As an agency that helps grow brands of all sizes and stages, our client works with clients across a wide array of verticals. When the company’s SEO team needed high-quality niche content on subjects ranging from beauty to health and wellness, they turned to Stellar for a solution. We sat down with the agency’s SEO and content marketing experts to discuss the successful partnership. Here’s what they had to say.
The agency is regularly called on to supply keyword-rich blog posts for clients who are building their brand and need to rank highly on major search engines. However, creating the varied, often specialized, content required to satisfy those clients’ diverse needs, while adhering to a limited budget, proved challenging.
Their SEO team realized assigning a single in-house writer to content projects wouldn’t provide the specialization needed to succeed. To do so, they would require access to skilled long-form writers who specialize in these verticals and who could consistently deliver high-quality content, regardless of the topic.
Consequently, the agency began its search for an outsourced copywriting solution. However, finding the high-quality SEO content they needed wasn’t as easy as they’d hoped. Although their other content platform providers had several writers who met the agency’s stringent standards, it wasn’t enough to deliver the volume of content required. They needed a company that could offer access to a larger pool of qualified writers.
The agency’s VP of Performance recommended Stellar, having used the service before. Hoping to find the high-quality, SEO-rich content it needed, the agency made the switch.
The agency primarily uses Stellar’s copywriting service for blog posts. Through the platform, the team is able to place open casting calls for copywriters who meet their specific needs. These calls go out to Stellar’s pool of professional copywriters, so the agency can easily find the most suitable writers for the job and submit orders directly to them. Moreover, they can repeat this process for each new client they take on.
One marketing expert from the agency notes that they receive great content right away, saving them from having to vet numerous writers. She said they saw it as a good sign for the success of the partnership. Finding the right writers quickly is often a challenge, she points out, particularly with clients that operate in niche verticals. If you get it wrong, you’re wasting money.
Ultimately, the agency views their relationship with Stellar as a true partnership. They aim to balance the copywriters’ expertise with their own SEO knowledge by providing in-depth outlines, so each piece comes out perfect. Overall, the team finds this strategy to be working well.
The agency has benefited from working with Stellar in several crucial areas, including:
- Client search rankings: Of the blog posts written by Stellar writers, easily a quarter have resulted in numerous keywords ranking on page 1 of major search engines. They reference one client, in particular, that saw exceptional results from these outsourced blog posts. Of the 240 total keywords ranking for the page, 57 ranked on page 1. Additionally, the blog post recorded 5,556 page views since being published and likely has had more since the most recent analytics were run.
By applying content written by Stellar writers, the agency has seen the following results:
Client | Blog Name | # of Total KWs Ranking | # of Page 1 KWs Ranking | # of Pageviews Since Publish Date |
Client 1 | Blog 1 | 314 | 49 | 951 |
Blog 2 | 240 | 57 | 5,556 | |
Blog 3 | 56 | 14 | 475 | |
Blog 4 | 34 | 12 | 739 | |
Client 2 | Blog 1 | 44 | 10 | 218 |
Blog 2 | 116 | 4 | 72 | |
Blog 3 | 75 | 2 | 92 | |
Blog 4 | 95 | 4 | 46 | |
Blog 5 | 101 | 1 | 63 |
- Time savings: Because the agency operates on a strict budget, staff typically only have 20 hours each month to produce SEO content for each client. Writing their own content would be too time-consuming, so Stellar has been a time-saving, budget-friendly solution. In addition, they note that Stellar’s interface is straightforward, so it’s efficient to work with and makes it easy to train new hires to use the service.
- Content volume: Because Stellar can produce publish-ready content at scale, the agency can acquire more quality content through the solution. In fact, many of their clients require two to six blog posts per month, which amounts to a high volume of content being written.
- Communication: The agency receives personal support and regular communication from Stellar staff, something it didn’t experience with its initial content provider. The account manager checks in regularly to assess progress and determine current challenges, so she can help make the process run more smoothly for everyone. Having that extra set of eyes is very helpful, they note.
- Direct ordering: Stellar lets companies place orders directly with writers they’ve chosen, something the agency greatly appreciates. They can choose writers based on specialization, skill level and personal preference. Plus, direct ordering lets the agency’s team build relationships with individual writers. They mention one of the agency’s regular Stellar writers, who took the time to notify her that she’d be going on vacation and might need extra time to complete forthcoming orders. It made them feel as if the writer was an extended arm of the agency’s team.
- Writer availability: According to the agency’s team, the skill set of Stellar’s writers may be the most valuable part of the platform. Although the agency’s SEO crew is well-versed in short-form content, they aren’t trained copywriters. Stellar lets them have access to a large pool of professional writers, many of whom specialize in blog writing and other long-form content. Plus, many of Stellar’s copywriters have the specialty knowledge and experience needed to successfully produce content in the niches the agency’s clients need.
- Content quality: The Agency appreciates the top-notch quality of the content they receive. The blog posts achieve consistent results despite frequent algorithm shifts that affect SEO.
- Openness to feedback: They note that Stellar is open to evolving, something that’s extremely important in an ever-changing industry. Staff listen to, consider and often implement suggestions. The platform is open to improving their processes based on feedback, something that can’t be said for many copywriting platforms.
Perhaps most importantly, Stellar provides the niche content the agency needs to keep its clients satisfied, while staying comfortably within its budget. The agency plans to continue this successful partnership and hopes to expand its use of the Stellar platform going forward.