At a business meeting or networking a course in miracles, you want to stand out from the crowd. You want to be edifying and memorable. You want to understand a client’s need, accurately communicate your business services and open the door for future dialogue.
Imagine you’ve just had a great conversation with an ideal client, and would like to keep in contact. Like most everyone else in your field, you typically hand over a business card and an exchange of well-wishes. This standard rectangle of cardstock can be underwhelming, if not forgettable. You might even try to write a personal note on the back, just to be memorable, only to watch it get stuffed into a wallet brimming with other calling cards.
Now, instead of handing over that business card, imagine handing someone a book. A book you have authored, designed and published, that communicates both your professional knowledge and skill. What has changed?
Countless authors have persevered to create titles that have been both personally and economically rewarding. With smart planning and professional vision, the benefits of publishing a book do not stop at the profit from each unit sold. With a little creative thinking, your book can be an all-in-one branding and marketing tool to take your professionalism to the next level. By handing over your authored book in the place of a business card, you’ve already spoke volumes to a client about your industry knowledge, and commitment to good work.
A well-focused book will…
… establish you as an industry expert. A book is an authoritative source of content. As an author, you become an expert on the subject of your book, even just for the simple fact that you have been published. Immediately, publishing a book shows that you know enough about your field to write a book about it. It’s impressive and legitimizing at the same time. It showcases your industry experience, while providing a real resource to those who read it. Unlike an expendable post on a blog, print publishing suggests that it has been fact-checked, book edited and already assessed for usefulness to readers. Clients subconsciously recognize this, and evaluate authors who have been published as credible experts in their field.
… develop the brand of your business. At its most basic level, publishing a book is to realize the manifestation of an idea. When you publish a book, you are presenting your thoughts in way that is both purposeful and self-defining. Choose to write about something you are knowledgeable and passionate about, and your most dynamic writing will follow. This creative process is a productive and mind-expanding practice. How often do you sit down to consider all the ins and outs of your business? A book prompts you to think critically to explain and brand the business you are in. In the course of publishing a book, you will be establishing more about your business, and more about yourself, than you thought possible.
… be a valuable marketing tool. Using book publishing to market your industry know-how is a strong and tangible marketing tool. A book is undeniably powerful for the amount of authority, information and professionalism in its pages. A book can increase media exposure from other outlets as well, since you have distinguished yourself as an expert and go-to source on your book’s topic. It can also present opportunities at speaking engagements and media interviews, while adding credibility to your image.
I compared the act of handing someone a business card with handing them a book. Undeniably, a well-executed book and the information within its pages will make a very strong impression. Because of this, publishing a book will serve many other purposes besides turning a profit through units sold. Increasingly, professionals are using self-publishing to further their marketing impact.
