William Zinser contests that “Writing is an act of ego, and you might as well admit it.”
So the act of ghostwriting must be one of balancing egos. For better or worse, there are no bigger egos than successful entrepreneurs; it’s what inspires them and enables them to do great things.
Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs simply don’t have the time or the skill to tell their stories in a way that inspires their audience. That’s why they turn to ghostwrite services to find someone with the skill and tact to master their voice and authority.
Ghostwriting is a great investment for business leaders looking to expand their online footprint and gain a following. And the stronger the brand awareness, the stronger the revenue.
Busy entrepreneurs can benefit from ghosting by:
- Publishing highly skilled work that makes them a thought leader
- Gaining access to a highly-skilled editor
- Crafting their own voice with authority
- Saving time and money from writing
Still, for those of you unsure about how ghostwriting works or how it can benefit your business, we’ve created a guide below, along with some video.
What is a Ghost Writer?
A ghostwriter is hired to write under the authorship of another person with no credit to their name. Most commonly, celebrities hire ghostwriters to write autobiographies, although many entrepreneurs and influencers hire ghost blog writers and SEO ghostwriters to write on behalf of their brand(s).
Business leaders can hire ghostwriters to write anything, whether a blog for their own website, a guest post or a newsletter.
Ghostwriting services provide entrepreneurs with the means to tell a story that inspires their audience and markets their brand.
With this in mind, let’s discuss five essential areas that ghostwriters are versed in and how they will help your personal brand.
5 Essentials of Ghostwriting for Business Leaders
1. The Art of Voice
Every writer has a distinct voice. Hemingway was known for his strong diction that drove straight to the point, and Tolstoy was known for his elaborate imagery.
A writer’s voice encompasses three primary areas of writing, including:
- Style
- Diction
- Tone
Writing style changes depending on the subject of the piece and the author’s interpretation, but ultimately style depends mainly on the author’s character. Therefore, ghostwriters must study how they speak, evaluate their word choice, and convey their character in everything they write.
For example, if you use humor or sarcasm to explain tasks or convey meaning, a ghostwriter should also use humor to help explain topics and relate to your audience.
Additionally, the diction must reflect your knowledge level, the audience’s expected level of understanding, and incorporate buzzwords used in your industry. Fortunately, much of the latter will be uncovered during keyword research, which we will discuss below.
Lastly, every piece should include a theme near or dear to your heart.
Most entrepreneurs or influencers have a mission statement or niche they operate in. Suppose your company’s mission is to bridge the relationship between farmers and consumers. In that case, a ghostwriter must reinforce this theme of connecting farmers with consumers to enrich their writing.
Ultimately, ghostwriters need to listen more than they speak. Ghostwriters will only understand your brand and style by learning more about your character and business. Therefore, be wary of a writer who does not convey your style or likes to speak more than you.
2. Marketing
While we all love to see our names on an important byline, you’re most likely looking for ghostwriters who can elevate your brand and deliver you an ROI.
That’s why we recommend working with companies with ghostwriting services knowledgeable in online marketing and SEO.
SEO ghostwriters and SEO campaign managers use keyword research to uncover pain points through Google searches of what topics people in your audience are misinformed about or have very little understanding of.
From here, SEO ghostwriters can create an informative and scannable document. Unfortunately, many readers have a tiny attention span, so crafting an outline that answers user questions directly and separates important subtopics is critical.
Additionally, SEO ghostwriters can improve a written piece and more it more readable by incorporating a strong hook and relevant imagery.
In total, SEO ghostwriters create written posts that are easy to consume, optimized for online search engines, and provide authoritative knowledge that answers user questions.
3. Authority
Becoming a thought leader means becoming an authority of subject matter in your industry. People turn to thought leaders for advice and even their perspective of time-sensitive events as they occur.
Fortunately, a well-trained ghostwriter can make you a subject matter expert through their exhaustive research and by producing a well-crafted post.
This process entails researching your competition and writing a post that provides more knowledge or a different perspective that appeals directly to readers. Most importantly, ghostwriters can work with you to develop original posts or research that best separates your brand.
To begin, writing with authority involves finding the right topics that you are knowledgeable about and can best assist your audience. A good ghostwriter will seek out your advice to explain a topic in your words and with your subject matter expertise.
Additionally, ghostwriters should employ topic and keyword research to find topics that provide the lowest competition barriers and appeal most directly to your audience.
A well-versed ghostwriter will turn you into a thought leader and grow your audience significantly.
4. Story Telling
On the other hand, experience and story-telling reinforce subject matter authority.
Every entrepreneur and influencer has a story to tell; it’s the role of the ghostwriter to find it and relate it.
Ghostwriters should take lessons from journalism and interview their clients before a post to uncover their perspectives and stories around a subject they can tell. Additionally, reinforce posts using data and historical events to tell a story and convey authority.
Not only does storytelling convey subject matter expertise, but it also makes posts more sharable and your brand more relatable.
5. Sticking to Basics
Finally, many people hire ghostwriters simply because they are not good writers, and that’s smart.
A good ghostwriter should noticeably elevate your writing level.
Writers should enrich every post with a good hook, informative body, and excellent closing to reinforce the main themes to the reader.
Additionally, good writing should involve a nice flow using proper transitions when required.
Finally, writers should reinforce a clear theme to convey their subject matter knowledge throughout the post.
Ghostwriting is a balancing act. So a good ghostwriter should balance your writing style with basic writing principles to create a stellar post, so you are satisfied.
As a bonus, by employing ghostwriting services from a certified company, you’ll gain access to top-notch editors and other writers who can assist in projects.
Ghostwriting services are an excellent vehicle to expand your personal brand using the essentials of SEO marketing and high-level writing to convey your subject matter authority.
Successful ghostwriting helps you become a thought leader, which can be leveraged as a marketing tool for your business or brand.
In total, ghostwriting services save you time and deliver you a tremendous ROI.
