I just PMmed this to someone and I thought since I had it all typed out already, I'd post it here for anyone else wondering.
Here is the best way to cover the cake smoothly. First, your base coat needs to be smooth and chilled - any bumps on there will show in the final product. Place your cake on a wire rack and that on another pan to catch the drips. Working quickly, ladle plenty of ganache onto the top of the cake and move the ladle (or spoon) in a circular motion to spread it out further and over the edges. Do not attempt this with too little ganache; plan on extra. Bang the pan on the counter a couple of times to help it flow down. If there are any naked spots, pour more over those areas now. Take a long, flat spatula and make ONE straight swipe completely across the top from one edge to the other and off. Bang the pan again and you are done. Let the cake set up then lift it up (with help from the spat - you cannot touch the edge, just your whole hand underneath) and use the spat to clean up any drips hanging down off the edges. Set on final resting place. This whole process should take no more than 30 seconds. The cool cake will set the ganache fairly quickly and the more you work it, the more lumps and drips you will end up with. If you get a bad coating, you can scrape it off, remelt and try again. This is something that takes a little practice to get a really professional final product but once you learn it is like riding a bike. It is also important to have the ganache a nice, pourable temperature but not too hot. Each recipe will differ, so you will just have to play with it. If you are worried about the sides getting covered or have trouble with it, try angling the sides just slightly when you are crumb coating.
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