Choosing the best SEO copywriting services means making decisions between hiring a freelancer, collaborating with the agency, or establishing an in-house team. In general, it all depends on the budget for the role, but also the scope of work. 

While SEO copywriting is different from general SEO, it still has some overlaps and SEO experts may handle part of the task. But how to make the right choice? How to choose what option for SEO copywriting works best for your business? Here are some practical tips to consider:

Freelance vs. Agency vs. In-House Team

Freelance copywriters are best for one-time tasks, i.e., when you need one campaign or one landing page. Looking for the top SEO freelancers is a huge task, as there are many who can handle both copywriting and optimization. Ensure you run proper interviews, but don’t expect a whole draft during the negotiation process. Try to estimate their skills by assessing their SEO knowledge, and analyzing the previous copywriting samples they provide. 

Hiring an SEO agency means getting top SEO expertise and professional writing services. Agencies usually hire SEO specialists, content marketers, writers, copywriters, content creators, and web designers to deliver the top optimization for you. Depending on whether you need a page copy, social media copy, or email writing, hiring an agency for SEO copywriting services ensures quality, results, and return on investment. 

In-house teams are perfect if you have ongoing tasks for more than a year. This way, they get to know your brand better and may focus on true values, not just optimization. 

Key Steps to Choose the SEO Copywriting Services You Need

While it seems simple, like looking at their portfolio or case studies, and testing the candidate with a sample copy, making the choice is more difficult than it seems. It’s not only the skills and talent you should consider but also your business goals and needs. Sometimes, these specific goals and needs may help you determine whether a freelancer, agency, or in-house team is the most optimal choice. Until then, consider these factors:

Assessing Your Business Needs

Define and determine what exactly you need from your SEO copywriting services. For example, if you need it for blog posts only, an SEO content writer may help you better. If you need extensive product descriptions and engaging landing pages, then SEO copywriter it is. 

So, decide what your goals are, whether it’s more traffic, conversions, or sales. That way, you can easily narrow down the candidates (or agencies) to make the best choice for your company. 

Check For Industry Expertise

Some SEO copywriters specialize in specific industries, like hotels, restaurants, healthcare, SaaS, eCommerce, etc. If your industry is very specific and requires extensive in-depth knowledge, then checking on their portfolio for matches is the best thing you can do.

Additionally, you can interview the candidate or agency for some basic industry knowledge and see if they can handle the specific tasks. Sometimes, copywriters are talented enough to capture the essence of your niche and deliver value with simple words everyone can understand. 

Look for a Stable Collaboration

Whether you hire a freelancer, in-house coworkers, or agencies, you need to build a strong collaboration and partnership with them. This way, they’re more dedicated to delivering the copy as needed and more open to constructive feedback.

Remember, SEO copywriting service doesn’t mean you’ll get the perfect draft at first. But with proper feedback and transparent communication, they’ll deliver a perfect copy ready to be implemented where needed.

Understand the SEO Copywriting Process

If you still think that SEO copywriting is just sprinkling relevant keywords through the written copy – you’re absolutely wrong! Optimized content is more than proper SEO structure and long-tail keywords. It also provides value to the readers or, in this specific case, persuades them to consider the product or service as a possible solution for their pain points. To deliver that, SEO copywriters follow these steps:

Detailed Research 

Once you share your business goals and the company’s mission and vision, the SEO copywriters will run audience research and competitor analysis. This way, they know who they’re talking to, as well as with who they compete for a better rank on Google. 

Identifying the target audience and their pain points, interests, and behavior to ensure the content resonates with them is a standard process. Competitor audit ensures you fill-up the missing content gaps, i.e., offer your product or service better than them.

Keyword Research

While the copy is different from an article or blog, optimizing for keywords is the base for successful SEO copywriting. The goal is to spot keywords with navigational, commercial, and transactional intent and use them strategically through the copy. 

Sometimes, you may not have enough space to use those keywords within the text body, so you will have to be smarter and place them into the meta details, headings, and even calls to action to optimize the content. 

For example, if you target phrases like “hire an SEO agency,” “get free samples,” or “best hotel in LA,” they naturally fit better in the title, headings, or CTAs instead of the text body. So, be smart and strategically use the keywords to enhance the ranking potential. 

Develop a Content Strategy

Copywriting itself may not do much without a proper content strategy. Experienced SEO agencies may suggest the best content types for your business, where SEO copywriting is just a part of what it takes for your business to shine. 

Anyway, starting with on-page improvements and better social media messaging may encourage potential customers to engage more with your brand. Eventually, the SEO strategy will work just the way it is supposed to, delivering rankings and value to the customers and making you a reputable service provider or product seller. 

Performance Tracking and Optimization 

The first copy published on your website is not the final one. You will have to track progress using Google Search Console, Google Analytics, or tools like Ahrefs, SERanking, or SEMrush. The progress will tell you exactly what to do next and how to adjust the SEO copywriting strategy. 

Sometimes, you may need to test two styles on different pages or see what version of the copy works better to come up with the perfect one. Remember, experimenting with tone, styles, and optimization will lead you to the exact copy format that works best with your brand, no matter if you hire a freelancer, agency, or an in-house copywriter.

Is it Worth to Invest in SEO Copywriting Services?

SEO is a long-term investment, and so is dedicated copywriting. The well-optimized copy doesn’t only rank well on search engines but also:

• Enhances User Experience: Well-written page copy resonates better with the audience, gets more engaging as you improve it, and encourages the visitors to stay longer. That way, they’re more likely to convert from leads to customers. 
• Saves Time and Resources: A good copy needs small improvements every now and then, ensuring you or the SEO copywriter handles it professionally. This way, you can focus on product or service development and new offers for your audience. 
• Long-Term Benefits: Continuous traffic, more leads, better search engine ranking, and providing long-term benefits are the main goals for successful SEO copywriting. All of them benefit your business, too, generating more revenue. 

So, SEO copywriting services are an initial investment that may bring many benefits in the long run, especially when done professionally. 

Where to Find Professional SEO Copywriting Services?

It depends on your needs, for sure. As we mentioned, a one-time hire works best with freelancers. That way, you only get the final copy, and you will have to hire the same copywriter or someone else for further improvements (or even try to optimize the copy yourself.) Leverage various freelance platforms like Upwork, Golance, or Jobrack to find a matching professional profile.

Hiring an in-house team or one or two copywriters is great for continuous improvements, ongoing writing and copywriting, and dedicated expertise. It’s better to post a job opening on LinkedIn or similar platforms to attract the ones who can deliver.

Finally, when working in an SEO agency, you’re getting the expertise of a whole team for a good price. These teams consist of writers, editors, SEO specialists, copywriters, and marketers who may do wonders if you provide enough resources and creative freedom. If you’re interested in such collaboration, SmartClick may be the answer for you, so don’t hesitate to contact us and explain the scope of your project. 

Final Words on SEO Copywriting Services

Choosing the right service doesn’t only mean a perfect SEO copy. It’s a partnership that lasts and delivers value all the time. While one-time projects are common, building strong relationships with SEO copywriters ensures your website, emails, and social media platforms are always tidy, neat, and perfectly synchronized. 

That way, your message, and voice get to those who need to listen to them, ensuring more leads, more conversions, and, surely, more sales. 

Do you need to improve your current copy to rank better? Or do you need a complete review of the existing on-page content to find opportunities for improvements and quick SEO wins? Check our SEO services and feel free to contact us for more information.