The New Business Card: Why Writing a Book Is Key for Experts & Professionals
/
It used to be that when making a new connection, networking at an event, or meeting a prospective client for lunch, business professionals never forgot one thing: their business card. The small paper rectangle was all that was needed to make them memorable and leave the door for communication — and potential future business — open. These days, the best business card for leaving a lasting impression is still in the form of a paper rectangle, but it’s a bit heavier and certainly holds a lot more weight: it’s a book.
Now, the classic business card still has its place. But for business owners, experts, consultants, and other professionals looking for one of the most powerful tools to add to their marketing arsenal, writing and publishing a book is the way to go. Why is having a book so important? It all comes down to credibility. For business people, there is nothing more important than building — and holding — credibility; it signals to potential clients that the author is to be trusted.
Building credibility can be done in many ways: by delivering quality results, gaining customer referrals, gathering testimonials, possessing credentials such as degrees or certifications, securing speaking engagements, and much more. Similarly, and perhaps most powerfully, writing a book on the subject in which the author is an expert is a clear (and lasting) way of conveying that they have reached a certain level of expertise. Not only have they achieved real-world results, but they have enough knowledge in the field to fill a book with what they know and teach others how to be similarly successful.
Consider this: If a job was between two professionals and one had authored a book and the other had not, who would you hire? The answer is clear; adding “published author” to a resume is quite likely to bring in more business, and at a higher fee.
Not only is a book a powerful marketing tool for professionals in and of itself, but the additional opportunities brought by being a published author can take business to a whole new level. When book marketing is added to the equation — positioning an expert and their book to key media outlets and gaining media exposure — there is truly no limit to how much a business can grow. Consider interviews, articles, or becoming known as a go-to expert for media outlets. A professional’s credibility is boosted significantly by media exposure. These media placements can be added to an expert/business’s website for a strong first impression (examples: “featured in Inc. Magazine” or “as seen on MSNBC”), and they can be used time and time again for marketing materials such as brochures, when networking at conferences, in online promotions, and even during professional conversation.
Unlike the old-fashioned business card, books prove an expert knows what they’re doing. Instead of just listing available services, a book displays (in great detail) how those services are carried out and what kinds of results have been garnered by them. Not only that, but in the age of virtual meetings, conferences, and events, a digital book can go much further than a small paper card ever could.
Consultants in virtually all trades, service providers, entrepreneurs, self-help professionals, motivational speakers, and non-profit organization leaders are among many who may greatly benefit from writing and marketing a book. The key, once the book is written and published, is to get it out into the world as far and as often as possible. Bring it along to client meetings, industry events, media appearances, speaking engagements, and more. Professionals should fully embrace both their new identity as an author and all of the opportunities it will bring. The bottom line is this: authors are experts, therefore experts should become authors for maximum impact to their business endeavours.
In the words of Smith Publicity Founder and CEO Dan Smith, “experts should put in the printed word that which they do best.” So, start writing, and see where those words take you.
###
Jennifer Tucker is the Marketing Strategist at Smith Publicity, the most prolific book marketing agency in the publishing industry, with thousands of books promoted since 1997. From first-time, self-published authors to New York Times bestsellers, Smith Publicity promotes every genre, and has secured media coverage for authors and books with every top media outlet in the U.S. And Canada. Sign up to receive news and updates from Smith Publicity here. Contact Smith Publicity at info@smithpublicity.com.
