Dos & don'ts when working with writers on contract

Communication World, March, 1999 by Eric Ahrendt

You'll get the best copy in the shortest time, remain on speaking terms with copy reviewers, and be a patron saint to writers if you observe all the following guidelines. Of course, you'll also be the first client who ever has. But even if you observe only some of them, you'll be a better manager of contract writers.

Laying the Groundwork

Do plan on establishing a long-term relationship. It's a waste of your time to keep repeating the process of interviewing, getting comfortable with, and educating new writers, so commit to several and invest the time to teach them about your company's technology, products and markets. As writers learn more about your business, they need less direction, and you'll get better copy that requires fewer changes.

Do specify for the writer the audience and objectives for an assignment. And ideally, target just one audience -- try not to ask a writer to produce something that works only for CEOs. VARs and database administrators. If you do, you risk getting copy that sounds like a middle-of-the-road politician whose message is so bland and vague that it doesn't turn anyone off, but doesn't turn anyone on, either.

Don't ask for a proposal quoting a specific fee. Instead, ask the writer to look over the material and get back to you with a quote in the form of a range. Why? Because it's often hard to tell up front how much work a project will require. Some projects entail interviewing a single source and are done after one draft and one revision: others require interviewing multiple sources, reading background on products and technology, and writing several drafts to please reviewers with different agendas. So ask the writer to give you a quote that leaves some discretion on what to charge within a range of twenty-five percent or so, and it's likely both of you will feel you got a fair deal when the project is done.

Do get the writer and designer together in the early stages. For an application story illustrated by a single photo and printed on a single page, you can skip the meeting. But brochures, annual reports, packaging, direct mail and other visually rich materials communicate most effectively when copy and design work together, so make that happen by discussing layout and graphics and agreeing on a concept at an early meeting.

Don't make vague agreements on project scope, fees and deadlines. If your organization has a standard agreement for independent contractors, use it. Spelling out arrangements in writing protects both you and the writer. If there's no standard form, a simple e-mail or memorandum of understanding restating what you've agreed to can avoid hard feelings later.

Supplying the Information

Do assemble relevant background material for the writer. You'll get copy sooner, and it will be more consistent with established corporate messages if you give the writer current backgrounders, news releases, product collateral and presentations. For the writer, carefully worded documents are a much more convenient, reliable source of information than rambling interviewees. You may have to spend some time rounding material up, but it's a big time-saver in the end, because you and your reviewers won't have to rewrite the writer's attempts to describe a product or technology that has already been clearly and succinctly described in other documents.

Do give the writer copies of similar documents written on related subjects. If the writer is working on a software product brochure for an executive audience, give him copies of other brochures in the same family so he can see the style, the length, the level of detail, and how the copy is organized into sections.

Don't give the writer everything ever written on related subjects. Ask the writer to wade through a presentation consisting of 50 overheads, two of which are relevant to your assignment, and you risk confusing him or her about what's important and what's not. Do the triage beforehand, and pass on only what's likely to be useful. Include material that may be useful; just leave out the stuff you know doesn't apply.

Do tell the writer what's good and bad about previous incarnations of this document. If the project is a redo of an earlier piece, tell the writer why you're doing a new version, and what should and shouldn't change from the previous version. For example, when you're updating a corporate brochure, the sections on products and markets may need a complete rewrite, but the section on technology may be perfectly fine. If you don't tell the writer this, he or she may think all the existing copy is unacceptable and spend hours trying to find a different way to say things that have already been said well. In fact, some writing jobs consist of creating a new document simply by stitching together sections of existing documents. If your assignment is one of those, say so at the beginning and save the writer from trying to write original copy for everything.

Don't set up group interviews. They're almost impossible for the writer to control, and the people in them often care more about the impression they're making on their coworkers than about helping the writer. One-on-one interviews are much more productive because the writer can control the conversation, ask dumb questions, and pursue a line of questioning until he or she understands important points and gets the necessary facts.