Having a book is your best business card. Being a bestselling author gives you credibility. Having a published book, or better still, two published books, demonstrates your expertise. But writing a book is hard work and can take a lot of time. In this episode, I’m going to talk about how you can use anthologies to get your books out there and onto the bestseller lists.
When somebody reaches out to me and I don’t know who they are, I check on Amazon to see if they’ve got a book about what they’re talking about. A book is a great way to show your authority. And having two books on Amazon is twice as good, if not ten times as good. A book shows that you have expertise, but having another book shows you’re serious about being an author and expanding your reach.
It’s a chore to write and publish a book. Writing, editing, formatting, making a cover, it all takes time. Then you’ve got to launch it and market your book. But here’s a trick. Join an anthology with other authors, do a fraction of the work, spend a fraction of the money, and get more books in your Amazon library.
Anthologies are also great at making connections. If you co-author an anthology with 30 authors, multiple authors are marketing you every time they talk about the book. You can find people to partner with, people to do webinars with, people to promote your summits. There are so many advantages to connecting with other authors on an anthology.
If you want to host an anthology, it’s critical that you get all your ducks in a row right from the start. Set out expectations, schedule, and who the contact person is, straight off. And be careful who you agree to work with. If an author is both inexperienced and money-driven, it’s a red flag.
You don’t make money on royalties – royalties are practically nil for most books – so don’t get dragged into sharing royalties. It’s a lot of work for very little gain. And be wary of co-authoring with people who want a cut of the royalties. It’s a sign that they just don’t get the purpose of having a book.
Even better than being part of an anthology is being part of an anthology that is one of a series. This massively multiplies the benefits. Now it’s not just your co-authors who are marketing you, but the authors on the other anthologies. Books in a series get more traction on Amazon too, so it’s another win.
Book Profit Secrets brings people together. Join as many anthologies as you can afford to, consider hosting your own anthology, and try to get on an anthology that is part of a series. You’ll gain credibility and visibility and it will really help you to promote your business.
What’s Inside:
- Why you should join an anthology.
- How having a book elevates your credibility.
- How co-authoring an anthology builds connections.
- Why you shouldn’t focus on royalties.
Mentioned In This Episode:
Book Profit Secrets with Ray Brehm (Podcast) 