As we talked about earlier this week, one of the most important elements of making a good income is being able to accurately determine how long a content marketing deliverable will take you from start to finish. If you consistently underestimate, then you will be earning a much lower hourly rate than you probably thought you would when you accepted the assignment. One of the hardest parts of estimating time for content marketing writing is that there are many more variables in the process than with writing for traditional publications.

Next time you estimate how long a content marketing project will take you, make sure you consider the following eight factors:

1. Are you a fast writer or on the slow side? Some writers are pretty fast while others are more methodical. It’s not a bad thing to be slower, but you will want concentrate on higher paying assignments since the only way to make the lower ones worth it is to be quick. From talking with other writers, I have found that one writer may take several hours longer to complete than the same project might take another writer.

2. What is the length of the article? It’s going to take a lot longer to write 1500 words than 500 words, no matter how you slice it.

3. What is the type of deliverable? Blogs typically take a lot less time than articles because of the writing style required. Case studies and white papers typically take even longer because they much be more polished and formal. Even if the number of sources required are the same, every 1,000-word deliverable is not created equal.

4. How many interviews are required? How hard will it be to find quality sources? How long do you think the interviews will last? A 700-word post blog with only internet research will be much quicker than an article where you have to identify, track down, and interview two sources. Another factor is how easy or hard it will be to find a good source on the topic. It is typically much quicker to find a source to interview about social media than an expert on ant species native to Brazil. As a general rule, I add 45 minutes to my estimate for each interview required for my content marketing writing projects.

5.  Is the topic one that you are familiar with? This is another factor that you should weigh heavily into your estimate. It can take me almost double the amount of time to write an article or blog on a new topic than one that is in my regular niches. If it’s a topic that I am familiar with, I already know the terminology, have go-to sources already in my contact list, so I can crank out the draft a lot quicker.

6. Is the project clearly defined or is the client not totally clear what they are looking for? When writing for traditional publications, most editors assign stories all day long and have a good idea of their expectations and scope. But with content marketing writing, you may be working on the very first content marketing project at the company. When a client doesn’t really know what they want, the project always takes WAAAAYYYY longer. If I get that feeling up front, I add about 20 percent extra time. Or better yet, don’t take the project.

7. How much additional research is required? Is there documentation you have to read? Do you need to review a number of websites for the article? If you have to read a 30-page study for the report, it is going to take a lot longer than if you only need to read a few paragraphs on a website.

8. How many revision rounds are expected? Who is involved in the editing process? When you are estimating the project, ask the client about the review process to find out who will be involved and how many rounds are expected. If it sounds like a lot of people will be involved, I add extra time. And if the client mentions that there will be a review by the legal department, then I add even more extra time. Regardless, add additional time review time in your estimate to any content marketing projects since the number of review cycles and amount of changes is typically higher in the corporate world than the publishing world.

 

What do you consider when determining how long a piece will take? Which of these factors weigh the most heavily? Are there any other factors that you take into consideration?