18 Interview Questions to Ask a Freelance Content Marketer

You determined which marketer you need, posted a job description, and found a few potential candidates. The next step is an interview; navigating this crucial step requires a solid understanding of the role to ask the right questions.

What is a Freelance Content Marketer?

A freelance content marketer is a self-employed professional who creates and distributes valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a specific audience, ultimately driving profitable customer action. When hiring them, asking smart questions is crucial to ensure they align with your goals and can effectively communicate your brand's message.

General Interview Questions

1. What industries do you specialize in?

What You'll Learn: By asking about their industry specialization, you will understand the candidate's expertise and if it aligns with your niche. This shows where they have the most experience and knowledge, which is crucial for creating relevant content.

2. How do you bill for your services?

What You'll Learn: Understanding their billing practices reveals how the candidate manages business transactions, including their pricing model and payment terms. This helps in assessing if their approach fits your budget and payment schedules.

3. What questions do you have about our company?

What You'll Learn: When the candidate asks informed questions about your company, it indicates their interest and effort to understand your business, which is essential for creating targeted marketing strategies.

Technical Skill-Based Interview Questions

4. Can you describe your process for conducting SEO keyword research and integrating your findings into your content strategy?

What You'll Learn: From this response, you'll grasp the candidate's proficiency in researching keywords, which is crucial for online visibility. It reveals their ability to weave SEO practices into content plans effectively.

5. How do you measure the success of your content marketing efforts, and which analytics tools do you use to track performance?

What You'll Learn: This answer sheds light on the candidate's knowledge of performance metrics and their familiarity with analytical tools, showing how they quantify content effectiveness.

6. Can you walk us through how you develop a content calendar for a new client, taking into account their industry trends and target audience?

What You'll Learn: The explanation here uncovers the candidate's skill in planning and organizing content, taking into account client-specific factors and the ability to align with market trends and audience preferences.

7. What is your approach to creating content that appeals to both search engines and the client's target audience, and can you provide an example of a successful piece you've created?

What You'll Learn: This answer highlights the candidate's dual focus on SEO and user engagement, providing insight into their content creation skills and the impact of their work through real examples.

8. In your experience, how do you optimize content for different digital platforms, and can you explain the nuances of creating content for social media versus a blog?

What You'll Learn: The response will show the candidate's adaptability to various digital environments and their understanding of the unique requirements for content across different platforms, particularly social media versus blogs.

Scenario and Experience-Based Interview Questions

9. Describe a time when you had to adjust your content strategy in response to analytics insights or feedback from a client's audience, and what were the outcomes of those adjustments?

What You'll Learn: By asking the candidate to recount a time they changed their content strategy based on data or feedback, you gauge their analytical skills and ability to pivot strategies effectively. The response will reveal their understanding of metrics, adaptability, and the impact of their actions on campaign success.

10. Can you give an example of a high-performing content campaign you've worked on and explain the strategy behind its success?

What You'll Learn: Inquiring about a high-performing campaign provides insight into the candidate's strategic thinking and execution. It shows their ability to craft successful campaigns and underscores their understanding of what drives content performance, including creativity, audience engagement, and meeting business objectives.

11. Tell me about a situation where you had to manage a content marketing project with a tight deadline. How did you ensure the delivery of high-quality content on time?

What You'll Learn: This question assesses the candidate's project management skills and ability to work under pressure. Their answer will highlight their planning, time management, and prioritization capabilities, as well as their commitment to maintaining content quality despite challenging deadlines.

12. Share an instance where you had to repurpose content across multiple marketing channels. What was your approach, and how did you tailor the content for each channel?

What You'll Learn: The candidate's experience with repurposing content reveals their resourcefulness and understanding of different channel requirements. Their approach to tailoring content for various platforms indicates their versatility and comprehension of diverse audience preferences.

13. Recall a project where you collaborated with a design team to produce multimedia content. How did you ensure your content strategy aligned with visual and interactive elements?

What You'll Learn: Discussing collaboration with designers on multimedia content uncovers the candidate's ability to work in a team and integrate strategies. It demonstrates how they align textual and visual elements to create a cohesive and engaging user experience.

14. Describe a scenario where you faced significant challenges in engaging a client's target audience. What tactics did you employ to overcome these challenges?

What You'll Learn: When a candidate describes how they tackled audience engagement challenges, it sheds light on their problem-solving skills and creativity. It also indicates their persistence and the effectiveness of their engagement tactics, which are crucial in capturing and retaining audience attention.

15. Can you talk about a time when you had to revise your content due to a change in the client's branding or positioning, and how did you manage the transition?

What You'll Learn: Asking about revisions due to branding changes tests the candidate's flexibility and their approach to maintaining brand consistency. It reveals their ability to adapt to new directions and manage content transitions smoothly, ensuring the client's brand message remains clear and effective.

16. Can you tell me about a time when you had to handle a conflict of interest between what a client wanted and what you believed was the best content marketing practice?

What You'll Learn: The explanation for the first question assesses the candidate's ability to navigate ethical dilemmas and prioritize professional integrity over immediate client demands. It reveals their conflict resolution skills and commitment to maintaining content quality.

17. How have you handled negative feedback or criticism about your content from either clients or their audience in the past?

What You'll Learn: In the explanation for the second question, you discover how the candidate responds to and learns from criticism, an indicator of their resilience and dedication to improving their work based on feedback.

18. Describe a situation where you had to be particularly adaptable or flexible in your content marketing approach due to unexpected changes in a project's scope or direction.

What You'll Learn: The third question's explanation uncovers the candidate's flexibility and problem-solving skills when faced with unexpected challenges, showing their ability to pivot strategies effectively without compromising project success.

Explore further with our tailored interview questions for Freelance Brand Marketer, Freelance Programmatic Marketer, and Freelance Marketing Virtual Assistant to ensure you're equipped to select the best professionals across the board.

In choosing your next freelance content marketer, let these questions guide you to find a candidate who is not just skilled, but also a perfect fit for your team's ethos.

Happy hiring!