Writing a book is a huge undertaking, and it requires serious commitment. Many people start books, but very few finish them and get them published. To follow through with your book, you need to have a bigger “why” behind it. What’s your driving force? What results do you want to see from your book? I’m going to give you five ways you can leverage your book as a marketing tool to grow your business by generating more leads and increasing brand awareness. I hope these will help add some fuel to your “why.”
Generate Leads
Here are a few ways to leverage your book as a powerful lead generation tool:
Give Your Book Away (Think of It as a “Business Card”)
Give out your eBook for free on Facebook and to new people who join your email list. Hand out print copies of your book at conferences and seminars you attend. Similarly, your book makes a fantastic, high-value “thank you” gift whenever you need to thank someone in your audience. You can also pair your book with a 5-day challenge, boot camp, or workshop.
Offer a Low-Ticket Entry Point
Even if your book isn’t free, it can still bring in leads. If you sell a high-ticket service, your book is a great opportunity to serve potential customers through a low-ticket entry point.
This will give them a small taste of the expertise you provide, and when they’re ready and able to buy, you’ll be at the top of their minds.
Build Brand Awareness
Here’s how you can use your book as a marketing tool that establishes your brand beyond your existing audience:
Go on a Book Tour
A book tour allows you to talk about your book and get your brand in front of more people. You can arrange your own book tour by calling around to bookstores and libraries. Bookstores will typically host your event for free, although they might ask you to supply them with some of your books if they don’t already have them in stock.
Leverage Media and Speaking Opportunities
You’ll be amazed by the doors your book can unlock. Publishing a book and calling yourself an “author” immediately gives you authority and positions you as an expert. Leverage your book to secure media opportunities and speaking gigs, like podcasts, keynote presentations, and workshops.
Pivot into Consulting Work
Through your book, you will likely establish a framework that differentiates you from others in your field and helps you be seen as an authority. After publishing, many entrepreneurs use this as a way to shift into consulting work.
But First, You Must Write …
Before you think about marketing your book, you’ve got to write it (if you haven’t already). There’s an outdated statistic floating around that says over 80% of Americans want to write a book. Now, that number is based on a survey from 2002, so like any good editor, I question its validity, but I’d guess that number might be even higher now.
If we go with 80%, that means that about eight out of 10 people you know feel they have a book in them. But how many people do you know who have actually written a book? I’m privileged to know many authors in my line of work, but in my personal life, I know zero.
As I said in the beginning, very few people who start out to write a book actually follow through with completing and publishing it.
That’s because writing a book requires a sizable investment of your time, energy, and money.
Trying to write, edit, and publish your book on your own requires less money, but more time and energy.
Hiring someone to help you with your book requires more money, but less time and energy.
Either way, someone who invests in their book is more likely to get it done because they have skin in the game.
Related reading: Marketing Your Self-Published Book
Owner of Aha! Editorial
Let’s talk about your writing project: https://calendly.com/ashlyn-ahaeditorial
