Table of contents:
- A shortened learning curve
- An ability to translate complex concepts
- An understanding of your target reader
- Research know-how
- Strategic thinking
- A network of contacts
Many authors start their search for a talented ghostwriter by confirming the ghost has writing skills. They frequently ask for writing samples to check the writer’s storytelling ability and to get a sense of how they explain complex topics. They often read magazine articles and blog posts the ghostwriter has authored, too.
This is all smart. You want and need a ghostwriter who can piece together your ideas and insights in such a way that it is even more eloquent than if you did the writing yourself.
A ghostwriter should be able to show you material they have written that is free from spelling, typographic, and punctuation errors.
But this is the bare minimum.
If you plan to write a book that has a business story attached, or that references business concepts, hiring a ghostwriter who also has an MBA can make your life easier and your book better. (Of course, a DBA, or doctor of business administration, is one more level of business training and expertise.)
Some of the advantages of hiring someone with both writing skills and a graduate business degree like an MBA or DBA include:
A shortened learning curve
As your writing partner, a ghostwriter will work to understand the concepts you want to share and to consider how best to express them to your reader. The good news is that if they have an MBA, you won’t have to spend time defining standard business terminology or breaking down core business concepts for them. Having received graduate business training, they are already familiar with business frameworks, concepts, strategies, and terminology. This will save you considerable time, number one, but perhaps more importantly, an MBA ghostwriter can push back on your initial ideas and help to strengthen them. Your book will be richer and more credible with their help.
An ability to translate complex concepts
Having been trained in business strategy, finance, accounting, entrepreneurship, marketing, operations, and human capital, to name a few courses of study, MBA ghostwriters have a knack for being able to break down more advanced models into easily digestible theories. Converting graduate-level terminology into language and ideas that high school or college-age readers can comprehend is one of their strengths. And since it’s likely you’re writing for a broad business audience, you’ll want to be sure that none of your concepts are too advanced or complicated.
An understanding of your target reader
Having been immersed in advanced business training, an MBA-educated ghostwriter will have a better familiarity with what your reader is expecting to gain by reading your book. They will know what the average business reader knows and doesn’t know, which can help ensure you’re not talking over your readers’ heads.
This can help you earn better reader reviews.
Research know-how
Since a good portion of their MBA training requires reading cases of business situations and researching appropriate strategies and tactics, MBA-turned-ghostwriters can be a big help. In addition to potentially having access to scholarly databases, MBA ghostwriters think like businesspeople. They know when statements need to be backed up with facts and figures, and they know where to find them. Many have well-developed critical thinking skills. Relying on a ghostwriter with an MBA will help your book’s credibility and authority.
Strategic thinking
Not only do experienced MBA ghostwriters bring their publishing experience to your book project, but their business training helps them advise you on your information flow. Having taken courses in business strategy, business ghostwriters can recommend different ways to present your information as well as supplementary content you may want to consider, to bolster your argument or story. They can think like writers and like business people all in one, which is a useful combination when you’re penning a business book.
A network of contacts
Many business books today are filled with examples, success stories, and case studies that help bring blah business concepts to life. Stories help separate great books from average books, and if you’re working with a ghostwriter who has an MBA, it’s very likely they also have classmates to which they can turn who now work in prestigious organizations. That network of fellow alumni can serve as a useful starting point for collecting anecdotes and stories to enliven your book.
Does your ghostwriter have to have an MBA? Of course not.
But if you were writing an engineering book, it’s likely that finding a ghostwriter with an engineering degree could help refine your thinking and the expression of your ideas in one fell swoop. Similarly, if you were writing a personal development book, finding a ghostwriter with a psychology degree with whom you could collaborate would make your life easier and your book stronger.
There are few ghostwriters who have MBAs or DBAs, actually, but finding one who has both types of skills can help you write an even better business book.