But How Will You Monetize Your Book?

“You’re doing your clients a huge disservice!”

The speaker was a trusted business friend, and he’d actually been saying the same thing to me for four years.

“What are you talking about?” I asked.

“Your clients don’t just need books. They need to know how to monetize their books.”

I guess I wasn’t ready to hear the truth, because I “Yeah-butted” him.

“I talk with my clients all the time about monetizing books,” I protested. “Sometimes they want to know about social media campaigns. Sometimes they’re trying to get speaking. Sometimes they need a website. Those are just three examples. We talk about these things all the time.”

“You just don’t get it,” he said flatly. “If all you’re doing is talking about this stuff in a piecemeal sort of way with your clients, you’re messing up.

“Getting a book done is only half the battle. They need a comprehensive plan for monetizing the book so that it has the biggest, fastest possible effect on their careers. If you’re just talking about this stuff off the cuff with them, you aren’t giving them what they really need.”

Maybe it was the lack of self-confidence on my part, but it literally took four years before I grasped what he was saying and actually came to agree with him.

Getting a book done is only half the battle. There’s so much more. You’ve got to have a consistent, thoughtful plan for getting your book into the hands of potential readers and more important clients or customers.

Having off the cuff conversations on an ad hoc basis with my clients really wasn’t getting it done.

Let’s just say the penny dropped, and now I understand what my friend was trying to tell me.

Better still, now I’m doing it.

I am now offering my clients what they really need in addition to the book — a comprehensive marketing initiative that lasts six months and gets them everything they need in order to monetize their book most effectively.

What does this include?

Think about all the elements it takes to become not just an author but a force in your field.

There are a lot of moving parts, to put it simply. What’s the best way to get a book published so that it will have maximum impact?

How are you going to get speaking gigs in front of the right kinds of audiences? And what exactly are the right kinds of audiences?

How does your new book fit in with your current website? Do you need a separate website just for your book?

Who’s going to design that website? How quickly should you get that website up relative to the other elements of your marketing initiative?

Then there’s bestseller status — how do you attain it, and which bestseller list makes the most sense?

What about videos and newsletters/blogs — do you need them, how often should they be produced, and how should they be shared?

I know this is a lot, and not everybody needs every single element. But the reality is that if you want your book to maximize results for you, as my friend pointed out, getting the book done is only half the battle.

I am now very happy to offer you an individualized marketing initiative for your book, a comprehensive plan that lays out what goals we are trying to reach, what marketing tools we need in order to get there, who the vendors are and what they will charge, and the time order of each element, so you know what is happening when.

Your job is to run your business or practice; my job is to quarterback your marketing initiative so that you don’t have to worry about it or stress over it.

We will speak twice a month or more often as needed and you will get regular reports as to what’s happening, by whom, and why.

The result: Your book, fully monetized. Whether that means a leap in income, a new level of thought leadership, or any other goal, I will get you there.

My buddy was right. It’s time for me to share with you everything I’ve learned in writing or creating more than 750 books over the last 26 years.

Now it’s your turn.

For further information, drop an email to michaellevinwrites@gmail.com. I’m looking to serve you in this wonderful new way.