8 essential soft and hard skills to consider when hiring a content writer

Want to take your company’s content marketing to the next level? Sure, you do!

In this day and age, a strong online presence is essential for any business. By presenting your company in its best light, online marketing can help generate new leads and maintain relationships with the customers you already have.

A great content writer is a key member of any online marketing team and a glance around the internet will demonstrate why. The unfortunate truth is that not every content writer is created equally, nor is the work they produce.

So, how do you find the best content writers among hordes of potential candidates? It all comes down to knowing what to look for so that you can find a writer with the perfect mixture of essential hard and soft skills.

What are Soft and Hard Skills?

Before we get into the 8 essential skills every good content writer should have, let’s take a moment to break down the difference between hard skills and soft skills.

Hard skills refer to teachable, technical abilities. These are the kind of things that you’d learn in a classroom to prepare you to do a particular type of job.

Soft skills, on the other hand, are a list of assets that make you the kind of person that anyone would want to work with. They include things like a positive mindset, punctuality, and the ability to work well with others.

A content writer with the full package will have just the right combination of both. Adding such a writer to your team can help ensure that not only will the job get done right, but that you’ll have a lovely experience along the way.

The 8 Essential Skills for Your Content Writers Team

Now it’s time to get a bit more specific about what to look for in the content writer of your dreams. While some people’s list may be a tad longer than others, here are 8 essential skills that should definitely be included.

1. Adaptability

A great content writer understands that different clients have different needs when it comes to things like tone and voice. Your writer should thoroughly understand your audience and be able to adapt the words and approach they use accordingly.

This can go a long way towards showcasing your company’s personality and engaging the audience you want to connect with. While a content writer might be able to churn out the best white paper ever written, they should understand that the same type of language isn’t going to get them very far when writing a humor article about cats who accidentally blend into their surroundings.

2. Time Management

Likely, we don’t have to tell you how far good time management goes in any business. A great content writer should be fully aware of your schedule and capable of sticking to it.

While many content writers are freelancers, this is no excuse for an inability to stick to deadlines. The best content writers are those that you’ll never have to worry about chasing down for the finished product.

3. Problem Solving

There’s a reason you’re out to hire a content writer rather than simply giving it your best shot and hoping for the best. A good content writer knows that their job is about more than simply presenting the facts.

The ideal candidate should be well-versed enough in their craft to help identify any existing issues in your current content. They’ll then use their experience and expertise to present a better plan of attack.

4. Grammar and Vocabulary

There is nothing less flattering than content that looks like it was written by your 10-year-old niece or nephew. A great content writer will be well aware of this and ensure that the grammar and vocabulary used in your project are flawless.

While this should be fairly obvious, it’s worth emphasizing that your standards should be incredibly high where this is concerned.

5. Research Skills

While it may be possible to find a content writer who is an expert in your field, there’s no need to panic if this isn’t always the case. Experienced content writers have no problem writing about a wide range of subjects due to the magic of research.

Your candidate should be able to not only familiarize themselves with your company but also understand the most important points to highlight. They should also be able to break down complex ideas in a way that your audience can understand.

6. SEO and Content Strategy

Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter if you’ve got the best piece of content in the world if nobody ever reads it. That’s why content writers are trained to use tools such as search engine optimization (SEO) to help ensure that your page earns a respectable Google ranking.

When readers do land on your page, your writer’s solid content strategy should convince them that it’s worth sticking around to see what you have to say.

7. Creative Writing

Let’s face it, boring content isn’t likely to hold anyone’s attention for long. That’s why a content writer should be able to use things like humor, timing, and effective communication to hook your readers.

By finding a way to make your content fun or interesting, a good content writer can greatly increase your odds of success.

Writing articles is not an easy job. And its gets harder when you have a lot of pieces to produce. If writing is not your cup of tea, you can trust in ghostwriters to help you accomplish your pieces.

8. Editing

A content writer who always shoots off their first draft for approval isn’t likely to survive for long. Your candidate should understand that a huge chunk of their job involves strong self-editing skills.

This includes everything from checking for overused words and spelling mistakes to tightening things up to enhance the content’s flow.

How to Hire a Content Writer

Now you know what to look for in a content writer, but where do you find one? Look no further than WriterAccess by Rock Content. WritersAccess uses AI-powered tools to help connect you with the perfect fit from over 15,000 professional content writers.

Each content writer is thoroughly hand-screened and customer-reviewed to help cut out the guesswork. Not only will you find the perfect content writer for your team, but also a large network of editors, designers, illustrators, animators, content strategists, and more.

Ready to give it a shot? Sign up for a free 14-day trial today and experience the difference for yourself!