Why You Should Guest Blog (or Hire Someone to do it for You!)

You have figured out ways to make your blog get real attention.  But do you contribute guest posts to other blogs?  While it may seem like the last thing you have time to do, or counter-intuitive, guest blogging is worth it.  You can reap huge benefits from guest blogging, or hiring someone to guest blog on your behalf.  Guest blogging allows you to take what you do and love and spread knowledge into other areas of your target market.  It spreads your reach and builds an authoritative reputation for you and your business.  Here are some ways content outside of your virtual walls can benefit your business.

Reach a broader audience.

Through writing guest posts, you create added awareness with people who are interested in the topics you’re writing about.  These people may not know about your business, but will see you as an expertise and in turn, want to check out your business.  So you will…

Attract new leads.

There’s no double that guest blogging provides a perfect opportunity to generate leads.  The readers of the blog you contribute to are likely looking to solve a problem – and your post may help them.  It’s a win for all.

Build strong relationships.

Relationships are the foundation of a strong business.  Contributing guest blogs is one of several ways to establish new relationships with other bloggers in your niche.  It allows you to join an already-established community, and share what you know.  Plus, it could also lead you to new partnerships with the blogger for future business opportunities. You never know what doors it may open. 

SEO benefits.

Guest posting is good for search engine results.  As you write guest blogs, you prove that you are well

Photo via edgital.org

informed about and have experience related to the products or services you provide.  This means that people who enter a search into Google for the topic may find the post you wrote.  Yes, this happens when you write on your own blog too.  However if the blog you guest post on has larger readership and significant social media following, it’s more likely to be shared socially – a SEO indicator that the content is high quality and relevant. 

Guest blogging, whether you’re the author or you hire someone else to write the posts on your behalf, is a great way to build credibility and receive greater personal and business exposure.  Consider the many benefits of guest blogging as you ponder whether or not to invest the time in writing for another business.  It’s time well spent.

How has guest blogging proved beneficial for your business endeavors?

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What is Ghostwriting Anyway?

In the world of freelance writing attaching the pre-fix "ghost" is pretty commonplace; but to the layman it may sound like an unusual term to describe what you do- albeit intriguing. The word is actually used quite literally. Most would consider a ghost to be invisible, and generally speaking a ghost writer is essentially just that to the reader- unseen, unknown, invisible. So what is the benefit? Why would someone let another take credit for what they have written? Let's get to the know the term and concept a bit more to answer those questions.

The Definition: The actual definition goes something like this, "a person who writes one or numerous speeches, books, articles, etc., for another person who is named as or presumed to be the author." Sounds simple enough. With this comes the fact that the author has no rights to the work they have done, it belongs to the individual that commissioned the work. You will not be referencing these pieces on your resume for example. But that isn't always a bad thing.

The Why: Simply put, ghostwriting is a job that pays money. Everyone does something to make a living. And unless you have just written the Great American Novel, in most cases you probably don't mind who gets the credit, as long as you get to cash the check. Many people have the need for writers and don't take on the task themselves; whether due to time, skill or a variety of other reasons. Sometimes you may get paid nicely to make someone sound better than they could themselves- people do it everyday through press releases and public speaking engagements.

The Maybe Not: As mentioned above in the definition you, the writer, won't get credit. Likely not ever for pieces that you have written for someone else under these terms. You cannot use these as examples to get additional work or build your writing resume. If your intention is to maintain and create a writing career it may be best to limit the ghostwriting assignments that you accept. Or at least look for other opportunities as well to fill in some gaps and allow you to produce some credible pieces for reference. If you feel a ghostwritten piece could be beneficial to your portfolio consider requesting a byline or negotiating for some credit. Don't be surprised if the client doesn't agree to either, it is after-all a ghostwriting gig. Hopefully you can at least get a good professional reference.

Ghostwriting can be an exciting way to hone your skills and also give you the opportunity to learn new things, build a strong client base and of course earn some money. How do you feel about writers being hired to write for others?

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