We all know the market is oversaturated with writers. It’s getting to the point where it’s just annoying to see another “remote writer” title in the candidate/job feeds. Where are the elusive content manager positions? Better yet, why are there absolutely no Chief Content Officer or Head of Content positions available on remote platforms? From an employer’s perspective, what’s the difference anyway?
Well, you get the general remote writers and you get some near miracle-worker technical writers. The general writer, as I started out many years ago, is the person who is just looking for the next project. They just want to create content. Naturally, that’s hardly going to benefit anyone; generic content is the equivalent of spam thrown onto two slices of bread and calling it a hamburger. The writer gains a few peanuts and the client gets… a non-blank page I guess? The interesting part is where I inform remote workers that this is the most crucial part of their career/business. And it’s not about the money.
As a “general writer”, you get access to several industries. You get to try out different types of content and find yourself with an opportunity to pursue a specialty. This is where you get to shine. However, the window of opportunity won’t always be there. You will have to open yourself to growth; read more, write more, and do a ton of research!
Once you found your niche, you might find yourself entering a technical field (as I did). Whether it’s IT, technical SEO, or pre-med materials, it sets you apart from the rest. You finally have a chance to use what you have learned in university and combined it with your writing experience. Congratulations! Sadly, though, it’s too early to celebrate.
While technical writing is fantastic, both for freelancers looking to earn more and clients looking for real talent, you have to accept that it’s a behind-the-scenes kind of job. You’ll hardly get credit for any content developed and it’s entirely possible that a marketing or technical manager is your boss. Trust me, they don’t know content like you do. For employers, this also presents a problem. You get good content from your technical writer, but you feel as if there are serious limitations. The expert remote writer does not take initiative or does not follow his or her manager’s instructions.
You find that they are similar to academic purists in that they only know how to develop content, but rarely anything else. In addition to this, their verbal communication skills are poor and you are shocked. It’s at this point where you doubt the candidate’s abilities or they doubt they are suited for the position due to some mysterious requirements that keep biting them in the behind. Frankly, there’s a good explanation for this. The expert writer is good at content creation but has no management skills! What did you expect?
The solution to this is to actually have a senior content expert, a Chief Content Officer, to guide the remote writers. Not some manager who doesn’t know what content is about, but a genuine professional. While content managers are able to “manage” content and remote writers, they’re also bound by caveats in the organizational structure. The accountability, and authority, is still nowhere to be found. A content manager is great for “going with the flow”, so to speak. If there’s an established environment that you’re not looking to change, at all, then a content manager is right for you. Just don’t expect too much from them other than seeing completed tasks on Trello and some comms.
The Chief Content Officer is the person you hire when you’re really trying to make the waves. When your competition is battling with poor employee turnover, you’re setting the content standard in your market. They actually understand the writers because that’s where they have been, yet, as leaders, they know how to be firm and they know how to make things happen. There are no blockers in sight.
All it takes is a promotion to some talented content manager (and a small raise). Now you have someone running your content factory, not merely reading from a rule book. Similarly, the content manager would be absolutely happy to help out with the content that they now oversee – even working late nights and over weekends, because they feel it’s theirs.
To summarize, hire a Chief Content Officer to engineer the content machine, and then get a technical writer (or a few) to produce high-value content. A dedicated content team is what gives you a head start in the marketing and product arenas.