Even if you enjoy writing, you might not have the time or motivation to produce as much content for your website or blog as you would like. In a previous post, I mentioned the idea of hiring a writer so you can get more content, and, thus, build traffic to your site. But if you want to maintain the authority that comes with posting and writing under your own name (byline), why not consider a ghostwriter? Do you hire an accountant to prepare your taxes, or contract with a bookkeeper to manage your business finances? Ghostwriting is not very different. You could hire someone, or direct someone on your staff, to write as you on blog posts and guest posts on other blogs as well as for article marketing purposes and ebooks. A ghostwriter can also do research, interview sources and even answer emails and post comments to other blogs as “you.”

Ghostwriting is increasingly common, especially on corporate blogs. That “note from the CEO” in the emailed newsletter could very well have been penned by someone else. Some blog “purists” aren’t fans of ghostwritten content. Others might prefer to mix their approaches, writing the most important, first-person content themselves and leaving the day-to-day blog posts, or special projects such as ebooks, to a professional ghostwriter. I use ghost writers on occasion and that it’s really boosted my exposure on the Internet. As you think about whether to move in this direction, here are a few things to consider:

1. Ask yourself what you want to get out of hiring a ghostwriter. Is your main goal just to get more content up, because you haven’t gotten around to doing it yourself? Do you have specific things you want to say, and have the research gathered, but are having trouble organizing your thoughts? Do you just dislike writing, or feel you aren’t good at it? Like any service, be it clerical or highly technical, oftentimes you’ll choose to hire something out because your time is better spend on another aspect that will move your business (and income) forward. Ghostwriting services are available at all price points and specialties – you can even hire a professional ghostwriter who is skilled in search engine optimization (SEO).

2. You get what you pay for. Sure, you could pay bargain-basement prices for a writer from another country, or a student who wants to write “just for the experience.” This strategy can occasionally work out, but it can also end up being more trouble that it’s worth, especially if any sort of technical or industry knowledge is required. You could pay per blog post, per printed page, by the hour, or by the project. In some cases, you might offer the ghostwriter a royalty or percentage of the money that the writing makes.

3. Choose someone who “gets” you and your business. Show your ghostwriting candidate some of your own blog posts, ebooks and other work. See if he or she can easily adapt to your writing style. You want someone who is a good writer and also has the industry savvy to make subject matter understandable. Be willing to spend some time on the front end showing your writer the ropes. You could start by writing a rough draft or giving the writer an outline or list of bullet points, or just give them a topic (or group of approved topics) and let them run with it. Still, in most cases, you’ll want to make sure you give final approval to everything that goes out in your name.

4. Don’t overlook other potential benefits of hiring a ghostwriter. It’s not just about saving time, or even saving money. For example, another reason I like it is that if my employees produce the article, the research that goes into an article assignment serves as a great training tool. That way, the article or post, and all the discussion that grows from it, pays off exponentially for SiteHatchery.

5. Be aware of legal and ethical issues, and other touchy stuff. Some business owners and webmasters are hesitant to use a ghostwriter because perhaps it feels a little like “cheating.” One argument against using a ghostwriter is that if someone else is writing what “you” think or advise, especially in first person, it is in some way misleading the reader? I don’t think so, in most cases. We’re not talking about college essays here. A ghostwriter saves you time and money while bringing skills to the table. They’re just saying what you would have said. In my opinion, using a ghostwriter should not hurt your credibility.

By definition, a ghostwriter is usually unnamed, but is occasionally credited in some way – especially in the case of speechwriters or authors of full-length books. However, before hiring someone to write under your name, make sure you’re both on the same page regarding whether the writer can include the experience (blog name, etc.) on his or her resume or portfolio, in job interviews, in casual conversation, or other situations. If discretion is especially important, you might want to have the writer sign a nondisclosure contract.

Executed properly, ghostwriting is simply articulating the thoughts and knowledge you would have had anyway, and getting them out there in a more efficient way — which is ultimately a service to the readers. You’re not aiming to deceive.

I hope you’ll consider the benefits of hiring a ghostwriter for your next website, blog or ebook project. Have you done so? Am I writing this myself, or is it a ghostly imposter? Please let me know your thoughts on this topic in the comments below.

Posted by: Sitehatchery.com – a Chico web development company providing web design and development services nationwide.

Our aim is perfection. We value quality – from code to design. We have a full time Quality Assurance Technician whose primary purpose is to catch any glitch before it gets in front of users. Most developers and companies don’t have this additional layer of quality assurance. We stand behind our values.

We are goal-oriented. We set deadlines and stick to them. This is what sets us apart from the overloaded freelancer who has the capacity of only one person. We have a team of six, who are focused on the goal of delivering a fully functioning website on time.

We love to communicate. We believe that communication is key to the success of a website launch. Our typical client wants a beautiful website that uniquely defines their business and addresses their goals. We must listen and understand their needs and unique position in the market. Cookie cutter templates are not our thing.

We have a process. Other companies will jump right into blind development and will waste their and your valuable time with rework.  Here’s our process:

1. Discovery
   We start with a fact finding mission. We ask lots of questions to determine how to best meet your needs. We’ll run reports, look at statistics, and review competitor sites. We learn what you are about, where you’ve been, and where you are wanting to go.
2. Wireframing and Documentation
   We begin sketching our ideas using plain old pen and paper and/or digital wireframing tools – whatever fits the occasion.  Depending on the size of the project, we will also provide documentation such as use cases, test cases, field definitions and architectural design documentation. The goal here is to get everything we need to design and build the project, establish deadlines and deliverables and more clearly define scope.
3. Design
   Once you are comfortable with the plan, we will begin the graphic design process for the home page. After feedback and revisions, once we’ve gotten your comments and approval on the home page, we will create full color designs for additional major page types.
4. Development
   During the development process we write the code that transforms your designs into a fully functioning website or intranet. This includes everything from front end development using HTML and CSS, to hard core server-side software programming.
5. Testing
   Testing is actually done at every level of the design-build process. Our goal is perfection, so we assign a Quality Assurance Technician to test and inspect every detail of your website at every step.
6. Go Live!

In 2005, Jason started SiteHatchery.com as a freelance business, working from home and out of coffee shops, while working full time. Eventually, his side business exploded. Taking the Entrepreneurial leap of faith, he left his stable web development position and delved full-time into his own business. That was almost 3 years ago and the demand has never been greater than it is now.

Jason plans on continuing to expand SiteHatchery. With exceptional customer service, innovative and high quality designs, and timely delivery, Jason plans to double the size of his business by the end of this year.

Author: Jason Cox | Follow me:

Jennifer Haney
Senior Project Manager
Duckback Products

We are currently beginning work on a website for Fanny Pak, a dance crew competing on this season of MTV America’s Best Dance Crew.  This will be one of the first entertainment and celebrity-driven sites that we have worked on.  We’re excited to give them an awesome look and feel for their website, and watching them take the crown this year on ABDC.  We wish them the best of luck.

Speaking of luck… it’s St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow!  We hope you all have a safe holiday and maybe we will see some of you at the Chico Home & Garden show this weekend.  We’ve been helping them with updates on their website this year and look forward to seeing the work we put into their site come to life this weekend.

Until next time!!

Tom comes to us from Sacramento where he worked as a PHP programmer and mobile web developer.  He brings with him the eye for design and attention to detail that comes from working not only as a coder, but also as a front end designer, and his background as a one-man web development firm means that he knows the ins and outs of the life of a web site, from planning to design to publishing and beyond.

The SiteHatchery Egg even loves Christmas!

2011 has been a fun and exciting year for us here at the SiteHatchery office.  This year we brought on three new employees, worked simultaneously on web development projects, and are ending the year doing perhaps the most exciting website we’ve done as a company thus far.  It’s our first government website as a company, so it’s quite the rewarding experience for us to be given the opportunity to develop a website that will have such a high impact on its community.

We have wrapped up many projects this year including websites for entrepreneurs as well as local and out of state businesses.  Among these, Edwards Property Management, The Ebay Life Blog, Swank Plank and a website for a radio station out of New Jersey, WFDU FM.  We are thrilled and anxious to see what 2012 will bring, and how we can possibly further challenge ourselves in our creativity and web design elements.  As a company, we constantly strive to keep up with the latest, modern web designs and features, offering up-to-date, professional websites to our clients.

As this year comes to a close we would like to thank all of you who have supported us this year; to all of our clients and friends, we wish you a Merry Christmas and hope that your holiday season is filled with joy, laughter and great memories for the years to come.