What Is Ghostwriting? Web Articles

by Kim Niemi

There are a variety of ways to earn money as a ghostwriter online (and off). Our breakdown of them continues this week with a look at Web articles.

​You know that many businesses employ ghostwriters to be the voice of their company (or top execs) via their blogs, but many businesses also use ghostwriters to write pieces to call attention to other publications on their website, or to help create or solidify their standing as a thought leader in their industry.

What makes these articles different from blogs? 

• They’re usually longer – anywhere from 700 to 1000 words, whereas the typical blog post is only 300
• They’re often more formal in tone, as they are meant to reach a broader audience than just those already following the company blog
• They may require more research as they are often more fact-based than opinion-based

This type of work allows you to showcase a different set of skills than writing ghost tweets, for example. You won’t be able to claim credit in the traditional sense, but you may be able to negotiate portfolio excerpts into your contract for the sake of getting additional work.

Ghostwriting articles is a very particular skill that many busy CEOs are more than happy to pay for, but you have to know how to find them (which we'll cover next time) and be prepared for the weirdness of seeing your work bylined by someone else. Once you get past that, you’ll be on your way to a solid career as a ghostwriter.