How freelance content writers can support your marketing team
There’s a common assumption that hiring a freelance writer means one of two things:
You don’t have a marketing team
Your marketing team isn’t doing a good enough job
Neither of those is true. Or at least, they don’t have to be.
Because sometimes, the point of hiring a freelancer isn’t always to replace an in-house team - it’s to take the pressure off of them and give them space to focus on the most important tasks.
Maybe there’s a pile of work that’s been on the back burner because capacity just hasn’t been there. The blog backlog. The newsletter you meant to send three weeks ago. The ten product pages that are still just bullet point notes in a Google Doc after four months.
Bringing in a freelancer to support your team isn’t about stepping on anyone’s toes or slowing anyone down. It’s actually a smart way to clear some of that backlog and keep everything ticking over.
Pic: Wild Kind Photography
It’s not about capability. It’s about capacity.
Most in-house marketing teams are more than capable of writing content. But that doesn’t mean they’ve got the time to do all of it.
Hiring a freelancer doesn’t mean you can’t do the work. It means you can’t do all of it right now, and you need to prioritise.
That might mean strategy and campaign planning take precedence while the blog sits half-written for another month. Or you get the copy drafted, but there’s no time for polishing, proofing or proper publishing.
That’s where freelance support comes in. Not to take the lead, but to slot in and take the pressure off so your team can focus on what only they can do.
What kind of work do we usually pick up?
It depends on the business, but most of the time, it’s the stuff that’s been sitting on the list too long.
Blogs that never made it past the idea stage
A newsletter that keeps getting pushed back because other work’s taken priority
Social content that’s been posted sporadically for months
Website copy that was written in a rush, and still doesn’t quite sound right
One-off projects or campaigns that need someone to step in and focus without derailing everything else
Basically, content that isn’t urgent, but is important, and that’ll keep getting bumped unless someone takes it off your plate.
For example, I recently worked with a client who has a great in-house team, but they brought me in to handle a side project during their rebrand.
It wasn’t a question of skill - it was a question of time.
They knew that if their team took it on, something else would have to slip. And that wasn’t a trade-off they were willing to make. Not at such an important time for the business.
We collaborate without creating extra work
A good freelancer won’t add noise or step on toes. We’ll work with the tools and tone you already use. We’re not here to suggest unnecessary changes or add another opinion to the room. We’re here to do the work without needing someone to micromanage the process.
If you’ve already got a clear strategy and voice, we’ll stick to it.
If you’re mid-project and need someone to pick up from where the team left off, we’ll blend in.
Hiring a freelance content writer isn’t about creative disruption. It’s about consistency, delivered faster.
What it’s really like working with a freelance copywriter
We’re just here to write. That’s it.
For most of us, the goal isn’t to become irreplaceable. It’s to be useful. Reliable. Easy to work with. Someone who can take the job on, get it done, and help your team breathe a bit easier.
We’re often the quiet link between idea and output - the part that ensures “we need content” turns into “here it is, ready to go.”
And yes, it’s nice if you want to keep us on a retained service, or return to use us more than once. But it’s not a prerequisite (though 80% of my clients do rebook or refer me to someone they know!)
It works best before things get too busy
Sometimes, freelancers get called in when things are already behind. The deadline’s moved. The team’s overstretched. Something needs fixing, fast. It’s a firefighting effort because no one had the foresight to see the blaze was coming.
And yes, we can help with that. But it’s not always the smoothest way to work.
If you’re calling us in amidst trying to put out the fires, it can slow things down. You’ll be distracted trying to resolve the chaos, and that can sometimes mean that obtaining the information we need to work in the background becomes a chore.
Bringing someone in early, even just to scope things out and get on standby, can save time and stress later. It means we’re already up to speed when you do need us. It means work gets done before the backlog becomes a problem. And it means your team isn’t left firefighting while trying to meet their usual responsibilities.
If you know a busy period’s coming, it’s worth knowing who you’ll turn to, even if you don’t need them just yet.
Freelance support is a smart strategy. Not a backup plan
Hiring a freelance content writer doesn’t mean something’s gone wrong. It means you’re thinking ahead. You’re recognising the limits of your team’s time, and you’re making space for important work that might otherwise stay stuck in limbo.
If you want someone who can step in, pick things up quickly, and support your team without causing disruption, let’s talk.
Fancy a chat over a brew? No pressure. Just a conversation about whether freelance support could be the right fit for what’s coming next. Contact me here.
