Hiring a Ghostwriter: Five Steps to Finding a Good One
Posted on : 12-10-2009 | By : ebourne | In : freelance writing, writing
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As a busy online entrepreneur, your time is your most valuable asset. You understand how important it is to have a steady flow of fresh, relevant content to your website. But there are so many other pressing issues vying for your attention. You know that eventually you will have to hire someone so that you can offload some of the content development tasks so that you can focus on running your business. But you are also leery about taking the time to weed through and interview writers in order to find one that will produce quality writing at a price that you can afford.
Here are five steps that you can follow to find a good ghostwriter:
1. Get a recommendation
Ask around within your business network for recommendations for good writers. Be prepared for the fact that some people aren’t always willing to share when they have found a good, dependable writer, so you may have to be persistent.
Visit online forums such as the warrior forum, sitepoint and digital point forums to find ghostwriters who are offering their services. Look for positive feedback from other forum members about the quality of work and responsiveness.
2. Review their web site and writing samples
Follow the link to each writer’s website and look at their samples and testimonials from satisfied customers. You will be able to quickly get a feel for the writer’s style and if it might suit your needs.
3. Communicate with them
Contact the writer and set up a consultation. It’s great if you can actually speak to the writer on the phone. You can learn a lot about a person by the way that they speak and the vocabulary they use. If they don’t speak clear, standard English, chances are they can’t write it much better.
Find out about the writer’s turnaround time, ask about their policy for rush projects, and their payment policies.
If you require a confidentiality or Non-disclosure agreement, this is the time to discuss it.
4. Clearly articulate the scope of your project
Most writers lament the fact that their clients aren’t always as clear as they would like about their projects. The more explicit you are about your requirements for the project, the less opportunity for confusion. This saves time on your part and the writer wastes less time doing re-writes.
5. Have them complete a sample project
If you want to go ahead with a particular writer, request that they do a sample project. This way you can get a feel for how it will be to work with you and the writer can assess what kind of a client you will be to work for. Clearly establish the price, your specifications and a deadline for this sample project. When the project is complete you can make a clear decision on whether or not you want to move forward with this writer.
If you follow these simple steps you can get through the process of hiring a ghostwriter to create fresh content for your website quickly and efficiently.
When you are ready to hire a ghostwriter who will save you time and money while providing high-quality, engaging content that will keep your visitors coming back, please feel free to contact Evelyn Bourne, Freelance writer, and request a consultation today.
