If you’re writing a book to get rich off of book sales, don’t.
Book sales should never be your primary reason for writing a book. Most of my clients write a book because they want to make an impact, but for now, let’s focus on something I don’t usually focus on. Cold, hard cash.
Book sales are not going to be your money maker. Now you may be asking, so why write a book? And why make an investment in a ghostwriter?
Your book has the power to bring in significant income, but not necessarily through direct book sales. This revenue generation comes in indirect ways that can pay big dividends. Even if your primary goal is to make an impact, you still want to see a return on investment, and you want to grow your mission through your work.
Here are just a few common ways books can be used to generate income outside of book sales.
Lead Generation
This is one of the most significant ways books can be used to generate income. Books are a great way to bring people into your services.
When your audience reads your book, they get to know YOU better. This is crucial in making any offer, but especially in making high-ticket offers. Your book helps readers get to know you and your style while demonstrating your credibility.
Furthermore, depending on the nature of your book, readers will likely gain a better understanding of how you can serve them. By being generous with the information you share in your book, you’re actually setting the table to be able to serve them through your offerings.
While books are powerful, true change comes from taking action after the book. Readers will likely want support in taking that action, whether it’s learning more or having someone implement that change for them. People are busy and don’t always have the time or desire to become experts themselves. That’s where booking your services comes into play!
Speaking Engagements
Books and speaking go hand-in-hand. Speaking can help you sell more books, and having a book can help you land more speaking engagements.
In fact, some speaking engagements and podcasts require speakers to have written a book to even be considered for selection. Even if a book isn’t a requirement, let’s think about speakers you’ve seen recently. How many of them had a book? I’d be willing to bet that most, if not all, did. Let’s take it further. I bet that having a book gave them more credibility in your mind, and that if you enjoyed their talk, you went out and purchased their book afterwards.
On the flip side, when you land more speaking engagements as an author, you get a chance to talk about the topic you are passionate about, and the audience gets to know you in the process. This builds immense trust, and the audience will be more inclined to buy your book. They can even tell others that they saw you speak!
This all helps with lead generation as well.
Building Your Brand
Books are a powerful way to build your brand. While developing your brand doesn’t directly generate income, it builds up the asset of you. As you grow your brand, you have more credibility in the eyes of your ideal audience, which generally leads to more income.
Furthermore, building your brand creates sustainability and sets you up for long-term success. Your brand lasts and lasts in the minds of your audience, which is helpful for your current offerings but is also beneficial to any future offerings.
If your followers and audience know and trust your brand, they are more likely to trust you when it comes to a new offering that you make or even a price increase as your business fills up. Brand building is an intangible ROI from your book and the gift that keeps on giving.
Disclaimer: This blog should not be construed as providing, or intending to provide professional financial, legal, psychological, or other professional advice. It is simply meant to share my experiences with those who may find them relatable and helpful.