Hiring an In-House Content Writer vs a B2B SaaS Agency

The biggest difference I’ve found between hiring an in-house writer and working with a B2B SaaS content agency is how their time gets used.

An internal writer might spend Monday researching an article, Tuesday supporting a product launch and Wednesday helping sales with a comparison page. That flexibility is useful, but it also means your publishing schedule competes with everything else on their desk.

With an agency, you’re paying for a defined scope of work. That might include SEO research, content strategy, writing, editing and design, with different specialists handling each stage. You lose some of the immediate access you’d have with an employee, but you gain production capacity and expertise without having to build and manage the entire function internally.

Here's what each arrangement involves in detail.

Further Reading: How to Choose the Right B2B SaaS Content Agency

If you’re weighing up an in-house content writer against a B2B SaaS agency, there are a few things I’d look at before making that decision. The workload, available budget, internal expertise and level of support your marketing team needs all influence which arrangement makes more sense.

I’d start by reviewing every content request your marketing team has handled over the last three months, including work that never made it onto the editorial calendar. In my experience, it’s easy to underestimate how much writing happens outside content production, particularly when product marketing, sales and demand generation all rely on the same team.

Your list might include:

• Four SEO articles every month
• Two product landing pages each quarter
• Customer stories and case study interviews
• Email copy for product launches
• Website updates following feature releases
• Sales enablement materials and product comparisons
• Editing and updating existing content

Once you’ve mapped out the workload, separate the recurring responsibilities from occasional requests. If your team consistently needs support across several of these areas, an internal writer could be a sensible investment. But if most of the work consists of four monthly articles and an occasional landing page, I’d explore outsourcing before committing to a permanent salary.

Next, I’d compare the total twelve-month cost of hiring an in-house writer against what you’d spend with a B2B SaaS content agency. A £45,000 salary might look like £3,750 a month on paper, but that’s not what the employee actually costs the business.

For a UK-based hire, you also need to account for employer National Insurance, pension contributions, recruitment, onboarding, equipment and software. Those additional expenses can make a meaningful difference when you’re comparing the two options.

Here’s what an illustrative first-year budget might look like.

These are illustrative budgeting figures, not a payroll calculation. Actual employer costs depend on applicable tax rules, pension arrangements and recruitment expenses.

That brings the estimated first-year investment to £57,200, or roughly £4,767 per month. For comparison, at GrowUp, our monthly content writing programme starts at £3,400 for four articles, covering research, writing, editorial review, SEO, supporting visuals and performance reporting. Over twelve months, that’s £40,800 at the same monthly rate.

The difference in this example is £16,400 over the first year, but I wouldn’t treat that as an automatic saving. A full-time writer might also handle product launches, customer stories, website updates and sales collateral, whereas the agency programme covers a defined volume of content.

Equally, an agency may bring SEO, editorial and design expertise that you’d otherwise need to source separately.

Further Reading: What Should B2B SaaS Companies Pay for Content?

Once you’ve reviewed the workload and compared the costs, I’d look at how closely the writer needs to work with your internal teams.

Regular involvement in product discussions, sales requests and messaging decisions may justify an in-house hire, whereas planned SEO articles and other clearly defined deliverables can often be handled by an agency.

To work out how much internal involvement the role actually requires, I'd consider five things:

• Product access: How often will the writer need direct input from product managers, engineers or implementation teams?
• Response times: Do content requests regularly require same-day turnaround, or can they be scheduled in advance?
• Cross-functional support: Will the writer regularly support sales, product marketing and customer success?
• Confidentiality: Will they need ongoing access to unreleased features, sensitive customer information or internal plans?
• Knowledge continuity: How important is it for the same writer to stay involved in product positioning and messaging decisions over time?

If those responsibilities require regular involvement throughout the week, I'd lean towards hiring internally.

But if your marketing team can provide clear briefs, arrange expert interviews and manage reviews at agreed stages, an agency can handle much of the work without needing constant access to your internal teams.

The next thing I’d examine is whether your existing team has the expertise to support the content workload you’ve identified. A B2B SaaS writer might be expected to handle technical articles, software comparisons, case studies, SEO and conversion copywriting, but those aren’t interchangeable skills.

I’d look at what’s already covered internally before deciding whether to recruit one specialist or bring in an agency with a broader team.

Whichever route you choose, the quality still comes down to the individual doing the work. I’d review their portfolio, their experience in your SaaS vertical and how well they work with your product experts, before signing a contract.

One argument I’d take seriously in favour of hiring internally is the long-term value of accumulated knowledge.

An in-house writer can build substantial knowledge of your product, customers and competitors over time, which makes future assignments easier to manage. But if that knowledge sits with one employee, their departure could leave your marketing team rebuilding processes and onboarding a replacement.

An agency may offer more continuity through its wider team, although that depends on how well it documents work and manages changes to your account.

Whichever arrangement you choose, I'd make sure your company retains access to:

• Editorial guidelines: Brand voice, approved terminology, messaging standards and editorial review processes.
• Product documentation: Research notes, technical references, expert interviews and internal product knowledge.
• Customer research: Interview transcripts, customer approvals, supporting evidence and documented customer results.
• Content planning: Editorial calendars, briefs and production schedules.
• Creative assets: Approved drafts, source files, visuals and design assets.
• Performance data: Reporting dashboards, content results, historical decisions and conversion tracking records.

After reviewing the workload, costs, specialist requirements and long-term ownership, I’d also consider whether your existing team could work more effectively with agency support.

If you already have a content manager who understands your product, owns the editorial calendar and works closely with sales, you may not need another full-time writer. You could keep strategy and internal coordination in-house while outsourcing research, writing and production to an agency.

Here’s how I’d divide the responsibilities:

The takeaway: if your team has clear strategic direction but limited production capacity, combining internal ownership with agency support is often the most practical route.

Once you’ve hired an in-house writer or signed with a B2B SaaS content agency, I’d approach the first three months differently. An employee needs time to understand your product, build relationships with internal teams and become familiar with your content processes.

An agency should already have a production process in place, so I’d focus on getting that process working with your team and delivering the agreed content.

For an in-house writer, I’d use the first month to build product knowledge, introduce key stakeholders and assess how they approach their first assignments. That includes reviewing existing content, speaking with product experts and working through editorial feedback.

With an agency, I’d focus on agreeing on briefs, research expectations, review timelines and who approves what.

Here’s how I’d structure the first four weeks:

I’d expect both arrangements to require input from your marketing team, particularly around product accuracy and editorial approvals. 

The first few articles should give you a good idea of what you’re getting.

I’d look at whether the writer understands the product, has researched the subject properly and can deliver something your marketing team won’t spend hours correcting before it goes live.

Here’s what I’d assess when reviewing the first drafts:

• Technical accuracy: Are product features, integrations and limitations described correctly?
• Research depth: Does the article contain useful insights beyond general industry information?
• Buyer relevance: Does it answer the questions your target customers are actually asking?
• Editorial quality: Is the content well-structured, coherent and ready to publish?
• SEO: Does it address search intent and follow your optimisation requirements?
• Internal workload: How much rewriting, fact-checking or editing does your team still need to do?

I’d use those findings to improve the next assignments rather than reviewing each article in isolation.

With an internal writer, that might involve coaching, clearer briefs or additional product training. With an agency, I’d expect its editor to address recurring issues and make sure the same corrections aren’t needed every month.

Three months should give you a pretty good sense of whether you’ve made the right hiring decision. An in-house writer should be finding their feet, understanding the product and taking more ownership of their work. With an agency, I’d expect fewer revisions, smoother communication and a production schedule your marketing team can rely on without constantly chasing updates.

Here’s how I’d evaluate both arrangements:

I wouldn’t judge either arrangement solely on leads or pipeline after ninety days, particularly if you’re publishing new SEO content that needs time to gain visibility. But I’d expect enough evidence to know whether the work is progressing, the quality is improving and your marketing team is getting the support it needs. That’s what I’d establish before increasing the investment.

I don’t think there’s a universally better choice here. I’ve seen situations where having a writer inside the business makes perfect sense, particularly when they’re working closely with product, sales and leadership. I’ve also seen teams hire full-time when what they really needed was more capacity to publish good content consistently.

I’d make the decision based on how much ongoing involvement the role requires. If you need someone embedded in the business every day, hire internally. If you already have a marketing team and simply need more production capacity, an agency may be a better fit.

That’s the kind of work we handle at GrowUp. Our articles start at £950, or £3,400 for four per month, covering research, writing, editing, SEO and supporting visuals. You can look through our writing portfolio and see whether the quality and approach fit what you’re looking for. If they do, I’d suggest starting with one article before committing to anything longer-term.