The two biggest challenges facing authors nowadays are:
1) How to build your author platform to interest agents and publishers and to sell books and
2) How to make a great living by leveraging your book and the information in it.
I like authors to think about both questions up front–before writing their book–so you can reap the rewards of the time, investment and passion you put into writing your book.
Today, I interview my good friend and colleague, Sue Landis, founder of Live Bold, about how you can leverage your expertise by creating and selling high end products and programs.
Lisa: Sue, many authors squeak by on book sales while others seem to have discovered the golden key to financial success and an ideal lifestyle. What are these authors doing differently?
Sue: Rather than focus purely on telling their story, most successful nonfiction authors ask up front, “How can I profit from this book and use it to create and build a business?” A book can be a powerful lead generation tool that, written correctly, positions you as an expert on your topic. This creates the ideal platform from which to expand your message into a profitable business model.
Lisa: How do you write a book and build a business simultaneously?
Sue: I know you have your clients write with a core (or target) audience in mind i.e. what is the profile of the person who will most likely buy their book. What problem do they have, what pain (psychological/emotional or even physical) are they trying to solve? The same is true for building a business. You are creating solutions to solve someone’s problem. It’s important to think about what products and services, beyond your book, that you can create to make money from, as you go deeper into solving your reader’s issues and become a trusted source of advice.
Lisa: So, what’s the connection to selling high end programs?
Sue: Writing a book can be your ticket to freedom, but only if you know how to make money from what your book does for you in terms of positioning you as an expert. For most people, royalties alone from your book will not make you rich. Royalties should be seen as a small bonus, because the real money is in knowing how to leverage a hungry market of your target audience and up-sell them into the add-on products and services you have created around your book i.e. the business you create.
Lisa: The other piece of that is that your book can often help get people on the path to solving their problem, but a book does not generally provide much support or accountability. So, by offering these products and programs, you empower your readers to truly solve their problems and make lasting change.
Sue: That’s right. My proven system shows people how it is just as easy to create high value products and services as it is to create low cost products by doing the following:
• Learning how to structure your advice to potential clients so you know what to give away for free (or for a small investment e.g. your book) and what to ‘save’ to include in your high end program, product or service (this is gold!)
• How to build a business model around your book idea (and take the shortest path to big profits)
• How to create and communicate your competitive advantage (what’s really different and unique about you) in order to build a loyal base of followers and clients who will willingly pay big money to access you and your advice
Those are just a few benefits of learning how to strategically position your advice for top dollar. I invite readers of this blog to find out more, on my upcoming free teleseminar on October 13: The 5 Insider Secrets to Creating Fast Profit Through High End Sales...even if you are just starting from scratch. The web pages addresses women entrepreneurs but Lisa’s male readers are more than welcome on the call!
Lisa: I’ll be on it! Thanks, Sue. Readers, we invite your comments and questions–below. Sue is happy to answer and we’d also love to hear how you are using your book (or plan to) to support a business.
