If you're not acting with purpose, writing a book to build your authority can be a grind, so you'd better have a clear idea of why you're writing. There are eight high-impact goals for first-time authors that stand out as the most impactful for entrepreneurs. Choosing the right one for your situation is critical for making good decisions as an author.
In Episode 2 of The Entrepreneur to Author Podcast, your host Scott MacMillan covers all eight of these goals so you can decide on which will best suit you and your business, saving time and effort down the road.
Episode Transcript
Scott A. MacMillan: You're listening to The Entrepreneur to Author Podcast, Episode 2.
Mike Manz: Welcome to The Entrepreneur to Author Podcast…the podcast that brings you practical strategies for building authority and growing your business. And now here's your host, Scott MacMillan.
Scott A. MacMillan: We all need goals. Personally, professionally, even spiritually. We all need goals. Goals are like a destination at the end of a journey. Without goals, how do you know where you're going? Entrepreneurs? Well, entrepreneurs have plenty of goals. Entrepreneurs thrive on goals. Milestones and markers that are checked off over time.
Scott A. MacMillan: Sharing your valuable knowledge is a goal. Becoming an authority in your field is a goal. Becoming an authority through authorship is also a goal for many entrepreneurs. Leveraging your experience and expertise, writing your first book? What a goal. But while writing a book is itself a goal for the entrepreneur. That's not enough. You have to know why. Why do you want to write a book? What do you hope to achieve through authorship?
Scott A. MacMillan: In my experience, there are eight common, high-impact goals of the entrepreneur-turned-author. We have all eight and I'm going to share them with you.
Scott A. MacMillan: I'm Scott MacMillan, and this is Entrepreneur to Author.
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Scott A. MacMillan: At Grammar Factory, we've helped hundreds of entrepreneurs write and publish books. It's a fantastic and rewarding experience. We help our authors build authority and create a platform for business growth. I've seen, firsthand, the value that entrepreneurs get from publishing a long-form book. It provides a foundation for building their profile, generating qualified leads, developing profitable products and scaling their business.
Scott A. MacMillan: But before you sit down to write that book, you have to think about what you want to accomplish with it. Just like setting goals for your business, you need goals for your book too. Write them down. Talk about them. Think about them. Keep them front and center, so you don't deviate from them.
Scott A. MacMillan: Knowing in advance what you want to accomplish will absolutely increase the odds of your success. So, here it comes. The question we're going to answer. What are the most common goals business people have when writing an expertise-based book? They vary from person to person. But in my experience, there are eight high-impact goals for first-time authors that stand out as the most impactful. I call them The Eight High-Impact Entrepreneur to Author Goals, and they are as follows.
Scott A. MacMillan: The first of these high-impact goals is Building Authority. If you're like many entrepreneurs and business leaders, one of the main goals you might have in writing your book is building your authority. Building authority offers many benefits. All kinds. More awareness of your business. Higher billing rates. Greater consideration by prospects. Making more sales. Building your authority. That's our first high-impact goal.
Scott A. MacMillan: The second high-impact goal that you may have in writing your book is to Generate Leads. This is especially true. If you have a professional services or coaching business. But really, this can be an effective strategy for any business. Think about it this way. Reading a book is a significant time commitment, right? When somebody reads yours, cover to cover, they'll have spent hours with you and your ideas, which makes them far more inclined to work with you in a further and deeper capacity.
Scott A. MacMillan: Number three on our list of high-impact goals is to Expand Reach. Scaling a business is hard. It requires time and effort. So when you run out of time, you can find yourself feeling frustrated or exhausted, whichever comes first. A book can be the perfect solution to this problem, standing in for you whenever and wherever you can't be. It's there 24/7 ready to serve, and it can reliably and consistently share your message with customers. Just like a mini-you that you don't have to pay.
Scott A. MacMillan: Number four? Launch a business. If you're a subject-matter expert who is employed full-time, a book may be the perfect launching pad for a business of your own. Writing a book requires less start-up capital compared to other types of business assets. And it helps you develop your IP and establish authority quickly. That makes it an excellent gateway to entrepreneurship for many nine-to-fivers. But even if you already have an established business, a book can be an excellent platform for launching an entirely new ecosystem of products and services based on your book's IP.
Scott A. MacMillan: We're going over what I refer to as the Eight High-Impact Goals entrepreneurs and business leaders might have in writing a book. They're solid building blocks before that first word is written. You can say that these high-impact goals are really the foundation.
Scott A. MacMillan: The first four were: Build Authority, Generate Leads, Expand Reach, and Launch a Business.
Scott A. MacMillan: The fifth high-impact Entrepreneur to Author goal is to Influence Opinion. An expert author can present a new approach or a new way of thinking about a subject that radically changes the perspectives within an entire field or industry. These thought-leadership type books work. They can have a profound impact on competitive dynamics for example, which can result in real opportunities for you and your business.
Scott A. MacMillan: The sixth high-impact goal is to Codify Your Knowledge. While much of your business can and should be planned and documented, most entrepreneurs inevitably develop much of their methodology, their processes, insights, and other valuable information as they go. This leads to gaps, discontinuities. And as a result, there's no cohesive articulation of the business's knowledge base and a lack of monetizable IP. Writing a book is an opportunity to change this. You can really focus on your subject, collect and clarify your thinking on it, and fill in gaps. The result? A master content asset, that can be your reference source for a wide array of purposes. A vault of value. A binder of brilliance, if you will. Yours to keep and share. It can assist in product development, employee training, social media communications, and a whole lot more.
Scott A. MacMillan: The seventh high-impact goal for entrepreneurs considering authorship is to build new capabilities. With the pace of change in many industries, it's more important than ever to continually expand your knowledge and capabilities to include new trends and new areas of expertise. A useful way to do this is to commit to writing a book on a subject that, while related and important to your business, is currently outside of your wheelhouse. The process of planning, researching, structuring, and writing on this subject provides an excellent frame around which to build new expertise. And another benefit? Once your book is written and published you'll quickly become, and be seen as, an expert in an emerging area that may be desperate for thought leaders.
Scott A. MacMillan: And the final goal in our list of high-impact goals is to Sell Books. Sure, direct income from book sales is typically not at the top of the list for business owners. Established business people already have income from their business or executive position. So, while book revenue is nice, they tend to focus on more valuable goals related to their core business. That said, if income from book sales is your goal, you can achieve it, but it's all about strategy and time. Financial success from book sales alone is uncommon, especially with a first book. But it becomes more and more feasible as you establish a deeper library of titles.
Scott A. MacMillan: Eight high-impact goals for entrepreneurs exploring authorship. Eight goals you really must consider as you embark on the Entrepreneur to Author journey. They are vital. Let's review.
Scott A. MacMillan: While we review our eight goals, I want you to consider something. Which goal is right for you and your book? Think about it. And we'll get back to that in a moment.
Scott A. MacMillan: Eight high-impact goals when preparing to write your book...
- Build authority. A book positions, you as a credible expert, it gives you a foot in the door and unlocks opportunities with media influencers and potential partners.
- Generate leads. If your core product is a high-ticket sale, a book can serve as an entry point for prospective clients to get to know, like, and trust you, priming them for a deeper relationship with you and your business.
- Expand reach. None of us can be everywhere at all times, but there are people around the globe that need your help. And a book offers a scalable way to connect with them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, without burning you out.
- Launch a Business. A book may be the perfect launching pad for a business of your own or for an entirely new ecosystem of products. It requires less start-up capital compared to other types of business assets and helps you develop IP and establish authority, quickly.
- Influence opinion. If you have a unique philosophy or approach, you may need to make your case to your audience. A book offers the space to lay out your case in long form and present a new way of thinking about your subject. And it can radically change perspectives within an entire industry.
- Codify knowledge. Writing a book forces you to think through and articulate your knowledge, your experience, and your expertise. It structures it and records it as a master content asset that can be your reference source for a wide array of purposes from product development, to employee training, to social media communications, and much more.
- Build new capabilities. Writing on a new topic is a focused way to build knowledge in an emerging area where you want to develop new expertise. And once your book is published, you can quickly become the go-to authority on that topic, one that may be desperate for thought leaders.
- Sell books. Direct income from book sales is typically not at the top of the list for business owners, but it can be a good source of supplemental revenue. And over time with intentional focus and focused effort, revenue from book sales can grow to a meaningful level.
Scott A. MacMillan: Now in a future episode, I'll cover three strategies for this. But for now, know that all of them involve building your author platform and an audience of readers.
Scott A. MacMillan: So, let's get back to that question I asked a few moments ago. Which goal is right for you and for your book? While a book can and will deliver many benefits, it's important to focus on just one primary goal and possibly one or two secondary goals. This is important, so I'll repeat it. It's critical that you decide what your primary goal is in writing your book. As with business strategy, having too many goals dilutes your focus and dulls your impact. But being clear about what's most important makes it easy for you to make decisions, manage trade-offs, and monitor your progress.
Scott A. MacMillan: Now, if you're unsure about which goal is best for you, visit www.entrepreneurtoauthor.com and click on the Take the STEPS Self-Assessment button at the top of the page. This short quiz will help you identify which of these eight goals is most likely to be most impactful, given your specific situation.
Scott A. MacMillan: And now...
Remember This...
Scott A. MacMillan: Build Authority, Generate Leads, Expand Reach, Launch a Business, Influence Opinion, Codify Knowledge, Build New Capabilities, Sell Books. Eight high-impact Entrepreneur to Author Goals. The bottom line is, with a clear and focused goal for and purpose to your book, you'll be well ahead of most other entrepreneurs in planning, writing, and publishing a high-calibre book that gets the results you're looking for.
Scott A. MacMillan: I don't want you to just produce a great read. That's table stakes. I want you to enjoy the process, and experience the benefits and business outcomes that you expect and deserve. That is Entrepreneur to Author. After all, as we said at the start of this episode, we all need goals. And so does your book.
Scott A. MacMillan: This is your time. Your time to write. To publish. To grow. Your audience awaits.
Scott A. MacMillan: I'm Scott MacMillan, until next time.
