A colleague shared with me the other day how frustrated and disappointed she was with hiring freelance writers and marketing consultants to help with her business. I asked what she thought the problem was and she shared some very specific things with me.

What she said neither shocked nor surprised me. Unfortunately, I hear it all the time from clients who hire me to fix or clean up the aftermath of hiring the wrong person.

Let me say upfront that some freelancers are just plain awful at their craft; others are well intentioned; and still others make excellent partners. And just because someone is good at what they do, does not mean they’ll be the right partner for you.

I could literally write a book about when and how to hire a freelancer — and when not to. So, for brevity’s sake, let’s just look at the topic based on what my colleague shared.

Here’s what she said made her blood boil:

Freelancers who are copywriters but try to be marketing consultants

Marketing communications “consultants” or “coaches” who recommend the same cookie-cutter approach for B2B that they recommend for B2C

Those who are so into social media that they make social media the focus of their conversation before they really understand my business

Yikes. I winced at those. It’s embarrassing to me as a consultant/coach/freelancer to have others tarnish my beloved profession.

As a consultant experienced in both B2B and B2C marketing and communications, I know how challenging it can be to distinguish the two. In fact, I’m working with a client who is using a big, fancy New York agency and we’ve had to repeatedly remind them that our end-customer is not the consumer. The distinction can be a fine line, and I’m of the opinion that social media and e-communication is changing even the B2B space. (More on that another time.)

But, that’s no excuse for delivering shoddy, ineffective copy. And there’s never an excuse for delivering templated anything.

So, here are my suggestions for avoiding what my colleague had to endure:

1. Find and qualify. Get referrals from peers and colleagues, networking groups, etc. But don’t stop there. Do some additional research. Visit their web site, Google their name, set a Google alert, pre-screen by phone before meeting them face-to-face, do a reference check, compare them to others, etc., etc., etc. Be thorough in your research. My own toolbox contains a simple pre-screen questionnaire that I use to qualify clients. Know what your  expectations are before you start looking for someone who can meet them. And remember, it’s rare to find someone who can “do it all.” You may need multiple partners to accomplish your goals. For example, I know some about social media, but it’s not my area of expertise — and I tell my clients that. If your potential partner says, “yes, yes, yes” and claims to be an expert in anything and everything, run for the hills … at least be sure to do additional research. Do they know the difference between PR and publicity? Are they accredited in their niche? How long have they been offering the service and in what capacity? Interview them and research their background thoroughly. Of course, balance that with the fact that until you’ve hired them, there’s a limited amount of time they can invest with you. Be respectful of their time and circumstances while you do due diligence.
2. Perform a gut check. If their web site copy sounds like hype, perhaps it is. If you hear nice things about them with an underlying “be cautious” tone, don’t ignore it. Do not talk your way into or out of a partnership. You should be genuinely excited about who you’re going to work with. In my own business, I only work with people who seem as though they’ll value my contribution and respect my time. I’m not in the business of doing rush jobs, for example. There are plenty of great freelancers who cover that niche. I’m not one of them so I would not be the best partner for a client who has a hurry-up need. If a potential client tells me it’s not a rush job but I still get the sense that it is, I heed the warning. Doing a gut check saves me and my potential client a lot of heartache. Here’s another example from my own business: Like many freelancers, I typically invoice new clients one-third of estimated hours and wait for payment before getting started. Clients who balk at my terms are a red flag for me. Now, I’m not saying every freelancer should do that, but it works well for me and, more importantly, it helps me vet my clientele.
3. Do your part. Sometimes, like it or not, the issue is with you, not your consultant or freelancer. How’s your communication? Do you hand off work and disappear, only to come back at the 11th hour? Touch base, schedule status updates, set guidelines and milestones. Your job is to manage the expectations of the project. Even the most independent professional cannot operate in a vacuum. I recently ended a client relationship for that very reason. My client simply would not engage with me, nor would she delegate that responsibility to someone on her staff. While I’m very flexible in how I work with people, I will not sit idly and listen to the sound of crickets. It’s a deal breaker for me.
4. Remember you get what you pay for. While price is not necessarily equated to quality, it can be an indicator. Great partners charge a fair market rate that’s probably on the high end. While my hourly rate is competitive, I’m certainly not the lowest priced freelancer around. Why? Because I’m worth what I charge. I write fast. Very fast. I write well. I deliver results. And I charge accordingly. When considering hourly  or project rates, consider the time your project could take. A $45/hour freelancer may take three times as long as, say, a $90/hour freelancer. (Not always, of course, but keep it in mind.)

Okay, so I could keep going and going. I have opinions about these things! :)

Bottom line? Do your research, trust your gut, set and manage expectations, take the plunge and learn from your mistakes.

Share your freelance/consultant horror and success stories with me by leaving a comment.

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Regardless of who the copywriter is on your next project — you, a colleague, a subordinate or a freelancer — make a vow to get or give proper feedback. Note that I said feedback, not criticism.

Feedback, according to Merriam-Webster, is “the transmission of evaluative or corrective information.” Criticism, on the other hand, is “the act of criticizing unfavorably.” (Isn’t that a typical dictionary definition?!) Criticism, in my opinion, does nothing to move the copy forward like feedback does.

Before learning how to use feedback to get great copy, you have to understand that copywriting is never done well when it’s done in a vacuum. Taking the time to get and give feedback — and then using that feedback to refine the copy — always leads to better results.

A couple of years ago I worked on a video script for a major pharmaceutical company. My first draft was solid, however, feedback from the project team really helped me streamline and sharpen the final copy. I’m grateful that the client provided clear and appropriate feedback; some of which was related to things surrounding the brand that I, as a consultant, could not possibly have known.

Here’s how to give the kind of feedback that promotes great copy:

1. When possible, allow the writer to briefly present the copy. Writers make a lot of decisions throughout the copywriting process and likely have a  reason for why they wrote what they did. If you go into the feedback process with insight into the copy process, you’ll at least be able to determine whether or not the writer succeeded in achieving what they said they would.
2. Read the copy to yourself. Not skim. Not scan. Not skip. Read the entire copy through once; then read it again, this time out loud.
3. On the third read-through, put yourself in the reader’s shoes. Ask yourself if the main message is presented early, clearly and succinctly. The copy should always address the benefit(s) to the reader in a way that’s both memorable and easy to understand.
4. Make note of the copy’s positives and start the feedback process there. You or your writer will be more open to hearing and receiving feedback that starts with the positive.
5. Conduct a SWOT analysis, looking for the copy’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. During your SWOT analysis, look for common copy mistakes such as vagueness, redundancies and overuse of jargon. Identify any potentially confusing areas, looking to see if the overall flow of the copy makes sense.
6. Watch for your own biases. If you prefer the word “prior” over the word “before,” don’t sweat it. Unless it changes the meaning of the message or is completely off-brand, let it go. Limit your feedback to the messaging of the copy rather than word-for-word commentary. That being said, be as specific as possible in your feedback. Instead of saying, “The copy is boring,” explain the ‘why’ behind your feedback, such as “The copy lacks an emotional connection. Use a success story to illustrate the point.”

So even if you choose to call feedback constructive criticism, make use of these six tips for giving good feedback. Your writer will thank you. But, more importantly, your reader will.

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On the TLC television show, “What Not to Wear” (WNTW), fashion experts Stacey London and Clinton Kelly employ style rules to make over real-life fashion disasters.

The dynamic duo teaches an unwitting fashion victim how to express his or her personal style with clothes and accessories that flatter their shape and size. Of course, London and Kelly help ensure that the style rules are followed precisely and the resulting makeover is always a rousing success.

Style rules also have their place in revamping something else — copy that’s lacking substance and style.

So here are my “3 Rules to Transform Calamitous Copy into Tantalizing Text.”

1. Leverage your assets. The participants on WNTW are consistently told to focus on their most pleasing feature, such as their small rib cage, tiny waist or deep-brown eyes. And so it is with copy. Lead with the strongest content, whether it’s a claim, guarantee, benefit, headline or descriptor. Then let it stand. On its own. Without unnecessary adornment or clutter to detract.
2. Minimize your flaws. WNTW is known for downplaying the, ahem, the big, the wide, the unflattering, the overt and the obvious. Calling attention to weaknesses is a mistake in copy as well and is most evident in rambling copy that says little to nothing. Instead, copy should be clear, concise, specific and benefit driven.
3. Be true to your personality. Although WNTW often issues near-identical style rules, the outcome for each participant is always unique. That’s because London and Kelly coax the individual’s personality out little by little until it becomes integrated with the participant’s newly embraced fashion dos. Copy, too, can — and should — have personality. Choosing words that differentiate, injecting voice and tone, and making the copy very personal to both you and your audience make the copy more interesting to read, more persuasive and ultimately more impactful.

Agree? Disagree? Have your own tried-and-true style rule? Please share your comments.

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Sharing this from today’s Get Great Copy e-newsletter:

With each passing January, I realize just how long I’ve been writing. I say it’s been 20+ years but it’s really been a lifetime.
 
At the age of 3, I became a self-proclaimed writer by scribbling “mmmm” on a piece of paper. At the age of 10, I submitted a handwritten short story to (and got my first rejection from) our local newspaper’s Sunday magazine. In college, I wrote resumes and bad, angst-filled poetry. At my first real job, I wrote anything and everything from TV scripts to commercials to taglines to correspondence.
 
And then there were the days of typing and mimeographing midterms for my college work-study program where I earned the nickname “Machine Gun” for my super-fast typing skills; the days of the literal cut-and-paste style of editing at a regional magazine; and the days of interviewing a little-known Tim Zagat about the Zagat Survey’s move to something strange, new and wonderful called the World Wide Web.
 
Suffice it to say, I’ve seen a lot of changes in the way we prepare the written word for consumption.
 
Yet, some things never change …

• Always create copy for your intended audience.
• Make your copy informative and interesting to read.
• Create well-organized, easy-to-follow sentences and paragraphs using language that’s easily understood.

And some things do change (thankfully) …

• It’s perfectly acceptable to end a sentence in a preposition.
• Fragments are okay. Even desired. Honest.
• It’s best to write the way we speak. Yuh huh.

So let me venture a few predictions — trends, really — that should, from my perspective, impact or change copy and the approach to it in 2009.
 
Consumer-Generated Content Expands
Look for more companies to open the way for both B2C and B2B audiences to participate in real dialogue with them. Watch for more brands to use Twitter to generate conversation starters — conversations that will find their way into the copy strategy behind television commercials, print ads and web content.
 
Video Content Surges
The popularity of video as entertainment will give way to video as critical communication tool. In the early months and years, however, video content strategy will be overlooked or under-resourced by everyone but the most savvy marketers.
 
The Value of Original Content Rises
Consumers will continue to demand fresh, thought-provoking content, which will require an investment in resources and a commitment to quality where copy is concerned. If consumers don’t get it? They’ll be extremely vocal about finding it elsewhere or creating it themselves.
 
Content Aggregation Grows
Content aggregation sites like Alltop.com will drive businesses to use human content aggregation to better organize their own content in ways that are more meaningful to audiences.
 
Mobile Content Extends Its Reach
Demand for mobile content delivery will become more urgent — which means more companies need to make their web sites and blogs phone-friendly.
 
SEO & Content Get Happily Married
Companies will become zealous about balancing the need for optimizing online copy for search with the need to publish copy that’s relevant and interesting to audiences.
 
Total Team Education Becomes High Priority
Companies will happily invest in expert-led training workshops and resources, especially as it relates to social media and Web 2.0 strategies.
 
Partnerships Form, Storm, Norm & Perform
Collaboration between companies and outside resources, such as web copy experts, communication strategists and online media buyers, will grow exponentially as companies realize the bottom line benefit of niche-based strategic planning.
 
Agree or disagree with my predictions? Post a comment to voice your opinion.

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