How to find Content Writers (That Won’t Cost an Arm and a Leg!)

Last Updated on: June 24th, 2021

Blogging is time-consuming, and so is writing. Creating quality content takes time, it takes a lot of research, planning, outlining, and drafting, and polishing before you can complete the publishing step.

Yet millions of blogs rely on fresh content each day.

As a website owner, entrepreneur, or business owner, it is oftentimes easier to hire content writers to produce quality content for you.

But where do you go to find good content writers? Especially ones who won’t cost you an arm an leg?

And what kind of qualities should you look for when hiring content writers?

This article is going to answer these questions for you.

I’m also going to share a secret that many freelancers don’t know!

The Secret Most Freelancers Won’t Tell You

I am more than a blogger. I am a freelance writer and editor. I’m an author. I’m a content creator. I’m a business owner, too.

I do coaching. I help others become authors. In fact, there are many jobs I do online, and there are many tasks I’m responsible for.

I’m more than just a blogger… and I have various income sources.

Related read: The Essence of Blogging and How to Earn Money Online

I sometimes outsource tasks to others to make my various jobs easier. This includes hiring writers to do research for me and draft articles, which I then add to, edit, and either publish or give to my clients.

My standards are very high, and that is why EVERYTHING must meet with my own personal approval before they are shared with others, with my readers, or with the world.

When I first started freelancing, I did everything myself.

As my business grew, I realized that I needed help. I could no longer do everything myself!  There simply are not enough hours in the day!

While speaking with a fellow freelancer, I learned that she outsourced many of her tasks… including the writing projects she was hired for!

I was a bit flabbergasted. I was surprised that she did this! But the more she explained it to me, the more it made sense, from a business standpoint.  What she did was hire a writer to write the article she was hired to write. She paid that writer a fraction of what she was paid.

So I started doing this too. Luckily for me, I had gotten to know a lot of freelancers throughout the years, and so I have no trouble finding help when I need it. I also discovered that many writers from India charge a small amount for writing. I started surveying my Facebook friends and followers and vetted a few writers. I have used various freelancers on different occasions to complete different tasks for me.

But you are not me, and you don’t have the connections I do.

So what are you to do? What if you’re a blogger who doesn’t know any freelance content writers? What do you to find good content writers?

You can spend hours searching on Google and determine who might be the best fit for you, then contact that writer and pray that he or she is available. Then you can hope that the rates are not too expensive, especially if you are on a strict budget!

You can also use a content writing agency to find content writers.

But before hiring any content writers, you should be aware of the things you need to look for when hiring such people.

 7 Top Qualities to Look for in Good Content Writers

There are a lot of qualities that you should look for in good content writers. Here are the top 7.

1: Excellent command of the language

A content writer must have an excellent command of the language in which he or she is going to write. If you are looking for a content writer to write in the English language, then the writer must have a working knowledge of English grammar. The content writer must be able to write content that is grammatically correct, readable, accurate, and presentable. It also must be well-edited and error-free.

2: Strong Research Skills

When you are publishing content on the web, your content needs to be reliable and well-researched. It must be accurate; if the content writer cannot write content that is accurate and well researched, then there is no point in hiring such a writer.

Audiences today demand content that overwhelms them with information. Why do you think so many people visit Wikipedia? 😉

3: Impeccable Proofreading and Editing Skills

When you are paying for well-written content, the writer should be able to proofread their own content and provide you with a perfect article or blog post.

Related read: 5 (+ 17) Self-Editing Hacks to Boost Your Blog Writing (17 in your FREE Checklist!)

4: Write Engaging Content

Author Crawford Kilian in his book Writing for the Web (Amazon aff link) says that the internet readers spare only 5 seconds before they start expecting the content to blow their mind and give them something new or else they exit from your blog.

Readers these days have a need for mind-blowing content. The reader expects the content to be engaging and provide something new each time they read a new blog post.

So, hire a content writer who can provide engaging content and make your audience come for more every day is your ultimate goal. It’s no secret that you’ll earn more money through increased traffic to your site! Your readers are your consumers; they will buy your products and/or services, click on your ads, use your affiliate links, and behave in ways that will ultimately help you earn more in the long run!

5: Knowledge of SEO

Basic understanding of SEO is a must. All content writers must be aware of on-page SEO tricks and must know how to do keyword research before they even start writing.

6: Niche Expertise

You need a content writer who is an expert in the niche that you are blogging. The content writer must know the niche like he knows the back of his or her hand. This way, he or she will never be out of topics to write about and will keep the audience entertained with quality content.

7: Timely Submission

Deadlines are important. Your content writer must submit the content within the given time frame. This way, your audience will be well-fed with timely content, and your blog will have a lot of compelling content to serve to new visitors.

Where to Find Good Content Writers

There are many different places you can hire a content writer or place an ad for one. Some of these places include:

Contentmart

Problogger Job Board

LinkedIn

Fiverr

Freelancer

Upwork

Guru

I have actually not used any of these platforms except to look for work on the Problogger job board, but I know people who have used the other services.

And since this is actually a sponsored post, I want to tell you a bit about Contentmart. Although I have not used this service myself, I have considered it. I have read positive reviews about it, too.

And even though this is a sponsored post, I have no trouble promoting it on my website because I have checked this site thoroughly myself and have found it to be both impressive AND free of grammatical errors. (As an editor who is a certified English teacher, this is extremely important to me. I don’t promote sites – especially writing sites – that contain poorly written paragraphs or sentences!)

Contentmart: A Place for Both Content Writers and Clients

The neat thing about Contentmart is that it is a place for both content writers and clients.

So if you’re a freelancer who wants to earn a few extra bucks, you can sign up to be a writer. You’ll have to pass a test that will determine how well you know the English language. You are given 20 minutes to complete it.

And if you’re in need of a writer (if you are a client), you can find content writers there. Contentmart is possibly one of the few services which are dedicated to content. On Contentmart, you can get quality freelance content writers at an affordable price.

When you first visit this site, you will need to create an account, as either a writer or a client.

I will help you navigate this site from both perspectives.

How to Use Contentmart as a Writer

To give you the best advice here, I actually created a profile for myself on Contentmart.

To start, simply sign up to be a writer. This is the easy part.

Fill out your profile. Choose an image that shows your face (to inspire trust in your clients). If you get a message saying the image is too big, then simply hover your mouse over the image and take a smaller “snip” of it. (I learned how to do this through trial and error.)

Then complete the various sections of the profile.

This will include providing a cell phone number that can be verified with a SMS (text) code which is sent to your phone.

Then add some sample content. You will be limited to 3000 characters. This is kinda tough, as you will need to edit previously published works to fit into the space. (I edited 3 of my guest posts for this.)

I also took all of the English tests available, as all writers should be verified and need to pass a written test before they are allowed to take clients. This way only the writers with good written skills are allowed to bid on projects.

I had a friend experiment with this test and take screenshots for me.

Here is the first question he got:

I hope you chose the word “glory” to complete this sentence!

When I took my tests, I completed them in under four minutes. I still had 16 minutes left on the countdown clock.

If you pass, you will easily know. You will get also get an email from Contentmart telling you that you passed. (My email is shown below.)

However, this is what you will get if you don’t pass the test…

The good news is that you can try the test again if you fail the first time.

However, a lot of people fail the test, and only the best are selected.

If you pass the test on the first try, then congratulations to you!

You can now start bidding on projects and earning money as a freelance content writer!

I will not ever bid on projects, as the pay is minimal. It does not compare with the $0.25 USD I get per word for my writing services! My rates are higher because I am highly skilled and know I am worth it. Many people think I charge an arm and leg for my services, but clients gladly pay me for quality work. (See my Testimonials page.) I also like to choose which clients I want to work with, and which projects I will accept. I like my independence.

However, the choice to be a writer on Contentmart is yours, not mine. I cannot make your life decisions for you!

I can only guide you along the way. (You might be better off learning how to be a successful freelancer by taking either Elna Cain’s course, Write Your Way to Your First 1K, or Gina Horkey’s course, 30 Days or Less to Freelance Writing Success.)

How to Use Contentmart as a Client

If you want to hire writers, you need to select the register as a client option. You will then get the registration page.

You can either fill all the details or just click on “Sign up with Facebook” if you have a Facebook account.

Once you have created your account, you will get a message saying that your profile has been created successfully.

The first thing you need to do before ordering content is to fill your “content wallet.” This means you need to put an initial deposit of $100 down. This money will be used to pay for the work your writers do. I think this simply a security measure on the part of Contentmart; they need to know you will be able to pay for your orders.

This is specifically stated in their TOS (terms of service) under section 4 (which you should read when you sign up):

“The content purchaser will be required to make an advance payment to Contentmart through the online payment gateway provided on the Platform by Contentmart. Once payment is confirmed, the content purchaser will be able to assign his order to the chosen Content Provider. The content purchaser will be able to purchase the Creative Content to the maximum value of such advance payment made by it. Once such advance payment has been exhausted, the content purchaser will be required to replenish the advance payment as and when necessary to make new purchases of Creative Content from the Platform. The advance payment will be used to purchase the Creative Content from the Content Providers.”

The nice thing is that Contentmart offers a 10% discount if you use their code CONTENT10.

Once you have filled your wallet, you can let the action begin! You have the choice of hiring specific content writers.

You can also choose the level of service you want. Each level comes with its own price. As you can see, the prices for hiring content writers are very cheap, even if you choose the highest tier!

That is why so many people are choosing Contentmart to find freelance content writers!

Contentmart also allows you to chat with your writers in real time. This is a nice feature.

Other features include:

• Access to thousands of qualified copywriters
• No charges. Pay your writers directly
• Fully registered and licensed
• Check writer reviews, portfolios and past experience
• Built-in checks for uniqueness
• 100% refund if the content doesn’t match your requirements
• Fixed deadlines
• Automated payments
• Helpful support team

Contentmart Reviews

While doing my research for this article, I came across a few really honest reviews.

I looked on Quora, too. I found this:

I also found this review, which I suggest you read:  ContentMart.in Review – Get Content on Demand for Your Marketing Campaigns.

Clearly, Contentmart is a viable option if you are in need of content writers!

Of course, if you ultimately decide you don’t want to pay a writer to help you, you can always learn to be a better writer yourself! Read 20 Ways to Be a Master Writer and Improve Your Writing Skills to do so.