It's Not Just About Writing: 14 Tips To Make Your Book a Success

Six months ago, I published Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work. I've since had a lot of people ask me for my best advice.

Here goes: 

1.  Write a book you are proud of. It should go without saying, but this will be your calling card. This book can legitimize you with potential buyers of your ideas, whether for speaking, consulting, advising or coaching. A well-managed marketing campaign may get people to buy your book. You want people to read it, love it, talk about it.

2. Edit, edit, edit. The difference between a good book and a great book is editing. As you'll note in the acknowledgements to my book, I hired two conceptual / line editors, and I asked eight professional colleagues / friends from a variety of disciplines to read the manuscript. Their primary objective was to make sure the book made sense and was jargon-free. This was all before I sent it to my publisher for editing.

3. Obtain 8-12 endorsements from people who have standing with the audiences you want to reach, aiming for both men and women. In a perfect world, potential endorsers are already in your network. If they aren't, first try asking someone you know and who can vouch for you to broker the introduction. If you reach out cold, write a personalized note on why you admire them, what aspect of their work you like. If they've written a book, read it beforehand. And offer to provide them with a draft blurb so they have something to work with.

Once the book is published, send your endorsers a signed copy, to say thank you. Support them on social media. My book gained traction in part because my endorsers were willing to step up and say they liked it. I am indebted to them, and will continue to find ways to support them. Do my book's endorsers need my support? Probably not. But I need to give it. To show my appreciation.

4. Show up. About three months before the launch, my husband said to me, you say you want a bestseller, but you aren't really allocating your time like you do.  This  'showing up' is a lesson I've struggled to learn.

5. Amazon reviews. The magic number seems to be fifty. And they are not easy to get. Some authors allocate a certain number of review copies. This is helpful. But to start, you'll need to ask people to write a review. Make it easy for them. If they've written you a note saying they liked the book, ask them to cut-and-paste. You want 4-5 stars, obviously, but this is mostly a numbers game.

6. Start building a newsletter now. I didn't start building mine until early 2015. Way, way too late. Start now.  There are lots of pundits who will tell you to export all of your e-mail and Linkedin contacts. I am not comfortable with that. This may mean your list is smaller, but the people who receive your e-mail will want them. (Note: if you are going to send a blast e-mail to your list of contacts, do it once. Only once.)

7. Get active on social media–today. Pick 1-2 platforms you enjoy and figure out where the people who would want to 'hire' your book congregate. For some it may be Twitter, others Linkedin, for others Instagram, or even Snapchat. If social media isn't your thing, hire someone.

8.  Reach out for help–personally.  Write or call 1-on-1. Everyone you know. What kind of help you ask for depends on who you are asking and what is easy, no sweat, for that person. Maybe it's buy the book, write an Amazon review, give some social media love (e.g. Thunderclap, which I loved.) I started the individual outreach too late and ran out of time. (See #3). But think about it. When someone e-mails you personally to ask for help, aren't you much more likely to lend a hand?

9.  Get at least 200 pre-orders on Amazon. This signals to Amazon that they need to take a look at your book. I suspect that is what got them to review Disrupt Yourself, which led to it being a Best Business Book of the Month for October, 2015.

10.  Ask for bulk book buys. If you are looking to be on a bestseller list, then you likely need bulk buys. Depending on the week your book is released, you would need to sell somewhere between 8,000 - 15,000 books for the NY Times bestseller list, for example. In one week. By different buyers, in different places. You likely will need / want to trade book buys for speaking.  In an ideal world, you will not only have bulk buys, but also a massive network that you can galvanize for onesies and twosies. (See #5 and #4).

11. Say 'yes' to requests. When people ask to interview you, to guest blog, to speak, say 'yes'. From an S-curve perspective, you are at the low-end of the curve. You want as many people in as many places possible to read your book. To get your book in the right hands. You just never know. 

12. Narrate your audiobook, if possible. Especially if you want your book to launch you into speaking, thought leader-types of opportunities.

13. Say thank you to the people who helped. Yes, you have an opportunity to thank people in the acknowledgements (see #3), but especially take time to thank those that were not compensated in any way, but just pitched in. It's now been six months since I launched Disrupt Yourself. I've finally made my way through the list.  You will no doubt forget someone. I'm confident that I have. Do your best.

14. Write a book that you love.  Yes, I'm repeating myself for emphasis. It's excruciating and exhilarating to pour your self onto the page. But whether you sell 1 book or 1 million books, when you say what only you can say, you can feel satisfied you've done it right.  

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Whitney Johnson is the leading thinker, speaker and coach on driving innovation through personal disruption and has been named one of the top thinkers on Talent by Thinkers50. She is a former award-winning Wall Street equity analyst and the co-founder of a boutique investment firm with Clayton Christensen. Johnson is the author of Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work (Bibliomotion: 2015).