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Publisher vs content writer

The differences between publishers and content writers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a publisher, becoming a content writer takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a publisher has an average salary of $71,539, which is higher than the $58,918 average annual salary of a content writer.

The top three skills for a publisher include press releases, customer satisfaction and strategic thinking. The most important skills for a content writer are digital marketing, wordpress, and web content.

Publisher vs content writer overview

PublisherContent Writer
Yearly salary$71,539$58,918
Hourly rate$34.39$28.33
Growth rate-5%4%
Number of jobs10,30319,621
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 72%Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Average age4442
Years of experience42

What does a publisher do?

A publisher manages the design, editing, and production process with the help of proofreaders, printers, and editors. Publishers make schedules for every stage of the process and work backward from the planned date for publication. They distribute promotional catalogs to libraries and booksellers. They set the commercial and editorial direction for businesses publishing newspapers, digital content, magazines, and books. It is their duty to make decisions on the markets that their firms will serve as well as the type of content that they will give to their audience.

What does a content writer do?

The job of content writers is to create the best possible written or visual content ranging from blog posts to press releases. They produce the content for various types of websites, including social networks, news aggregators, and e-commerce sites. The job of content writers is not limited to writing, but also ensuring that the content connects or is relevant to the website pages. They are expected to set the tone of the website and revise the content upon customers' or clients' requests. They are also responsible for assisting in the creation of style guides.

Publisher vs content writer salary

Publishers and content writers have different pay scales, as shown below.

PublisherContent Writer
Average salary$71,539$58,918
Salary rangeBetween $42,000 And $120,000Between $40,000 And $84,000
Highest paying CityStamford, CTSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateConnecticutCalifornia
Best paying companyMicrosoftCisco
Best paying industryTelecommunicationFinance

Differences between publisher and content writer education

There are a few differences between a publisher and a content writer in terms of educational background:

PublisherContent Writer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 72%Bachelor's Degree, 77%
Most common majorBusinessEnglish
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Publisher vs content writer demographics

Here are the differences between publishers' and content writers' demographics:

PublisherContent Writer
Average age4442
Gender ratioMale, 55.7% Female, 44.3%Male, 39.8% Female, 60.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 7.1% White, 76.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 6.0% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 5.0% White, 75.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage12%16%

Differences between publisher and content writer duties and responsibilities

Publisher example responsibilities.

  • Manage the migration and reformatting of over 8,000 web pages into a new CMS.
  • Pitch, produce and build all content (manage freelancers, art-direct shoots, write text, CMS).
  • Manage blogs and social networking sites (MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn) to support the brand of the magazine.
  • Manage editorial calendar and run weekly meetings with cross-functional stakeholders.
  • Manage and perform administrative QC of electronic clinical submission modules within the Documentum document management system.
  • Supervise all editorial activities, including developing editorial story boards, managing freelance copywriters and directing contract photo assignments.
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Content writer example responsibilities.

  • Implement and manage Salesforce and Marketo for client to establish lead nurturing campaigns.
  • Maintain guest blogging strategy and policies to achieve a consistently diverse authorship and to grow readership.
  • Manage the editorial production of the pamphlets, brochures and graphic material to target worldwide audiences including china.
  • Manage proposal process from RFP (request for proposal) receipt to writing and editing various contributions to final RFP submission.
  • Collaborate with overseas team and manage documents using SharePoint to conceptualize and generate new marketing content.
  • Produce a wide array of literature ranging from poetry to short stories.
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Publisher vs content writer skills

Common publisher skills
  • Press Releases, 13%
  • Customer Satisfaction, 12%
  • Strategic Thinking, 11%
  • Publishing Industry, 5%
  • Facebook, 4%
  • Market Trends, 4%
Common content writer skills
  • Digital Marketing, 10%
  • WordPress, 9%
  • Web Content, 6%
  • Blog Posts, 6%
  • Digital Content, 3%
  • Content Marketing, 3%

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