Money Making Opportunities from Your Published Book
A book is not just something for people to read. A book that sits on a shelf is a lost opportunity. Yes, writing and publishing your book will create 💲💲💲 making opportunities – even for fiction authors.
I hear sad stories from a lot of authors I talk to. 😕
They’ve done all the ‘right’ things. Their books have beautiful covers. The content has been edited and proofed and reworked and it’s ready for prime time. 😎
They have great stories. They researched and double-checked all their facts. 📝
But nothing is happening. Their dreams of earning a living as a writer, or of using the book to promote themselves, aren’t happening. 😢
Here’s why:
- They aren’t using their book as a tool to enhance their business or their future writing goals. 🔧
- They want the book to stand on its own, without a lot of cheerleading. (Stop it – get out there and talk it up – but don’t just throw it at people.) 📗
- They don’t know what else to do, other than post the book “On Amazon” everywhere they can. 📣
- They think marketing is repeatedly announcing the book is a best seller. ⚡
Of all of these bullet points, the first one is the biggest key to turning your work into 💲💲💲.
Books are treasures, to be sure, but earning a living as a writer, or building a business using your authorship as a marketing tool, is why you wrote the book in the first place. I am quite sure you didn’t plan to write it or put it up for sale (on Amazon and your website and Barnes & Noble online, and so many other places) just for your own pleasure.
You wrote it to make something of yourself. Of your ideas. Of your stories.
You wrote it to share and give other people a chance to avoid your pitfalls. Or, in fiction, you wrote it to share your creative nature and to inspire readers to read your next book. You are writing a next book, yes? In fiction, you must write more than one book to be taken seriously.
So, what are your options to make 💲💲💲 as an author? Fiction or nonfiction?
You should have planned to sell and market the book and yourself while writing the book – but if you didn’t, it’s not too late to start now.
Here are some suggestions that have proven successful for other authors.
Fiction Authors
📝 Build a newsletter. This gives readers a chance to get to know you better. It also serves as a platform to announce your next book. You’ll want to share inside stories about writing your books, make sure to share book signings or readings you’re doing, and always give the subscribers the first chance at any promotions you do.
🎤 Do promotions. Sell your series for half price. Bundle your book with bookmarks, notecards, and chocolates – the offer should be enticing. Pay attention to holidays. On National Read A Book Day, offer your book at half price.
📧 Participate in gift guides. We tend to think gift guides only work at Christmas or Easter or the Fourth of July. Holidays. But bloggers do gift guides all year long. Watch my interview with book marketing expert, Penny Sansevieri, on how to get your book in bloggers’ gift guides.
📣 Offer to do a Zoom call Q&A with devoted readers (and anyone new who wants to meet you IRL…well, sort of). Give away signed copies of the book as prizes if people can answer questions about your book(s) and characters correctly.
📗 Get in front of book clubs. Offer free stuff to the members. Your efforts will increase sales and make you a sought-after speaker in other book clubs. More members for your newsletter and more readers for your books.
NonFiction Authors
👆🏻 Do all of the things above.
And then do more. You have unique opportunities to turn your published book into a benefit to yourself and your readers.
👉🏻 Create workshops. As you write the book, think of how the chapters might be parts of a 4-hour or 2-day workshop. You will charge good money for this as they get the book and your expertise. Include a free book in the pricing.
👉🏻 Create webinars and Online Courses. Workshops are great, but many people are more interested in learning from you via the web. Use Teachable, Thinkific, or Kajabi. All good platforms to do online training.
👉🏻 Start and Manage a Mastermind group. “A mastermind group is a peer-to-peer mentoring group used to help members solve their problems with input and advice from the other group members. The concept was coined in 1925 by author Napoleon Hill in his book The Law of Success and described in more detail in his 1937 book Think and Grow Rich.” Wikipedia
🎤 Become a public speaker. Your book will open doors to speaking. Event planners love authors with a clear, concise message that they can deliver effectively. Create videos of your messaging to share with event planners.
🎤 Start your own podcast. This is a big step for most authors. Podcasts are not a thing of afternoons. You can’t be lazy about becoming a podcast host. You can learn everything you need to know about this from my friend, Margo Lovett on her YouTube channel. Go for it.
🎤 Be a popular guest on other podcasts. Every appearance you make builds attention for you and your message. As you build social proof – which is what all of this is – you will be able to fill your workshops and webinars more quickly and effectively.
🖥 Create eBooks, workbooks, and/or roadmaps. Offer each for free, then bundle them into a package and sell it.
NOTE: Remember to mention your book, your credentials, and your contact information, including your author site, whenever you speak or present, or are a podcast guest. Don’t over do, but don’t forget to say the words, “My book, about this…more info on my website.”
These are just a few ways to see a return on investment from writing a book. No doubt you can think of others.
At Master Book Builders we are dedicated to helping our authors become successful in their writing and publishing endeavors. This means we do work with them on their marketing and sales strategy. But, in the end, the author must do the work.
It’s your book, make the best of it. However, never hesitate to get help with any of the ideas shared here.
Do you have a book that’s languishing? Maybe we can help. DM me on LinkedIn.
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