You can’t spell the word authority without the word author.
One of the quickest ways for a business leader to be seen as an authority is to get published with articles, opinion pieces, and even books. This is the surest path to more impact, more influence, and more income.
Here is a surprising business fact: ghostwriters wrote some of the most famous business books that have stood the test of time.
These are the books that have helped build great businesses and company cultures.
Phil Knight of Nike, Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook, Jack Welch of GE, Sir Richard Branson of the Virgin companies, Howard Schultz of Starbucks, and Ray Kroc of McDonald’s, just to name a few, have all used writing collaborators.
Confessions Of An Agency Owner Ghostwriter
I have a confession to make. I did not even share this confession in my book, Marketing With A Book For Agency Owners.
After ghostwriting hundreds of books and articles for business owners, I can tell you in my early days I was tempted to kowtow. The path of least resistance was to let business leaders tell their story in their own drab way: with too many facts, too many insights, and no overarching story.
But refusing to do that became, as the cliché goes: “The hill I was willing to die on.”
Because here’s the truth—readers are not moved by facts and figures. Take a cue from Hollywood, the “emotion” picture capital of the world. People are moved by stories that touch the emotional part of their brains.
In my work as a ghostwriter and a freelance contributor to Forbes and the California Business Journal, I’ve seen firsthand that trying to persuade solely with logic falls flat.
If you want a compelling book or article, let me offer some hard-earned advice: stop writing words that only make people think. Make them feel, too.
Not long ago, an editor at Forbes told me that writers who can tell compelling stories need not worry about being replaced by AI. Stories touch people in a way mere data cannot.
To be a better storyteller, let one of the eight great stories be your guide.
Human beings are hardwired for narrative. Across cultures and centuries, we return again and again to the same core story types. In my book Persuade With a Story! I call them the eight great meta-stories: the monster, the underdog, the comedy solution, the tragic solution, the mystery, the quest, the escape, and the rebirth.
Every successful business leader’s opinion piece, article, or book you admire fits one of these patterns—whether the author realizes it or not.
Your Role In The Writing Process
You, as an agency owner, are the content expert, and your writing collaborator needs to be the storytelling expert.
When the ghostwriter chooses the right story structure, everything else gets easier. The message becomes clearer. The examples become sharper. And most importantly, the reader becomes engaged.
This is especially true for service business owners who sell expertise—marketing agency leaders, financial advisors, consultants, professional service firm partners, and executive coaches—because articles and books can be your most powerful client attraction tool.
But there’s a smarter way to create one than staring at a blank page: work with a ghostwriter.
A great ghostwriter is a business-minded partner—often with journalism experience—who knows how to extract your best thinking, shape it into a compelling narrative, and position it to win hearts and minds of prospects and stakeholders.
Your joint goal is to create a piece of writing that you are proud of. That means the goal is to impact and influence prospects, employees, and prospective partners.
Your Expertise, Pulled Out Through Great Interviews
One of the biggest misconceptions about writing articles and books is that you have to do the writing alone. In reality, the best books often come from conversations.
A seasoned strategist—especially one with business journalism experience—knows how to interview you deeply. They ask the right questions, challenge vague thinking, and uncover the insights you didn’t even realize you had.
The result is a piece of writing that sounds like you—but sharper, clearer, and more compelling.
Every business leader has hidden business assets: their success stories. Neuropsychologists argue that the human brain is hardwired for stories. A strong writing collaborator doesn’t just capture your ideas—they shape your stories.
A Book in Your Voice—But Better
The ultimate credibility piece is a book. Authors are respected in the business world.
Many business leaders have leveraged their impact and influence with a book. Their authority comes not just from what they know, but from how they communicate real-world results.
A strategist helps transform your work into relatable case studies, clear before-and-after transformations, and memorable stories that build trust.
One concern many people in the business of selling their expertise have is: “Will it still sound like me?”
Through interviews, transcripts, and iterative drafts, a skilled ghostwriter captures your tone, your phrasing, and your personality. But they also refine your voice by removing clutter, sharpening clarity, and enhancing flow.
A book strategist also ensures your book is aligned with your business goals.
Experts often overcomplicate what they know. A book strategist brings an outside perspective, helping simplify complex ideas without losing depth.
This is where their journalism background shines: they know how to make ideas accessible without dumbing them down.
One final piece of advice. Remember that writing the article or book is only the starting line, not the finish line. You need to shine a spotlight on the writing.
In 2026, I ghostwrote a bylined article for a CEO that appeared in Forbes. The CEO asked me, “Now what?”
“An author cannot wait to be discovered,” I replied. We shared the article on social media, podcasts interviews, in a newsletter, and through emails.
When a business leader shines a spotlight on the writing, it builds credibility and opens doors before you ever speak to a prospective client, employee, or strategic partner.