Why You Should Hire Me to Write Your Content

Blogging for others is my bread and butter. It's how I've made a living and have built my professional reputation over the past few years. If you need content, whether it's web content, blog posts, eBooks, or white papers, then consider Allison Reilly as an option in getting those things done. Here's why you should hire me over anyone else to write your content:

I've Covered a Wide Variety of Industries

If you look at my portfolio, you'll see that my five years of writing and editing experience includes everything from identity theft to social media, from business answering services to small business technology. Even if I haven't covered your industry, or have only covered something similar, don't let that stop you from hiring a great writer. Industry experience is just one indicator of talent and success, and it's by no means an honest indicator of talent and success. My variety shows that I can be successful in any industry and that I can bring a fresh perspective to your content needs and content marketing strategy. Also note that most articles in my portfolio are at least 500 words, showing that I don't write short, fluffy articles that don't say anything at all. With every piece of content, I strive to provide something of value to the reader.

I Can Do Many Types of Content Marketing

Business blogging may be my bread and butter, but I'm not a one-trick pony. I can write things besides blog posts, such as press releases, white papers, case studies, web content, and email marketing campaigns. Although you may only need one type of content, it's best to have one versatile writer you can rely to do any type of content you may need in the future. It's better than hiring someone to do the blog, only to hire someone else to do press releases, and someone else to do SEO and web content. After all, content marketing is about all of the above, as you need multiple types of content across multiple platforms to maximize the strategy. You can get more out of your content if you do a series of blog posts, then turn that series into a white paper, then turn that white paper into a webinar.

Clients Love Me

My oldest client has been with me for almost three years! In that time I've written blog posts, press releases, and white papers with plans for additional content as well as no plans of stopping to write content anytime soon. Most of my clients have been with me for over a year, although I do have a few that have only become my client in the past two months. My clients wouldn't be my clients for this long if they didn't think I did good work and if they didn't think I could be trusted to deliver content on a weekly basis and to contribute to the business. To show you how much my clients love me, I have a testimonials from Nathan Strum, president of TelAssistant - Allied Offices:

I have been working with Allison for close to a year now and am extremely happy with her work. I was seeking a writer for our company blog about a year ago when I first contacted Allison. In the past when hiring a blog writer I have spent almost as much time helping the writer come up with ideas for the blog articles as it would take to write the article myself. Allison took charge very quickly and learned about our industry. She has been creating interesting articles for a year without the hand holding that most writers need. Our readership has increased and the arrangement is an overall success. We have doubled her work and will be adding more work to her plate soon. Her articles can be read at http://www.alliedoffices.com/blog and http://www.telassistant.com/blog.

The sooner the words are written, the better. Contact me today if you have a writing project for me!

In Need of Practical Brain Stimulation

New research published today suggests that brain-stimulating activities such as writing and reading books slows down our cognitive decline as we age. The sooner you start, the better, as cognitive decline can begin as early as 27. Also, some reading and writing is better than none at all. It looks like I am in an excellent line of work, where I am easily writing 1500 words a day. I am currently working on my summer reading list, and am forcing myself to read one chapter per day so I can get through the book I am reading now (and can move on to other interesting books that I've been wanting to read for some time). Once I finish this book, I'll only have one more book left to read. Once I finish that book, I'll create my fall reading list.

About Those Findings

I would be interested in seeing if there would be difference in cognitive decline among reading paperback/hardcover books, reading eBooks, and reading articles and blog posts online, with all else being equal and accounted for. I would think there would be difference, as I would presume that someone using an electronic device to read something will be much more prone to distractions than someone with an actual book. I mean, email notifications don't pop up in those hardcovers. I also think that because of the versatility, those reading on the electronic devices might also be much more likely to multitask, which has to affect our brains somehow. Then again, I am just taking a few wild guesses here. I am not an expert in neurology.

Speaking of Brain-Stimulating Activities

I need a lot of good ideas for a lot of things coming up, primarily good content and article ideas for my clients, my blog, Stirring Media, and Gateway Grounds. The end of the month is coming up, which is when I put together my editorial calendar for the next month, or several months, depending on how often the blog publishes. You need to do these things ahead of time, so that you aren't stuck the day of or the day before trying to come up with something good to write about.

One of the most pressing ideas is content for Insight2Incite Magazine, a St. Louis up-and-coming publication. They need a lot of help, and one of my ideas for creating content on a regular basis is start a column of my own (I know that the last thing I need in my life is more commitments and more stuff to write, but this is a good opportunity to build my personal brand.) I have no idea what this column would be about, which is where I need to spend my time first. I have other options and ideas on how to fill in what's missing, but the column takes precedence since I have the most control over the column.

Rogue Legacy is So Awesome!

In the meantime of all this important thinking stuff, I think I will play some Rogue Legacy. It's a really awesome game that you should get if you haven't already. It's available on Steam, or you can get it directly from them for the PC. It's a pretty straightforward game, but what makes it fun is that every time you play is different. You have a choice of characters, but your choices are always different because different classes and abilities are offered to you. The castle changes every single time you die, so it's not about memorizing the level but on memorizing how the enemies attack and on how rooms are set up. I seems easy, but it's not. Fortunately, you get stronger each time you die.

Seriously, Yo. Creative Work is Hard Work

I'm a writer, not a graphic designer, but I empathize with this graphic designer's attitude. I've come across my fair share of job posts wanting blog posts and articles for free, offering experience, exposure, or (the worst), a piece of the pie when the money starts rolling in and the online publication turns into the next Huffington Post (or something equally lofty). Of course, no one wants amateurs, even though the "payment" offered for these services are exactly what amateurs are looking for. Why this hasn't gone viral yet, I have no idea. With a tumblr like Clients from Hell, this attitude is a common experience among creative professionals.

I've also come across my fair share of clients who don't think this work takes any effort at all, who think that us writers and content creators are able to write 20 articles per day. Because they think we can write 20 articles per day, they also think that $5 or $3 an article is a fair price. Or, the worst, when clients only want to pay upon acceptance, or use those crowd sourcing strategies to give their own customers choices in content. These tactics often shaft writers because if our pieces aren't accepted, we're stuck with hard work that didn't get paid for (and that we might not have another use for) and, oftentimes, we are stuck without feedback to understand what it would take to get accepted the next time around.

What most people don't realize with this line of work is that you get what you pay for. If you're only offering $5 an article, then someone who typically charges $25 or $50 an article isn't going to be interested in doing work for you. The money isn't there for their time (and their skill and expertise). By offering $5 an article, you're only going to get those who are interested in working at $5 an article, which means you get those who blast through content to make a quota so the work is worth while, or you get someone who isn't all that good and needs whatever work they can get to earn a few dollars.

Creative Work is Hard Work

It differs from other services because it's very subjective, and it's not just a matter of picking and choosing a pre-manufactured product.  If that were the case with blog posts and logos and such, then there would be a lot more copyright infringement and plagiarism than there is now because it would mean that you are purchasing something that someone else is already using and claiming as their own. This work isn't as simple or as easy at seems because you've watched someone use Photoshop or you write a blog yourself, or you think you could do it yourself if you have another 30 minutes in your day. If this were the case, then you wouldn't be needing PROFESSIONAL HELP to get this done. This is why us writers and graphic designers TAKE TIME to create something new from scratch and something that is customized to your brand and your needs. WE CHARGE FOR OUR TIME because we don't just sit and whip something together. We think about what we need to accomplish. We do drafts before we hand something over, and most of the time, we are willing to do more drafts. Believe it or not, we don't want to put the 'starving' in "starving artist."

Creative work isn't free, and shouldn't be free, because it's a process. You can't pick up web designs and white papers at a garage sale or at the nearest Target. If you're not willing to pay for the process, then you should expect a horrible process. Much like in any other process or business: if you aren't willing to pay, then we aren't willing to deliver.