One of the realities of the internet is the fact that a successful free website needs a constant stream of high quality content. There are a lot of reasons for this. On the one hand, visitors tend to demand new content every time they go to a site, and they vastly prefer websites that always provide them with something fresh to check out and learn about. On the other hand, a personal website that is constantly being updated tend to do better in the search engines than sites that stay the same for long stretches of time. So ultimately, websites with constantly updated content tend to rank easier with the search engines and are preferred by visitors.
Unfortunately, all of this content doesn’t write itself. There are plenty people out there that construct a Flash website and then simply recycle and repost previously written content, but neither the search engines nor the website visitors tend to look kindly on reprinted content. The pieces of content you post need to be fresh, current and unique.
So who is going to make this content? In general, you have two options. You can either write the content yourself, or you can hire a freelance writer to produce it for you. Both have their pros and their cons.
Writing it Yourself
Pros
-Writing it yourself doesn’t cost any money. When you create blog and write your own content you don’t have to pay anyone else for it. High quality content won’t necessarily cost you an arm and a leg from a freelancer, but it is cash out of pocket that you don’t technically need to spend. Furthermore, while each individual article or blog post may not cost much it does add up over time as you take into account the volume of content that you’ll need over the life of your website.
-Gives your free website your own unique voice. No one else is going to write exactly like you. No one else is going to think exactly the same way that you do. No one else is going to approach your niche the same way you will. When you hire someone else, their voice and their experiences and research will inform your site more than your own.
-You can write as much as you want at your own pace. When hiring a freelancer you are limited by the money you have on hand to pay them. If you can’t afford this week’s content, you won’t have content this week. If you write it yourself, your only limitation is your own time and attention.
Cons
-You probably aren’t as good a writer as the people you would hire. When you hire a freelance writer you hire a professional, which means the quality of the writing will probably be superior to your own writing.
-Nothing is actually free, as you will be spending your time and attention on producing content yourself. While it’s true that you won’t spend any money when you write your site’s content, you will be spending plenty of your own time and energy on it. Spending the time to create Flash sites is a one time commitment; home-made content never stops demanding your time.
Hiring a Freelance Writer
Pros
-Better writers. As mentioned above, a freelancer you hire is likely to be a better writer than you are.
-You can select the tone and type of writer that you hire. It won’t be your voice exactly, but you can still determine how your site’s content will sound.
-You will be free to focus on other aspects of your life or your business. Most people can either think of many other things they want to do other than write blog posts, and most people have more impactful places to put the time they can spend on their business. When you hire someone else, the work will get done while you do other things you care more about.
Cons
-Costs money. For some people, the bottom line is always most important, and these people probably won’t be interested in spending when they don’t absolutely have to.
-There is a learning curve to working with freelancers, and it can take some time to get exactly what you need even with a great provider. If you’ve never hired someone before to help with your free website than there are management and communication skills that you will need to learn before working with a freelancer becomes smooth sailing.
