Boost Your Business by Writing a Book Part 1

Are you a business owner? A coach or consultant? An expert in your field? A blogger? You need to write a book! In this series I’ll give good and bad reasons to write a book, and the benefits of having one for your business. The topics will include:

Part 1: 5 Reasons Business Owners, Coaches, and Entrepreneurs Need a Book
Part 2: When You Should Write a Book and When You Should Not
Part 3: Overcoming Hurdles to Writing a Book for Your Business
Part 4: Book Marketing Made Easy: If You Publicize it, They Will Come
Part 5: Explore Your Book Publishing Options

Here we go!

5 Reasons Business Owners, Coaches, and Entrepreneurs Need a Book

Why write a book for your business?

If you’re a small business owner you are an entrepreneur. You’ve taken some pretty impressive steps to get started; market research, naming your business, procuring a license if necessary, developing products or services, and putting in a lot of “blood, sweat, and tears.” Maybe you’ve been in business a long time or maybe you just started, but this is your baby and want it to be a success. Writing a book may have been the furthest thing from your mind, but consider doing it if you want to boost your business and brand recognition. Doing so can bring remarkable results.

If you’re a self-employed coach or consultant, you, too, are an entrepreneur. You have knowledge to share; knowledge that comes through training or experience or both, and helping others is where your heart is. Maybe you thought about writing a book, but didn’t know how or when to do it. There’s no time like the present to get started.

A printed book has the power to grow your business beyond your expectations. A whole new world of opportunities will be afforded to you simply by having your name on the cover of a book. Whether you’re struggling to get new clients or trying to expand your reach, a book can help put yourself and what you offer in the spotlight. Here’s how:

It Gives You Authority

Imagine being at a convention or local networking group and you meet two coaches who both specialize in helping business owners build their brand—something you know you need to do. One coach says all the right things. He’s been in business for years and his list of clients include top-notch business owners. He has great ideas for how he can help you with your branding. The other coach has similar credentials, with one added bonus: she’s just handed you a copy of her latest book. It’s a professionally printed, substantial publication that’s full of practical ideas and resources.

Which of the coaches do you think shows more authority in their prospective field? The one with the book, of course. There really is nothing better when it comes to establishing your authority in any niche than having a book with your name on it.

It Shows Your Expertise

A book is able to speak highly of you and establish your authority very well because it gives you a platform to demonstrate your expertise. It’s like being invited to give a presentation on the topic of your choice on the world’s largest stage. Additionally, your readers are a captive audience. In that moment they’re listening only to you. That’s a powerful position to be in, and one that gives you an opportunity to shine.

It Helps With Market Reach

Search engines are great, but they can only do so much. No matter how many readers Google sends your way or how much traffic your YouTube channel gets, none of that compares to the number of potential readers Amazon and other online booksellers can bring your way.
Your book can reach thousands of new readers if positioned correctly, and hundreds of potential clients. Combine that with the expertise and authority that comes with being a published author, and it’s a recipe for success that can’t be beat.

It’s Better Than a Business Card

How many business cards have you collected over the years at conferences, workshops, and conventions? If you’ve ever been to a local networking meet-up for small business owners, you’ve no doubt wound up with a stack of business cards. When you get home, you toss them in a drawer or put them in a file box, and six months (or years) later you end up throwing them out without ever having contacted the people who gave them to you.

But what would have happened if one of those people handed you a book instead? You most likely would have read it or at least skimmed through it. You almost certainly wouldn’t have thrown it away. You would remember it, and the person who wrote it.

It Attracts Press Opportunities

Notice that most of the guests being interviewed on television, radio programs, and podcasts, or who are featured in any number of magazines, have written a book. Interviews depend on interesting and insightful guests to keep their audiences listening, and there’s no better interviewee than an author. Writing a book will open up opportunities for getting your business in the public eye, opportunities that may never have come without having your name on the cover of a book.

Certainly you can be a successful entrepreneur without writing a book. But there’s no denying the fact that as a published author you’ll have a much easier time growing your business than the person who keeps putting it off until later.

So pick up your pen…