(Photo: wolv / iStockphoto)

A creative brief is the fastest way to communicate with a freelancer just how you want a project completed. It outlines the final product you expect, ensuring that you and the creatives you’re working with wind up on the same page. It can take a little time to put together a thorough creative brief, but the effort pays off in the time you’ll save explaining the style of copy you want to a writer or the feel and look of a website you expect from a designer.

Overview

The first section of a creative brief is the overview. It should cover general project information, such as the final product you expect – like a brochure or a website – as well as what you expect that product to do. If the objective of a new website is to increase sales by 20%, that information needs to be in the project overview. You should keep the overview only to a paragraph or two, however: you have plenty of information to cover in your creative brief and the overview is just a starting point.

Primary Audience

Any project is created with a primary audience in mind. If your audience is too broad, like individuals who use the Internet, your creative may not be able to complete a project that appeals to the whole audience. Instead, you want to focus in on a very specific audience and describe a typical member:

• Age range
• Gender
• Occupation
• Any other relevant demographic information

Having such information is crucial to deciding what sort of language to use to communicate with your target audience, as well as making aesthetic decisions. If you know of any stereotypes that should be avoided when thinking about and communicating to an audience, include those in your creative brief as well.

You should also describe how you expect your audience to find and use the product. Getting an individual to pick up a brochure in an office requires a very different approach than mass mailing a newsletter.

Tone and Image

In this section, you should include any information and expectations you have for the style or slant of the piece. Do you want something formal? Something humorous? Share that information with your creative, along with any specific imagery or catch phrases you’d like to use in conjunction with the campaign.

While this section of your creative brief may seem simple, it’s an opportunity for you to share your vision of the final result with the writer or designer responsible for implementing it.

Technical Information

Depending on the project you’re putting together, you may have specs that will govern how the project is executed. If you work with a particular mailing house on a direct mailing piece, for instance, it may only be able to handle materials that are folded in a certain way. This is information your designer needs to have from the start. You may have certain requirements within your own office, as well. You may only be able to open and review files in a specific way.

You may have other technical details relating to design that can help your creative work faster. If you use one particular shade of blue for your logo – or you have a logo to use on all projects – tell your designer how you intend to provide him that information.

Message

If you can give a starting point – a description of what your target audience believes or thinks before you communicate with them – as well as a message you want to share with that audience, you can smooth out the entire creative process. Be sure to give enough depth for your message: don’t just describe the value of your product or service. Put together a list of top features and other facts. Compare your business or organization to the competition. Describe all your major points.

Budget and Schedule

Ensuring that your creatives stick to a budget and schedule is easier if you can lay out both the budget and the schedule from the start. In your creative brief, make sure to note the due date for the finished project, as well as milestones along the way. If there’s a particular event or date that the project is expected to launch by, include that information as well.

If your budget or schedule is only tentative, it’s still important to include it in your creative brief. However, make a note of what information has been set in stone and what information is still subject to change.

Process

For those projects that must go through multiple layers of approval, outline that process in this section. Make it clear who needs to sign off at what milestone – and include their contact information, so that your creative can contact them directly in order to get approval. You can also set out details relating to closing out the project: if you need your designer to send the finalized files to the printer, or set up web hosting, or any other details that may be a condition of what you consider a final project, describe those details.

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(Photo: JLGutierrez / iStockphoto)

As a follow up to the first 50 freelance writers we listed whom you can outsource blog content to, we have another 50 — who were recommended by freelance writers themselves. Between these two lists, you can find a writer ready to blog on just about any topic you’ve been writing on yourself. These writers can help you provide quality content to the readers of your blog, and eliminate the worry and stress of having to keep up with a busy posting schedule on your own. If you aren’t quite sure where to start in hiring a freelance writer, the article “How To Hire Freelance Writers” can get you started.

51. Allena Tapia
Topics: Health, writing, parenting
Where She Writes: About Freelance Writing

52. Annette Fix
Topics: Parenting, writing
Where She Writes: WOW Women On Writing

53. Gina-Marie Cheeseman
Topics: Politics, environment
Where She Writes: Politics With a Purpose

54. Rebecca Laffar-Smith
Topics: Web design, web technology, parenting, family life, writing, editing, programming, business, freelancing, past life studies, mental illness/health
Where She Writes: Future Tarot, Past Life Studies, Simon’s Auctions

55. Celine Roque
Topics: Technology, personal finance, productivity
Where She Writes: Web Worker Daily, Vagablogging

56. Meryl Evans
Topics: Technology, games
Where She Writes: The Game Zen

57. Miranda Marquit
Topics: Technology, games
Where She Writes: Yielding Wealth, All Business

58. Jennifer Gniadecki
Topics: Parenting, networking
Where She Writes: Everyday Networker, Beyond Mom

59. Dustin Wax
Topics: Productivity, technology, education
Where He Writes: Lifehack, Writers Technology

60. Mary Lewis
Topics: Books, parenting
Where She Writes: Virtual Word Smith

61. J.T. Dabbagian
Topics: Technology

62. Rebecca Leaman
Topics: Technology, non-profits
Where She Writes: Wild Apricot

63. Julia Temlyn
Topics: Music, writing
Where She Writes: Musical Reviewer

64. Marijke Vroomen-Durning
Topics: Health, seniors, pregnancy, writing, dogs, quilting, nursing
Where She Writes: Seniors Support, Help My Hurt

65. Dan Romanchik
Topics: Technology, engineering, software development
Where He Writes: Auto Test News

66. Susan Johnston
Topics: Careers, writing, women’s lifestyle
Where She Writes: The Urban Muse, AOL’s Lemondrop, Freelance Switch

67. Lori Widmer
Topics: Risk management, commercial insurance, business, marketing, writing, vegetarian food

68. Michael Schultz
Topics: Comics, technology
Where He Writes: Comics As I See It

69. Cynthia Morris
Topics: Travel, development, creativity

70. Anu Karwa
Topics: Wine
Where She Writes: Tasting Table

71. Michele L. Tune
Topics: Health, writing, green living, inspiration, alternative medicine, natural beauty
Where She Writes: Healing With (Raw) Juices, Writing the Cyber Highway

72. Sara Aase
Topics: Money, family, health

73. Wendy Korn Heppt
Topics: Beauty, fashion, fitness, budgeting, health
Where She Writes: We TV, Mom Talk, Health.com

74. Mary Theobald
Topics: Healthcare, Kansas City, Des Moines
Where She Writes: Kansas City on the Cheap, Des Moines on the Cheap

75. Charmian Christie
Topics: Food, travel

76. Elizabeth King Humphrey
Topics: Parenting, family, real estate, retail
Where She Writes: Wilmaville, Coastal Carolina Moms

77. Debbie Koenig
Topics: Food, fitness, diet, parenting

78. Derek Walter
Topics: Mobile devices
Where He Writes: App Craver, Bright Hub

79. Cheryl Alkon
Topics: Diabetes, infertility, pregnancy, parenting
Where She Writes: Managing the Sweetness Within

80. Kerry Dexter
Topics: Music, the arts and humanities, the business of the arts, education, history, broadcasting, travel
Where She Writes: Music Road

81. Heather Kenny
Topics: Style, fashion, Chicago

82. Debbie Abrams Kaplan
Topics: Family, travel
Where She Writes: Frisco Kids

83. Claudine M. Jalajas
Topics: Family, travel
Where She Writes: Life As a Supermom, Skirt!Blog

84. Lisa Jaffe Hubbell
Topics: Health, the healthcare industry, food, nutrition

85. Sal Vilardo
Topics: Technology, self-help

86. Amy Lemen
Topics: Travel, home
Where She Writes: Austin Relocation Guide, Texas Real Estate

87. S. Kay Bell
Topics: Personal finance, taxes, NASCAR
Where She Writes: Bankrate

88. Michel Hudson
Topics: Non-profit fundraising

89. Julie Tereshchuk
Topics: Fine arts, travel, minority issues
Where She Writes: Austin Woman

90. Beth Goulart
Topics: Food, dogs
Where She Writes: Eating Out of the (Local) Box, Travels with Moxie

91. Liz Carmack
Topics: Travel, science, environment

92. Rachel Dickenson
Topics: Falconry, nature, poetry
Where She Writes: Falconry on the Edge, The Haiku Diaries

93. Julie Sturgeon
Topics: Travel

94. Rachel C. Weingarten
Topics: Fashion, marketing
Where She Writes: Rachel’s Blog, What Michelle Wore

95. Roxanne Hawn
Topics: Dogs, lifestyle, green living, wedding, relationships
Where She Writes: Champion of My Heart

96. Stephanie Stiavetti
Topics: Food
Where She Writes: Wasbimon

97. Jenny Cromie
Topics: Freelancing, writing, business, career
Where She Writes: The Golden Pencil

98. Elizabeth Kricfalusi
Topics: Travel, technology
Where She Writes: Embrace Adventure, Tech for Luddites

99. Karen Reddick
Topics: Parenting, writing
Where She Writes: Grammar Done Right

100. Joel Falconer
Topics: Productivity, new media, art & entertainment
Where He Writes: Lifehack, FreelanceSwitch

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(Photo: claudiodivizia / iStockphoto)

When you’re looking to outsource a writing project to a freelancer, it isn’t just a matter of posting a classified ad and browsing through a stack of resumes. It takes consideration to find a writer who can take on your project, in terms of skill, knowledge, and style — but when you put forth the effort, you can find a writer who can complete a project you’ll be proud of.

The Creative Brief

The first step you can take towards finding the right freelancer for your project is developing a creative brief. A brief is a description of the project you have in mind: the format, the length, the due date. Any information that you can add to clearly describe what the project entails belongs in the brief, including topics you expect the writer to cover and special sources of information you want to use. You don’t need to include information about your budget in a creative brief, although most writers are going to want to talk price immediately after seeing your brief. It’s a good idea to put together your budget for a project at the same time you develop your creative brief.

You can also leave out descriptions of your ideal writer from your creative brief. While you may have a specific idea of how much experience a writer should have, the fact of the matter is that years of freelance experience is rarely a good indicator of skill. Your creative brief should focus on sharing the concept of what you want your final project to look like. If, for instance, you want a blogger who can help you write content for your site, your creative brief should reflect the length of posts you want, topics, the general approach or slant you want a writer to use, and any other information that can help you describe a project.

A creative brief serves more than one function. First and foremost, it can serve as an advertisement to help you find prospects. You can post your creative brief on craigslist.org, Freelance Writing Jobs, and thousands of other sites to solicit responses from prospective writers. You’ll want to add just a little bit of information to your brief, of course: requesting writing samples and mentioning a general budget can limit the number of responses somewhat. Equally important, though, is that a creative brief can help you speed up your hiring process. It gives you a chance to be very clear on what you want, so that you can find a writer who fits your needs — and get started on your project as soon as you find your writer.

The Right Writer

Depending on the kind of project you have in mind and the pay you’re offering, you can easily get thousands of responses to a listing for a freelance writer. Sorting through all those prospective writers can seem like an insurmountable task at first, but with a little tweaking of your advertisement and a little practice, you can find a freelance writer in no time.

When you’re looking for a writer, you specifically want to ask for samples of past work. While I mentioned that looking for a writer with a certain number of years of experience doesn’t make sense, you still want a writer with the skills to handle your project. There are some cases when you set the bar fairly low — for instance, if you have a low budget for a project, you’re unlikely to get a writer with a perfectly polished style. But you do want to know that a writer meets your needs for a project, no matter what they are. The easiest way to check that fact is to take a look at a writer’s samples. You’ll want to request samples similar to your project, preferably pieces written recently.

Sorting through samples can actually be done faster than you might think. After glancing over the second or third blog post, article or website, you can usually eliminate writers who don’t fit your project quickly. Narrowing down from there can be a bit harder: you may wind up with three or four different writers you’d like to work with. But availability, budget, and other factors can usually lead you to just one writer.

You may be tempted to ask writers for a sample written specifically for your project, such as a sample description or a blog post. While a few writers may be willing to provide you with such a sample, many freelance writers will simply refuse. Asking for such samples can eliminate the best writers from your prospect pool: the reasons range from the number of dishonest individuals that have used such requests to get free content to the fact that many of the best writers simply don’t have time to put together something that may or may not actually be published.

The Deal

Once you have a particular writer in mind, you’ll want to set out the terms of your project. Many freelancers have set rates for their services; others are willing to put together a project estimate. The nature of your project can dictate which option is best for you. For instance, if you’re looking to have copy written for a website, a price for the full project may be more practical for you. But if you’re looking for a writer who can provide you with a blog post every week indefinitely, a per-post rate may be the best option. Take a look at the way your preferred writer operates and discuss which options will work best for both you.

In addition to setting a price, you’ll also want to establish how you’ll handle details like payment. Does the writer expect half of the fee for the project up-front? Does he or she expect payment to go through particular channels? Ask these questions to make sure that both you and your writer can focus on the project at hand. If your chosen freelancer has been in business for a while, he or she might have a contract for client projects. If so, take a look at it: if it clearly outlines the terms of your agreement and the project, having a contract in place can protect both you and the writer.

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"Easy reading is damn hard writing." ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne (photo: MiquelMunill / iStockphoto)

Bringing on another writer to help you keep your blog going is a practical way to outsource part of a project that you probably enjoy but just don’t have the time to really work on. There are many freelance writers willing to work on a variety of topics — it’s just a matter of finding a writer who writes on the topic your blog covers and whose writing you enjoy. To help get you started in finding a great blog writer, we’ve compiled a list of 50 freelancers for you. But we need to find 50 more to get the list to 100 in a follow-on post! Help out by letting us know of some other good freelance bloggers, what topics they blog about, and where they write. A quaint little prize awaits the person who can supply the most names (of actual freelance writers, not of random people from the phone book). (Prize will be administered February 28, 2009.)

1. Debra Lauman
Topics: Hiking, travel
Where She Writes: SARstories News, Deb’s Search and Rescue Stories

2. Nora Dunn
Topics: Travel, personal finance
Where She Writes: Wise Bread, WCities, Transitions Abroad

3. Mel Edwards
Topics: Education, training, business
Where She Writes: School Room to Board Room, BlogHer

4. Sharon Hurley Hall
Topics: Travel, technology, parenting, blogging
Where She Writes: CenturyTel, Daily Writing Tips, TechGerm.com, Park Ride Fly USA

5. John Peltier
Topics: Software

6. David Masters
Topics: Activism, personal development
Where He Writes: Non Toxin

7. Craig Martin
Topics: Traveling, food
Where He Writes: Indie Travel Guides, Travel Talks

8. Dina Santorelli
Topics: Health, parenting, business, lifestyle, entertainment
Where She Writes: Work Home You

9. JR Moreau
Topics: Sustainability, marketing, business

10. Scott Cheatham
Topics: Technology, spirituality, baseball

11. Sheila Scarborough
Topics: Travel, motorsports, social media
Where She Writes: Family Travel Logue, FastMachines.com

12. Missy Frye
Topics: Film
Where She Writes: Reel Gazer

13. Nick Daws
Topics: Writing, business, careers
Where He Writes: Nick Daws’ Writing Blog

14. Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen
Topics: Health, psychology, pregnancy
Where She Writes: Quips and Tips for Couples Coping With Infertility, Quips and Tips for Freelance Writers

15. Alisa Bowman
Topics: Health, dieting, relationships, parenting, fitness
Where She Writes: Project Happily Ever After

16. Jaclyn Schiff
Topics: Gen Y, women’s issues, health
Where She Writes: The Schiff Report

17. Dawn Allcot
Topics: Technology, paintball, music education, health fitness
Where She Writes: Anything That Pays, AGI Professional

18. Christine Cavalier
Topics: Psychology, technology, social media
Where She Writes: Push My Follow

19. Nisha Chittal
Topics: Politics, technology
Where She Writes: CitizenJanePolitics

20. Ron Meyer
Topics: Motorsports
Where He Writes: Three Wide Media

21. George Angus
Topics: Transportation, emergency medical services
Where He Writes: Alaska Transportation Examiner, Medical and Nursing Training Blog

22. Jay Hathaway
Topics: Pop culture, technology, social media, graphic design
Where He Writes: Dowloand Squad

23. Thord Daniel Hedengren
Topics: Blogging, graphic design, gaming
Where He Writes: The Blog Herald, Living Hyboria

24. Chris Johnson
Topics: Real estate, small business
Where He Writes: New Market Survival Guide, BloodhoundBlog.com, Lenderama

25. Melanie McMinn
Topics: Travel
Where She Writes: Intrepid 101

26. Samar Owais
Topics: Writing

27. John Roach
Topics: Writing
Where He Writes: Pro Writing Tips

28. Rachel Rose
Topics: Health, relationships, entertainment, business
Where She Writes: Notes on a Whim

29. Natalia Real
Topics: Fitness, education
Where She Writes: Coggno

30. Susan Pogorzelski
Topics: Careers

31. Melissa Donovan
Topics: Business
Where She Writes: Writing Forward

32. Debbi Mack
Topics: Business
Where She Writes: Writing for Hire

33. Matthew C. Keegan
Topics: Writing, cars, advocacy, aviation
Where He Writes: Auto Trends, WordJourney

34. Luke McKinney
Topics: Gaming, food, humor
Where He Writes: Cracked.com, Food Connect

35. Michelle Rafter
Topics: Business, technology, media
Where She Writes: Workforce Management, Oregon Business

36. Michelle Thompson
Topics: Scrapbooking, writing
Where She Writes: Scrapability, Juiced on Ebooks

37. Martha Cooney
Topics: Travel, family, community
Where She Writes: Packed Magazine, Black Power

38. Kristen King
Topics: Pets, health, business, women’s issues
Where She Writes: meow/bark/blog, Sass Pants

39. Kristen Fischer
Topics: Media, health, writing
Where She Writes: Creatively Self-Employed

40. Cody McKibben
Topics: Travel, careers, music, social media, graphic design
Where He Writes: ThrillingDesign.com

41. Michael Kwan
Topics: Technology, gaming, social media, online tools, and personal development
Where He Writes: LoveToKnow Video Games, Beyond the Rhetoric, John Chow, Mobile Magazine, Futurelooks

42. Christa Miller
Topics: Public safety, parenting
Where She Writes: Officer.com

43. Christine Gilbert
Topics: Travel
Where She Writes: Europe String

44. Anne Wayman
Topics: Writing, business
Where She Writes: About Freelance Writing

45. Kristin Gorski
Topics: Technology, culture, politics
Where She Writes: The Huffington Post – Off The Bus

46. Tina McAllister
Topics: Real estate, finance

47. Dorie Morgan
Topics: Career, personal development

48. Jen Nipps
Topics: Creativity, fashion, plus-size issues, general-interest articles
Where She Writes: eHow, Bukisa, Writing For Dollars, Refilling the Well

49. Amy Derby
Topics: Law
Where She Writes: Law Firm Blogger

50. Thursday Bram
Topics: Productivity, personal finance, food
Where She Writes: Stepcase Lifehack, CNET Reviews – Appliances and Kitchen Gadgets

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Post updates:
- January 25, 2009 at 7:00 PM ET: Made updates to Jen Nipps’ and Michael Kwan’s information.
- February 3, 2009 at 6:00 PM ET: Made updates to Tina McAllister’s information.
- February 8, 2009 at 11:30 PM ET: Made updates to Dawn Allcot’s information.