should therefore take over the conception and consider how the reader is guided through the pages in an argumentative and sales-psychological manner. He spins the red thread that runs through the website and accompanies the user.
Have SEO texts written – or can I do it myself?
Whether your texts are found by Google depends primarily on the texts. Content is one of the most relevant criteria for a good ranking on Google and CO: Good copywriters who are familiar with SEO also take a strategic approach here:
They find out which search terms your desired customers enter into Google when they are looking for a solution to their problem.
The research relevant keywords and check them for search intent: what are users really looking for when they type in a specific keyword? Do you want to find out more about a topic, buy something or watch a video on the topic?
Your texts only have a chance of a good ranking if your content meets the expectations of those searching. In order for your website to rank better on Google than your competition, a capable editor will also include the competitive situation in his research and take a look at your competitors.
Have content written or create it yourself – shine through professionalism
Regardless of whether you wrote the texts yourself or brought a professional on board – it is important that the content makes a professional impression.
High-quality and well-thought-out texts determine whether your target customers consider you and your offer to be professional. Website visitors, for example, notice very quickly whether the content of your website is made with love and passion or whether it was only used to fill in the placeholders in your chic website design.
The content is therefore decisive for the quality and professionalism of your online presence. It is he who turns interested parties into paying customers.
Have texts written by professionals – freelancer, agency, or content ordering platform?
If you have decided to hire a professional to outsource content writing, then you have to answer the following question for yourself: Who is the right person? A freelancer, a content portal, or rather an agency?
Each of these three options has advantages and disadvantages, depending on what is important to you when creating the text and the results.
Order texts from an agency
You can commission texts from an agency. Some agencies have full-time copywriters and editors, while others work with freelancers.
Pro:
An agency employs professionals who are familiar with corporate communications.
There are specialists for every area, from individual SEO measures to complete content strategies.
Since the tasks in an agency are shared between different heads, you usually don’t have to wait long until your texts are created. Even if you need a lot of texts at the same time, you will probably get your text drafts quickly.
You have personal contact and the advice is professional.
CONS:
Agencies often work with freelancers who do copywriting. As the client, you may not have any contact with the copywriter because communication takes place via the agency.
The prices are usually higher because office space, employee costs, etc. have to be financed.
With larger agencies, your contact persons may change. If several copywriters are working on your project, this could be reflected in a non-uniform writing style.
Order content from a content platform
Text exchanges act as a kind of intermediary between clients and freelance copywriters. The platform gives you access to the services of a large number of freelance copywriters.
Pro:
You pay a price per word for your texts. Since this is usually very low, the text exchange is usually the cheapest option.
Even if you need a lot of texts at once, you will get results quickly.
Due to the word price you can calculate the costs well.
Ordering via the platform is quick and easy.
CONS:
For the low price, you often have to compromise on quality.
It is difficult to determine whether the respective copywriters are professionals or hobbyists.
Since the portal processes the order for you, intensive personal support is not possible.
The copywriters who are registered with the platforms work for a low fee.
Have texts written by a freelance writer
If intensive, personal contact is important to you when creating your new texts, then a freelance editor can be an advantage for you. There are pros and cons here too.
Pro:
Personal contact and intensive support.
You will receive professional advice so that your texts contribute to your company goal.
A freelance editor will familiarize herself intensively with your topic, your company, and your target groups.
Here you will find high quality at a fair price.
CONS:
A single freelancer has limited capacities, so the lead time maybe a little longer.
Very large amounts of text require more time, depending on the order situation of the copywriter.
Finding the right copywriter can make a lot of research.
The prices for a freelancer are higher than for a text exchange
Conclusion
Whether on your website, blog, or landing page: your texts determine whether your readers see you and your offer as professional and trustworthy or not. They decide whether your content will rank in the search engines and whether potential customers will buy from you.
Therefore, the question is not who wrote the content, but whether the text can unfold its full power because it works and has the effect you intended.
You can either acquire the necessary knowledge or have a copywriter write the content. What you decide is up to you.