Is this a fit?
Write thought leadership content for executives, founders, and professionals on LinkedIn. Start with 1:1 ghostwriting, scale to an agency with AI-assisted drafting. High demand, low competition, and recurring revenue.
Skills to bring or develop
- Copywriting
- LinkedIn Strategy
- Interviewing
- Content Strategy
- Voice Matching
The starting sequence
- Study top-performing LinkedIn content in your target industries
- Build a portfolio by ghostwriting for 3-5 people for free or cheap
- Develop your content workflow: interview → draft → revise → publish
- Scale to agency model with AI-assisted drafting and junior writers
Find your first customers
Treat this customer profile as a starting hypothesis. Talk to people in this role and find out what they already do, what it costs them, and whether they want help.
Role
Aspiring Ghostwriter / Content Freelancer
Industry
Content Services / Personal Branding
Problems to investigate
- No idea how to find and pitch high-ticket clients
- Overwhelmed by the idea of "running an agency"
- Struggles to match different clients' voices consistently
- Undersells — charges per post instead of monthly retainers
- Doesn't have a system for extracting stories from busy executives
Channels to test
- Cold Email
- Referrals
- Communities
First launch approach
Ghost for 3-5 executives for free in exchange for testimonials and portfolio pieces. Post your OWN LinkedIn content daily showing your writing process and results. The irony of ghostwriting: your best marketing is your own writing.
Ways to find your first customer
- DM 20 executives who post inconsistently but have great ideas (offer to "polish" their drafts)
- Post daily on YOUR LinkedIn about ghostwriting tips, results, and behind-the-scenes
- Offer a free "LinkedIn audit" — review their last 10 posts and suggest improvements
- Network in founder/CEO communities (YC, Indie Hackers, private Slack groups)
- Ask every satisfied client for 2 referrals — this is how agencies scale
Content ideas
- I ghostwrite for CEOs. Here are the 5 post formats that always go viral.
- How to capture someone's voice in 30 minutes (my interview framework)
- What I learned ghostwriting for 10 executives this year
- Why the best LinkedIn content comes from real stories, not ChatGPT prompts
Shape the offer & delivery
These are example packages to adapt, not current market rates or promises of sales. Choose one deliverable, set a revision limit, and test the scope with a real buyer before expanding.
Starter
$1,500/mo example price
- 3 LinkedIn posts per week
- Monthly strategy call
- Voice guide creation
- Basic engagement support
Growth
$3,000/mo example price
- 5 LinkedIn posts per week
- Bi-weekly strategy calls
- Comment ghostwriting
- DM outreach drafts
- Newsletter ghostwriting
Executive
$5,000-8,000/mo example price
- Daily LinkedIn content
- Weekly strategy calls
- Full thought leadership program
- Speaking engagement prep
- Cross-platform content (Twitter/X, blog)
- Personal brand strategy
Build and deliver the offer
Service delivery
Packages
Name
Founder Ghostwriting
Deliverables
- 12 LinkedIn posts/month
- 1 monthly strategy call
- Voice guide document
Timeline
Ongoing, monthly
Included in this example
- Voice-matched drafts from a recorded interview
- 1 revision round per post
Outside this example
- Posting/scheduling (client posts under their own account unless add-on purchased)
Client onboarding
Step
Record a 30-45 min voice/interview call to capture tone and stories
Who handles it
you
Step
Build a voice guide from the interview
Who handles it
you
Step
Client provides recent wins/opinions monthly for post material
Who handles it
client
Step
Deliver first batch of drafts for approval
Who handles it
you
Kickoff conversation
- Record the voice/interview session
- Review 3-5 LinkedIn posts they admire for tone reference
- Set the monthly content calendar and approval process
Your launch roadmap
Work through the phases at your own pace. Durations and task hours are estimates; client conversations, sales, and other outcomes depend on the response you receive. Growth and exit steps are optional later decisions.
0 of 17 tasks checked
01 · Foundation 1 week · suggested pace
Build your portfolio and develop your ghostwriting system
Analyze 50+ high-performing posts from executives in your target niches. Identify patterns in hooks, story structures, and CTAs. Build a swipe file of formats that work.
Target deliverable: Swipe file with 50+ post templates by format type
Tool examples: LinkedIn, Notion, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 4 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Develop a 30-minute interview template that extracts a client's stories, opinions, expertise, and communication style. Include questions about their hot takes, career pivots, lessons learned, and industry predictions.
Target deliverable: Client interview template + voice guide template
Tool examples: Google Docs, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 3 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Reach out to 5-10 connections and offer to write 1 week of LinkedIn posts for free. Pick people with interesting stories but inconsistent posting. This builds your portfolio and testimonials.
Target deliverable: 3 active free ghostwriting engagements
Tool examples: LinkedIn, Google Docs, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 8 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Write and publish your own LinkedIn posts about ghostwriting, content strategy, and behind-the-scenes of writing for others. Your own content is your best marketing.
Target deliverable: 7 published LinkedIn posts on your own profile
Tool examples: LinkedIn, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 3 hours · AI can assist; review the output
02 · Launch 2 weeks · suggested pace
Convert free clients to paid and land your first retainers
Document the results from your free ghostwriting — impressions, engagement, follower growth, leads generated. Turn these into compelling case studies and testimonial graphics.
Target deliverable: 3 case studies with before/after metrics
Tool examples: Canva, Google Docs, LinkedIn Analytics
Planning allowance: 4 hours
Define your 3 tiers (Starter/Growth/Executive). Create a clean one-page pricing PDF and proposal template. Include sample content, process overview, and testimonials.
Target deliverable: Pricing page + proposal template
Tool examples: Canva, Google Docs, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 3 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Present results to your 3 free clients and offer paid retainer packages. Ask for referrals from those who don't convert.
Target deliverable: 1-2 paid retainer clients
Tool examples: Zoom, Google Docs, Stripe
Planning allowance: 3 hours
Identify executives who post inconsistently but have big networks. Send personalized DMs offering a free LinkedIn audit or a sample post written in their voice.
Target deliverable: 20 outreach messages sent, 3-5 calls booked
Tool examples: LinkedIn, ChatGPT, Apollo.io
Planning allowance: 6 hours · AI can assist; review the output
03 · Scale 2 months · suggested pace
Build a workflow: interview → AI first draft → human voice editing → client approval → publish. Use Claude/ChatGPT with custom prompts trained on each client's voice. This cuts writing time by 50%.
Target deliverable: AI-assisted content production system
Tool examples: ChatGPT, Claude, Notion
Planning allowance: 8 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Continue outreach, referral asks, and own LinkedIn content.
Target deliverable: 5-8 active retainer clients
Tool examples: LinkedIn, Zoom, CRM
Planning allowance: 10 hours
Find a writer who can handle first drafts and basic editing. Train them on your voice matching process and AI workflow.
Target deliverable: Trained junior writer handling 2-3 clients
Tool examples: Upwork, Notion, Loom
Planning allowance: 8 hours
Easy upsells because you already know their voice.
Target deliverable: Cross-sell packages launched to existing clients
Tool examples: Google Docs, Notion
Planning allowance: 4 hours
04 · Exit 60 days · suggested pace
Prepare your LinkedIn ghostwriting agency for sale, acquisition, or hands-off operation
Create comprehensive standard operating procedures covering every repeatable process in your LinkedIn ghostwriting agency — client onboarding, delivery workflows, billing, and support. A buyer needs to run this without you.
Target deliverable: Complete SOP handbook with video walkthroughs
Tool examples: Notion, Loom, Google Docs
Planning allowance: 12 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Record the questions this step raises for your business, location, and circumstances. Confirm requirements and assumptions with current official sources and a qualified professional before acting.
Target deliverable: Valuation estimate with supporting financials
Tool examples: Google Sheets, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 6 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Organize all financial records, contracts, customer data, IP documentation, and legal documents into a virtual data room that a buyer or their advisor can review.
Target deliverable: Organized virtual data room
Tool examples: Google Drive, Google Sheets
Planning allowance: 10 hours
Identify every area where the business depends on you personally. Delegate, automate, or document each one. Test by taking 2 weeks off and measuring impact.
Target deliverable: Owner dependency scorecard (before/after)
Tool examples: Notion, Zapier, Slack
Planning allowance: 20 hours
Create a teaser document (blind profile) for your LinkedIn ghostwriting agency and either list on marketplaces (Acquire.com, Flippa, Quiet Light) or reach out directly to 5-10 potential acquirers.
Target deliverable: Teaser document + 5-10 buyer conversations started
Tool examples: Acquire.com, Google Docs, Email
Planning allowance: 8 hours · AI can assist; review the output
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Tools, budget & effort
These are tools named in the original playbook, offered as examples to evaluate. Check current capabilities, pricing, licensing, and data handling with the provider before subscribing. Start with the tools you already have.
- ChatGPT
- Claude
- Google Docs
- Notion
Tools to evaluate
Item
ChatGPT/Claude paid tier
Why consider it
Voice-matched drafting at real volume needs a paid tier
Item
A recording/transcription tool for voice-capture interviews
Why consider it
Voice-matched drafts start from a recorded interview, not a blank page
Make the numbers your own
Include setup, subscriptions, selling, fulfillment, revisions, support, and your time. Use your actual inputs and compare a cautious case with a better case.
Open the experiment calculator →AI roles & prompt templates
Assign a clear job, provide approved inputs, and review the result. These are role and prompt ideas; this page does not run AI or connect your accounts.
Content Writer
Draft a LinkedIn post in this voice based on this interview transcript excerpt
Marketing Strategist
Help me write outreach to a founder offering a free trial LinkedIn post
Use the first task above as your opening prompt. Include your audience, desired output, constraints, and how you will judge quality.
Your first small test
- Choose one customer. Find five people who have the problem described in this guide.
- Show one useful sample. Ask about their current process, priorities, and objections.
- Offer a clearly scoped pilot. Agree on deliverables, a price to test, and what success means.
- Record the evidence. Track responses, costs, hours, and what the buyer actually used. Decide whether to continue, change, or pause.
Explore related ideas
Adapted from Ashley’s Waymaker side-hustle playbooks, imported October 15, 2026. This is a published snapshot, not a live connection to your Waymaker account. Source examples are planning material, not verified customer outcomes. Explore Waymaker.