Ghost writing isn’t just reserved for those people who want to get their book written. In fact, savvy business owners, including VAs, are reaping the rewards of having a ghost writer in their stable of outsourcing buddies. Here’s why it can be incredibly beneficial to both you and your business, to hire a ghost writer.

What a ghost writer can do for your clients – and you

Your clients are incredibly important to you, after all, they’re what keep your business running. So, it’s totally understandable, that you’ll want to give them the best possible service. But there’s only so much you can provide for them, without diluting what makes you unique. This is where a ghost writer comes in.

A ghost writer enables you to react better to your client’s needs, without having to learn yet another topic or add to your existing skillset.

Over time, your clients will inevitably have an expanding list of written content requirements, as their business grows and expands. This includes blog posts, status updates for social media, reports and eBooks, emails for automated sequences, and sales pages – these are all things you could hand over to a ghost writer.

And, as your business grows, you’ll have a need for those same written content pieces too.

Give yourself the gift of time

As a VA, time is your most valuable resource. Whether you’re paid by the hour, per project or on a retainer, you’re paid for the work you do in that time. Having someone write your written content for you, enables you to get the best out of your available working hours, whilst still providing an optimum experience to your clients.

Then there’s the scenario above – where you need the content for your own business. Again, a ghost writer enables you to get the content completed, without sacrificing hours you could be utilising for paying clients.

Save money – and your sanity

Your clients hire you to do the jobs they’re not so great at or don’t want to spend time doing. The reality is, your hourly rate is lower than theirs, so they benefit financially too. Hiring a ghost writer is giving you the opportunity to do the same. A ghost writer’s hourly rate will be lower than yours, so it makes sound financial sense to outsource those written content tasks.

But it’s not just about the financial aspects. Your clients will often outsource jobs to you that they simply don’t like doing. They want to focus on where their zone of expertise is, where they find joy – and, unless you’re either a great copywriter or love copywriting, take the lead from your clients – and do the same.

Biggest hurdles when hiring a ghost writer

One of the biggest fears any business has, when outsourcing written contents such as blogs, is whether people will know they’re ghost-written.  This is something you can easily clarify with your chosen ghost writer – by clarifying, from the start, whether you want their name associated with the content, or not.

The second fear business owners have, is that the content won’t accurately reflect you, your voice and what you stand for. It may take a few attempts for the ghost writer to accurately sound like you, but if you take the time to clarify your needs, preferences and values, it can easily be solved with a few tweaks and an honest conversation – after all, that’s part of a ghost writer’s talent!

Control over content

Finally, there’s the longer-term benefits regarding the content itself. The content a ghost writer completes for you, usually becomes yours, as they usually transfer the copyright, once payment has been completed. This means it’s yours to do with, how you wish. You can repurpose it in any way you see fit, saving you even more time and effort.

The key to hiring a ghost writer, is to be clear about what you want. Find one that suits your needs and can turn content around in the timescales you need. Clarify whether you want their involvement in your business to be confidential, and pay to have an initial trial period with them – as often, they’ll be unable to provide many/any samples and few testimonials, purely due to the nature of the service they provide!

I hope today’s post help clarify the enormous benefits you can glean from a ghost writer, along with how it can positively impact on your business growth. How do you feel about outsourcing your written content? Why not share your thoughts in the comments box below?

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