You’re a professional. You are a better than average writer. You know more about the issues that matter to your clients than anyone else. So you should make the time to write your own articles, posts or presentations, right?
Wrong. After many years in the marketing communications trenches at professional services firms, I can tell you that I’ve yet to meet lawyer, accountant or financial professional who can conduct a consistent and high quality content program without the support of a writer – sometimes more than one.
Since I have made this same argument so many times over the years, I have reduced it down to six reasons why you need help with your marketing communications program.
- It’s Cheaper: Even the most experienced, best writer in the world charges less per hour than seasoned lawyers, accountants or financial professionals. Think of it as an opportunity cost problem. What else could you be doing with your time (that might be billable) aside from laboring over an article?
- Your Content is Their Priority: Supporting your content efforts is the writer’s day job. They don’t have to wait until all of the client emails and calls are cleared before turning their attention to your post or presentation. So by working with a writer your communications campaign will be consistent and something
- They Work Faster: A professional writer writes faster than you do, in part because they are often paid based on production. Their whole job is to fill up empty pages, so they have long ago overcome the agonizing fear that empty space on the screen with that little curser blinking away can illicit.
- They Write in a Compelling, Persuasive Style: While most of your work involves writing, you have been trained to write technical or legal memos or briefs. That’s not kind of compelling or persuasive language that motivates action. Marketing writers are used to writing language that is user-friendly, clear and actionable.
- Editing is Easier Than Writing: The writer will send you a draft of your article, post or presentation for you to review and edit. A blank page may be daunting, but editing a draft article or presentation is easy and maybe even fun – unless you are working with an unqualified or inexperienced writer in which case it is worse than a blank page.
- Everyone is Doing It: If you think your peers and competitors who publish and speak a lot are producing all of their own material, I promise you, you are wrong. What they have done is develop a strong relationship with a marketing writer.
So don’t be afraid to ask for help with your content marketing program. While it’s nice if you can find a writer with experience in your business or the industry that you serve, it’s not essential. A good writer is in the business of learning about an issue and making it understandable to a large audience.
That said, don’t select a writer based solely on price. It’s been my experience that when you go with the lowest price, you get what you paid for.