How to make money as a Ghostwriter (without much experience)

I started ghostwriting to supplement my income as a single mother. Today, my ghostwriting business generates an income of $10K + per contract monthly. Before I go into how I started ghostwriting, I want to state that the tips and strategies I used were applied in the early stages of my career as a freelance writer. You can use these tips to help grow or start your ghostwriting business.

My first ghostwriting came from Upwork in 2015. I was a newbie ghostwriter with a background in fiction writing. The client hired me to write a romance novella for Amazon. I still have an Upwork account just for building social proof.

Here’s how I went from $500 to $10K:

In 2018, I started offering my ghostwriting services to small businesses or startups to ghostwrite one page of marketing materials in exchange for testimonials.

Many clients prefer to see that you have a reputable portfolio of your work to showcase. At the time, I only had a few testimonials from Upwork clients. When you’re a freelance ghostwriter, it can be challenging to build a list of clients. With the help of social media, I created an online profile and established myself as a reliable source for my writing services. Whenever a new follower decided to follow my page. I introduced my freelance writing business.

Most people prefer not to be pitched or receive spam emails. My tactic was to offer the services where I saw a need via email. Sometimes it was a blog post or social media caption. Of course, a large portion of my emails was ignored by business owners because they were too busy or uninterested.

It only takes one, yes to change your business. In exchange for a short-term assignment, the client agreed to offer a free testimonial. In addition, if I performed a great job, I followed up with a discovery call.

I cross-promote my services on multiple platforms from Instagram and Facebook to Tik Tok and LinkedIn.

I’m not a huge fan of being everywhere all at once on social media. It requires a lot of strategy and consistency. Instagram was my primary platform to gain more visibility online. Once, I established a good following on Instagram I began migrating to different platforms.

Although each platform is different, I became efficient in cross-promoting my services. How? Sharing tips and resources on writing on my profile. Retweeting articles that related to my niche. Connecting with other professionals in my industry.

I network with career professionals in different industries to market my services and opportunities for partnerships.

Despite the industry or topic, the most common trait that startups face is within their marketing. Marketing is a pivotal component in converting followers into customers/clients. With that knowledge, I study the merging trends and markets of industries across social media. Whether it’s crypto or ChatGPT, these brands or startups rely on ghostwriters to educate the public. As a ghostwriter, I introduce my business to the thought leaders of today and position my business for strategic partnerships.

I offer blog writing services as a contributor or guest blogger on different platforms to gain more exposure.

Although blogging has changed significantly since 2008, it remains a reliable source for gaining exposure for writing. A few years back, I contributed to the online media website The Mogul Millenial. I interviewed entrepreneurs who were making a difference in their industry. This helped position me as a writing professional with credibility with a verifiable media platform.

Although some contributors are not paid for their work, it helps to establish a reputation for working with a growing organization. Thus, clients who read your work may seek you out to hire you.

I support and network with other freelance writers in the community.

Contrary to what many people may think or believe the freelance community is supportive. Of course, the market is competitive and crowded it’s possible to make friends. Most of my clients have come to me through a referral from other freelance writers. At times, freelance writers don’t have the bandwidth to take on additional projects and they pass them on to me.

You may have tried a few of these tips and suggestions a few times and got no results. While these tips have helped me garner a consistent flow of income and clients in my business. I still use them today. As a ghostwriter, I am aware that the most important aspect of my business is networking. The more people I meet, the more opportunities to grow my business.

I highly recommend testing out these tips for yourself and seeing what happens.

Today, I’m pivoting my business forward to teach writers and ambitious moms like me the basics of starting a ghostwriting business.

I offer one on one coaching services on a monthly basis. As an introduction to ghostwriting, I wrote a short ebook to help you get started ghostwriting today. Check it out. Happy ghostwriting!