A Book for Your Biz |

May 22, 2019

How to Get a Book for Your Business? 10 Cool Solutions

A Book for Your Business—Investment or Waste?

Should you write a book to boost your business? Would it be a worthwhile investment of your time? What if it creates more demands, takes your focus away from running your business, and sucks up money that could be put to better use elsewhere?

All excellent questions.

If you’ve been around a while, you’ve tried a variety of strategies for growing your business. With competition increasing by the day and approaches that used to work falling into obsolescence, it can’t have been easy.

Even if you’re passionate about your products or services, running a business can be all-consuming. Faced with the need to drive traffic, get conversions and manage the myriad other tasks involved, it’s tempting to give in to overwhelm.

Still you keep plugging, hoping to find the strategy that’s going to move you ahead of the pack.

You Don’t Need a Book for Your Business If …

You may have read experts who advise against putting your time into writing a book, and perhaps you’ve decided you’re not a shoe-in for success as an author. You may be asking yourself, Does my business really need a book?

The answer, if you’re content with your current results, is “No.” Many successful entrepreneurs have never written a book (though many find it a satisfying way to give back to the world).

But if you’re looking to expand your outcomes, writing a good book is not only a good entrepreneur idea—it’s likely the best possible way to establish the credibility and exposure that will bring you the positive results you’re seeking.

The good news is, there are relatively easy ways to create a unique, top quality book that’s true to the business you’re passionate about and earns you all the benefits you’re looking for.

Please understand, I am not saying writing a book is easy. Writing is work. But the approaches outlined here will make the process easier and more rewarding.

Who Am I to Offer Book Writing Advice?

As a small independent publisher, I’ve helped dozens of clients get their books written, published and out to the world. I understand the many advantages of having a quality book, and it’s my business to be on top of book writing strategies that don’t take you away from running your business.

My goal here is to share all of that with you.

What You WIll Learn from This Article

In this article you will meet three of the many entrepreneurs whose books have boosted their businesses. Then I’ll show you ten ways your business will benefit from a book.

At that point, you’ll be presented three scenarios in which having a book is a killer entrepreneur idea. And finally, I’m going to give you seven proven strategies to ease the writing, all of which I’ve used myself and/or helped others use.

I’ll clue you in to ways you can leverage the expertise of others and get other experts to shoulder some of the workload, and I’ll introduce you to some helpful writing software (which I use) that you can use for free.

If that sounds interesting, read on.

3 Real-Life Examples:

Let’s start by looking at three entrepreneurs whose first books gave their businesses a real boost.

Russell Brunson is one of my favorite examples. His first book, DotCom Secrets, detailed a wide variety of business funnels and how to build each one. A real eye opener for readers, it played a major role in making his ClickFunnels software company the fastest growing non-venture-capital-backed software company ever. Brunson doesn’t even sell the book; he gives it away. Yet he reports that every book he gives away makes him an immediate $32! How? He uses the book to introduce readers to his courses. (Brunson is so convinced of the power of a book that he’s gone on to publish at least two others.)
A more common (though less spectacular) success story: Michael Wolf, a client of ours, wrote The First Time Home Buyer Book to help people new to the home buying game. The book was informative and served him well as a trust builder and lead generator. The positive results motivated him to write his second business boosting book, The First Time Home Investor Book.
Another client wrote a revealing book on the use of art therapy in senior residences. She then used it to motivate other senior homes to include her art therapy programs in their patient care programs.

7 Secrets That Make Writing Your Book Easier

Chances are you’ve resisted taking the time to write and publish a book. Yet the sooner you get one in place, the sooner it will make all the areas of your business come together to create the life you dream of.

A plea: At least one of the naysayer blogers I’ve read asks you not to write a book because there are too many crappy books out there already. I agree! If a book is worth writing, it’s worth writing well. Don’t skimp on the professional help you need to make it a quality read.

Here are seven proven ways to make writing your book easier and more enjoyable, yet still end up with a quality product:

A young man plays with his white shih tzu puppy on the grass at the beach, taking a break from writing on his laptop. The words say, “If it’s worth writing, it’s worth writing easier.”

1. Write a short book. Your book doesn’t have to be an opus. In fact, few people today will invest the time to read a long book. Yours should only be long enough to communicate your vision, what your product or service can do for the reader, and enough of the “how” to give them confidence it will work for them.

You should be able to do that in less than a hundred pages. You may manage to do it in sixty. Yes, that’s a skinny printed book, but it makes a perfect e-book. And these days, a thin printed book that says it all may actually get read!

2. Have a detailed plan for your book. Resist the urge to just start writing. You’ll find yourself writing in circles, with no way to know when you’re done. A book is like a road trip. If you’re driving and you want to be in Chicago by midnight, you set your GPS, right? In the old days, you would have bought a map. You’re not just out for a Sunday drive—that’s journaling. If you want to get a book written, having a solid book plan makes everything easier.

3. Schedule specific times for writing. Set up reasonable time slots for writing. You don’t have to be in a hurry; any project worth doing is worth taking your time on! You have a business to run, and that’s where the bulk of your attention needs to stay focused. So make a writing plan and stick to it. You don’t have to write every day. With a good book plan, you can average four pages an hour. So if you write just two hours a week, in three months you’ll have 100 pages.

One way to structure your writing is to plan your book in one- or two-page compartments. I wrote my second book this way, and ended each session with a wonderful sense of completion and accomplishment.

Write in timed bursts! I used to write for an hour or more at a time, but I find it’s more productive to slot 30-minute writing periods. I learned from a mentor, Gina Gaudio-Graves, the importance of using a timer to create a feeling of urgency.

When the timer goes off, I stop writing—even if I’m in the middle of a sentence. Knowing I have just half an hour kicks off something magical in my brain that focuses the mind, and I get more written. And the mind seems to work behind the scenes between sessions, so I’m ready to create when I sit down to write.

Another tip: Blogging your book, one piece at a time, is a great way to test your material. The comments people leave may give you new ideas, too.

4. Create your book from old blog and social media posts. You probably have old articles you’ve written. Why not bring them together into a book? Yes, you may have to update them and write transitions from one to the next. You may even have to write a few new pieces to fill in the blanks. But if you’re passionate about your topic, you’ll love doing it.

5. Hire a professional ghostwriter. If you have the funds to do this, it may be your best option. A reputable ghostwriter will begin by listening to your vision and goals for the book, consider any content you have on hand, and make recommendations based on the information you’ve provided. A talented ghostwriter can tell your story in your voice and communicate your passion to make you and your products and services irresistible to your target audience—and free you up to keep your focus on the running of your business.

If a ghost writer is beyond your budget, find a writer who creates superb content at highly competitive rates. Some ghost writer websites offer a second tier of excellent writers who are still building their portfolios and charge lower rates. Don’t settle for less here; insist on a writer who is interested in your topic, a good listener who can offer a fresh perspective and create persuasive, enticing content.

6. Co-author an anthology. Invite two or three other experts to join you in the writing. Be sure they serve the same target audience you do, but are not your direct competitors. Co-authoring, you won’t feel like you have to write so much. As an added benefit, your part of the book will garner more eyeballs, generating significantly more influence than if you were the sole author. And it’s still your book—you’re the anthology editor, and that’s what goes on the front cover.

Another suggestion: Why not offer to conduct recorded interviews with your collaborators and have the interviews transcribed? (Like the rest of your book, of course, these interviews will require a professional edit.) Since most experts consider speaking less demanding than writing, this is an easier to attract them.

7. Helpful writing tools and courses to hone your writing. I recommend the following writing courses and tools:
— Lisa Tener offers several wonderful programs for first-time authors that will get you off on the right foot and guide you all the way from beginning to end. There’s even one to help you find a traditional publisher should you decide to go that route. And here at A Write To Know, we offer a full line of services for authors—editing, ghostwriting, interior formatting, cover design, publishing and promotional help.

— The Pro Writing Aid Editing Toolis particularly useful for cleaning up your writing. It catches the problems that weaken your writing and suggests different wording to keep readers reading. The free version is a real steal, and the premium version gives you a lot more for $5 a month or less.

Mix and match! The above strategies combine well, so use more thanone of them to get your book written. For example, you can blog any new elements you write to supplement your old social media posts. Or post the new material in social media, and get feedback on it there. You could also hire a writer to create new chapters to go with your old articles. And no matter how you get your book written, it’s a good idea to keep it short.

What’s Your Takeaway?

So … what have you learned from this article? Can you see how authoring a book might be doable … and a powerful strategy for boosting your business?

Yes, as with all good things, a book project comes with some costs. My final word on the writing (for now): The options outlined here will allow you to minimize your outlay of time and money, and you don’t need Russell Brunson or Brian Tracy results to make authoring a book profitable for your business.

To summarize, I have offered you:

• 3 examples of entrepreneurs who have used a book to boost their business, one eminently successful and the other two having enjoyed less of a wild ride but still enough success to move from where they were to where they wanted to be;

• 10 things a book can do for your business, from attracting better clients to making it easier to sell when you’re ready to cash out;

• 3 sample scenarios in which a book solves a problem common to many business owners;

• 7 timesaving, money-saving strategies for getting your book written;

I suggest you take some time to review these items and give some serious thought to getting your book written and published. When you’re ready to move forward, you’re welcome to call us at 442-615-0399 for a complimentary, no-obligation consultation.

As we’ve done for scores of other authors, we’ll happily guide you to discover your best path to authorship, the one most likely to take your business from where you are to where you want to be.

Founder, AWritetoKnow.com, GreenSongPress.com, EcoActive101.com, PetWrites.com
Facebook: https://facebook.com/chiwah.slater, https://facebook.com/thepluckyducky, https://facebook.com/ecoactive101
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/chiwahslater
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/chiwah
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PetWrites
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQvxaLnSFpXmtjWBd1fFEUw

PS—I only promote others’ products I believe in. I use the Pro Writing Aid daily and love it; no matter how good or bad a writer you are, it will improve your writing by alerting you to important details you’ve missed. I also recommend Lisa Tener’s courses, not because I’ve taken them but because I have followed her career since 2012 and I recommend her with confidence. I will make a small profit when you purchase Pro Writing Aid Editing Tool or any of Lisa’s programs or products, at no additional cost to you.

Writing a Book |

April 23, 2019

| by Chiwah Slater

The Secret to Writing a Life-Changing Book

So you’re writing a book, or getting ready to. Just any book? Or do you want to write a book with the power to change lives?

A homeless single woman experienced such deep shame and desperation over being pregnant that she fell into depression. She decided the only solution was to end her life once the baby was born. Her friends, also homeless and having no better solutions to offer her, agreed they would take the baby to the authorities to find a home for it.

One cold winder day, the woman and her friends took refuge in the local library, their only refuge from the weather. Knowing she would be allowed to stay there only if she were reading, she picked up a book off a table.

She opened the book to a story about a boy who saw a sign advertising puppies for sale. When he asked how much they cost, the man told him they were selling for fifteen to twenty dollars, depending on which one. The boy said he had just a few dollars, but he’d make weekly payments. The man asked which one he wanted, and he pointed to one with a limp.

The man did his best to discourage him, telling him the pup wouldn’t be much fun, that he wouldn’t be able to run and play like the other pups. But the boy was adamant. He wanted that particular pup! Finally, he bent down and rolled up his pants, revealing a leg brace. “I have to have that pup,” he said, “because with him I’m always gonna know I have a friend who understands how I feel.”

Hearing this story, the woman was so touched that tears ran down her face. If a boy could love an imperfect puppy, she realized, then there might be someone out there who could love an imperfect woman, even a homeless woman about to have a baby out of wedlock. She walked to the mental health center, went back onto her meds, and turned her life around. Within a short time she had found a job, and before the year was out she had bought a home and started a foundation to feed the homeless and help them become self-sufficient.

Author Jack Canfield had no way of knowing any of that would happen. And it wouldn’t have, had he and his partners not written the book she picked up that cold, wintry day in the library.

What If You Could Have That Kind of Impact?

Maybe you think you’ll never write a book as popular as Chicken Soup for the Soul.

But how can you know?

You’re reading this post now because you know there’s a book in you. Whether that book will be born of your own personal experience or someone else’s, whether it’s a memoir or a novel or a how-to book or a book to boost your business success, that book is a yet unborn expression of your mind and heart that may make a big difference for someone.

Consider this: Even if no one ever reads it, writing it will change your life by the very fact that you will have given expression to something about which you care deeply.

What Motivates Authors to Write?

Ultimately, every authentic author writes to self-express. And well they should. Sure, you could live your whole life hiding your wisdom, your stories, your spirit. But who would that benefit?

There are more reasons for deciding to write a book than I can enumerate. Maybe you’ve always known you’d end up being a writer. Or maybe others keep saying you should write a book. Perhaps you want to leave a legacy, something for others to remember you by. Your wisdom may be just what others need to move them forward.

Note that in the first paragraph of this section, I said, “every authentic author writes to self-express.” My prejudice is showing! Books are published every day by people I don’t consider authentic authors.

Why? Let me answer that with a (highly abridged) story: My sister and brother-in-law adopted a baby boy. The kid put them through all kinds of moves in his teenage and early adult years, including the time he was arrested for drug use. But they loved him and committed to giving him a chance to fulfill his potential. So they hung in there, took care of him, disciplined him when he needed it, and raised him to be the exceptional man he is today.

Steve’s biological parents, whoever they may be, are his real parents in that sense only. My sister is his real mom and her husband, his real dad. End of story. And what makes that so? Heart. It goes beyond love. Heart also means inspiration, dedication, the courage and determination to get it right.

If you have the inspiration, the dedication, the courage, and the determination to get a book out there that was birthed in your heart, to my mind that makes you authentic, no matter whether you pen the final draft or hire a ghostwriter. If you throw your book together to get a product out, you’re just a hack.

Can you be an authentic author and still write your book to get a product out? Sure. There’s nothing wrong with writing a book with marketing in mind. The question is, how much of yourself are you willing to invest in the writing?

My team and I have helped hundreds of authentic authors get their books out. Each had their own reasons for writing, and sometimes reasons they weren’t even aware of until the process was well on its way. I’ve chosen a few of them to illustrate the wide range of motivations for writing a book:

To Educate or Offer a Different Viewpoint

Betty Brink grew up thinking of herself as fat. She tried every diet she could find, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t slim down. Dieting just made her hungry! Eventually, she found the emotional strength to accept and even celebrate herself as she is and abandoned the struggle.

She wrote her book, The Main Meal: The New Perspective on Weight Loss, to empower others—especially women—who were not born to be reedy-thin to discover their own perfection. The title of her first chapter says it all: “If you think it’s about the food, you’ve missed the main meal.”

Rod Bearcloud Berry, a Native American visual artist of the Osage (Woo-sha-shee) Nation, sees the world from his own unique perspective. Steeped in Native American symbolism and fascinated with the geometry of pyramids and crop circles, he wrote his beautiful book, 7 Fires, to introduce readers to their shared geometric features and to the possibility that these shared features are not mere coincidence.

Robert Raming wrote War and Death of the American Dream to educate readers about the largely concealed history underlying the current state of affairs in the American political and socioeconomic arenas.

Pat Holly, a retired Registered Nurse, penned A Nurse’s Journey to the Fountain of Youth to educate women about the importance of hormone therapy as an anti-aging tool.

To Inspire

The life of an immigrant is often fraught with difficulties never faced by those who stay put where they were born. On the other hand, immigrants may enjoy opportunities unavailable to others. Ruth Douglass wrote Triumph of Dreams (also published in Spanish, as Triunfo de los Sueños) to tell her own story as an immigrant with the goal of inspiring others to immigrate legally and to seek out the hidden opportunities that can make their lives exemplary.

Lily Birmingham wrote her children’s book, The Adventures of Fearless Girls, using the story of her own childhood to inspire young girls to step forward into the realm of adventure.

Linda Savolainen LeVier (Laughing Hearts: My Joy-Filled Heart Transplant Journey) and Donaldo Kochackis (Prostate Cancer and Me) wrote the stories of their medical journeys to inspire others to heal with humor and laughter and to take positive steps toward making this a better world.

To Entertain

No Nude Swimming, Robert Gottlieb’s novel about breaking out of the legal profession, was written to entertain. The book was one of three finalists in the Humorous Fiction category of the Global eBook Awards and has been rewritten as a television series. Robert’s other books (in progress) draw on his Jewish family history to entertain and inspire readers.

Jay Britto wrote The World’s Richest Busboy, chronicling his own experiences surfing around the world, to entertain.

Doug Drago wrote two books to entertain children of all ages: The Adventures of Neanderthal Ned and Megan’s Big Birthday.

Against All Odds is Doris Hayes’s highly engaging biographical novel, in which she recounts the story of her friend who married a priest and of their trials in gaining absolution from the Catholic Church.

To Boost Business Success

One of my clients wrote a revealing book on the use of art therapy in a senior residence that she then used to motivate other senior homes to include this therapeutic approach in their patient care programs.

Michael Wolf wrote The First Time Home Buyer Book to help those new to the home buying game, but in the process he created a book that has served him well as a lead generator and trust builder. He has since written at least one other business-boosting book, The First Time Home Investor Book.

Simply to Self-Express

TC Townsend’s Imagine … The Rock ‘N’ Roll Party In Coalition with The Worldwide Fair Play for Frogs Committee is a delightful memoir of the ‘80s, packed with thought-provoking material that is still pertinent today. But knowing TC, I believe he wrote it primarily to celebrate himself and some people he loved. And he paid quite a price for the celebration—the book needed a lot of editing, and it cost him dearly. (I hadn’t yet discovered a tool I recommend these days to all my students, Pro Writing Aid Writing Software. It’s the best self-editing tool I’ve seen, and can save you a lot on editing. They offer a free trial.)

Janet Eileene wrote Whisper of the Universe to tell stories that grew out of her own experiences of an alternate reality.

So there you have it—plenty of reasons for writing and publishing the book in your heart. What’s your reason? It may be one or more of those listed above, or it may be something entirely unique to you. (Don’t be surprised if as you write you come to realize there were reasons you weren’t even aware of when you started out.)

One last word on this: If you’re thinking of writing a book to finance your retirement or bring in the money you need to make some other dream come true, think again. Yes, you may make money with your book. If you’re industrious and lucky and your timing is right, you may even make enough to turn a profit after covering the expenses involved. But the likelihood your book will make you big dollars is slim to none.

Sure, some authors manage it. A single book isn’t likely to do it for you. But if you write several books a year, it’s not at all farfetched to imagine that in just a few years you’ll build the momentum to pay for your life. If you’re willing to put in the energy required to promote your books well, there’s no reason you can’t sell multiple thousands of copies.

That said, unless you’re planning a writing career, the truest wealth that will accrue to you from your book will be the joy of knowing it made a positive difference for your readers. Let enrichment of the heart be your highest expectation. Then, if your book becomes wildly popular and you make a mint from it, consider that gravy.

The one exception would be if you’re writing a book to boost your business. It may not be the book itself that makes you money, however. Many a business-boosting book has turned out to be a net financial loss and still contributed as nothing else could to the success of the business.

Your Book Will Change You—For the Better

There are so many ways to get your book written that you really have no excuse for cheating yourself out of the authoring experience. At the start of this chapter, I shared some of our clients’ reasons for writing.

Now, let me share with you some benefits you’ll enjoy as a published author. No matter what kind of book you author or how you get it written, or how many people end up reading it, writing your book will:

Give you the satisfaction of knowing you’ve done something likely to benefit others.

Build your self-confidence and self-respect. Even today, with technology making it easier than ever to write and publish, becoming a published author is something only a very small percentage of humans will ever achieve.

Move you to develop better work habits, including the self-discipline to prioritize and make efficient use of your time and energy.

Diminish any fear you may have of taking on large projects. Having learned the skill of breaking large projects into bite-sized tasks, you’ll find it easier to maintain a can-do attitude when faced with other large projects.

Authorship = Authority. Once you become a published author, people will look at you differently. It sets you up as an instant indisputable authority, the go-to person in your area of expertise.

Stick to Your Passion

No matter what kind of book you’re writing, I suspect you’d like for it to make a difference in readers’ lives. Am I right? The key to achieving that is to have meaningful content you really care about.

Passion isn’t everything, but it’s the energy behind everything. In the words of Steve Jobs, “You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem, or a wrong you want to right. If you’re not passionate enough from the start, you’ll never stick it out.”

Nowhere is that more true than in writing a book. If you’ve heard that it’s best to write what you know, consider this: What if you’re bored with what you know? Who will want to listen to what you have to say about it? Yet if you hold what you know close to your heart, the stories you tell may inspire the next new thought wave.

It might be that you’re really excited about some new topic on which you’re not an expert. Could you write a worthy nonfiction book about it? Sure. There’s no rule that says you have to be the expert. You just have to provide expertise. You could interview several experts and use those interviews as the basis for the book.

One last word (for now) about writing the book in your heart: It takes passion to stay the course. If your heart’s not in it, how long are you going to stick with the project? People who start projects because they think they should, rather than out of passion, tend to accumulate a backlog of unfinished works. How many uncompleted projects are sitting in your metaphorical attic gathering dust? Let’s not add one more.

But—Shouldn’t You Write for the Market?

Sure, you’re probably thinking, it’s good to write a book from your heart, but what if no one wants to read about the topic you’re passionate about? Wouldn’t it make sense to research what’s selling and write that? As an author, you often walk a fine line between what the market wants and what your heart wants. If the market truly has no interest in your topic, your book won’t find a readership and won’t do anyone any good.

I too have grappled with this issue. Having studied online business under two powerful mentors, I’d make more money if I could focus on teaching Internet marketing. But I can’t. I tried—for five years! I finally realized I’d never be able to stick with it because my primary passion is language and helping people use it effectively. That’s what I’m hard-wired to do. Yes, I know marketing, and I’ll be happy to guide you as you build your authoring business. But not at the expense of sacrificing my main love.

If you start from what the market wants, you’ may never get to what’s in your heart. So start with what’s important to you, and find the fit with the market. That’s the secret to maximizing the number of lives your book (or books) can change.

Toasting Your Writing Magic,
Chiwah Slater, Best-Selling Author
Founder, AWritetoKnow.com, GreenSongPress.com, EcoActive101.com, PetWrites.com
Facebook: https://facebook.com/chiwah.slater, https://facebook.com/thepluckyducky, https://facebook.com/ecoactive101
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LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/chiwah
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PS — Having been a writer all my life, I’ve published several books, including a best seller. I’ve published and edited two magazines, edited scores of books, and mentored more new authors than I can recall. Even so, I appreciate a good writer’s aid. Thanks to Pro Writing Aid Editing Tool, I made at least ten improvements to this article as I wrote it. I heartily recommend you take advantage of their two-week free trial—before you write another paragraph!

And yes, I may make a small commission (at no cost to you) if you upgrade to one of their (very affordable) paid programs. (I just now wrote that sentence, and the tool prompted me to make another beneficial change. I love the Pro Writing Aid.) The same is true for Lisa Tener’s excellent book coaching programs.

A Book for Your Biz |

March 16, 2019

| by Chiwah Slater

What 10 Ways is Writing and Publishing a Book Vital to Your Business?

Why would writing and publishing a book be one of the best things you could do for your business?

It is nothing short of tragic that most business owners today are in the dark as to the value of a book for building their business. Here are three typical situations that illustrate my point:

Situation #1: You meet a provider, strike up a conversation, and hit it off. At some point, you let her know you’re considering investing in the service she provides. She takes out her business card, circles her number on it, and writes a special message on the back just for you. Good use of a business card! She made it memorable for you and gave you a reason to call her.

Later that week, however, you meet another provider of similar services, and you like her, too. When you tell her you’ve been considering investing in such a service, she smiles, reaches into her bag, pulls out her book and places it in your hand. “I think this will answer most of your questions,” she says.

Which one are you more likely to hire the service from? All other things being equal, I’m betting you’ll call the one who handed you her book—even if you don’t get around to reading it.

Situation #2: A massage therapist I met on a Marketers’ Cruise chuckled derisively when I suggested she write a book. “I don’t need a book,” she said. “I’m doing just fine. I couldn’t handle a heavier client load.”

By the time we separated to go network with other business owners, though, I could see her wheels turning. “Yeah,” she conceded, “I could probably hand the extra business over to other massage therapists and collect referral fees.”

Probably? With a book to establish her authority, she could be raking in referral fees all over town.

Situation #3: A CEO confides that she’s having difficulty keeping her team members focused on the direction she has set for her company. That’s a weight a book could take off her shoulders. “Check out chapter three in my book,” she could say, instead of having to repeat herself at every turn. Headache dissolved!

No matter what business you’re in, here are a few advantages a well-written book offers you and your business:

Clarifies Your Vision for Your Company: Putting your vision down in writing is a great way to identify and resolve contradictions in your own mind and assure singularity of purpose in your business. Once it’s all clear in your mind and down on paper, the world will have a much better understanding of what your business is all about.
Maximizes New Client/Customer Attraction: Writing a book tips the scales strongly in your favor over the business cards or brochures your prospects receive from your competitors. Plus, you’ll find clients sharing your book with friends and colleagues, online and off, building the buzz around your business.
Earns Referrals from Competitors: This may sound crazy, but it’s not. Your book sets you up as an authority in your competitors’ eyes, making you the one they’re comfortable referring people to when they don’t have what it takes to solve their problems.
Garners Media Attention and Speaking Engagements: Being a published author makes you irresistible to the media. TV and radio shows, online and off, can draw in huge audiences.
Facilitates Speaking Engagements: Your book lets meeting planners know you’re an authority who can provide the high-quality content their audiences will appreciate. And back-of-the-room book sales provide you an additional revenue stream over and above your speaker fee.
Brings You New and Repeat Customers: An authoritative book adds actual and perceived value by educating your prospects and clients just enough to help them take better advantage of your products and services. It can also reduce the number of complaints and provide the answers to those you do receive.
Builds Enormous Value for Your Mid-Range and High-End Products: A properly crafted book will make the benefit of all the products in your line crystal clear. This is the supreme benefit of a book; all the others are just steps to making this one happen in a big way.
Makes Teambuilding Easier—Qualify & Train Staff and Outsourcers: Your book becomes an indispensable tool for qualifying and training team members to operate in alignment with your vision. Save time and your vocal cords: Just hand them your book and say, “Take a look at chapter seven. It says it better than I can.”
Attracts and Engages the Right Joint Venture Partners: An authoritative book gives prospective joint venture and strategic alliance partners a quick way to get a handle on what your business is all about. It also lets them know you’re serious and worth their investment of time and energy.
Makes Your Business Easier to Sell When It’s Time to Move On: Are you so caught up in the operation of your business that you’ve never given thought to creating an exit strategy? Big mistake! When the time comes, your book gives you an easy way to draw prospective buyers in, highlights the foundation you’ve built, and sweetens the deal by offering them a “track to run on” should they so choose.

You may resist taking the time to write and publish a book, but the sooner you get one in place, the sooner all the areas of your business will come together to create the life you dream of. The good news is, there are relatively easy way to create the unique, top quality book that will earn you all the benefits outlined above … and more. Explore 7 great ideas to make writing your book easier.

Have you thought about hiring a ghostwriter? One with the expertise to tell your story in your voice, and in so doing make you and your products and services irresistible to your target audience? And more! Freeing you up to keep your focus on running your business.

To explore the possibility of having a ghost writer create your book, send us an email or pick up your phone and call me at 1-442-615-0399. I’ll listen attentively while you tell me about your business and your vision, and make recommendations based on the information you provide. If we agree that a book is the answer, we do what we can to create a custom package that fits your goals and budget.

Call now and begin your journey to a book that repays many times your investment!

To your business success and life fulfillment,

A Book for Your Biz |

March 4, 2019

| by Chiwah Slater

How Do Entrepreneurs Without a Book Lose Out?

Do you have any idea what a difference writing and publishing a book can make in the results you’re getting from your business?

If you’re even aware that you need a book, you’re way ahead of most business owners. Recently I asked John Kremer (author of 1000 Ways to Market Your Book) what percentage of entrepreneurs know they need one, and he said he wasn’t sure but he would guess about 10%.

What’s that he said in his second comment? If you’re setting up oil rigs, you probably don’t need a book?

Well, you’re probably not setting up oil rigs.

WHAT WILL BRING YOUR PROSPECTS TO YOU? My guess is that most of your audience doesn’t understand that an “oil rig”—much less YOUR “oil rig”—is the solution they need. A lot of them haven’t even correctly identified their problem. The next-most sophisticated group know what their problem is, but have no idea what the solution might be.

Only the elite few have identified their real problem and are aware that you offer the best solution.

(For a thorough discussion of how to address prospects at all of these different levels of awareness, see Michael Masterson’s book, Great Leads: The Six Easiest Ways to Start Any Sales Message.)

HOW DO YOU CONVINCE THEM? So … how do you get these individuals to realize they need what you offer? And once they’ve realized that, how do you convince them they need to get it from you and not from your competitors?

Here are some of the common answers to that question:

Compelling videos widely distributed across the Web
Reviews on high-visibility sites
Superbly crafted autoresponder sequences for each level of awareness
An on-target and well-implemented social media strategy
To-the-point guest posts on other blogs
Well-chosen joint venture partnerships that promote your product or service

Will that do it for you?

Well … if you do all those things you stand a good chance of cornering your audience’s attention. But you also risk sabotaging yourself with inconsistent messages. Why? Because you can’t do it all yourself, so you’re probably going to sub out a lot of the work. And well you should! But how are you going to make sure your team members and/or outsourcers really understand the message you want them to deliver?

WHAT’S YOUR BEST SOLUTION? The best solution to that question is a book. Not just any book, and definitely not one you throw together in a weekend or rewrite from someone else’s PLR content.

No, you need your own unique book that addresses common misconceptions about the readers’ problems, makes them feel their pain and yearn for a solution, and then makes it abundantly clear that your solution is the only one that will satisfy their needs.

PLANT YOUR SEEDS THE RIGHT WAY Why a book? Why can’t you just do all that with emails, social media, videos, reviews, guest posts, and JV partnerships?

Because that’s what all the other smart marketers are doing. You need to be smarter. More devoted. More convincing. You need to plant seeds that will not only sprout, but grow faster and stronger than anyone else’s.

Book sprouting money plants

And there is no better way to do that than with a book.

WHY A BOOK? Think about it. If one professional or business owner hands you a business card, but another tells you he wrote the book on the subject and then places it in your hand, which are you going to consider more credible?

Yet that’s just grazing the surface of the benefits a book will bring you. Your well-written book will address readers at all levels of awareness, from those who don’t even know what their problem is … to those who have identified it but don’t know there’s a solution … to those who know there are solutions and are seeking the best one.

Your book sets you up as the go-to person, lays out your message clearly—as a guide for your writing team or outsourcers, as an educational tool to help your clients or customers get the greatest possible benefit from your product or service, and as a door opener for media attention.

What else could do all that for you?

All the experts agree. This excerpt from an interview with best-selling author Dr. Kitka Hilmar-Jezek says it well:

ML: Why is it important for entrepreneurs to have author added to their title?

KHJ: It is an excellent marketing, branding and credibility building tool. With a book they have a platform from which to share their message in a way that attracts the people who are natural potential clients, investors or joint venture partners. A book presents their content in a well-structured and pre-framed way that gives the audience a deeper understanding of what they do, how they do it and why they do it. Additionally, if the entrepreneur shares why they do what they do, it adds value in terms of communicating their purpose. Leaders inspire us because of their “why” and when we are in alignment with the vision, we are more inclined to hop on board and show support. Author Simon Sinek best explains this in his book “Start with Why”, which I highly recommend.

ML: Book Power: A Platform for Writing, Branding, Positioning & Publishing is your newest book, which focuses on why and how to write a book. What benefits have you encountered from being a best-selling author? (Chiwah’s note: book published May 1, 2013)

KHJ: The most obvious benefit is that it positions you as an expert in your field. You gain instant credibility and this opens many doors to opportunities which did not exist before. Getting access to media and interviews becomes simple because you now have the book, which positions you as “the voice” on your particular subject. Media channels are constantly seeking expert and professional opinion on various topics and are eager to have you share your knowledge. In addition, you may be asked to speak professionally at workshops, seminars, conferences and offering keynote addresses. You gain respect from your colleagues and peers. You attract a higher amount of clients and they are more valuable clients because they are already familiar with your business, product or message so they come to you ready to move forward. Writing a book is not the end, it is the beginning of building a brand and a platform for maximum marketing in today’s social oriented marketplace.

(Excerpted from Michael Luchies’s article titled “The Power of the Book for Entrepreneurs: Interview with Kytak Hilmar-Jezek.” Kytka Hilmar-Jezek is a renowned best-selling author, entrepreneur, and international speaker.)

Don’t Lose Out! Don’t let yourself lose out for lack of a book. Whether write it yourself or have our professionals write it for you, it has to be YOUR book, based on the expertise garnered through your years in the business. That’s the book that will draw the buzz and position you at the forefront of the market as nothing else can.

To schedule a complimentary 30-minute phone session to discuss how we can help you with your book and get a free quote, give me a call at 442-615-0399.

CHIWAH SIGNATURE