Sample posts are the worst way to choose a LinkedIn ghostwriter. Every provider shows you their best work, written for someone else, in someone else's voice, for someone else's buyers. What you need to know is how they'll work with you, and what happens after the words are written.
This guide gives you eight questions to put to any freelancer, agency or done-for-you service, what a strong answer sounds like, and the red flags that should end the conversation. If you haven't yet decided which kind of provider you want, start with LinkedIn Ghostwriter vs Agency vs In-house.
The 8 questions
1. How will you learn what I actually think?
Strong answer: a structured interview or recorded conversation, repeated on a set rhythm, with follow-up questions that push past the obvious. Weak answer: a one-off questionnaire, or "send us your ideas". Your views are the product. A provider that doesn't have a reliable way to extract them will fill the gap with generic advice.
2. Who interviews me, and who writes?
When the person who hears your stories isn't the person who writes them, detail gets lost in the handover. That isn't always a deal-breaker, but you should know who does what, and how notes pass between them.
3. What will you need from me each month after the first month?
Ask for a number, in hours or minutes, and ask what happens if you miss a session. The honest answer for most models is more than "almost nothing". For comparison, Influx asks for one hour of onboarding, then about 10 minutes a month approving content (The Influx Authority Engine).
4. How do approvals work?
Find out where drafts arrive, how long you have to review them, and what happens to a post you don't approve in time. A good process makes saying yes, no or "change this line" fast, and never publishes anything you haven't seen.
5. How will posts reach buyers outside my network?
This is the question that separates writing from pipeline. LinkedIn and Bain found vendors are 20 times more likely to be chosen when the entire buying group knows and trusts the brand at the start of the process (LinkedIn B2B Institute). If the plan is simply "post and hope", most of that group will never see you. If the plan involves engagement pods or automated comments, walk away; LinkedIn's rules don't allow them (Are LinkedIn engagement pods allowed?).
6. What will you report, and how often?
Impressions and follower counts are easy to report and easy to inflate. Ask whether the provider tracks conversations with target buyers and qualified calls. We looked at what turns content into pipeline in Does LinkedIn content generate leads?
7. What happens if it isn't working?
Every provider promises quality. Fewer say in writing what happens when the content doesn't start conversations. Ask. At Influx the answer is set out in full: We guarantee 30 qualified sales calls in 90 days. If we don't hit it, we keep working at no cost until we do. (The Influx Guarantee Explained)
8. Who owns the content and the account?
You should own every post, every draft and full access to your profile at all times. A partner should never need your password if LinkedIn's own tools can do the job, and you should be able to walk away with everything that was written for you.
Red flags to walk away from
- They can't explain how they'll capture your opinions, only how many posts they'll deliver.
- They promise follower or impression numbers but won't talk about conversations or pipeline.
- Their growth plan relies on pods, engagement groups or automated commenting.
- They publish without your approval, or want sole control of your login.
- Every example they show reads the same, whoever it was written for.
How to run a fair comparison
- Shortlist two or three options across different models, not three versions of the same thing.
- Ask each the same eight questions and write down the answers word for word.
- Ask each to explain, in plain English, the first 30 days of working together.
- Check claims against something you can verify, such as public posts or a named case study.
- Give whichever you choose enough time. How Long Does LinkedIn Content Take to Get Clients? sets realistic expectations.
Where Influx fits
We built Influx for founders whose scarcest resource is time and who need LinkedIn to produce sales conversations, not just posts. Alex Alleyne proved the system on his own LinkedIn first, booking 30 qualified calls in his first 90 days (About Alex Alleyne). Our founder, Alex Alleyne, was named a LinkedIn Top Voice in Sales in 2019 and 2020.
About Influx
Alex Alleyne is the founder of Influx, a two-time LinkedIn Top Voice with over 60,000 followers on LinkedIn. Influx is a done-for-you LinkedIn authority system for founder-led B2B firms that turns a founder's expertise into qualified sales calls, with content written in their voice and distributed to their buyers. Influx, the LinkedIn authority firm, is operated by Fetched L.L.C-FZ in Dubai, UAE, and is not affiliated with other companies called Influx.
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