Wikipedia has certain policies and submission guidelines that render the article submission a challenging process if they’re not properly followed, which makes it essential to hire a specialist who’s familiar with writing Wikipedia articles. However, before hiring a Wikipedia writer, you need to ask a few questions to know if the writer is capable of handling the task.
We’ve come up with 5 questions to help you filter the right Wikipedia writer for the job.
Does the writer follow Wikipedia’s Terms of Use?
Wikipedia has Five Pillars and some guidelines that are essential to follow if you want to post an article. An experienced Wikipedia writer should be highly familiar with these terms of use, doesn’t overlook them, and is capable of producing content that complies with the guidelines. Moreover, because Wikipedia is an encyclopedia where balanced viewpoints are shared, your writer should know how to present the information in a neutral and unbiased way to avoid any delays in the content update.
What’s his/her user profile?
Every Wikipedia writer and editor has a userpage and there’s a record of every edit, activity, and visitor data. When selecting a Wikipedian writer, check if they are willing to share their userpage and show that they’ve actually done this before. This is to ensure that there’s transparency and trust with the writer which allows you to build confidence regarding your brand or company.
What is the writer’s contribution?
If the Wikipedian writer has been writing for Wikipedia for a while, he or she will have some contributions to the Wikipedia community, which indicates how long they’ve been contributing to the pages. Although not the only qualification, it shows their experience and the quality of interactions with the community.
Is there a conflict of interest?
Wikipedia requires a disclosure of the conflict of interest for any writer that has an association with the article’s subject to ensure that all the information on its pages is unbiased and neutral. It’s essential that your writer is able to disclose any conflict of interest to avoid a ban on the IP address and username.
How long does it take to review the Wikipedia article?
Your proposed articles and content can take weeks to get noticed let alone published by the Wikipedian community. A successful submission also requires that the articles fulfills the guidelines and terms of use provided by Wikipedia to qualify.
Few Things To Know About Wikipedia’s Five Pillars
Wikipedia has five pillars which are fundamental principles to be followed when writing an article on the platform. According to these, the content to submitted should be
Written from a neutral standpoint to avoid sharing any biased information to the readers.
Cited by credible, authoritative and trusted sources such as newspapers, books, and magazines instead of blogs and articles that hold no weight.
Thoroughly edited to check for accuracy and reliablity. Oftentimes the articles can be misleading, objectionable, or controversial in which case Wikipedia suggests that its editors should come to a consensus and resolve any disputed content to ensure reliable information.
That said, Wikipedia’s rules aren’t stone-carved and they can change to accommodate better delivery of information. Your Wikipedia writer should know enough about the rules, submission timeline, and process and should follow-up with you if there any changes requested by the page editors. We hope you’ll incorporate the above questions when interviewing your prospective candidate to help you hire the right fit to get the job done.
