How to Start the Business Book of Your Dreams

Whether you are a small business or a larger enterprise, why would you consider writing a book?

First, there is no better way to show true thought leadership than a printed book. A close second is this: It may be the best customer giveaway ever created (forget the business card...here's my book!). And third, once the book has been developed, you have an amazing resource to develop ancillary content from the book, including more blog posts (excerpts), eBooks, SlideShare packages, white papers, and much, much more.

Blog, Speaking, Book

These three things have not only changed my business, but my life: a blog, public speaking and writing a book. So many times I see experts in the field out there toting their blog, picking up speaking events here and there. Having a book takes all that to the next level.

I'm in the event business and work with a number of event producers. Often times, if you are not on the client-side of the business (e.g., Coca-Cola), many events won't even look at you as a speaker unless you have a published book in your arsenal. A book fuels your speaking. The speaking fuels your blog. All three together provide a lethal combination to grow your business.

IMPORTANT NOTE: In 2010, there were over 2 million books published around the world (over 300,000 in the United States). Just a handful made money off the book itself. So here's the deal: done correctly, you will make money off of other things you sell, not off the book directly. Your goal with a book should be to help you grow your business.

7 Tips for Making Your Book Happen

Creating a book that makes an impact on your industry and business is anything but easy. That said, there are some tips I’ve picked up along the way (in publishing three books) that can make a difference in getting your book off the ground:

1. The deep dive content audit

You may already have a treasure trove of material that can be repurposed, or at minimum you have content that can be collected to form the initial workings of some key chapters. Be sure you do the work up front to see what you have to start with.

Key point: Don't overlook this step. Most individuals and businesses start from ground zero with writing a book. If properly done, you'll give yourself a head start.

2. Mine the blog

For all three of my books, including my most recent Epic Content Marketing, many of the chapters came from existing blog posts. If you have been blogging for at least six months, you might already have half a book.

Key point: The "blog to book" strategy can be amazingly effective. As you create content for your blog, keep your book in mind and start the build the chapters as you go, but using the blog as the conduit.

3. Co-creation

Do you have key, noncompetitive partners that target the same prospects and customers as you? If so, consider reaching out to them about partnering on the book concept. Also, once you start promoting, you have two different networks to reach out to.

Key point: You don't have to do this alone. Most likely, you have many partners who will benefit by getting your message out to the public (and they may have the content assets to help).

4. Get it funded

My first book “Get Content Get Customers“ was self published before McGraw-Hill purchased the rights. Much of the up-front investment for the book was covered through selling bulk shipments to partner companies. If you don’t like that route, find a sugar daddy that really wants to get your message out there and have them support it through either distribution or monetary funding.

Key point: Just like any other media property, you can sell sponsorship into your book to float the up-front investment (it's just that most people don't look at this option).

5. The mission

Be very clear what you want your readers to get out of the book. Write it down and keep it posted to your wall as you work on the book. So many companies focus on what they are trying to say, instead of pinpointing the focus on the pain points of the reader.

Key point: Go small to go big. Focus on a content niche with your book where you can position yourself as the leading expert in your niche.

6. Include the influencers

If possible, include key examples from industry influencers, as well as partners, as long as it’s good content. The more people you can include into your stories the more opportunities for outside sharing.

Key point: Repeat after me...I should not write the entire book by myself. You'd be surprised the number of people out there that would love to be included in your book and give you the rights to use their content. Also, if you include someone in the book, they are more likely to share it with their friends and colleagues.

7. Consider a ghostwriter

Believe it or not, many of the books from the authors you love have been written by someone else. I know, hard to believe right? But it’s true. The best ghostwriters out there start at about $50,000 and then go up from there. If you simply can’t make the internal time or don’t have the resources to get it done, consider it.

Key point: You may not have the skills or the time to make a book happen. There are some amazing people out there who can help.

A book is not just a "nice to have", it's a game changer. A published book opens up more opportunities than you could ever imagine. Now is the time to put your big idea in motion.

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What's stopping you from getting your book published? Do you agree that publishing a book is critical to business success?

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@JoePulizzi is founder of the Content Marketing Institute, which runs the industry's largest content marketing event, Content Marketing World. He is also overly passionate about the color orange. His third book Epic Content Marketing: How to Tell a Different Story, Break through the Clutter, and Win More Customers by Marketing Less is now available.

Photo credit: katerha/Creative Commons