Professional ghostwriting is ghoulishly effective because churning out quality content with a consistent voice is not as easy as it seems. In fact, it can make you crazy (you remember Jack Nicholson in The Shining, right? Just a guy trying to put some words down on paper.).
Writing takes quite a bit of time, which takes you away from the important business of running your business. Writing is also mind-bogglingly boring, especially if you have other things you need to be doing. If you fall behind in your content production, though, your bottom line might suffer.
Some people go to extremes to produce the content they need. In the movie, Jack went so far as to accept a position off-season caretaker and drag his family to an isolated historic Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies for the winter. As you may know, it didn’t work out so well, as the hero of the story learned that “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”
Boo!
So how do you stay up on content without turning into Jack, surrounded by ghosts while running through mazes in the middle of the night, when you are just trying to produce some content? Hire the ghosts, of course!
Ghostwriters are like regular ghosts in that they like to hang around the house a lot, frequently wear flowing clothing for comfort and often keep odd hours. Unlike your run-of-the-mill ghost, though, ghostwriters have a way with words. Ghostwriters also keep up with the latest advances in information technology, so they understand search engine optimization (SEO) and other modern marketing tools.
Hiring a professional ghostwriter is a great way to produce content for your business or organization, but how do you get the most out of your professional ghostwriter? Here are a few tips from a professional ghostwriter.
Tips for Hiring the Ghostwriter of Your Dreams
Hire the right ghostwriters
Choose Casper if you sell children’s products and need a friendly voice, for example. Hire Jacob Marley if you sell chains made of “cash-boxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel.” Beetlejuice may be the best choice for realtors.
Hire the best ghostwriters
Stumped on an important speech, blog or article? Do what George Washington did: hire the best ghostwriter you can find. That’s right – the nation’s first President hired Alexander Hamilton to ghostwrite Washington’s Farewell Address in 1796. Check out a writer’s profile to learn about the wordsmith’s strengths and experience in your industry.
Be transparent
While you are obviously an authority on your own company and your customers, your ghostwriter may not be aware of the fine details that make up your customer base. Not many ghostwriters are mind readers but most can shapeshift to assume the writing voice of a nearby mortal when provided with the details of your company type, company description, intended tone of writing and such. Be sure to include style elements that tells the writer to use a conversational style, for example, or a humorous playful style.
Include information about your audience. Are they customers or patients? Are they professionals seeking more knowledge? Describe the readers’ comprehension level and outline what the readers might expect from the content.
Hold a séance (or a conference call)
Let’s face it – nobody can write quite like you do. You have that certain something that makes your content uniquely yours. It may be the special way you turn a phrase or your quirky sense of humor that gives your company its “voice.” Maintaining a consistent voice is essential for marketing; once you find a content voice that works, you stick with it.
Some ghostwriters might shy away from such human contact, but others find it helpful to listen to you talk so that they can capture your voice.
If creating content is keeping you up all night, consider hiring a ghostwriter. These gifted spirits can deliver dreamy content that fits your company’s voice easily and without having to spend the winter in the Overlook Hotel.
Lynn H has been a professional writer, providing exceptional content online and offline, for nearly 20 years. In that time, she has penned thousands of articles for doctors, universities, researchers, small businesses, nursing organizations, sole proprietors and more. She writes everything from blogs to white papers; her specialty is putting complex scientific concepts in simple terms. She specializes in medical writing, creating informative and engaging content for professionals in medicine, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, medical manufacturing, chiropractics, optometry, emergency care, plastic surgery and others.
