Making Money Online as a Ghost Blogger to Celebrity – Pros and Cons of Ghost Writing

A Ghost Blogger is a person who writes content on behalf of a company or person. Many companies and people opt for ghost writers to write content for them to build credibility in the marketplace. Maintaining Blogs can help clients or fans to know more about a person or company. But not everyone may have the knowledge, expertise or time of writing content. Celebrities often try to get better visibility on search engines and social media reputation by hiring ghost bloggers to write blog posts on their behalf.

Celebrities may hire people to maintain their blogs, answer fan mails, maintain their facebook and twitter accounts etc. so that fans get to know what they are doing. A Celebrity Ghost Writer may write about upcoming events, movies or opinions about important issues on behalf of the celebrity as told by him/her. Companies also may hire the services of a Ghost Blogger to strengthen their brand or authority and keep their customers informed about their products and services. Companies may also artificially inflate the interest in their products by hiring writers to write positive reviews about them. Some companies might even hire bloggers to write negative reviews about competitor’s products.

Have you ever watched a movie based on a positive review on the internet or newspaper but found the film disappointing and unworthy of your time and money? In all probability, the review may have been written by someone who is paid to do the job.

Blogging is a way of building relationships and trust. What happens when you find out that your favorite Celebrity blog is actually Ghost written? That can be utterly disappointing, right? Is it right to mislead the readers by taking the credit of content written by someone else? Is it not a dishonest or deceptive practice to allow someone to write as you? As a Content Writer is it not wrong to give up the intellectual rights of your content and get paid to blog for a person or company instead?

Hiring someone to Ghost Blog may not be ethically right. But in this age where social media presence and internet visibility matters a lot more and more Celebrities are hiring professional writers to do the job of communicating with fans and critics through their Blog for various reasons. Why do Celebrities hire Ghost Writers?

• They may have a busy schedule and have no time to write Blog Posts.
• They may not be good at writing and may do a poor job at it. Also they may not have the knowledge of SEO, link building strategies and Social Media Marketing to get the desired visibility on search engines.
• They may be able to get more productive things with their time than communicating with fans through Blogs or social media.

Most Ghost Bloggers are in touch with the Celebrity (or PR Manager) and write 4-5 blog posts a month based on their interview or conversation with the celebrity and as required by him/her. Majority of the times the posts are published after it is approved by the celebrity or staff. But there are also Celebrities who give a free hand to their Ghost Bloggers. As someone who makes money as a Ghost Blogger to a popular Bollywood Celebrity, I can assure you that it is not an easy job to do. But why do I still do it?

• The money I make from Ghost Blogging is many times more than what I earn as a Freelance Writer.
• It is prestigious to be associated with a Celebrity and showbiz.
• The perks of Ghost Blogging for Celebrity can be quite lucrative.

There is no doubt that there is an air of dishonesty and secrecy if a Celebrity hires a Ghost Blogger to blog on his/her behalf as the readers expect to be hearing the thoughts and views of the celebrity. Apart from the fact that it is wrong to take credit of someone else’s work, there is also a probability that the hired Ghost Blogger may misrepresent or damage the reputation of the person or company. However, Celebrity Ghost Writing has become a socially acceptable practice now. Moreover, it also serves the purpose of improving the popularity of the client. Though the money offered is good, there are also some disadvantages of Ghost Blogging for Celebrities.

• Celebrities are successful people and expect their staff to be on their beck and call 24 x 7.
• Celebrities are mostly people with attitudes and may throw tantrums when things do not work the way they expect.
• You cannot take credit for your content or disclose to anyone who you are ghost blogging for. It also means that though you may put Ghost Blogging in your resume as a bait to get more work, it is illegal to offer any proof or experience of the same to your prospective employer.

Many of you reading this hub may be aware that I am a Ghost Blogger to a top Bollywood Celebrity handling the Blog, twitter and facebook accounts of the celebrity. I also have Television Celebrities as clients. I am also into Corporate Blogging and promotion of Brands and causes.

I consider it my moral responsibility to pass on the message of the Celebrity to the readers through the Blog exactly the way my client wants it to be conveyed. It is their ideas and opinions that are being blogged. Sometimes I am also given content to expand on or edit, and then post it on the Blog. I always keep records of my conversation with the Celebrity to make sure that I am doing my job right. Also if at any point the celebrity prefers to deny a statement, I would have proof of not being guilty. It is also important for me to maintain the secrecy regarding my assignment to anyone as it can tarnish the image of the celebrity in front of his/her fans as they visit the blog thinking that it is the celebrity who pens it. I cannot offer proof that I work as a Ghost Blogger of a Celebrity because of my contract with the client too, but the remuneration and perks more than compensates for it. As far as the money is good, I am not bothered if I am called a PR Associate or a Ghost Blogger. I see nothing wrong in Celebrities or Corporate companies paying Ghost Writers to blog in order to improve their image in front of target audience. However, I am still not okay with offers of Ghost Blogging for books. I am against the so-called Book Authors who do not have the time, writing skills, knowledge or intelligence to write on their own who hire professional writers and take the credit of their content just because they have the money to purchase the services.

Since I have access to the id’s and passwords of my client and writes as the Celebrity, I also consider it my responsibility that I do nothing to betray the trust of my client. I have a dedicated computer, internet connection and security software for doing my ghost blogging work to ensure safety and security of my work. I never use my personal computer or accounts while doing the job for my client. I even have a separate mobile connection dedicated for my professional contacts so that they can reach me easily. I also keep myself updated regarding other Bollywood Actors, movies and gossips.

There are virtually hundreds of thousands of Writers’ online, longing to be paid for their work. So what is it which separates one writer from another? It is the knowledge, writing style and visibility, which set apart one writer from the other. If you are looking to work as Ghost Bloggers for Corporate Companies or individual clients:-

• Create a good Online Profile mentioning your skills and examples of work.
• Companies and individuals prefer to hire writers with additional skills like knowledge of SEO and social media marketing. So it is worth investing your time and money to learn about them.
• Network and build contacts through social networking sites.
• It helps to be knowledgeable and passionate about the topic you intend to Ghost Blog. For instance, As a Ghost Blogger to a popular Bollywood Celebrity, I keep myself updated regarding other Bollywood Actors, movies and gossips.
• Keep an eye on writing job message boards and forums for ghost blogging jobs.
• Another way to get work is through advertising your services through word of mouth, Personal Blogs, Web Ads or Social Networking Sites.

Ghost writing is a business. It takes hard work to build a steady stream of clients who pay for content. It is important to adhere to the requirements of the client. These days, many Celebrities and Companies have realized the importance of establishing social media presence and are hiring professionals to create, write and maintain blogs, tweets, Facebook posts and fan pages etc. There are many TV and Film personalities who pay for publicity. You may find it surprising that not only struggling actors and actresses do it, but also many successful ones to keep themselves in the news and beat competition. Even I know many celebrities who keep news reporters and journalists on their payroll to ensure that they are always on the news.

There are plenty of opportunities for ghost blogging available on the web. All you may have to do is get noticed and you may get hired.