Who Should Write Your Business Blog? 4 Options with Pros & Cons

It might seem like nearly everyone has a blog these days — your insurance agent, your competitors, your buddy from college, your college-age niece… If all these people can run their own blog, does that mean you should write a blog for your own business? The answer….It depends!

This article will cover everything to consider before deciding who should write the blog for your company website. Read on to choose the best option for your business.

Check out a video summary of this post.

What Do I Need to Think About Before Deciding Who Should Write My Blog?

Deciding who will be the author of your blog, aka your blogger, is one of the first steps to starting a blog.

There are a few key characteristics that the blogger you choose should have:

• Time to write your blog
• A strong handle on the language you are writing in, including grammar and spelling
• A decent background in basic technology skills, such as using a word processor
• A good eye for basic graphic design and the ability to use a simple program, such as Canva
• A track record for reliability and quality work
• A background in basic internet research and the ability to identify reliable sources
• Access to a reliable computer from which to write and publish blog posts
• Background in or willingness to learn SEO (search engine optimization)
• Ability to follow directions and craft posts that represent your voice and ideas
• Actually wants to write your blog

Did that seem like a long list of requirements? It is. But it’s long for a reason. Blogs are only effective if they are well-written, contain helpful information, and are updated consistently.

If you find someone who meets each of those requirements, you have found your blogger.

If you meet all those requirements yourself and you’re interested in writing your own business blog, congrats! You are ready to add “blogger” to your list of job responsibilities.

What Are My Options When I Am Looking for a Blogger?

Google is usually where people start if they’re looking for a blogger. You’ll notice that a quick search for bloggers will yield THOUSANDS of search results, directing you to everything from large content agencies to posts like this one.

These are the top options that I would recommend you consider selecting as your blogger:

• Stay in house by choosing someone who already works for your business
• Hire an outside blogger (freelance or small content marketing agency)
• Hire a large content agency
• Write it yourself

Let’s break down the options available to you and the pros and cons you’ll want to know before making your decision.

Option 1: Choose an In-House Blogger

Your first option is to choose a blogger who already works for you. If you have an employee who loves to write or is interested in blogging, it’s definitely worth considering hiring them to write the blog for you.

Pros of Hiring an In-House Blogger

There are many pros to keeping blogging in-house.

The employee is already familiar with you and your business. You want your blog to be written in your voice and accurately represent you and your business. An outside hire can do this for you, but it will take more time than hiring someone who already knows you and how you want to represent yourself. Be sure to select someone who has a good understanding of your business goals and brand.

You already know that the blogger you select is reliable and trustworthy. If you are selecting from your existing employees, you can choose someone who has proven reliable in the past. Blogs are significantly more successful if they post consistently. Try not to select someone who might not deliver on time or according to your established schedule.

You might save money if the person is willing to write the blog for a lower rate than an outside hire. If you have an employee who makes a lower rate than an outside blogger would charge, this could be an excellent way to start your blog without breaking the bank.

Cons of Hiring an In-House Blogger

There are also some downsides to choosing an in-house blogger that you’ll want to keep in mind.

Your employee probably will not be a professional blogger. This doesn’t necessarily mean that your employee will do a poor job, but it does mean that there will be a learning curve. Your employee will need to learn the basics of blogging, such as writing style, optimal post requirements, formatting and design, and — of course — search engine optimization.

Their very first blog post will be representative of your company, and you’ll need to accept in advance that they will make some mistakes.

Your employee might not have a strong understanding of search engine optimization (SEO). One of the most significant benefits of starting a blog for your business is that blogs drive traffic to your website. Your blog will not automatically start showing up in search results.

Instead, bloggers use search engine optimization, or SEO, to make sure that you appear in them. This is a broad skill set that your employee will need to learn to create an effective blog for you.

Your employee might not have time to complete their other responsibilities. Creating a blog takes a long time, especially if you are including summary videos or graphics with each post (and you should). This is not something that your employee can do without working additional hours or giving up other tasks.

Your employee might underestimate the amount of work required to maintain the blog. It’s a time-consuming process that will require a lot of learning and dedication, especially if they are new to blogging or writing. Make sure that your employee knows what they are getting into before agreeing to write your blog.

Option 2: Hire an Outside Blogger

The next option is to hire an outside blogger to write the blog for you.

You can find external bloggers by posting on websites like ProBlogger or typical job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed.

If you like what you’re reading, you can purchase a blog from us for a single-post fee or a weekly subscription for however many posts you need. (Sorry for the shameless plug…but see how blogging can be a great marketing strategy?).

Pros of Hiring an Outside Blogger

Here are some of the best things about hiring an outside blogger.

A professional blogger will know how to implement the best practices that make your blog successful. Experienced bloggers know what a compelling blog post looks like and how to build a successful blog from the ground up. They do this for a living, and it shows.

A professional blogger will be well-versed in SEO. Professional bloggers are also great at SEO (or they should be), so you know they will be able to help you rank higher in the Google search results.

Have you ever read a blog post and thought to yourself: “That was worded a little strangely?” Maybe it’s just a weird writing style, but it’s more likely that the blogger was including a specific phrase to push the article to the top of search results. The best bloggers will do this without the reader even noticing. (How am I doing with this post? It’s optimized, of course.)

A professional blogger will have a background in design. Professional bloggers usually have some knowledge of design, or at least the ability to make your blog pages and posts look great.

Before you hire, ask them if they will create custom videos and graphics for your posts, and invest in it if they offer the service. Not only does it make you look more professional, but you’ll definitely reach more of your target audience.

A professional blogger will bring more value. Generally, a professional blogger will bring you more value than the other options on this list. They will write your blog and help you plan effective content related to your business goals. That’s what you pay them for — It’s all part of the package.

Cons of Hiring an Outside Blogger

There are some downsides to hiring an outside blogger that you also want to consider before hiring one.

A professional blogger will cost more money. There’s no getting around it — This is likely your most expensive option. Professional bloggers bring more value to your blog, so they will require a larger fee for their services. Look for someone who fits your price range or is willing to work within your budget.

A professional blogger will not be someone you already know is trustworthy. If you’re hiring an outside blogger, you won’t have an existing relationship with them. This is true of any external hire, but it can be tough to determine if that freelancer you hired online will actually deliver on the work. Be sure to examine their websites, social media, and other examples of their work to ensure they are reliable before hiring them.

A professional blogger will take longer to learn your business goals. Because they don’t already work at your company, a professional blogger will need time to learn about your business, your target customers, and the goals that you want your blog to help you accomplish. You’ll need to set aside some time to explain all of this to them if you want them to build you a successful blog.

Option 3: Hire a Large Content Agency

Next on the list are the large content agencies, often referred to in the industry as “content mills.”

If you’ve ever Googled anything about blogging, you probably see ads for these agencies all over your browsers. Many agencies promise things like quick turnarounds, perfect SEO, or better reliability than a freelancer.

Before we get into this section, I want to disclose a few things. Many professional bloggers despise these agencies for driving the price of content down to an unlivable level and/or because they produce subpar content that reflects poorly on the entire industry. I see where these ideas are coming from, but I don’t feel this way.

Although content agencies don’t provide as much value as an independent blogger, they have their place and allow writers to break into the industry t0 start their careers. I started at one (I won’t name it), and I still pick up articles from them for some extra money on the side — I like them and find them easy to work with.

All that being said, weigh the pros and cons carefully before hiring an agency.

Pros of Hiring a Content Agency

Here are some of the good things about hiring a content agency to produce your work.

A content agency will be the least expensive option. Content agencies tend to charge their clients less than an outside blogger would, and probably less than you would be paying a current employee to take on the role.

A content agency will return significant amounts of content very quickly. Content agencies are designed to produce large amounts of content with speedy turnaround times. Most of them have many writers ready to take on work, so you can submit requests for an entire month’s worth of blog posts and get them all back within a few weeks.

A content agency will likely have an editor to catch basic grammatical mistakes or deviation from your instructions. Content agencies employ both writers and editors, so you know that there will be at least two sets of eyes on any work you hire them to complete. This can make a difference in spotting basic errors, such as grammatical mistakes or not following your guidelines.

Cons of Hiring a Content Agency

With the good comes the bad. Consider these cons before hiring an agency to write your content.

A content agency will not allow you to communicate directly with the writers. If you hire a content agency, you’ll never meet your writer. If you request 10 articles, there’s a good chance you are working with 10 different writers. This means that your posts can be inconsistent and often sound as though 10 different people wrote them (because they did).

A content agency can get backed up, leading to delays in production. Some content mills are more organized than others, but all will accept however much content clients request, which can lead to overloads.

Most agencies will put your posts on some sort of job board for writers to choose from. Pieces can get backed up in production and might be delayed, especially if your posts are unappealing to writers due to precise instructions, word count, obscure topics, or even formatting guidelines you set them.

You often end up with less qualified writers. There is a broad mix of writers at content agencies, and you have no control over who will write your article. This means you might get someone great, but you might get someone brand new who has never written a blog post before. It’s the luck of the draw.

Content agencies pay their writers significantly less than the market rate. I’m going to say it again for emphasis — Content agencies pay substantially less than the market rate for writers. We are talking 10–20% of the market rate in some cases.

The low rate is why so many of their writers are new or produce less effective content than independent bloggers. It’s also why you might end up with less qualified writers for your posts (see above).

Some people also have moral qualms about hiring people who pay their writers such a low rate — You might want to avoid the content agencies if that’s a factor for you.

Option 4: Write it Yourself

Finally, you can always write the blog yourself. Here are the pros and cons of taking on the project for your own.

Pros of Writing Your Own Blog

Writing your own blog can be fun and rewarding. Here are some of the best things about it.

You know your goals and can align your blog with your business. Nobody knows your business or your goals better than you. If you write your own blog, you know that every post aligns with the image and future you are creating for your business. There is immense value in that.

You can write with authority about your business and industry. As a small business owner, you have tremendous experience and expertise in your industry — it comes with the territory. You have been working in that industry for a long time, so you know the questions that people need answered.

You also have a lot of helpful information to share with the larger community. All in all, you probably won’t need to do as much research for at least your first batch of posts.

You can make your blog look and feel exactly how you want. If you write your own blog, you know that everything from the font to the color scheme is exactly how you want it to look. There will be no reading over a post and asking: “Why is it written like this?” or saying, “This looks wrong.” It will be what you want, every time.

Blogging is fun! I love writing, creating, and sharing content. If you feel the same, you will find a lot of enjoyment in writing your own blog. For this reason alone, it’s worth taking the plunge, at least to see how it goes.

Cons of Writing Your Own Blog

While writing your own blog is great, it also comes with challenges.

You are not a professional blogger, so there might be a learning curve. You’re probably not a professional blogger (if you are, skip ahead to the next part). You’ll have a learning curve.

As we mentioned when discussing in-house hiring, professional bloggers know how to create an effective blog and optimize it for search engines. You’ll need to learn some of these skills to ensure that your efforts are going to good use.

You might not have time to write an effective blog while running your business. Blogging takes a lot more time and effort than it might seem to someone who has never done it before. If you already feel stretched thin by your responsibilities and running your business, you might want to sit this one out and hire someone who can dedicate more than a few hours a week to the project.

You will need to have some degree of writing and graphic design abilities. To create quality blog content, you need to be a decent writer and have some graphic design skills (or be willing to learn them). If you are a good writer with no graphic design skills, never fear! That perfectly describes me when I started blogging. As long as you’re willing to learn, there are some great tools out there that can help you (Another shoutout to Canva).

The Gist

There are many options to consider when determining who will write your business blog. You can write it yourself or choose someone in-house but know that there will be a learning curve, and blogging will take up a significant amount of your time.

You can save money by hiring a content agency, keeping in mind that the quality of content will be less reliable than more expensive options.

Finally, you can hire a professional blogger. They will charge you more money but bring infinitely more value to your blog, taking the time to carefully align it to your business goals and produce quality content.

As I mentioned above, if you’re looking for a professional blogger to work within your small business budget, take a look at our pricing options or shoot us a message. We would love to work with you to get your blog off the ground!