How to hire SEO writers – the 9 best websites for SEO copywriters

We’ve compiled 9 best websites for copywriters and the questions to ask them before hiring them. Plus, you can even download our SEO briefing template, for free.

Before we do, let’s start at the beginning…

Why hire SEO writers?

In short: because you should be working on your business, not in it.

Freelance SEO copywriters present a very efficient and cost-effective way to scale up your SEO content.

Tapping into their specialist SEO expertise means you get both highly readable and highly rankable content. This means you’re buying a winning combination of engaging and interesting content that knows how to bring in relevant traffic to your website.

Unlike a generalist copywriter, an experienced SEO writer can perform keyword research or take a good SEO content brief and produce consistent and compounding returns in search engine results.

Free template: SEO content brief

A good SEO content brief can make or break the success of your content.

Its primary goal is to guide a writer towards topping search results for a specific search query, earning long-term organic search traffic.

We’ve decided to share our SEO content brief to help you to speed up your content creation, lower its cost, and make sure every article is produced to the same high standards. Ultimately creating a winning and repeatable formula focused on SEO outcomes, not outputs.

→ Download our free SEO content brief → Use a tool such as Surfer SEO to auto-generate article outlines

9 best websites for copywriters – find SEO freelancers

In no particular order:

1. ProBlogger Jobs – the DIY option

The old adage “you get what you pay for” is true with the ProBlogger Jobs Board.

Companies pay $80 to advertise a freelance writing gig, which generally attracts a higher calibre of candidate.

Expect to pay a tiny premium ($20 per hour for research and $0.08 per word in total) for solid content research and above average complexity of writing. Ideal if you’re looking to find experienced writers for your niche.

With 15 years in the game, ProBlogger Job Board has built up a huge audience, meaning you can fill vacancies faster. Every listing is tweeted to over 230,000 followers, attracting up to 20 applicants per day.

Pros:

• Go-to destination for experienced SEO writers
• Candidates have strong research skills and understanding of how to create high-quality content in any niche
• Exceptional English language ability with impeccable written English
• Large candidate pool means vacancies can be filled quickly
• User-friendly listing and candidate management UI

Cons:

• Job adverts cost $80 for a 15-day listing
• Expect to pay a $0.02-$0.04 per word premium for the best writers

2. Upwork – a huge talent marketplace

Upwork’s talent marketplace boasts thousands of freelancers, from designers, marketers and SEO writers, to architects and lawyers. There aren’t many affiliate websites that haven’t relied on the platform at some point.

There’s to routes to finding and hiring a SEO freelance writer on Upwork. You can choose to either post a job ad with all of the details of your project or search for writers and then create a shortlist. Writers then pitch for the project, including their credentials and quote.

Most website owners I know report of mixed results when using Upwork. Increase the odds of finding a keeper by clearly articulating the project, asking for examples of similar content they’ve authored, and inviting shortlisted candidates to undertake a paid test article.

Expect to pay $15-$50 for well-researched, well-written content. The downside being you’ll have to manage the project yourself from start-to-finish.

Pros:

• Reputable platform for finding and hiring SEO writers
• Lower cost per hour for the quality of writing ($15-$50)
• No advertising fees but Upwork takes a finder’s fee
• Payment protection and mediation services from Upwork
• Fellow website owners can refer good writers with direct links to their profiles

Cons:

• A few additional steps for adding a project and vetting candidates
• Added time and expense of project managing your content creation
• Expect some level of writer churn and excuses

3. Website building communities

An easy way to source reliable writers, share tips on growing side projects and vent about dodgy freelancers.

Communities are great places to ask questions and seek solace in the company of other website builders.

My favourites are the Niche Pursuits and Cult of Copy Jobs groups on Facebook.

Members are very candid with their experiences and happy to share market rates, interview questions, SEO briefing templates and even the contact details of their most trusted SEO content writers.

Pros:

• Honest recommendations from successful website builders
• Received direct links to trusted freelancer profiles on the main marketplaces, with their buyer protection policies
• Learn how to find, brief, review and keep good content writers
• Discover platforms and tactics you wouldn’t have otherwise heard of

Cons:

• Posts need to be approved by the group admins to be published

4. Verblio – on-demand content creation platform

Verblio are one of the biggest self-service SEO content platforms out there. They come highly recommended as being responsive, taking pride in the quality of outputs and surprisingly good value, starting at only $119 per 1,000 word article.

To get started, simply order a set number of articles and fill out the briefing form to be allocated a writer. Your brief can include a full outline, target keywords, any sources and links, CTA and word count. One of my favourite Verblio features is the tone of voice tool. Use the slider to ensure the content is true to your brand and consistent with everything else on your site.

Verblio are very competitively priced given the high standard of their writers. Their 3,000 U.S.-based writers are subject matter experts in more than 40 unique industries – be sure to request a sample for your niche. Optional add-ons include photo sourcing, video production, account management and back-end SEO optimization.

All orders come with a 30-day money back guarantee.

Pros:

• Easy to order content with transparent pricing
• Easy-to-follow briefing process
• Only deal in 4 & 5 writers with anti-plagiarism checks built-in
• Verblio Complete service can manage everything for busy agencies
• Unlimited edits at no extra cost
• 30-day money back guarantee

Cons:

• Cost of extras quickly adds up
• Unable to request the same writer for repeat work

5. Surfer SEO writer directory – AI-optimized content

A complete content optimization platform, Surfer’s easy-to-use tools sharpen your SEO copywriting efforts, from content research and planning to briefing contributors and NLP writing.

In addition to whipping your existing content into better shape for search engines, Surfer SEO also has a directory of SEO writers that use its tools. That way, you can be sure that the content you’re buying is SEO optimized, scoring highly on Surfer’s content grader.

Surfer does not take a cut and points out it’s not responsible for the end result of your collaboration with writers. All transactions and correspondence is handled off the platform (or email or LinkedIn), so they’re simply connecting you to writers that use a tried-and-tested on-page optimizer and internal linking tool to polish their craft.

Pros:

• 200 writers all using Surfer SEO’s NLP writing assistant
• Set your target on-page optimization score
• Takes care on internal linking
• No commission to pay

Cons:

• All transactions and customer service is outside of Surfer SEO

6. Textbroker – matchmaking websites with writers

Textbroker is a content broker for anybody in need of long-form blog posts or captivating advertising copy in a hurry.

Textbroker’s USP is speed. They have authors ready to write in most languages and subject matters, with over 10 million pieces of content completed via the platform since 2007. There are some questions as to what cost, with some unhappy of the quality of what they deem to be AI-written content.

What’s more consistent, is the rave reviews for price and ease of ordering. Articles cost as little as $0.02 per word with the self-service option and you can choose to make your order available to its entire talent pool, headhunt an individual writer or build your own content team to keep going back to.

Pros:

• Straightforward signup and ordering process
• Entry-level pricing
• Speed of output
• Good selection of writers to choose from
• Bookmark your favourite writers for future projects
• Native writers in many different languages

Cons:

• Pay 4x more for subject matter experts
• Inconsistent quality of writing

7. iWriter – ok for a speedy first draft

iWriter is a high volume content factory, ideal for more generic content.

The writing standard varies significantly and you’ll find yourself paying 10x for niche content that is well structured and easy to digest.

As Glenn Allsopp, from SEO Blueprint, found out: “It’s incredibly hit and miss. The price is very cheap, so you can’t complain too much, but expect to do quite a bit of editing and rewriting before you hit publish.”

iWriter has a SEO content option. Expect to pay $0.08 per word for SEO optimized articles with iWriter also taking care of keyword research, in-depth subject matter research and source a single stock image.

Pros

• Quick turnaround from an easy briefing process
• Unlimited revisions in the content approval process
• Full end-to-end SEO writing service

Cons

• Mixed bag in terms of quality of writing
• Cannot bookmark or request your favourite writers
• Hefty premium for SEO optimized content
• Auto-approval of articles after 72 hours

8. Semrush Content Marketplace

As if Semrush’s SEO software isn’t good enough, it also doubles up as a content writing marketplace.

No more searching, vetting, and onboarding writers. Semrush will instantly match your requirements to a freelance writer able to balance SEO chops with storytelling. This means that every piece is expertly researched and optimized for your target keywords, giving it the best possible chance of ranking well, yet is still an engaging read for humans.

Bigger blogs will like their recurring content orders. Use the service to keep your readers engaged and newsletter full with fresh content. Semrush’s content marketplace can also turn your idea into infographics, eBooks, website copy and product descriptions. Every order includes a single royalty-free image too.

Prices are competitive, starting at $0.08 for SEO content.

The only sticking point is speed. Semrush’s marketplace oversees a lot of content production, so it can take up to 10 days to get a first draft of your article. Best get those recurring orders in early!

Pros:

• Content in a wide range of formats
• High quality content from SEO-trained writers
• Save common briefs as templates
• Your SEO research and content in a single place
• Request your favourite writers again

Cons:

• Slow turnarounds due to volume of work
• Writers not directly employed by Semrush
• Only English language is supported

9. Use a content SEO agency

SEO agencies come with a proven track record of delivering good outcomes for clients. Their sole purpose being to get you more customers online.

The right agency will manage the entire process for you, following best practice methodology. This includes keyword and topic research, optimization, sourcing expert comments, uploading it to your CMS, and even internal and external link building.

The end result being better search visibility and a regular supply of leads, enquiries and sales to your business.

One such content agency is My Content Pal. Every article they write is run through Surfer SEO’s AI optimization tool, giving it instant tips towards achieving the best NLP score in the eyes of search engines. The higher the score, the better the chance of hitting top spot on Google.

Pros:

• Save the time involved in finding, vetting and managing freelancers
• Each order follows SEO best practice and established agency processes
• Focus on results with proactive reporting
• Dependable – will complete the orders as promised
• Costs normally offset by the incremental revenue they drive
• Stay on top of SEO content trends

Cons:

• Expect to pay a tiny premium at $0.08-$0.12 per word