SEO and content go hand in hand.
However, it’s becoming harder and harder to stand out in the SERPs without high quality content.
After all, 95% of your potential customers won’t even look farther from the first page of search engine results. So if you want your clients’ pages to appear there, you can’t stop at keywords.
You need great content.
Today, we’re here to help you find the best content services to outsource your writing:
What to Look for in a Content Writing Service?
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.
The first step is outlining your content goals:
What kind of content do you need? (E.g. Product descriptions, blog content, white papers, web pages, etc.) How often will you need content? (E.g. On a monthly basis, once in a few months, one-off) How complex is your content?
The first two are no-brainers, but let’s talk about the third: how complex is your content?
There’s a huge difference between outsourcing a single blog post, and constantly working with the same content writer that will research your brand voice, target audience, and create a variety of different pieces.
Similarly, if your niche is specific (e.g. legal, health care, IT), you need a writer who specializes in your niche.
You also have to establish your degree of involvement.
Do you want to be super involved in the process of content creation and content marketing, or do you simply want to submit your request and get the article within a few days?
Your second step should be looking at all the details:
- Pricing
- Turnaround
- Revisions
The content writing service should fit your budget, as well as your timeline.
Similarly, you might want the service to edit a few things. You need to know their revision policies (and charges).
Criteria for Our Best SEO Content Writing Services Review
We’ll use the following criteria to evaluate seo writing services:
- Content types and niches
- Pricing
- Ease of use
- Customer support
Let’s get this show on the road!
TextBroker
TextBroker is a content writing service that was founded in 2005. They offer three distinct content outsourcing models:
TextBroker Self Service Review
Self service is exactly what it says on the tin: you can choose which writer to work with, and how much you’ll pay them.
The first step is choosing the article type:
- Basic articles
- In-depth articles
- Foreign languages
This is a big deal, as you can get content in foreign languages, as well. It’s great if you’ve got a multilingual site and you want to cover all the SEO avenues.
It’s also safe to say that TextBroker covers every niche. They work with over 100,000 writers.
Your second step is choosing the content quality level:
- Low rate (if you’re okay with grammar and spelling mistakes)
- Balanced
- High quality (if you want publish-ready content)
Personally, we’re not big fans of this approach. Everyone wants great content, why even offer low-rate content?
From there, you can pick from three options for placing your order:
- OpenOrder: Your content request is displayed to TextBroker writers, and you set a fixed price and quality level
- DirectOrder: Pick the author you’d like to write your content, and agree on the price and the delivery date with them
- TeamOrder: Pick multiple authors to form your content writing team
The pricing, of course, varies.
TextBroker SelfService Pricing
If you opt for OpenOrder and a low-quality text, you’ll pay 1.5 cents per word.
If you want decent quality, that’ll set you back for 2.0 - 2.7 cents per word.
And if you want stellar quality, that’s going to be 7.2 cents per word.
DirectOrder (commission an author) and TeamOrder start from 2.7 cents per word.
TextBroker Managed Service
If your budget is at least $2,500, you can opt for TextBroker’s managed service.
You’ll get high-quality content, and the TextBroker team will help you every step of the way.
This is a good option if you don’t want to manage freelancers through the platform, or go through thousands of writers to find the right fit.
Is TextBroker Easy to Use?
TextBroker is relatively straightforward.
However, you’ll still need to manually vet writers or review offers, so it’s more of a marketplace than a fully-managed content writing service.
You can’t just post your request and get new content within a few days.
TextBroker Customer Support
You can reach customer support by phone or email.
Verdict: Is TextBroker Worth It?
Our TextBroker rating is: 3/5.
Yes, TextBroker is a huge marketplace. There are plenty of writers who specialize in various niches.
However, the pricing could be more competitive, especially since you’re expected to do plenty of management and vetting work yourself.
Upwork
Upwork is a huge freelancer marketplace. It’s not just for content writing, and no one vets the writers, so you’ll have to do that on your own.
Upwork is pretty simple: you post your request and offer in the content writing category. Then, freelancers send you proposals and you pick the perfect person for the job.
Alternatively, you could also go through Upwork’s content writer pool and get in touch with writers whose portfolios you like.
Posting Your Upwork Offer
If you don’t want to go looking for the perfect writer, you can post your job offer with all the details.
You can set your budget and delivery date.
From there, you’ll have freelancers send you their proposals. You can communicate with them through the platform, and when you’re ready to start, your money will go into escrow.
Still, you’ll have to manually vet freelancers and their proposals, as well as manage them.
Selecting an Upwork Writer
You can also find the right person for the job, and get in touch with them directly.
Keep in mind that, in that case, you’ll have to discuss details, pricing, and delivery date with the writer(s) you’ve selected.
You can also choose to have the work delivered through milestones. This is a good option for longer or recurring projects.
Upwork Niches and Content Types
Since there are millions of writers on Upwork, this platform covers all niches and content types.
Upwork Pricing
Upwork doesn’t have standard pricing, so you’ll see writers offering to write for as low as $0.001/word, and as high as $10/word.
It all depends on the niche and the writer’s expertise. Make sure you take their experience and rating into account, and take a look around the platform to see what other writers in the niche charge.
Is Upwork Easy to Use?
Not really. You’ll have to manage everything yourself, and manually vet freelancers based on their proposals, ratings, and work quality.
Upwork Customer Support
Upwork offers the following types of support:
- Knowledge base
- Chat bots
- Phone
Verdict: Is Upwork Worth It?
If you want to establish a connection with a writer for long-term projects, yes.
Otherwise, it’s too much work.
We say: 3/5!
ContentFly
ContentFly is the so-called Uber for content writing, and it’s really simple:
- Log in
- Submit your content brief with details
- Receive your content within a few days
Unlike other platforms, it’s a monthly content writing subscription service.
It’s phenomenal for agencies who need a lot of content on a monthly basis. You’re not locked in by contracts or content types - your subscription can cover all your clients’ needs.
Unlike other platforms, you don’t have to pick your writer.
Instead, ContentFly’s algorithm finds the best writer for your content.
Finally, you’ll get your article via email, and you can request revisions.
Content Types
ContentFly writers primarily cover the following content types:
- Blog posts and articles
- Social media posts
- Landing pages
- Email content
ContentFly Niches
ContentFly has a huge base of elite content writers that cover dozens of industries, so you should be good!
ContentFly Pricing
ContentFly offers monthly subscriptions, based on the amount of words you need per month:
- 4,000 words per month: $250
- 8,000 words per month: $500
- 12,000 words per month: $750
And so on!
That puts the average price of content at around $0.06/word. This is definitely a very, very competitive price.
Is ContentFly Easy to Use?
ContentFly is very easy to use!
All you have to do is submit your content request, and the ContentFly team will take it from there.
You don’t have to manage freelancers or worry about editing. Unlike other services, ContentFly offers high-quality content at a fixed price.
ContentFly Support
You can get help by email or live chat. There’s also a comprehensive knowledge base that can help you out in a pinch.
Verdict: Is ContentFly Worth It?
Yes! We rate ContentFly with 5 stars.
First, after uploading your content brief, you don’t have to do anything yourself.
This is a hands-off approach that other platforms rarely offer.
Secondly, the pricing is very, very competitive. You’re getting plenty of bang for your buck as you’ll get high-quality content at an incredibly low price.
Finally, the turnaround time is great! You can get a 1,500-word article in just a few days.
Verblio
Verblio is another writer marketplace, and the pricing varies depending on your content quality needs.
In a nutshell, you submit your job request with details, content quantity, and other aspects. Verblio claim that most of their clients get content within 72 hours.
After receiving your article, you can leave feedback or request revisions.
And similarly to ContentFly, Verblio also offers a monthly subscription.
Verblio Niches and Content Types
Verblio covers a variety of niches. Their writers specialize in everything from IT and medical sectors, to marketing and business niches.
You’ll see the same diversity in content types Verblio writers cover. The only formats they donotwrite are:
- Case studies
- Social media posts
- Email campaigns
- Ad copy
- Term papers
Verblio Pricing
Your price depends on the amount of content you want every month.
For example, if you want one 1,000-word article per month, you’ll pay $119,95/month.
You can also get additional services such as stock photos, back-end SEO optimization, and so on.
Is Verblio Easy to Use?
Since you just have to submit your job request, yes. All the extra services are a nice touch, too!
Verblio Customer Support
You can get in touch with Verblio via live chat and email.
Verdict: Is Verblio Worth It?
Our Verblio rating is: 4/5.
Verblio is pretty easy to use, and covers a variety of different industries. However, the pricing isn’t very competitive.
SEOButler
Finally, SEOButler is a content writing service with an added search engine optimization focus.
In addition to outsourcing content, you can also buy guest posts, social signals, and business citations.
SEOButler Content Types and Niches
SEOButler offers the following content types:
- Blog posts
- Technical blog posts
- Website content
- Affiliate product reviews
- Surfer-optimized content
- Buyer’s guides
- Product descriptions
- Guest posts
You can also get content for a variety of niches.
If SEOButler doesn’t cover your niche, you’ll get your money back.
SEOButler Pricing
Your price depends on the content type.
For example, general blogs are the cheapest content type at $0.05/word.
Surfer-optimized content is the most expensive at $0.135/word.
Is SEOButler Easy to Use?
Yes.
You fill out all the details and submit your content request. You’ll get your article within a few days.
SEOButler Customer Support
You can get in touch with SEOButler via email.
Verdict: Is SEOButler Worth It?
Yes. Our SEOButler rating is 4/5.
We really love the additional services, and the pricing is pretty competitive.
However, they’re not a traditional content agency, so your content might not be quite as good.
What Are the Best Content Services to Outsource Your Writing?
We won’t beat around the bush: we love ContentFly and Verblio for their quality and ease of use.
Why waste dozens of hours vetting managing freelancers?
These two will get the job done flawlessly!