Originally published July 30, 2021 , updated on August 31, 2024

All businesses should consider content marketing as a proven tactic to increase website traffic and visibility. It’s also been known to generate strong business leads and conversions. 

Many companies have started producing content, but it does take time and resources. Time and resources that you might not have internally. Content generation and the ROI thereof is a slow process. However, companies have to produce content regularly to reap the benefits in the long run. 

Not everyone is able to write their own content, though. Some companies just don’t have the time, while others don’t have the experience. This is where content writing services can assist. Before you jump straight into hiring one, be sure to do your checks. 

Here are some things to keep in mind when choosing a content writing agency to assist your business with all your writing needs. 

Check Their Website and Other Digital Platforms

The first thing to check is how they handle their own content. 

Use Google to see how high they rank in search results. You need them to implement SEO techniques on your content. If they are good at what they do, they will do the same on their own content. 

Find their website and check how they write. Is the copy clean? Are the blogs interesting? Do you spot any spelling or grammatical errors? If you aren’t happy with what they produce for themselves, you won’t be happy with what they can do for you. 

Also, find them on social media. You might be hiring them to write social media posts for you. In this case, you want to see how they approach social media writing. How they present themselves on social media will tell you a lot about the business.

An agency’s digital assets will be a window into how they work and produce content. 

Look at the Customer Testimonials of Your Desired Content Writing Service Provider

Good agencies who do amazing work will get great feedback. And they will post this feedback online for prospective customers to see. Find this section on the content writing services provider’s website and see what other people have had to say about them. 

If you can’t find this section, do a Google search or take to Facebook to see if anyone has left any reviews. If there are any bad reviews, be sure to check when the review was left and what the customer had to say. It might be a review that’s years old, and the company may have changed CEOs or managers since then. Also, check the way they handled any complaints. Did they respond to the bad review and offer a solution? Of course, if there are far too many bad reviews, steer clear. In fact, more than one or two feels like a pattern. 

Don’t worry if you don’t see testimonials or reviews from big, well-known brands. Just because they haven’t landed a big fish doesn’t mean they aren’t capable of doing amazing work. Let the positive reviews guide you. 

Make Your Content Writing Providers Do a Test

Interview the services you intend to hire. You can set them a writing test or ask them to pitch you various topic ideas about your business. 

This will give you insight into how the agency thinks and how much they know about your business. Even if your relationship with them is relatively new, they should do some research about your business and industry. 

Check to See How Long They Have Been Around For

If you are a successful B2B or SaaS business, you would ideally want to work with a content company that has been around for a while. Find a company that can hit the ground running with whatever you need from them. 

Look into how long the agency has been around. Research who the company MD or CEO is and what their background is. This will allow you to learn more about how experienced they are and how long they have been writing and creating strategies. 

Can You Tell What Their Field of Expertise Is?

Even the best content writing agency can’t be everything to everyone. While many can write about a broad range of topics, almost all will have one or two things that they are known for. It could be B2B or SaaS writing, or it could be writing about travel and hospitality. Check their previous work to see if they have any experience writing about the industry or industries that you work within. 

Also, be sure to check what languages they write in. If you need copy in English, check to see if the agency has native English writers. If you need pieces written in other languages, make this clear upfront so that agencies can let you know if they can provide this service or not. 

Make Sure Your Values Align and Do a “Vibe” Check

You will be surprised at how many businesses turn agencies away simply because they don’t gel. 

Be sure to do a “vibe” check beforehand. This means you need to check to see how well you get along, if there’s any awkwardness, do you like their overall personality? The last thing you want is to enter into a contract with an agency and go through the whole process, only to find that the team doesn’t align with your company values and culture. And while there are no wrong values, what you want is an agency that believes in the same things you do. 

When an agency’s values align with yours, you will have a more successful partnership. Does the agency value people? Does it care more about the bottom line? These are important things to consider if you want a long, successful relationship. 

There are many things to consider when choosing a content writing services provider. And even though this process may take time, you will find that it benefits you in the long run. You will have more time on your hands to run your business and focus on growing your company. 

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