Working with a freelancer

Key Takeaways:

  • Finding a professional, premium freelance writer depends where you look.
  • You can vet a potential freelance writer by looking at their portfolio and social media profiles.
  • The onboarding process between client and freelance writer requires a lot of back-and-forth, submitting proposals, signing contracts, and so on.
  • Good briefs make the work easier between client and freelancer.
  • Finding the right writer who manages updates, delivers content you've always been looking for, and stays on top of the deadline means finding the one who'll help you bring your brand story to life.

You’ve got the perfect product or service. You’re excited to tell the whole world about it—except your website copy falls flat. Every sentence feels wooden. Every paragraph sounds like it was written by a robot, instead of the passionate founder behind the brand. You’ve rewritten those pages dozens of times, but the copy doesn’t capture the excitement you feel about your business. You need more time to work on it, but you’re too busy and too tired to wrestle with commas.

Sounds familiar? Let’s talk about how to fix it.

Enter The Freelance Writer.

Not just a word-wrangler of those times when you feel stuck, but the translator of your brilliant ideas. The one who hears the voice you’ve been trying to write in and can finally speak for you in a way that sounds right.

Because if there’s anything you want, it’s for your words to connect with your audience in the language they understand.

Whether you’re a luxury brand, a tech startup, or a local service business, your audience expects communication that reflects your brand’s personality. One piece of off-brand content can confuse your audience and dilute your carefully crafted brand message.

But if this is your first time working with a freelancer, it can feel somewhere between taking a leap of faith and navigating uncharted territories. Wild. Scary. And exciting all at the same time.

You probably even have questions like:

  • How do I know this freelancer is the right one for me?
  • How do I know this freelancer can deliver the results I need?

And you know what? It’s okay to have these doubts and fears. After all, your business is something precious to you. You’ve spent hours working on it, from the moment it was a little spark of an idea to what you have grown it to be this day. And you wouldn’t entrust it to anyone unless they had the right idea and could help you with what you need to get done.

In this article, you’ll see what working with a good freelancer—especially a good writer (wink, wink)—looks like.

Finding your perfect writing partner

In a world where some people oversell themselves but fall short of delivering what they promised, it can be scary to find the right freelancer who will not only provide you with the support you need but also embrace your brand as if it were their very own.

You want a freelancer who embodies what you do. A premium content writer who lets your brand's voice shine through the words they write. And as hard as it may be to find the right ones, I can assure you that they do exist. Finding them may be a little challenging, but they’re out there—perhaps lurking on LinkedIn, looking for the next client to lend their voice.

Where to look for freelance writers

If you don’t know where to start, you can try online—on LinkedIn or Google, and maybe even Threads. Use search terms that are relevant to your industry:

  • [industry] + freelance [role] (e.g., travel freelance writer)
  • [topic] + copywriter for hire
  • freelance ghostwriter + [industry/topic] + open to work
  • premium brand copywriter
  • freelance writer for [industry] (e.g., freelance writer for events)

You may want to look at the following tags on X/Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Bluesky:

  • #freelancewriter
  • #copywriterforhire
  • #openforwork
  • #freelancecreative

If you’re looking for added peace of mind, you can also look for content agencies that vet their freelancers before accepting them into their platforms:

Platforms like these usually require a more robust portfolio, which means the freelancers on them have had some experience. Some of these platforms also require a video call with the freelancers before approving their accounts, as a way to verify the applicant's identity.

You can also reach out to your network to see if they know of any reliable freelancers who can swoop in and save your copy from doom. Or, if a freelancer you’ve previously worked with is no longer available, ask if they can refer you to someone. Great freelancers often know other great freelancers.

How to evaluate potential writers

It’s simple: research them thoroughly. Check their social media profiles and read their newsletters.

Freelancers are pretty transparent about the work they do, what their current projects are, who they want to write for, what kind of clients they’re hoping to attract. It’s our way of marketing ourselves, of leaving crumbs, if you will, until the next opportunity comes along.

You can learn a lot about a freelancer by

  • Visiting their website
  • Checking out their social media profiles (X, Threads, Bluesky, LinkedIn, Instagram)
  • Browsing their portfolio
  • Reading what they have written in their newsletter or blog

The spark: How collaboration between a client and a freelancer begins

Let’s say you’ve found a freelancer you’d like to work with. You establish contact with them, and now the back-and-forth begins. Expect them to ask a few questions that will help them understand your goals.

They might ask things like:

  • What’s the scope of the work and timeline?
  • Is this a one-time thing or a recurring project?
  • Who is your target audience?
  • Do you have an existing brief or brand guidelines?

Your answer to the questions a freelancer will ask you is important because it will help them solve the challenges you may be facing or the pain points you’re experiencing. It will also help them identify opportunities to grow your brand or business further.

What writers listen for

When you contact a freelance writer, we’re reading between the lines. We’re looking for clues about your brand personality in your email signature, your website copy, and even how you describe your challenges.

It helps to have a brand guide that talks about what you do, who your brand is for, and what your brand keywords are. All these little details serve as the building blocks that will help us piece together the content you need. Think of pigments in paint as an artist colors a canvas. Or teaspoons of various ingredients that a chef needs to create the perfect dish. It also helps if you know who your target audience is.

Proposal, scope of work, and contract

After the initial conversation, the freelance writer will usually send you a detailed proposal outlining the scope, timeline, and cost. Once everything is aligned, you’ll receive a formal proposal with a simple contract that protects both you and the freelancer.

How your ideas become compelling content

Each freelancer has a different writing process, and the client’s preference also plays a part here. Some clients have everything they want—titles, meta descriptions, H2 headings, SEO keywords—everything’s there. For others, it’s a little simpler—“I want an article that talks about how to fix your room to improve your sleep.”

The briefing process

I’ve worked with international airlines, premium beauty brands, and service platforms like Thumbtack. No matter the client or the industry, the fundamentals remain the same: understanding your audience and translating your brand voice into words that connect.

Each process is different, but here’s how it might look: an airline wants to attract travelers who value experience over budget flights. They don’t want to hard-sell the plane ride—they want curious travelers to experience their country. And so for the next months, we create travel guides to attract wanderlusters, jetsetters, and world explorers. We talk about one-of-a-kind cultural experiences and places they can’t see anywhere else—all in a way that will make the reader drop everything and say, “Okay, I’m booking that ticket right now.”

A professional freelance writer will not just write so the job gets done or the words fill up the page. A professional freelance writer will write from your perspective, so your brand voice shines through and your content resonates with your audience.

From brief to first draft

A brief is a clear, concise document that shares key information to help a freelancer successfully complete a project. Think of it as a roadmap or blueprint. Without a brief, a freelancer is as clueless as a chef being asked to “just cook something.” With a brief, it’s like a full-fledged recipe: “Create a 3-course Italian dinner for someone who loves bold flavors but hates spices—due by 7 in the evening. Oh, and add some of our best wine.”

Briefs don’t need to be several hundred pages long. But they need to have information for the freelancer to work with.

Example of a poor brief

“We need some blog posts for our skincare brand. Make them SEO-friendly and engaging. Here’s our website link.”

Example of a good brief

Project: 4 blog posts for a premium skincare brand

Goal: Attract busy women (ages 28-45) who value quality over price

Target audience: Career-focused women who want effective skincare but don’t have time for 10-step routines

Tone: Knowledgeable, but approachable—like a trusted dermatologist friend

Key messages:

  • Quality ingredients matter more than the quantity of products
  • Your skincare can fit into your busy lifestyle
  • Professional results don’t require overpriced items

Examples we love:

  • Curology—dermatologist-approved content
  • Paula’s Choice—science and skincare education

Deadline: First draft in 2 weeks, published within 4 weeks

SEO requirements: skincare routine for busy women, effective skincare products, quick skincare tips

Target word count: 1,200-1,500 words per post

Collaboration in action

Feedback is a vital part of any system or process. Freelance writers value your feedback because it helps them improve their articles. But feedback only works if you know what you’re working towards.

When there is much at stake, sometimes we forget that we are working towards a common goal. What that goal is may be different for each project, but it could look something like:

  • Creating a clear, compelling message for your brand
  • Growing your audience with content that grabs your audience’s attention and sparks their interest
  • Fine-tuning a strong brand voice so you have a tone and style that’s recognizable and consistent across all platforms
  • Developing content that helps drive action (persuasive, strategic writing that gets you leads, sales, bookings, etc.)
  • Building your authority and credibility so you (and your brand) can be seen as a trusted source in the industry
  • Collaborating so you can get high-quality work done without delays

As a freelance writer, I really appreciate it when clients tell me how my writing sounds to them. It’s so I can refine what I’m writing to suit their needs better.

Like that flagship carrier I mentioned earlier. They give me a general idea of what they’re looking for. A place they’d like to highlight or a route they’d like their travelers to explore. A sprinkle of SEO keywords they’d like included in the article. But when it comes to the specifics, they trust me with it. And if they have any changes, like restaurants that no longer exist or amusement parks and malls that have changed their hours, they let me know so I can rewrite those parts when they send the article back for revisions.

Why the right writer becomes your secret weapon

Good freelance writers are the key ingredient to making your words stand out.

They’re on top of their game when it comes to managing updates, deadlines, and revisions. Why? Because good freelancers know how important time is. They value their own time, so they value their clients’ time.

At the end of the day, your collaboration with a freelancer isn’t based on output alone—it’s built on trust. The trust that your ideas are in good hands. That your voice will be honored, not overwritten. That your deadlines will be met, not just marked.

A good freelancer will give you more than just deliverables: they’ll give you relief, resonance, and a little room to breathe. A newsletter that gets replies. A social media post that gets shared because the people who come across it can relate to it so much that they can’t wait to tell others about it. An audience that doesn’t just read your content—they recognize themselves in it.

And maybe that’s where the real magic lies: in someone who can make your words sound like you—only clearer, more compelling, and more connected to your audience.

The right freelance writer becomes an extension of your team—not just a vendor to supply you with what you need. They’ll push back when something doesn’t sound right, suggest ideas you hadn’t considered, and help you say what you mean in a way that actually resonates.

Ready to find your writing partner? Start by getting clear on your brand voice, gathering examples of content you love, and being specific about your goals. The more context you provide, the better your freelancer can understand what you want and deliver what you need.

Your next step: Look for writers who specialize in your industry, review their portfolios, and reach out to them. The right collaboration can transform not just your content, but how your entire brand communicates.