TL;Dr
Freelance B2B writers are actually easy to find. But the ones who can turn up the numbers? You’ll need an extra level of thoroughness to spot them.
Freelance writing is one of the lowest-bar-to-entry roles that doesn’t need a specialized degree or a long training duration. Almost anyone who can write can call themselves a freelance writer. And now that AI can generate content that sounds almost as intelligent as most people, it’s become even easier for anyone to call themselves a writer.
For you as a B2B marketer or founder, it means, more than ever before, you need someone who can think on their own, excuavate their own insights and communicate them clearly with little or no help from AI. And, honestly, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find people with that fine ability.
Since Ahrefs published their study on how Google doesn’t punish AI content, it still matters that the content is actually useful. This is why companies that use AI in their content workflow are now circling back to hiring human writers. Because that ability to discern good content from bad one can determine if you’ll get an ROI from your content marketing efforts or not.
But how do you spot these writers? Do you check their portfolio, read their posts on LinkedIn, see if they have a personal brand, or scan their resume?
That’s what I’m about to show you. Let’s dig in!
Check their best samples before making a hiring decision
This is pretty obvious, but maybe you’ve been doing it the wrong way.
Matthew Proctor says he’s hired hundreds of writers for his content and shared how he approaches it: starting with the work itself. Specifically the hook.
You want a writer who can connect an article to a business goal or make complex topics feel like a familiar concept? Look at their past articles.
Are they flexing their writing muscles, or writing like an experienced marketer whose bigger goal is moving the reader towards buying?
Even in an educational article, each sentence should pull the reader to the next one and keep them engaged to the end. That’s what moves them to the next stage of the funnel, which is the whole point of the piece!
When you’re vetting a freelance B2B writer, check whether they:
- Know how to own a subject: Because this is what good research produces. Even on a topic they were unfamiliar with, a good B2B writer can talk about it like they’ve been there for years. You’ll see it in insights you can’t find elsewhere, a different (maybe controversial) angle they formed after reading everyone else’s work, and original sources cited to support their arguments.
- Can simplify complex ideas: If you have to read a sentence more than twice to understand it, that isn’t a good sign. B2B topics are often complex and boring, so the ability to simplify a term or idea for the people they’re writing for matters a lot. And by that, I don’t mean writing like it’s for a 5-year-old. I mean writing at the right level for the audience. A good writer can explain retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to founders who know nothing about how AI cites content and still communicate the same concept to software engineers who have been deep in it for years, without making either feel stupid.
- Sound like themselves: Does their client’s work sound like how they write on their personal wall, or like a completely different person? That’s a red flag. Good B2B writers have honed a style due to consistent practice, so they can bring the same tone and voice to their client content. You can’t separate a good writer from how they write.
Now that you know what to look for in a writing sample, let’s look at where you can find the writers.
Where to find good freelance B2B writers
Where you hire a freelance B2B writer from can tell me how potentially good they’ll be. Some places are naturally set up to accommodate any kind of writer, including those with AI-generated samples (hey Fiverr). Meanwhile, some platforms only recommend writers with a level of foothold and expertise (think communities and Google).
Here are some of the best places to find good freelance B2B writers for your content project.
LinkedIn is, in my opinion, the easiest and best place to find good freelance B2B writers. It’s a B2B platform, after all.
Personally, 80% of my freelance clients came via LinkedIn and I have a few of my colleagues who say so too. I’ve connected with B2B content marketers and founders on LinkedIn and I can say it’s a fast route to someone you want to work with, compared with going through tens or hundreds of resumes and samples.
Buuut, there’s a smart way to use LinkedIn for finding freelance B2B writers, or you’ll end up reviewing hundreds of samples from DMs, emails and even calls!.
Instead of putting out a call for writers, spend time finding and observing a handful of writers whose work you’ve already seen, whether it’s their LinkedIn posts or a company’s blog.
Before a project comes up, reach out and have a conversation. Hiring managers use the same tactic when they have many good applicants but can only pick one: they keep a pool for later, in case they need extra hands or a replacement.
My past and present clients used this exact approach to connect and work with me. This way, you’re picking someone with a track record of quality, not someone who will claim a title because an opportunity popped up.
Upwork
Upwork is one of the platforms you go to if you’re looking for folks who have been writing before ChatGPT and Claude came into the picture. You’ll also find writers with a long record of satisfied clients. But keep in mind, you get what you pay for.
Although freelancers are beginning to call the platform out for its outrageous fees and ridiculous clients’ budgets, it’s still a good place to find solid B2B writers.
To get started, register as a client and share a brief description of what you need. Be ready to vet several freelancers (and maybe take a few calls). You can also post a job and invite freelancers whose work you’ve already vetted and liked instead of reviewing applicants you haven’t had time to check.
Contra
Contra is another platform for finding good freelance B2B writers. If you know what you need but not who you want, you can post a job and freelancers would pitch you.
Or you can simply browse top profiles, save the ones that catch your attention and vet their work using the tips above. When you’re ready, send a proposal describing what you need from them and how much you’ll pay.
Some writers have their own websites where they share their portfolio and publish SEO content to generate leads.
A simple Google search can help you find them. Search “freelance B2B writers” and go through the portfolios on the first and second pages. You’ll find people who write for the business of it and not just as an hobby.
What to observe when evaluating a freelance B2B writer
I heard a quote once that has stuck with me ever since. It says “Competence gets you in the room, but character keeps you there.”
As a founder or B2B content marketer, that means you don’t only want someone who is good at B2B writing. You want someone whose character and values line up with yours.
A brilliant writer with a bad attitude can frustrate you to no end. So check for these five qualities when you interview a freelance B2B writer.
- They care about your company as much as the rate. You’re investing resources into your company’s content so you want someone who cares about helping your company grow. Writing, for them, shouldn’t just be something they enjoy and pays some bills. You want someone who will do the hard work: dig into original sources, find customer discussions, listen to hours of sales calls and craft a narrative that sets you apart. You’ll spot this almost immediately when their first question isn’t about the pay rate but about your offers and your customers.
- They communicate on time: I don’t mean “all the time,” though. I mean they keep to their word. If they say they’re available for a meeting within a certain window, they show up at that time. They deliver by the deadline, and when they can’t, they ask for an extension before it affects anything. They don’t ghost you and come back with an explanation after the deadline is past.
- They take feedback well. Writing is subjective, and what the writer thinks is good may not sit well with you. It can also take a while to learn your brand’s style and voice, so early on there may be many corrections and iterations. You want someone who takes feedback easily and not personally. The best way to test this is to give them some. After a sample piece or a portfolio walkthrough, watch how they react when you correct their work. Do they accept it at face value, or ask for the thinking behind it so they can improve? That says a lot about what working with them will be like.
- They’re upfront about how they use AI. If you’re trying to avoid AI slop, ask directly. A good writer can tell you where AI helps their process (research and outlining, for example) and where a human has to do the thinking. Be careful with a writer who dodges the question. Ask them to walk you through how they’d approach one of your article.
- They own their mistakes and fix them fast. Every writer sometimes gets a fact wrong or misses the brief. What matters is what happens next. A good writer flags the error, fixes it quickly and tells you what they’ll do differently, without getting defensive or hiding it
What you can do now
Use any of the platforms I shared to find three writers whose work you like. Then start a conversation with them. Watch how and what questions they ask, how they handle feedback and where they use AI in their writing process.
If you don’t have the time to do all of that, you can hire me instead 🙂
Simply fill the form below and I’ll get back to you within the next 24 hours.
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