How to Make Money With Your Book: For 7-Figure CEOs, Coaches, Consultants, and Executives- P3 of 3

In part 2, I laid out how a book can get attention.

Now it's time to share precisely how one can take that attention and make money from their book.

There are SO MANY ways you can leverage the attention from a book to sell something else. I'll run through the most common things you can sell, with examples for each:

1. Create and sell services

Every single coach I've hired to work with has had one big thing in common.

They wrote and published a book.

It was the book that made them discoverable to me. It was their book that opened my eyes and mind to their technique. And yes, it was that same book where I read real-life case studies of their successes with clients just like me.

Their book set them apart, and I hired them.

Some folks will read this: "If I write a book about my processes and knowledge, why will people hire me?"

That's a great question and observation. So let me put it this way.

Have you ever listened to a song on the radio and loved it so much you purchased bunches of downloads on Apple? Then loved it so much you went to the concert to see the band live?

Same concept, but the distinction is watching them apply their mastery live.

A coach or consultant is the same. Sure, you can read about tactics and strategies from their book. Still, it's real-time application and execution right from the source that creates that added value.

The more significant point is simply this…people who hire consultants and coaches are hiring them to teach them and their team; they're not just hiring the knowledge in the book.

The book is how you show them that they should hire you.

2. Sell physical products

Years ago, I dove into the Paleo diet craze when I was heavy into the CrossFit scene.

So naturally, I searched for folks who had written about it. I found a book that chatted about a system called "Whole 30". The book was great. It gave me lots of details about the diet.

Then the book talked about Whole30 products.

From ready-to-eat meals to meal prep kits to a monthly recipe subscription…the products kept rolling out.

The point here is to think of your knowledge and your book and produce it. It can be a real-life, physical product. Or it could be something digital like that recipe subscription I was on for like a year.

Whatever your niche or expertise is, do a quick Amazon book search. See who is doing what/ Now see if they have some sort of continuity around that book. In other words, research!

The books about Whole30 opened up a new lifestyle for me, so of course, I was hankering for 'stuff.'

And it all started with a book and building expertise and trust with the written word.

3. Launch a career as a speaker

Not everyone wants to get up on stage. I get it.

But for some of you, this is exactly what you dreamt of doing, and a book is a surefire way to launch that career. Maybe you're already a speaker? Well, guess what? That book will further separate you from the herd AND allow you to bump your rates up.

A book is a speaker's calling card, essential for showing potential clients that you are well-versed in your topic and possess the qualifications to speak to their group. It leaves no doubt about your expertise.

4. Sell an educational video course or info product:

Monetizing your book by utilizing it as a lead generator for an educational course is the perfect way to make money off of a book.

If your book provides an educational resource with a high return on investment for the reader, you can create a premium version of it in video form and charge more. This way, readers will receive increased value while you earn extra income.

One chief advantage is that people rarely pay more than $25 for a book. Still, they are likely to spend up to 500 dollars or more for a video or instructional course with exactly comparable content. This actually makes sense because many learn better through audio and visual aids than from books. But it doesn't really matter why this works-what matters most here is that having a book can be leveraged into selling parallel products like video courses as a great moneymaker!

A great example is author Mark Manson, who wrote "The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*CK!"

He now has several online courses directly related to his book. Talk about a win-win-win!

5. Promote "Done for you" services:

What I literally do is a great example.

I write about ghostwriting and how to master the art of writing a book. Most of my target audience of CEOs and executives don't have the time to write a book, but they have a deep-set desire. With my method and services, though, we use our writings and books to help them make the leap into our full-on ghostwriting and publishing business.

We outlined our entire process, templates and all, to potential authors so that they can truly appreciate how remarkable it is. It's a similar approach used by consultants and coaches alike. Our book reveals the complexities of our method to demonstrate its efficacy - speaking about its greatness alone doesn't do justice as compared to showing evidence of success!

We've had so many clients who were skeptical of us, read the book, and were like, "This is genius; I'm going to do it myself."

People were so taken with the process that, despite recognizing their time was invaluable, they returned to us as full-fledged clients.

And the folks who cannot afford our services? No sweat, go do it yourself. We're not losing a client by telling them how to do it themselves; instead, we're empowering soon-to-be authors.

And the more folks who follow us and use our method, the more folks they'll refer our way.

6. Promote paid community and or mastermind groups:

Masterminds have become increasingly popular, and people are drawn to these groups not only because of their recognizable success but also because they've written books that demonstrate how knowledgeable they truly are. As a result, there's been an influx of clients who want in on the action.

A great example is Yanik Silver. He has this group called Maverick (of which I was a long-time member), which costs twenty-five thousand a year to join.

It was one of his many books that drew me to him, his style, and then, of course, his group. The book gave me details of how he achieved what he did as an entrepreneur. And the book, in turn, catalyzed many folks, including me, to join.

7. Recruit employees to work for your company:

Too often forgotten, entrepreneurs and C-level executives can acquire remarkable talent along their journey simply by depicting their corporate vision in a book. It's one of the most effective tools to reach potential team members!

The best example of this is, of course, Zappos. The book is relatively simple, but it drove folks to want to learn more about their culture. Not only did Tony Shieh write his own book, but they also wrote a different book about their culture that they give away on their site for free as a way to get people to come work for them.

The ROI on that is simply incalculable.

8. Taxes and write-offs:

Ahhhh, ethically using the system to save more money.

Very few business owners are taking advantage of this brilliant way to keep more of what they've earned.

Utilize your book as a powerful advertising tool to forward your business, and the production costs are 100% deductible. Everything you spend money on making the book is considered tax-deductible. What an incredible opportunity to make use of this fantastic marketing strategy while reaping financial benefits at the same time!

Of course, please know that this is NOT tax advice and that you should seek the knowledge of a professional.

But as far as if you did this all yourself, here's the rub with that: YOUR TIME IS NOT deductible.

So if you decide to do this yourself, spending 500 hours typing your book at a computer, you are out of luck. You cannot deduct the opportunity cost of your time from your taxes, even though that 500 hours is stopping you from making money doing other things.

Feel me?

For example, if you are a business coach and people pay you $200 an hour for working with other management teams, spending 500 hours writing a book (instead of charging for coaching) costs you $100,000 in forgone income.

You absolutely CAN NOT deduct that, even though it is a very real cost to you.

But if you hire someone to help you write your book, then you absolutely CAN deduct that cost.

This is why so many people turn to us for assistance in authoring their books, even if they can write them themselves. Our service costs $40k -$75k - fully deductible, and the time-savings are unparalleled - freeing up hundreds or thousands of hours which could be spent growing their business instead.

They'll get back to doing what they do best while still having a great book written by professionals.

After the tax savings, PLUS the time saved from not having to craft a book themselves, it's almost like our authors receive their books for free! And that is BEFORE they even get any extra exposure or return on investment from publishing their work.

Again, please take note that you should always seek the advice of a real tax pro.

9. Book sales:

While I did say that book sales are not the best way to make money.

I never said that an author can't make ANY money from them.

I firmly believe that approaching book monetization from this angle is a mistake. It will often lead authors to make ill-informed decisions and cause them to try crafting books around what they envision as being the most profitable without putting any thought into whether or not it can be written well enough for readers to engage with it properly. Poorly written stories won't bring in optimal returns regardless of how you market them.

Once you have your book done, and in hand, there are lots of ways to help spur book sales:

Social media ads can often convert into book sales.

Bundled promotions, where you give free things away to incentivize people to buy books.

Sell live at events (where you are a speaker, for instance).

Guest posts that feature crucial lessons from the book.

As for implementing these ideas, I won't waste your time by talking about it; frankly speaking, it's not worth an author's effort in most cases.

If you've taken my advice on everything I've written, then book sales will likely be the last thing on your mind.

The final word

Through this article, I hope to have shifted your perception of books and their immense potential in aiding you on the path to achieving your ambitions. Harnessing the power of books is a phenomenal tool for unlocking success - so what are you waiting for?

For most professionals, a book is the very best multi-purpose marketing they can have and is crucial to their career.

The only thing left to do now?

Start.

Wanna start a book, or are you stuck with your current one?

Maybe you have a lot of ideas for your book but can't find the time to write them out, or perhaps you're frustrated with how slowly the writing process is going. Or better, when you look for advice, people tell you, "It's all about discipline," and you should just set aside time to write every day.

Easier said than done, right?

What happens next is you get old, never finish your book, and the folks you wanted to impact never hear your message. And worse, you hear how it sucks to die with that book still in you.

It doesn't need to be this way. Here's a wicked simple solution for you right here.