How to Hire a Writer

Ask the Right Questions

One of the most frustrating parts of being a professional writer is that most believe the entirety of the profession is about words.  Worse yet, the stated requirements for many jobs are so basic that they do little or nothing to discern professionals from amateurs.  This article will help managers and hiring personnel make better choices by enabling them to ask the right questions.

While it’s true writers have a command of the English language and a variety of styles, these factors are not where the value of a writer is found.  There are subtle techniques at the sentence and paragraph level, but the four most important skills for professional writers are rhetorical strategy, audience analysis, research ability and knowledge of the genre. 

Any writer who has any expectation of being paid knows things like AP or Chicago style, is concise and knows how to spell.  Yet, most people’s expectations include those non-discerning criteria that almost guarantee a poor outcome. 

Writers are supposed to make your argument, describe your product/service/company with clarity and distinction and meet the needs of your audience.  This is the profession of writing - not the stylebook alone. 

Rhetorical Strategy - The framework for a piece of writing has a strategy that’s based upon the nature of the topic and the audience.  Common structures are problem-solution, comparison-contrast, allegory and satire to name just a few examples.  While the topic itself may lend itself to a particular structure type, the deciding factor is always the audience.  Specifically, what does the audience already know about the topic and what does the client need them to understand?  The answer to that question not only determines whether or not a structure type can or should be used but also how it’s employed.

Audience Analysis - The most important factor for any communication is the audience.  There are no exceptions to this, because the audience must be reached.  Failure to have the audience take notice is a waste of time and money.  No matter how cheaply the failed writing may have been acquired at, it was a complete waste if the audience isn’t influenced in the desired manner. 

The most glaring example of poor audience analysis in the world today is technical documentation for computers and software.  These manuals are quite probably the worst  writing products in human history, because the writers assume far too much about their audience. 

A professional writes to the “lowest common denominator” of their audience, i.e., the person who knows the least and reads most poorly.  Technical writers do not do this, and the evidence is found in the billions of dollars expended annually upon support centers and websites intent on clarifying what should have been made clear in the first place.  The writing isn’t cheap if it requires huge amounts of personnel time to make it understandable.  Bad writing is the most expensive writing there is. 

There are two basic methods professional writers use to analyze their audience: 

• Demographics - The basic life stage of the majority of audience members described in terms of age, race, gender, income level, educational background etc. These facts mostly indicate how sophisticated the audience is and how the writer may engage it. This information rarely affects substantial amounts of content. 
• Psychographics - This pivotal information indicates what the audience currently knows, thinks or feels about a topic and their contextual frame of understanding. It’s the writer’s job to work with these factors to create a new perspective. A good writer will consider how he or she wants the audience member to react emotionally to the piece. Emotion is an exceptionally powerful motivator, and those who don’t address the audience’s concerns have lost the majority of the battle right there. Psychographics are also of central importance to neural learning, persuasion and marketing. 

While the above data perspectives are critically important, there’s still one last thing a truly talented writer does.  The demographic and psychographic information should be synthesized into what I’ve come to call the “compassionate composite.”  Before I set down to write, I have a picture in my mind of the human beings I’m writing to and influencing.  What matters to them?  What moves them?  How do they interact and perceive the world and the client?  What are they worried about?  What makes them smile? 

The answers to the above questions help make the best pieces, because few others bother to address the fundamental emotional integrity of the audience.  This writing stands out, because it touches something inside the individual.  Emotional identification with a piece makes it memorable.  While this final step obviously isn’t necessary for every type of writing, it’s particularly well-advised for any influential piece.

Research Ability - Believe it or not, some fail to do their research before committing something to the public record.  Failure to know all the facts is the worst kind of mistake. Research entails more than just using Google or Wikipedia.  Useful and informative research addresses the implications of the topic and how it may intersect with other subject areas.

For example, I once had to write a training manual about government regulation of forklifts.  It seemed simple enough on the surface, but the variety of forklifts and their applications implicated several seemingly unrelated laws.  Forklifts use several types of fuel and that meant a reference about hazardous materials storage and transport regulations had to be included.  Some forklifts are electrical and that involved ISO standards for electricity and batteries.  A writer has to be able to independently discern these interconnections to do the job well.

Sources are one of the most important aspects of good research.  The sources have to be reliable and confirmed by other credible sources.  Many times a difference of nuance is uncovered and addressed by using multiple sources.  In some cases, a fine gradation of facts can be exploited for great effect on behalf of the client.

Furthermore, there are a variety of source types that shouldn’t be neglected.  Databases, professional journals, popular books, white papers and cultural treatises are just a few of the information types that should be consulted for valuable input.

Remember, just because your writer doesn’t know something about the topic, it doesn’t mean the audience is ignorant of it.  Your credibility hangs in the balance.

Knowledge of Genre- Writing an ad is very different from writing a magazine article.  Applying AP style to an advertisement makes for a very ineffective promotion.  A magazine article written to the standards of advertising will not be published.  Genre knowledge alone isn’t a sufficient criterion for recruitment, but it’s usually quite significant.  Below are a few types of typical genre standards.

Advertising copy has to get attention and be remembered well, and English language standards are secondary.  It’s perfectly acceptable to use poor literary technique if it serves attention and recall.  It also has to produce a desire in the audience member and include a call to action that moves people to buy.

Journalistic writing is succinct and must include a lead, a “nut graph” and provide information in order of importance.  A lead gets the readers attention and hints of what’s to come.  The “nut graph” is usually the second paragraph that provides a frame of reference for all that’s to come in the article, i.e., the article in a “nutshell.”  From there forward the article will contain the most pertinent information in descending order.

Promotional copy other than advertising must get straight to the point and include the product or company’s unique selling proposition (USP), positioning strategy, a credibility statement and benefits to the audience members.  Features are secondary to the benefits they provide.  Most importantly, the product or company has to be perceived as either solving a problem or filling a compelling need.

Technical writing has to include all pertinent facts and at least reference tangential areas that might be important for a complete understanding of the topic.  The arrangement of the information can be based upon many factors such as the order of a procedure or the most common applications for a product or service.  All technical writing must address the needs of the audience members with the lowest level of understanding and reading ability.  The preceding point can not be overemphasized. 

Summary 

Writers should be hired for their ability to think, analyze and meet the needs of their audience.  Any other standard is a prescription for failure and lost investment.

It’s difficult to advertise for a “smart” writer, but a track record can be very informative.  A person with only one type of writing experience is probably not a good candidate, because they often have been trained in the mistakes of others.  Variety in terms of structure and genre are most important, because this is where the heart of the profession lies.  We’re reaching human beings every time we write anything, and being able to do that on several levels makes the best writing.

When all the factors come together in a single package, the results can remain with the reader for the rest of his or her life.  That’s when writing breaks off the page and into the realm of magic and lore. 

I’ll never forget the day an audience gave a standing ovation for a video I produced and wrote the script for, or when a reader broke down in tears after reading a piece I wrote about the disease she suffered.  She turned to me and said, “That’s it.  That’s my life exactly.  Thank you for explaining it to people.”  Those are simultaneously proud and humbling moments, and probably the single reason why I can’t imagine doing anything else.

In the end, eliciting feelings in people is the only reason to write at all.