Third Lesson – Ghostwriting Made Easy

Hello Fellow Readers & Knowledge Seekers,

It’s time for your third lesson in the Ghostwriting Made Easy Crash Course. When it comes to being a successful ghostwriter there are a few important things you should always consider before applying for writing jobs and working with clients.

First of all, only apply for jobs that you feel you can complete as described and within the time restraints specified by the client. Don’t be afraid to turn down work that isn’t in your skill set. You will do better to bid on jobs that are related to a topic that you are well versed on or feel comfortable researching. Just keep in mind that the more research you have to do, the longer the task will take and the more you should charge for your time.

If you’re working from a freelance site always read the job listing carefully. If anything is vague or sounds suspicious, pass on it. Don’t worry, there will be plenty of other listings that will be clearer and created by people who genuinely want to hire a writer.

Check out prospective client reviews before you bid on any job. Yes, on most freelance websites it’s possible for both parties involved in the transaction to post reviews. You may also be able to see how many listings they created, versus people they’ve hired. All of this information can help you decide which clients will be a good fit for your business.

While it’s very important to put together an impressive portfolio of your work, such as blog posts and articles, to show prospective clients what you can do, never give away custom samples for free. Not only is it against the terms of service in most marketplaces it’s often a scam to get free content out of eager writers.

As we discussed in the previous lessons, communication with the client is very important, even before you decide to take the job. It is much better to make sure that  everything is clear before you begin, than to move forward and find out that the job isn’t a good fit for either of you.

While it’s important to do a good job and keep your clients happy it’s also important to set boundaries and time limits. To help avoid confusion and misunderstandings, you must make sure that the tasks involved in the job are clearly defined before you begin. This includes clear directions, deadlines and the number of revisions that you will provide for any given task.

If you don’t set clear boundaries and let clients know that you’ll only provide a limited amount of revisions they will keep coming back to you every time they need a small change and this can end up costing you both time and money.

Never be afraid to ask for more information. Especially if you’re writing anything in-depth or highly personal. It’s much better to ask questions than it is to redo the entire project because you weren’t well informed enough to complete the job to the clients specifications.

Treat all the information you receive from clients as confidential. Even if you’re not asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement or a non-compete clause, it’s important to treat everything you are told or given with discretion. If you’re not sure something should go in the work, ask, and abide by their answer.

Create a schedule. Even though you’re working for yourself a schedule can mean the difference between success and failure. This should include time for completing client work, applying for new jobs and administrative tasks such as invoicing, email and marketing. It’s important to continue looking for work even when you’re booked, so you don’t have peaks and valleys in your income.

Lastly, remember that you’re running a business. Ghostwriting is a real career, a real service business that’s in high demand. There is a never ending supply of potential clients out there looking for people like you to create content for them, you just have to find them.

That’s it for today. In lesson 4, we will be talking about how to promote your business and build your reputation as a reliable ghostwriter. Look for it tomorrow.

Until then, Don Dousharm (Book Shop Digital) admin@bookshopdigital.com