Writing copy for any platform or purpose is one of those processes that a lot of people believe can be carried out in-house without any problem. We can all write an e-mail or put together a letter and as such, we can all write content for websites, marketing e-mails or press releases, right?
In one hand, the answer to this is yes. With a bit of research and a little guidance, you can soon find out what type of content you need to be creating for the platform that it\’s to be published on.
But just because this is the case, does this instantly mean you shouldn\’t look at the possibility of outsourcing it?
Whilst we\’re strong believers that if you have the talent in-house to write your own copy, do so, it\’s absolutely paramount that to see the most success from it, it\’s this talent that you genuinely need to have – and unfortunately, it isn\’t just something that can be gained after 20 minutes of reading about newspaper articles and blog posts.
One of the most important things anyone has to understand about content is that no matter if you\’re talking about the exact same message across a dozen different platforms, the actual way it\’s delivered needs to be perfectly suited to the channel it\’s being published on and subsequently, the audience\’s requirements for that specific platform.
As we said above, you can undoubtedly find a number of pieces online about how to write a great press release or deliver effective social media updates, but to write the most effective content possible, you need to have more than 20 minutes worth of knowledge, regardless of how well you can put together a sentence or paragraph.
Think of it in another way, such as if you wanted to install a new bathroom suite. You might be able to use the tools required and find some \’How To\’ guides online to explain how to install the suite, but this doesn\’t automatically mean you\’ll be able to install it in the most effective and efficient way possible – or in a way that delivers a fantastic experience to whoever\’s using it each and every time.
Writing content – or more accurately, writing high quality content – is more difficult than most people first realise. Everyone can string a sentence together, but it takes a lot of knowledge and experience to create content that\’s going to deliver what you need it to and it\’s because of this why when you\’re looking to create content in-house, you need to be confident the person writing it is going to be able to create it to the highest standard possible.
And if you don\’t have this confidence, it\’s time to outsource it.
Image: pasa (Flickr)