How to Assess Writing Skills When Hiring Content Writers?

These days, outsourcing a content writer becomes an important decision for any organization that survives on the written word, be it a blog, marketing material, or product description. A good content writer needs to be able to write but also hold the attention of the target audience and get across an appropriate message while meeting deadlines. But where do you actually start to assess someone’s writing skills?

Conventional resumes and portfolios may give some insight but often fail to reveal exactly how well the candidate can perform under the specific demands of your business. This is where a writing skills assessment comes in. In this article, we’ll discuss ways to assess writing skills while hiring content writers and how you can go two steps ahead in streamlining the process with OnlineExamMaker.

• What Is An Online Writing Skills Assessment?
• 5 Key Writing Skills to Look for in A Content Writer
• How to Create A Writing Skills Assessment to Evaluate Candidates Using OnlineExamMaker?

What Is An Online Writing Skills Assessment?

The online writing skills Assessment is a tool used to evaluate candidates for their clear, concise, and engaging writing in a virtual or remote environment. Whereas the traditional interview or writing sample provides only partial insight into a writer’s abilities, an online assessment allows an employer to objectively evaluate predefined writing skills on a consistent basis.

These could be grammar, style, and structure in the form of writing prompts, editing exercises, or multiple-choice questions. The aim of conducting an online writing skills assessment would be to understand a candidate’s writing process, timeline management, and approach to various content types.

5 Key Writing Skills to Look for in A Content Writer

When picking a content writer, it is wrong to consider grammar and spelling alone. Here are five basic writing skills to involve:

1. Grammar and spelling
Obvious perhaps, but grammar and spelling are just so integral to making content professional and readable. Of course, there are a good number of grammarians who know most rules and proof their works for mistakes.

2. Clarity and conciseness
A good content writer knows how to elicit ideas without any additional complication. The art of taking difficult concepts and simplifying them into simple, understandable language is a much-needed quality in engaging readers and keeping their interest at an all-time high.

3. Creativity and originality
Creativity plays an important role in writing fresh and unique content. Among the writers, there should be the ability to devise something original and write in a manner that engages the reader and offers value.

4. SEO knowledge
In modern times, the work of a content writer requires him/her to be aware of SEO practices. It includes keyword usage, meta descriptions, and writing for readers/search engines for better visibility of the content.

5. Flexibility and tone
Projects demand various tones and styles-from formal business writing to lighter, more conversational blog posts. A strong content writer can grasp the tone required to be persuasive, instructive, or amusing, in order to meet the needs of the audience and the intentions of the content.

How to Create A Writing Skills Assessment to Evaluate Candidates Using OnlineExamMaker?

You can create a customized writing skills assessment with OnlineExamMaker or other similar tools, whereby you can test more factors of the candidate’s writing skills efficiently. Here is how you can create an assessment.

Step 1: Log in to OnlineExamMaker or signup

First, log onto the website: OnlineExamMaker. If this is the first time, you’re supposed to click the sign-up option by filling in your name, institution, and also your email address. On the other hand, if you already have an account, there is the option of logging in with your credentials. Complete your profile with detailed description information about your institution or organization for efficiency in managing your exams and records.

Step 2: Create a new exam

Once logged in, you’ll be taken to your dashboard. Go to “Exams” then click the option to create a new exam.

Step 3: Add and edit questions

Give the exam a descriptive name like “Writing Skills Assessment” or “Grammar and Composition Test.” Then, choose between various exam formats (e.g., multiple choice, essay questions, short answer). Since you want to assess writing skills, you’ll likely focus on essay and written response formats.

Step 4: Customize exam settings

Set a time limit for the exam if necessary. A writing exam could range from 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on the complexity of the tasks.

Step 5: Review and publish

Check your exam for mistakes carefully before publishing it. Do a preview to make sure everything appears as it’s supposed to. Then click “Publish” and the exam will be available to candidates. Once you’re satisfied with the assessment, you can publish the exam.

OnlineExamMaker will generate a unique link to the exam. You can send this link to candidates via email or provide access through a recruitment portal.
You can control who has access to the exam (e.g., specific candidates, teams, or job applicants).

Step 6: Results analysis

After the exam, you grade the answers and finally analyze the results using reporting tools provided by OnlineExamMaker. Such reports show the subtlety of every performance by each participant and where further improvements are required.

Writing skill assessment gives you the top content writers who will represent your brand and engage your audience effectively. While portfolios or interviews may give a feel for the candidate’s abilities, an online writing skills assessment is much more precise in determining the ability of a candidate. Thanks to OnlineExamMaker, you will be able to create your own writing assessments in key skills such as grammar, creativity, SEO knowledge, and adaptability. This platform will enable you to streamline the effort of recruiting the best of the best candidates who can value the creation of quality content at your organization.

Begin evaluating and recruiting great content writers at OnlineExamMaker, who deep-dive into driving business success with convincing written communication!