Write a Book to Build Your Business

(Even if Writing Is Not Your Thing)

Graham Van Dixhorn,
Write To Your Market, Inc.

Writing a book, like so many things in life, is often hardest the first time you try it. Many aspiring author experts work on their unfinished manuscripts--or outlines, ideas, etc.--for years before making a push to actually finish them. I had a client tell me recently that he had been "working" on his book for six years, and it still hadn’t even come close to being finished.

Still, some 2.2 million books were published worldwide in 2010 (the last year for which complete data is available), with around 328,000 of them published in the U.S. and 206,000 in Great Britain, so obviously not all authors are sitting on their hands, so to speak.

Nonfiction authors are leading the way. Why? Books build businesses, reputations, and careers. And, self-published books now outnumber traditionally published books by three to one! The reasons are legion, but suffice it to say that the speed to market, total control, and greater income potential that characterize self-published books are at the top of the list. The downside includes having to oversee the process or hire someone to do it for you. But, but you'll never have to shop your manuscript around, receive rejection letters, hire an agent, or wait for someone else to see the value of what you offer before getting it out to a market of prospective customers eager for your expertise.

But, not every entrepreneur, topic expert, executive, health professional, celebrity has the time, writing skills—or, let's face it, desire--to create a ready-for-press manuscript. What's a person to do? Focus on what you do best and hand off writing about it to someone else. Even if you are perfectly comfortable writing major sections or chapters, you can get support organizing, beefing up, and/or finalizing your manuscript.

Enter the manuscript developer, ghostwriter, creative collaborator. The ideal relationship is flexible enough for you to contribute at whatever level you prefer while you get help with the rest. You can also get help at any point in your process, from book structure, content development, and speaking to your audience demographic, to finding the right voice and tone, and, of course, grammar and editing. If you feel some help along the way will help you get your ideas to market faster and more successfully, find out more about what kind of support could be a good fit for you. Call Susan Kendrick and Graham Van Dixhorn at 715-634-4120, or email info@writetoyourmarket.com about writing a book to build your business.

Writing a Book to Build Your Medical Practice - Part II

How to Get Organized, Get Help, and Get Going

(See "10-Point Book Writing Plan" below)

By Susan Kendrick
Write To Your Market, Inc.

Like Part I of this two-part series for physicians writing books, anyone can use this information. We've also included a free mini-course (see below) by John Eggen of Mission Marketing Mentors. We work with a lot of John's clients who are becoming published authors to build their businesses. John provides top-notch publishing guidance, including even more ways to start making money with your book before it's released, such as using your status as a forthcoming author to increase your visibility, consulting, and more. We work with these author experts to create their book titles and subtitles and book back cover sales copy they can immediately use to market and sell their books, while their books are being written. We also work with his clients that want help conceptualizing and writing their books rather than going it alone.

Free Mini-Course: Here is the link to John Eggen's free mini-course. John is a great contact and his publishing strategies work. Go to: http://ultimateclientmagnet.com/newauthors.

The 10-Point Book Writing Plan
While there are many ways to approach writing a non-fiction book (see John eggen's free mini-course above) one is the 10-Point Book Writing Plan. Here’s how it works:

• Choose a topic—see Part I of this series for ideas and approaches.
• Tell readers why you wrote the book and what they will get out of it. That is your Introduction.
• Identify 10 key points you want to make about your topic. Those are your 10 chapters.
• Break each of those 10 chapters down into manageable parts: An introduction, 3-7 key points, quotes, examples, stories, etc.
• The ideal length for a non-fiction book starts at around 144 pages, including the Table of Contents, Acknowledgments, Copyright page, and author bio. That means each of your chapters will be approximately 11-12 pages long. Think of it as writing a long letter to a good client or prospect.

You don’t have to go it alone. Busy physicians regularly hire ghostwriters, transcribers, and editors to assist them in the book writing process. You can even partner with a physician or non-physician to co-author the book with you. For more on organizing and writing your book or help with your book idea, see our Manuscript Development page. Or, contact Susan Kendrick and Graham Van Dixhorn at Write To Your Market, Inc. - info@writetoyourmarket.com or 715-634-4120.

Writing a Book to Build Your Medical Practice - Part I

 

By Susan Kendrick
Write To Your Market, Inc.

While this post is primarily for physicians writing books, this information can apply to other areas of expertise as well. I was encouraged to write this two-part series by my client, Dr. Kenneth Cohn, a board-certified general surgeon/MBA. Dr. Cohn reaches out to physicians through his physician websites, the Health Care Collaboration Blog, "Improving Physician-Hospital Relations" and The Doctorpreneur, "A complete resource for physicians interested in pursuing non-clinical career opportunities."

What Writing a Book Can Do for You and Your Medical Practice
Physicians regularly write and publish books for a variety of professional and personal reasons. The following are some of the most common incentives: 

• Stand out as an expert in your field
• Showcase a unique approach that differentiates you and your services 
• Expand your reputation in a specific area of expertise
• Attract patients and others who are eager to work with you
• Create additional streams of revenue, such as speaking and information products
• Transition to a non-clinical career
• Or, simply revive your passion for your practice and your life

* Write To Your Market, Inc. developed titles, subtitles, and back cover
marketing copy for the following five books by physicians.

What Kind of Book Should You Write?

Can you reap the benefits of being a published author only by writing about something related to your medical practice? Not at all. Professionals in many industries find that writing a book about a personal interest can also be a great way to connect with existing and prospective patients and partners. Telling people something about you as a person builds trust, which goes a long way toward creating and cementing relationships that build your practice.

Create a Lead-Generating Brand
Building a professional or personal brand is a great way to improve your medical practice, and writing a book has long been recognized as the best way to build a brand. According to Alan Weiss, international consultant and bestselling author of How to Establish a Unique Brand in the Consulting Profession, writing a book is, "the best branding technique of them all."

Ask Yourself These Four Questions to Get Started

- What energizes you—either in your practice or your personal life?

- What sets you apart from others in your field or specialty?

- What would you like to learn more about?

- What would you like to be known for 3 to 5 years from now?

Depending on what you want your book to do for you, you can choose to write about something related to your medical expertise, or you can focus on a more personal topic. Or, you can do both. Again, the reason that writing a book or a series of books is such a good outlet for physicians is that it does very positive things for your reputation, your practice, and your personal well-being.

Professional, Personal, or a Blend:

Writing a book gives you a way to reach into yourself and out to others in an extremely rewarding way. It begins to bridge what may have become a wide gap between who you are as a physician and who you are as a person. You can even write a book for other physicians about how to survive and thrive in your professional. Based on your own experience and interviews with colleagues, you can cover a number of areas, such as how to reduce stress, find time to get to the gym, spend time with family when you’re on call, or just relax and recharge.

Expand Your Medical Practice or Expertise
There are many books on the market that demonstrate the success of books written by doctors on some aspect of their medical expertise. We have worked with many doctors who use that expertise to delve into an alternative approach they have developed to a common health challenge.

Or, Take the Personal Route
On a completely personal level, you can write a book about your passion for gardening and describe the health benefits of eating food you grow yourself. Do you like to travel? You can write a book about how travel helps relieve stress and renews your body, mind, and spirit. Do you love to spend time with your kids? Outline some of your favorite suggestions for activities, road trips, or “vacations” in your home town when you don’t have a lot of time but still want to create family memories. Describe how doing things together builds relationships that benefit the emotional and physical health of your family. Depending on what you care about and what excites you, the possibilities are endless.

An important thing to keep in mind is that the topic should be one that will support your expertise and your interest for a long time, both in the creation of the book and in promoting it. For more on organizing and writing your book or help with your book idea, see our Manuscript Development page. Or, contact Susan Kendrick and Graham Van Dixhorn at Write To Your Market, Inc. - info@writetoyourmarket.com or 715-634-4120.

Next in This Series: Part II - "Organizing and Writing Your Book"

Six Ways to Build Profitable Relationships with Associations - (Part II)

By Susan Kendrick
Write To Your Market, Inc.

In Part I of this two-part series, One of the Most Profitable Relationships You Can Develop, we looked at how building relationships with industry associations can help you introduce yourself, your business, your services, and your book to your industry and to new markets. The beauty of it is that you do it by offering to help the association at the same time.

Here are 6 ways to get things rolling

1. Contribute: You can start by offering to do something as simple as contributing articles to the association newsletter, ezine, print magazine—however and wherever it communicates with its members. The association gets great, educational content. You get your message across to a group of prospects eager to get the most from their membership through access to expert guidance.

2. Membership Incentive: Associations face a major challenge on a daily basis that you can help them solve—membership. Associations of all kinds are continually trying to acquire new members and keep existing members. Offer your book, ebook, consulting session, or some other package to the association at a volume discount as part of a new-member incentive package or as a renewal incentive for existing members.



3. Support Its Cause: Become a champion for one of the association's causes and post regularly about it. You attract those interested in that cause to you as a reputable source of information, and the association gets exposure to your followers as well. You also gain recognition as someone valued by the association and the team that runs it. You are part of a vital mission in this new market you are getting to know and that is getting to know you. It's good for both you and the association, which, again, is the key to a profitable association relationship.



4. Provide Visibility: Interview the executive director of the association in a way that enhances his or her visibility and credibility. Make this interview available as a video, podcast, article, blog post, etc., for use by you, the director, and the association. 



5. Speak at Events: Offer to give the association a sample of your public public speaking abilities by doing a complimentary breakout session at the association's next big event. Even if you don’t get paid for the engagement the first time, that live exposure to decision-makers in this new market is a huge opportunity for you. Use your speaking session to give away a free gift (your book, related product, consulting package) through a drawing at the event, Facebook campaign, etc. 



6. Make It Easy: Most associations have some kind of process in place to help them select resources who will be a true value to their members. Go through that vetting process. Your book—or even your forthcoming book—mark you as a recognized authority in your field. Use it, your website, blog, Facebook and Twitter followings, testimonials, and other components of your existing platform to demonstrate your credibility and how you can add value to the association and its membership.



The idea is to enter a new market that you have identified as a good source of potential clients and revenue. Partner with an association in that market that meets the three criteria listed in Part I of this series. Then, do everything you can to add value to what the association is doing for its members in a way that introduces you, your business, and your services to those members. 



What Does This Have to Do With Your Book and Book Cover?
How effective your book is in helping you develop relationships with potential partners and in multiple markets will be a direct result not only of your book's content but its cover. The development of your manuscript and especially your book title and subtitle and your book's back cover sales copy can help you reach specific goals in your business, your practice, your future growth, and more. It will even influence who you approach—and don’t approach—for endorsements.

Your book is written for and is a conversation with the reader. The same is true of your book cover. But, your book cover is also the marketing tool you will use to create profitable relationships within your industry. Make sure it works hard to build your credibility, showcase your expertise, and open doors for you. Writing a book to build your business? Please visit our website, www.WriteToYourMarket.com or call Graham Van Dixhorn and Susan Kendrick at info@writetoyourmarket.com or 715-634-4120.

One of the Most Profitable Relationships You Can Develop - (Part I)

By Susan Kendrick

What’s easier, a cold call or having someone personally introduce you to a new prospect? What’s a quicker way to build trust—jump through all the hoops of proving that you’re as good as you say you are, or have somebody your prospect already knows and trusts back you up as a great resource? In each case, either way works, but a third-party introduction and endorsement is definitely less labor-intensive. You move on much more quickly to building relationships instead of just trying to get them started.

That’s the way it is when you want to introduce yourself, your business, your services, your book, to a new market. One of the best ways to do this in consulting or any industry is to become a part of that market and for someone already known in that market to make the introductions. Rather than creating relationships one at a time, this is the way to gain access to many prospects at once. 

Who Should You Approach?

Take a look at these three criteria. It should be an individual or organization that:
• Continually offers their followers quality information, perspectives, and resources
  that will help them be better at what they do
• Has a list of followers with whom they regularly communicate and who are used to
  signing up for educational programs and purchasing resources
• Reaches out to their followers in a variety of ways: enewsletters, magazine, webinars,
  blogs, podcasts, speakers, annual events, expos, conventions, and more

Who Does All That? Professional Associations

Professional associations exist on many levels—nationally as well as by state, region, and even by sub-industry. Approach each of them like you would approach a media outlet. In other words, offer to do things that help them achieve their goals. Be a good partner, an information hub, a source for quality perspectives, insights, and educational content.  In return, you get introduced as a go-to expert to potentially throusands of new prospects. For questions or help with ideas for creating relationships in your industry, contact us at Write To Your Market, Inc. - info@writetoyourmarket.com or 715-634-4120.

Coming Next: "Six Ways to Get Started"