Statement of Rights

You may sell this book for profit or you may give it away or use it as a bonus. You may NOT change it in any way.

Copyright Message

PLR Obtained by White Dove Books 2008.

Disclaimer

Reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information presented in this book is accurate. However, the reader should understand that the information provided does not constitute legal, medical or professional advice of any kind.

No Liability: this product is supplied “as is” and without warranties. All warranties, express or implied, are hereby disclaimed.

Use of this product constitutes acceptance of the “No Liability” policy. If you do not agree with this policy, you are not permitted to use or distribute this product.

White Dove Books, its employees, associates, distributors, agents and affiliates shall not be liable for any losses or damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, consequential loss or damage) directly or indirectly arising from the use of this product.

Contents

Statement of Rights

Disclaimer

So You Want to Be A Writer!

A Closer Look At PLR

What Is A Ghost Writer?

How To Become A Ghost Writer

Ghost Writing or PLR?

Finding Clients

Create A Website

Figuring Out What to Charge

Style of Writing

Create A Business Plan

Effective Communication

Estimating Project Time

It's All in the Research

Beef Up Your Copywriting Skills

Specialize for Maximum Profits

Creating Writing Samples

Conclusion

So You Want to Be A Writer!

Are you new to Internet Marketing? Have you recently been overwhelmed at the array of choices before you to make money online? If you’re interested in making money online by using your writing skills, then this guide is a great place to start!

Writers are in high demand on the web – quality writers, that is. The Internet is all about content, whether that be content on websites, in emails, in ebooks etc. Businesses are constantly searching for content to add to their websites and products.

Sometimes they hire ghostwriters to get exclusive content, and other times they purchase private label rights products (PLR) and further customize them.

If you’re a talented writer, the potential for you to develop a profitable business online is massive.

Here are some ways you can make money online with writing, but please note that this list is just a sample:

• Write and submit articles to sites that pay for content

• Create your own niche websites packed full of useful content and monetize them with affiliate marketing or advertising such as Google Adsense.

• Write articles, reports or ebooks and sell multiple copies along with their rights (i.e., sell private label rights products – PLR).

• Advertise your writing services and launch a business as a ghostwriter, writing custom content for your clients.

This guide focuses on how to get started writing online, either as a ghostwriter or producing private label rights products.

A Closer Look At PLR

The term PLR stands for Private Label Rights. By offering a product with PLR, you are granting the buyer with the right to use the content as if it were their own. This means that they get to modify the content as they see fit (or not), they can use their name as the author, and they can choose to sell or give away the product at will.

That defines the basic usage of PLR. But every product or seller can define their own rights, which can vary slightly from the above definition. As a buyer of PLR products, you really have to view the license that comes with each product closely.

For example, a seller could stipulate that the product cannot be given away for free unless significantly modified. They could even stipulate a percentage, such as modifying the product up to 80%.

Another common restriction that PLR sellers often add is not being able to sell the PLR product on eBay (or auction sites).

This is due to the massive saturation of products being grossly undervalued on eBay. This restriction protects all buyers of PLR products.

Remember, the LESS people that own a PLR product, the better for the customer.

There is often a gray area when it comes to understanding private label rights. When sellers add unique restrictions to the rights, at what point do their restrictions no longer apply to you?

For example, if you’ve modified a PLR product drastically, at what point is it considered yours? And once it’s considered material that you’ve created, wouldn’t the sellers’ restrictions no longer apply?

You have to look at each situation separately. Always view the license terms in detail and if you have any questions about the rights, contact the seller.

These are things you should be aware of if you plan on creating and selling PLR content. You should know upfront what types of issues your customers may run into.

Another thing PLR sellers can do is limit the number of copies sold. This raises the value of the product significantly, because as was stated earlier, the less people that own a PLR product, the better.

But if a PLR seller decides to let customers also pass on PLR rights, then having a limit doesn’t make a difference. That’s something you’ll want to stipulate in your license terms. Customers cannot sell or give away the PLR rights that they are purchasing.

Here’s an exhaustive listing of what rights to PLR products can typically contain in a license. Keep in mind that when you create a license, it does not have to include all of these rights. Choose the ones that make sense to you. Change the following to use [ YES ] or [ NO ] appropriately:

[ YES ] Can be added to membership sites

[ YES ] Can be packaged as a bonus

[ YES ] Can be bundled with other products

[ NO ] Can be sold on auction sites

[ YES ] Can be fully edited and put your name on it

[ NO ] Can be given away as is

[ YES ] Can be used as web content

[ YES ] Can be broken down into articles

[ NO ] Can sell or give away Resale Rights

[ NO ] Can sell or give away Master Resale Rights

[ NO ] Can sell or give away Private Label Rights

What Is A Ghost Writer?

For those of you who are new to online writing and Internet Marketing, let me just explain that ghost writing has NOTHING to do with spooky spirits. The term “ghost writer” isn’t exclusive to the Internet Marketing realm either. It simply means a person who gets paid to write material (books, articles, reports etc.) but gives up all rights to another person. They work behind the scenes, and often charge premium prices due to the fact that it’s custom work.

A ghost writer who gains a loyal customer base can expect a continuing flow of work. You can decide what types of projects you take on, including what topics you write about and what types of products you create. You can focus on articles or short reports, or take on larger projects such as ebooks and online courses. You can even get hired to write autoresponder email courses.

How To Become A Ghost Writer

You are likely skilled in the area of writing, if you are pursuing this line of business. If not, you will most definitely have a hard time at it! One of the requirements to becoming a ghostwriter is the ability to write well.

So, assuming that your writing skills are up to par, let’s move on. If you’re new to writing online, you may be faced with several obstacles in the beginning. For example, until you can get some experience under your belt with satisfied customers, you won’t have any testimonials to entice people with. You may also lack funds necessary to get your business off the ground – but that’s not as critical in this line of business. When starting out, one doesn’t really need much of an investment. Finally, you may also lack any writing samples to share with potential customers. That’s an easy fix though, and further on in this guide you’ll find information on how to prepare a variety of writing samples.

The only real obstacle that you can’t erase right away is your lack of experience. Many folks who are starting out in the ghostwriting field will charge lower rates to attract new customers and gain experience. This is the type of field where you can often gain repeat customers, and where your reputation can spread like wildfire by word of mouth. The thing to keep in mind is to downplay the negative and focus on the positive.

You should become an active member at the Warrior Forum first of all. It’s a great starting point to launch your writing services. Don’t just join the forum and automatically pitch your services though. Take some time to get to know the people, make some useful contributions, and then you can start inquiring about getting into the writing field. You’ll find a lot of people there are truly helpful.

If you are serious about building a business online, the Warrior Forum can be priceless. If you take the time to become an active member, and you’re willing to meet new people, you can make some great networking contacts.

Ghost Writing or PLR?

The major difference between ghost writing a custom project for a client, versus creating and selling private label rights products (PLR), is what you can charge.

You can charge a lot more for a custom ebook for one client, because you are a) creating custom content specifically requested by the client, b) you are handing over all rights to the client and thus losing the ability to use your own writing, and c) you cannot sell the rights to anyone else and thus it’s a one time sale.

With PLR products, you keep the rights and also sell off the rights to whomever you choose. Typically, one will only sell limited copies so that the products’ value remains high. As more and more copies are sold, people see the products’ value diminish. You can’t get as much money for the same book offered through PLR, but you can make more money because you can sell several copies.

In the beginning of your career, you might not find it very profitable to take on custom work. This is because if you’re just starting out, you won’t be established nor able to charge premium prices. In order to create a customer base and gain testimonials, PLR is probably the best way to go.

Finding Clients

When you’re first starting out, it might be tough to find initial work. If you’re a talented writer though, you’ll have no problem finding hungry clients over at the Warrior Forum. There are many other communities online with hungry marketers looking to outsource a variety of writing tasks. What you need to do is take the time to become part of such a community.

You can launch your ghostwriting career quietly by contacting some forum members directly and seeking out work that way.

Or you can launch a special offer in the Warrior Special Offer forum and really deliver an outstanding service at a competitive price. This will not only give you necessary exposure but also help develop a client base that could mean customers for life.

There are many online communities where you could find work as a writer, and here are some more suggestions:

warriorforum.com

forums.digitalpoint.com

sitepoint.com/forums/

http://www.talkfreelance.com/

Create A Website

Create a launch point for your new business. You can certainly find clients and start writing right away without a website, but at some point you will want a place to “call home”. By having a website, you can offer your customers and potential customers an easy way to reach you. You can also easily describe your services and it’s a great way for potential customers to check out some of your sample work.

A website doesn’t have to be anything complicated. Even if you do have grand plans – don’t let them stop you from at least getting something out on the world wide web.

You should start out by creating a rough draft of the content you’d like on your website. This should include a description of your services at minimum. It’s also a good idea to include a picture of yourself and some personal information. This helps clients relate to you and see you as a “real” human being. (Hint: so does providing a phone number and having a chat!).

Another great idea is to add a page that displays testimonials from previous and existing clients. You’ll start gaining these quickly once you start finding clients.

You can also add a page displaying some writing samples. Always try to be proactive in figuring out what you’re customer wants. If you were the customer – wouldn’t you want to read some sample pieces before making any inquiries? Don’t hold back and make the customer ask you for information – instead, figure out what they want beforehand and have it ready.

You might feel like you don’t have much to put on a website right away, but it’s far better to have something out there even if it’s skeletal at first, than to have nothing at all.

If you’re really unsure about building a simple website, or simply don’t have the time, you can always outsource the work.

Final tip: Make sure to put a way to contact you on your website!

Figuring Out What to Charge

This is one of the toughest decisions that new writers face. It’s never easy putting a price tag on a service. You definitely want to be paid what you’re worth, yet at the same time you need to price your services competitively.

Eventually, if you grow your business, you’ll be able to charge more than you can as a new writer. Like many fields, you have to work your way up the ladder. But don’t fret – the writing field can be a very lucrative field indeed!

In order to identify what you should be charging for your services; you should figure out how much money you need to make per hour. How much money do you require to sustain yourself? Try to figure out how much money per hour, per month and/or per year you’d need to make.

Another thing that can affect your rates is the length of time you require to complete a project. This can vary from person to person. If you can create top notch products in a timely manner, you’re perceived worth may be higher.

The bottom line is to never charge less than what you feel you are worth. If it takes you 10 hours to create a 25-page ebook and you only charge the client $100, are you comfortable with making $10 an hour? There are a lot of ways to look at a pricing strategy, but no matter what price you set your services at, YOU are the one that needs to be satisfied and motivated to push forward.

Just remember that your quality writing skills alone are not enough. You need to have reliable business skills as well. You need to learn how to set your prices in accordance to the market as well as how to negotiate fair pricing. If all you focus on is quality writing, you’ll miss out on the big picture.

Style of Writing

Are you able to captivate your audience with your writing? Do you feel excited and passionate when you’re writing? Having an interest in the topic you are writing about definitely helps the entire process. While everyone will have their own unique style of writing, being able to convey a passion through your words can go a long way towards captivating your audience.

Don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through your writing – even though you may be writing for someone else.

Your customers will keep coming back for more if they like what they read. It’s your flair and way with words that makes a book interesting. Don’t just regurgitate research material you’ve found. Don’t just move a few sentences around and think that’s the same as “putting it into your own words”. Because it’s not the same.

Think of your teachers from high school. There are many teachers that teach the same thing – but not all of them can grab your attention and convey the information to you in a way you’ll understand and find interesting. As an emerging writer, you should devote some time on a consistent basis to improving your skills.

Create A Business Plan

You may be really energetic and full of spitfire, but please slow down and give this section some serious attention. The more planning and foresight you put towards your business goals, the better prepared and more successful you will be in the future. A plan contains your goals and objectives and essentially creates a roadmap to your success. You should make this task the highest priority.

A lot of people get intimidated when they consider creating a business plan. You might think it’s laden with complicated business jargon and has no purpose in your day to day tasks.

You couldn’t be more wrong. A business plan is only what you make of it. You decide what format it should be and what language it should contain. It’s as personal to you as what you choose to wear each morning.

The actual process of creating a business plan forces you to answer a lot of important questions. Therefore, it requires you to perform critical research beforehand. In the end, it will empower you with invaluable knowledge about your niche or service, competitors and your customers.

The best part of a business plan is including your plans to grow and goals to accomplish. You should be reviewing your plan on a consistent basis, even daily. It should be constantly changing as you update it and improve upon it.

A business plan can include these sections (or similar):

- Executive Summary

- Company Overview

- Environment

- Company Description

- Action Plan

- Financial Planning

Don’t get intimidated by the formal wording of these sections. You can name them whatever you want – it’s YOUR plan and it should be personal for YOU.

Here are some important questions that should be revealed in your business plan:

- What is the purpose of your business?

- What product or service are you offering?

- How do you want your business to grow?

- What are your income expectations?

- Do you require any startup capital?

- Who is your target market?

- Who is your competition?

Remember, your plan does not have to be perfect. You do not create it and then forget about it – it should never be considered final. As long as you operate a business, it should always be under review for improvement and growth, and therefore so should your business plan.

Effective Communication

As in any service oriented business, effective communication can make or break your future success. You will most likely be working on projects one on one with clients. This requires that you and the client can communicate efficiently to ensure the project is completed to the full satisfaction of the client.

First, you’ll need to identify a means of communication. In today’s online world, you should offer a variety of ways that you can be reached. Several instant messengers exist but the popular ones are MSN, Yahoo and AIM. Skype is also a great form of communication, because you can easily talk with your clients over the internet. And it should be obvious, but an email address is imperative – one that you actually CHECK on a timely basis. If you can, it would be an additional bonus if you can offer your phone number as a way to reach you. This also adds a personal touch that many of your clients will appreciate.

Second, you need to figure out your availability. Figure this out BEFORE you start seeking clients. For example, if you’re only available during specific hours of the day, make sure to let your clients know. If you’re writing part time and/or have other responsibilities, it’s important to analyze what time you have to commit to your new business. You owe it to yourself and your clients to be honest about this. With proper planning and time management, you can run a successful business even part time.

Finally, it’s equally important to find out your client’s availability. Be assertive in getting this information upfront. Ask specific questions about their desired level of involvement in the project and their ability to get back to you should you run into questions.

Here is a quick list of key points you should put to memory:

• Identify the ways you and your client can be contacted

• Identify the times you and your client are available

• Respect your client's time and only contact them if it pertains to the project

• Try to keep your emails short and to the point

• Avoid sending repetitive messages across different mediums

• Always try to provide a sample of the project for your client's comments and approval

• Identify beforehand if the client wishes to have regular updates and get the details figured out then

• Always try to anticipate your client's needs and go above and beyond their expectations

• Always be honest with your client if you can't meet a deadline

• Always meet your deadlines!

Estimating Project Time

How long will it take you to research and write a 20-page ebook? Do you have any idea? A lot of new writers have NO idea because they are new! This is part of the growing pains and should be monitored carefully.

Your time is precious, as is your clients’ time. As a professional, you should be able to tell your client how long you’ll require to complete a project. Underestimating that number can be harmful. It will require you to approach your client and explain why you need more time. This can be both embarrassing and stressful for you – but it can also be detrimental for your client.

Overestimating your time can be just as bad. If you’re claiming to require an undesirable amount of time for a project, your clients are going to go elsewhere. Plus, you’ll have difficulty taking on additional projects if you’re budgeting too much time to get them done.

The key to estimating your time properly is simply to pay attention. Even if that means getting a little timer that helps you keep track. For your first few projects (of similar nature), record the hours spent on the different phases (such as research, writing, editing). Not only will this help you figure out an accurate estimate, but it will also reveal where you spend the most time.

Research Phase

This can vary widely depending on your level of knowledge of the given topic you’re writing about. If you have little to know knowledge of a topic, obviously you’ll have to allocate more time to the research phase. Do not ever skimp on time required for this phase, even when you are knowledgeable about a topic.

The quality of content you produce relies heavily on the quality of your research.

Writing Phase

The actual time it takes to complete the writing should be shorter if you’ve done your research thoroughly. It also helps if you can type fast, so don’t rule out typing software that can aid with this.

Editing Phase

Organizing all of the content into sensible chapters and sections is an important step. It affects the overall presentation of the product. Editing also includes checking for proper spelling and grammar. You should NEVER produce content with spelling or grammar mistakes.

It's All in the Research

There are many ways to research information for a given project. You will likely find the internet the most often used research platform, but that doesn’t mean offline sources aren’t valuable either. Your local library or bookstore can offer a wealth of information for example.

But before you begin researching your next book, you really need to get a firm understanding of the topic at hand as well as the target market. Let’s say you were hired to write a book about landscaping for beginners. Sometimes clients will actually provide you with chapter titles and thus your job is made so much easier. But other times they require your guidance and expert research skills to come up with not only the content but the structure as well.

Whether you’re faced with having to identify the chapters (i.e. topics) of a new project or not, how do you get started?

First of all, you need to understand the target market. Discuss with your client their views on the target market and make sure you clearly understand where they’re coming from. Think of what questions and/or problems those interested in landscaping might come up against. How does one get started? What kinds of tools or equipment are required? What kind of investment will be required? What resources are at hand when one runs into problems and requires help? These are all great questions that can be answered in your beginner’s guide to landscaping.

You can also perform research online at Yahoo! Answers. Find out what people are asking questions about (within your niche). You can do the same thing with forums. Look on social networking sites like MySpace and join groups that are related to your niche.

Take advantage of the many tools that Google offers:

• For example, there are groups (groups.google.com) you can search which operate a lot like a bulletin board.

• You can also try out Google Sets (labs.google.com/sets). Plug in some of the major keywords belonging to your niche, and Google Sets can return a set of related words. This can help with brainstorming further topics and/or ideas.

• Use Google Video and search for videos on your niche.

• Google now offers Google Blog Search – allowing you to specifically search blogs.

• When searching on Google, search a very generic word from your niche (i.e., landscaping) but put a tilde sign in front of the word (i.e., ~landscaping). The results which are returned have words bolded that are similar to your search term. This will help generate further ideas to write about.

Always gather research from numerous sources. Research does not mean plagiarism – so always make sure to put things into your own words.

Do not ever underestimate the time involved for researching a writing project. This is where most new writers fail in properly managing their time and clients’ expectations. You need to keep tabs on how much time is put towards the research phase, so it can be factored into your total project estimate.

Beef Up Your Copywriting Skills

Depending on what writing projects you take on, you don’t necessarily have to have any copywriting skills. But being in the realm of Internet Marketing, everyone entering this broad field should gain at least some education on copywriting.

Whether it be when you market your own book, or simply just designing and marketing your services on a website, you can benefit from improving your copywriting skills.

Set aside an hour or so a week to dedicate to learning more about copywriting. If you’re brand new to copywriting, here are some great suggestions to get you started (be prepared for a lot of reading!):

The Gary Halbert Letters

HardToFindAds.com

Gary Bencivenga’s Arsenal

Copywriting Secrets

Specialize for Maximum Profits

If you can specialize in a niche or topic of interest, this can help establish you as an expert in your field. It also helps set you apart from the general public. If one required a guide on landscaping, and had to choose between a general writer and one who specializes in landscaping and gardening, who do you think they would choose?

The other benefit to specializing is you can choose what topics you write about. If you enjoy topics such as parenting and raising children, specialize in those areas and learn everything you can about them. Brand yourself as the #1 expert in your field. Combine that with your talented writing skills and you could definitely create a strong repeat customer base!

There are niches that you can specialize in that have a large enough target market without having to worry about lack of interest. When you specialize, you may have to spend more time advertising your services than someone who doesn’t, but you’ll also be branding yourself as an expert in that field.

If you can grasp this concept, and learn to position yourself as an expert in a specific area, your potential for growth is unlimited. The more you know about your niche or specialty, the better products you’ll be able to create.

People are more willing to pay premium prices to someone who specializes in a given area.

Once you’ve established yourself in a specific area, you can always diversify into others.

Creating Writing Samples

If you’re just starting in the writing field, you might not have much in the form of writing samples. But because so many clients will want to view samples, you should take time to create some. There’s a lot of competition out there, and you need to provide whatever you can to potential clients to differentiate yourself from your competitors.

If you’ve created any PLR work, you can use portions of those as samples.

You should provide a variety of samples so that potential clients can get a good feel about your writing style. Keep in mind that if you’re specializing in a niche, your samples should revolve around that same niche.

It would be a good idea to provide some sample articles, and if possible, a sample short report. When you’re researching your competition (discussed earlier on), take a look at what kinds of writing samples they’re offering.

It never hurts to emulate what other successful people are doing.

It’s a smart business person who can spot someone doing something successful and finding out how to do it themselves.

A few articles or short reports that include the “Top X Ways to Solve X” are catchy. People always like to read about how to solve a problem.

You can also include topics that display a variety of writing styles. For example, a sample could be a technical tutorial of sorts that may include screenshots. Another sample could be in the form of a tour guide. Don’t be afraid to get creative!

Conclusion

Where there’s a will, there’s a way! You have everything you need now in front of you, so there’s no excuse not to get started. The longer you wait, the longer the money that could be yours is sitting on the table.

Take some time to review all of this material in depth, even print it out and highlight important sections. Identify what areas you are lacking skills in and create a learning path to get you going. Create your business plan and goals, and start moving forward.

You might not get things right the first time, but just keep plugging away. Mistakes are great because that’s how you learn. Just remember to create a detailed business plan and then treat it like gold. Always revisit it and make improvements, and continue to watch your business grow!

Wishing you success!

The Deepest Desire of Your Heart

by Will Edwards

Find and Fulfil Your Unique Purpose in Life

Using the exact methods taught in our program, very many people are already producing amazing results in their lives; and so can you.

Our outstanding program represents the culmination of many years of research into the application of the principles of success; and everything you need to accomplish the most amazing transformation of your life is included.

Discover Your Unique Calling

Stay On-Track to Achieve Your Mission

Overcoming Obstacles

Getting from Theory to Making it Happen

Professional Tips and Exercises

Identify Your Most Important Activities

Complete System to Optimize Time

How to Ensure You Achieve Your Goals

Click Here for More Details

About White Dove Books

Will Edwards is the founder of White Dove Books - the internet’s leading website for Self-Improvement and Personal Development. A graduate of the University of Birmingham, he develops and teaches Personal Development workshops and is a published author.

Within its first three years, White Dove Books was recognised as one of the internet’s leading sites for self-help and personal development; breaking into the top 100,000 sites on the internet at the end of 2005.

The INSPIRATION newsletter was started in 2005 as a way of providing helpful information including tips, articles and free inspirational eBooks to our visitors.

Today White Dove Books works in partnership with many authors and on-line publishers of inspirational material to provide a quality on-line service that serves thousands of people in many countries across the world.

Our mission is to help people to develop their own unique talents, abilities and passion in order that they may lead more meaningful, joyful and fulfilled lives.

Table of Contents

Statement of Rights

Disclaimer

So You Want to Be A Writer!

A Closer Look At PLR

What Is A Ghost Writer?

How To Become A Ghost Writer

Ghost Writing or PLR?

Finding Clients

Create A Website

Figuring Out What to Charge

Style of Writing

Create A Business Plan

Effective Communication

Estimating Project Time

It's All in the Research

Beef Up Your Copywriting Skills

Specialize for Maximum Profits

Creating Writing Samples

Conclusion