98toGo's Online Rapport Building Blog

 Website content is all about creating a story and conversation with your readers, who also happen to be your customers. Content marketing is a huge trend right now and will only continue to go throughout 2012, so it's best to know your content strategy now and find the right fit when it comes to someone writing out your content.

You are already pretty busy yourself, and adding on the responsibility of crafting and marketing content might be just tip that delicate scale. Instead of stressing out about the company blog or business articles or videos, find someone who is the best in their field--a rock star web content creator who will make sure your campaign stays viral and successful. First and foremost, however: attracting such talent to your business.

It may seem simple enough. Just put up ads on Craigslist, Indeed.com, and other job boards and just pick somebody. Well, that's going about this all the wrong way! If you just stick ads about something you aren't entirely sure about and just pick some random person that is only going to spell doom for your business. Instead, know what the web content creator is all about, what your business can provide, and then seeking out certain traits in the right talent. We just so happen to have a checklist of those characteristics below.

• If you're in the need of a freelancer, some of the better talent can be found in freelancer-specific websites. Media Bistro, eLance, and even Mashable Jobs provides a good arena. Or, there are also websites where you can put up your written content and a writer will bid on it or write it out and you pay them--simple and done! Websites like Zerys and Textbroker provide such services, but, if you want a more one-to-one approach (or want to be able to see your freelancer in real life), then blasting out an ad locally as well as on job sites is fine, too.

• When you're on the hunt for an online content creator, they should know the very basics of SEO, online marketing, viral advertising, and multimedia content. Do they know about the Google Panda updates? What about pushing video content to the top of Google? If they've got the foundation down, everything else will be easy as pie for them!

• Credentials. Sometimes hiring the neighborhood kid works, but when it comes to your marketing you should leave it to a professional. A web content creator could have two years experience or 22 years, it's their portfolio that should always stand out. What names have they worked with? If you're going with a freelancer, who knows about them? Does their portfolio really capture your interest? Always seek out the portfolio.

• Attention to detail and passion. Is their writing nearly impeccable? Do their videos rival Hollywood? Could they go on a tirade on the difference between Helvetica and Arial? You need to find someone with that attention to detail and passion in their work to really spark something genius. Because marketing online is all about the little things--if the SEO is working, the spelling and grammar is just right, and the colors don't scare people away. Let someone be your detail-oriented person.

Of course, finding someone who fits well with your team and is able to get work done on time and completely is always good, too. But we figure those are given when it comes to finding someone. Unique content creation is quite important and it shouldn't be a second-hand task done by an already busy employee. Take the time to find someone who knows what they're doing and help you out--the results (and revenue) may just surprise you!

Have you ever employed a web content creator, or maybe even considered it? What are your experiences with the content people?