Define the content type
Articles.
Guides.
Case studies.
Product education.
Thought leadership.
Newsletters.
Website content.
Match expertise to subject difficulty
General writing ability and subject-matter understanding are different things. Technical or regulated topics may require deeper expertise.
Set research expectations
Define whether the writer receives source material or is expected to conduct interviews, research and fact checking.
Good content is not merely grammatically correct.It should be useful to the intended reader and appropriate for the channel where it will appear.
Clarify editorial workflow
Agree on outlines, drafts, revisions, approvals and publishing responsibilities.