How to hire a designer/writer

How to hire a designer/writer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step designer/writer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a designer/writer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new designer/writer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the designer/writer you need to hire. Certain designer/writer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a designer/writer to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a designer/writer that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of designer/writers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Designer/Writer	Description	Hourly rate
   Designer/Writer	Technical writers, also called technical communicators, prepare instruction manuals, how-to guides, journal articles, and other supporting documents to communicate complex and technical information more easily. They also develop, gather, and disseminate technical information through an organization’s communications channels.	$46-73
   Writer And Editor	Writing is not an easy task, so a Writer and an Editor must work together to deliver quality content. A writer's role is to gather information to create a structured written material that would serve its purpose, whether for recreational or informational... Show more	$17-49
   Technical Writer And Editor	A technical writer and editor is primarily responsible for producing written content that defines and explains technical concepts to inform and educate readers. As a writer, it is essential to research and fact-check details to ensure the material's accuracy and value... Show more	$24-39

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Web Content
   • Graphic Design
   • Adobe Indesign
   • Adobe Photoshop
   • Customer Data
   • Press Releases
   • Feature Stories
   • HTML
   • Blog Posts
   • News Articles
   • Historical Research
   • CSS
   • Fiction
   • PC

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage a team of RFP writers and work with a cross-functional team to meet RFP requirements and establish deadlines.
   • Update various newsletters and programs using HTML and CSS.
   • Work with subject matter experts, write and edit course materials and PowerPoint presentations; complete edit/QA on all course materials.
   • Design light fixtures to customer and principal specifications, utilizing sheet metal and aluminum extrusion methods using SolidWorks.
   • Post social media and hospital promotional/patient testimonial YouTube videos.

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your designer/writer job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A designer/writer salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, designer/writers' average salary in west virginia is 43% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level designer/writers earn 37% less than senior-level designer/writers.
   • Certifications. A designer/writer with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a designer/writer's salary.

   Average designer/writer salary

   $121,336yearly

   $58.33 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level designer/writer salary

   $96,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 29, 2025

4. Writing a designer/writer job description

   A designer/writer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a designer/writer job description:

   Designer/writer job description example

   Welcome to Peacock, the dynamic new streaming service from NBCUniversal. Here you'll find more than a job. You'll find a fast-paced, high-flying team for unique birds that want to be at the epicenter of technology, sports, news, tv, movies and more. Our flock works hard to connect people to what they love, each other and the world around them by creating shared experiences through culture-defining entertainment.
   
   As a company, we embrace the power of difference. Our team is committed to creating an organization that champions diversity and inclusivity for all by curating content and a workforce that represents the world around us. We continue to challenge ourselves and the industry by being customer-centric, data-driven creatures of innovation. At Peacock, we are determined to forge the next frontier of streaming through creativity, teamwork, and talent.
   Here you can fly to new heights!
   
   Peacock is NBCUniversal's streaming service that combines favorite shows and movies, exclusive Originals, live sports, and current hits with timely news, kids programming, and more. All together. All in one app.
   
   As a Content Designer on our Direct-to-Consumer Commerce team, you will write, design, develop, test, iterate, and launch experiences that are contextually relevant, exceedingly useful, and curiously entertaining. The Commerce team enables consumers to join Peacock and manage their account successfully and helps grow the business in accordance with the broader goals and initiatives of NBCUniversal.
   
   What we're looking for in a candidate:
   
   You are a great writer who considers writing a form of design. You know how to form a narrative and propel people toward action using a minimal number of words-and you can show examples of this.
   
   You are self-motivated, scrappy, fluid, and adaptable-able to pivot easily, work on multiple tracks, and own both big ideas and practical daily output. No task is too big or too small for you.
   
   You understand information hierarchy, how to organize content both on a page and across an experience, the importance of user research, and user journey mapping.
   
   You are capable of brainstorming future solutions and taking steps toward them while working within the limitations of what's possible now.
   
   You are meticulous about writing, with high standards when it comes to style, punctuation, and consistency. You can document work and have experience working with or creating style guides, design systems or internal reference materials, and/or conducting audits.
   
   You are accustomed to collaborating with designers and/or developers, and feel comfortable advising product owners, designers, executives, and other stakeholders on copy and content best practices, including those that apply to accessibility and SEO.
   
   You are confident and resilient enough to proactively seek collaboration, share work in progress with others, and parse feedback for continued iteration. You appreciate critiques, look for wins, and embrace failure as a chance to learn.
   
   What you'll be doing:
   
   Writing, designing, and editing/updating copy that makes Peacock easy to understand and use. This includes website landing pages, CTAs, in-product messaging, error messages, help articles, FAQs, and other touchpoints.
   
   Collaborating with product owners, designers, researchers, marketing, legal, data science, and/or engineering to successfully deliver products to market.
   
   Fulfilling daily “short-order requests” as well as influencing messaging strategy, narrative, product flows and decisions, interface language, nomenclature, and other content.
   
   Maintaining accurate, consistent language across a variety of contexts-including UI components, editorial content, and help text-for different user cohorts, as well as auditing existing language and documenting content patterns for team reference.
   
   Building rapport with other teams to improve consistency across the end-to-end customer experience.
   
   Understanding and advocating for people who use our products-as well as the craft of content design itself.
   
   Inspiring positivity, calmness, and collaboration even in the face of uncertainty.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find designer/writers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your designer/writer job on Zippia to find and recruit designer/writer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as problogger, media bistro, journalismjobs.com, content writing jobs.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit designer/writers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new designer/writer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the designer/writer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new designer/writer. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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