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When it Comes to Social Media, Are You a Thought or Traffic Leader?

Self promotion knows no bounds online.

The internet, and specifically the rise of social media, has made it even easier for folks to pursue ruthless ambition to succeed online. A major part of online success is being able to see through the smoke and mirrors that many personalities put up around themselves.

With the internet making anonymity and disguise so simple, many people set up illusions that simply aren’t themselves. I often compare this to the classic 70s game show, “The Dating Game.” It’s easy to sit behind the partition and try to impress the “contestant” with how charming and clever you are. But sooner or later, they will step around the partition – that’s the moment of truth. Will they be surprised with what they find?

Forget About the Numbers
Some of the world’s biggest spammers have hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitter, while there are bestselling authors that may only have a couple hundred. The numbers don’t tell the whole story, and they shouldn’t be your sole basis for determining influence. The rat race has merely moved online — with everyone desperately competing to end up one follower ahead, one blog comment up from their competitors, with online bragging rights as the primary (if not sole) payoff.

Assigning value solely on “the numbers” is a strategy that’s sure to end in disappointment and frustration. Instead, look for traffic that’s valuable – the type of readers and followers that take action, rather than the type that merely skim the content and move on.

It’s possible to be both, but if you could only choose one – would you rather be a thought or traffic leader?

Those with the most powerful audience are always the most powerful. Think about it this way: if you were marketing B2B products, which audience would you prefer? 10,000 regular consumers, or an audience of 100 CEOs of top firms, each with a massive budget for inter-company products.

Pick your audience by strength, not just by size.

The Key to Rising Above the Noise
For all of the interpersonal discussion that surrounds social media, the core itself seems strangely devoid of any real person-to-person interaction. One comment I hear from clients again and again is, “how do I rise above the noise?”

Whether you prefer the words of Shakespeare’s Hamlet or Dr. Seuss’ Happy Birthday to You!, the underlying message is both simple and the same – be yourself.

Focus on engaging the followers you have by being genuine in your communications, showing interest in others, and providing content of value. Imagine how you might engage your followers in a real-life situation – would you bombard them with a never-ending litany of sales pitches?

I certainly hope not. If you did, it wouldn’t be for long.

Engage your followers with a careful balance of content – links to relevant industry articles, share content presented by others, posts of a personal nature, and promotional posts. Concentrate on being a trusted source first, and a marketer second.

A Bitter Pill to Swallow: The Fallout From Getting it Wrong
One of the many benefits of social media is to employ it as a real-time market research tool; it enables consumers to provide immediate feedback on brands and products, as well as customer service issues and complaints.

Bottom line – ignore social media at your own peril. Of course, employing social media without a definitive plan can prove equally disastrous – a lesson that far too many brands discover the hard way.

In November of 2008, the makers of Motrin® pain reliever were given a bitter pill to swallow after launching what they thought would be a very successful online ad campaign.

The ad stated that while toting a baby around in a sling can cause back and neck pain, it “seems to be in fashion” and “totally makes [me] look like an official mom.” Outraged mothers took to the Twitterverse to share their feedback, which gained additional traction with the use of the #MotrinMoms hashtag. By the following Monday morning, the ad was gone, and an official apology was issued by McNeil Consumer Healthcare.

Is this really how McNeil perceived their customers? Probably not. But had McNeil taken the time to conduct an online market research study to first test the campaign among their target audience (in this case, mothers), they could have utilized that feedback, and avoided a very pricey and embarrassing mistake.

It’s one you can bet they won’t make again.

Social media should be a vital part of any marketing strategy – be it on or offline. Consider it as just one more tool in your promotional arsenal – but remember that even the best tools are only as effective as the individual that wields them.

About the Author:
Traci Hayner Vanover, aka The Promo Diva®, is a business consultant and coach that specializes in the unique marketing and promotional needs of small businesses, authors and startups. Drawing on over twenty years of Fortune 500 experience in the fields of marketing research and promotion, Traci’s blog utilizes pop culture and trends to illustrate business concepts and principles, and blends helpful tips and resources with a healthy dose of humor. Traci is the founder and publisher of Entrepreneur & Self-Employed Business Journal. To connect with Traci, visit her on Facebook or Twitter.

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2010 08 24 tracivanover Marketing Comments (0) Permalink

4 Steps to Avoiding a Brand Implosion™

It takes years of visibility and consistency to build a strong image, but it’s pretty easy to see all of your hard work implode. Just ask Mel Gibson, Michael Phelps, Tiger Woods, Michael Richards, or even Kate Moss. All of these celebrities by their actions created the dreaded BRAND IMPLOSION™:  {When brand behavior ≠ expectations}.

Introducing The BRAND IMPLOSION™:  {When Brand Behavior ≠ Expectations }

The BRAND IMPLOSION formula occurs every time a behavior does not meet expectations and causes significant business consequences. In other words, if I miss a deadline for a client (behavior), although I am usually ahead of schedule (expectations), but the client was out of town so that it didn’t cause any fallout, all is fine with the relationship.

But, when Mel goes out on a tirade eroding every belief we had about him as a religious, good family man with high standards, we all just want to cringe, hide, and get him out of our sight as quickly as his agent and wife did. We cannot yet gauge the enormity of Mel’s actions, but his career as bankable actor clearly hangs in the balance.

4 Steps to Avoiding a Brand Implosion™

How do you avoid ruining your brand? Just follow these steps from the get-go:

  1. Remain Authentic – If your image to the business and personal world are exactly the same, it remains difficult to create a consequential conflict. After all, if Ozzie Osborne were caught ranting and cursing, it’s just another day in his bizarre life – another non-issue.
  1. Beware the Camera –Thanks to smart phones, virtually all consumers can become cameramen with footage to share or sell. Certainly, Mr. Phelps and Ms. Moss aren’t smiling pretty reminiscing about their “caught on camera” contraband poses.
  1. Share and Post Selectively – It’s not just your privacy settings that determine who interacts with you, it’s also your on-line image. I, for example, only comment, Tweet, and write about branding and marketing. Even on Facebook, you can’t find any content or photos not related to my core competency. Tempted to enter the fray about Lindsay Lohan? Just tweak the famous DeBeers’ tagline a little to remember:  “Your on-line image is forever.”
  1. Be Your Best – Yep, your mom was right: Treat others the way you want to be treated. Don’t let your success, fame, or fortune make you forget that there are no “little people” or even “ small people” as BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg stated.  We all have busy lives, but there is always time for quick nod of appreciation and respect.

™ by Liz Goodgold. Liz  is a branding speaker, expert and author of RED FIRE BRANDING: Create a Hot Personal Brand and Have Customers for Life and DUH! Marketing. For more hot branding ideas, sign up for her FREE newsletter, The Brand Finale, at www.redfirebranding.com .

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2010 07 30 lizgoodgold Marketing
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Making Ideas Happen: A Recipe for Success and Profitability

Even if you aren’t a cook yourself, you know what a recipe is, and what it’s used for. Webster’s defines a recipe as “a set of instructions for making something from various ingredients; a formula or procedure for doing or attaining something.”

Two and a half months after its publication, Scott Belsky’s book, Making Ideas Happen is one of Amazon.com’s Top 100 (overall) books, a sales leader in several categories, and an iPad and Wall Street Journal best-seller. Download a PDF Excerpt.

Belsky provides authors with a success recipe that is both easy-to-follow and duplicate.

The following are some of the reasons for my enthusiasm for the book.

Expertly Titled & Positioned

Scott’s title exhibits many of the 16 characteristics of effective book titles described in my own #Book Title Tweet: 140 Bite-Sized Ideas for Choosing Compelling Article, Book, and Event Titles. These include:

  1. Promise. Effective book titles promise an obvious benefit, one the author’s target market urgently wants to enjoy.
  2. Transparency. Effective book titles communicate at a glance, without clutter or ambiguity. There’s nothing to “puzzle out” or study; the benefit is obvious, presented in everyday, easy-to-speak conversational terms.
  3. Brevity. As a glance at the book cover, above, shows, short titles based on short words permit setting the title in a large, bold, type size. This creates “billboard” book covers that attract attention from a distance in a crowded bookstore or can be read online, even when shown as a tiny thumbnail images barely an inch high.
  4. Title/subtitle partnership. One of the “classic” title techniques is to combine a short, telegraphic title with a longer subtitle that amplifies the title’s promised benefit by providing supporting details.
  5. Action verbs. Effective book titles are often build around gerunds, i.e., verbs ending in ing. Making and Overcoming imply a state of action, implying that progress is already taking place.

Planned profitability

One of myPublished & Profitable site’s central tenets is the importance of planning for profitability, i.e., identifying potential back-end profit sources and having the profit systems set-up and in-place, ready for readers when they visit the author’s website, looking for ways to implement the ideas in the book.

Authors who wait until their book is published before planning and  setting-up back-end profit systems are simply too late; they’ll never make up for the lost profit opportunities generated by their book’s publication.

As you can see from Scott Belsky’s bio, or a glance at the offerings on his Behance site, you can see that a portfolio of up-and-running products and resources, including both on-line and off-line resources, already exists.

One of the reasons I’ve been using Scott Belsky’s Making Ideas Happen as an example of nonfiction success is the way that it has been positioned as a leadership book rather than as a creativity or writing book. See previous posts.

By positioning Making Ideas Happen for categories like Business Management, Leadership, or Management Science, the author targeted a large and growing market, rather than smaller slow-growth markets.

Visionary vocabulary

This successful best-selling book (currently in the mid 300’s out of all the books Amazon.com sells) and among the top 5 sellers in several categories, including Leadership and Management Science.

Authors that follow Belsky’s lead and create a new vocabulary with their book will invariably create a more memorable brand.

New words and phrases add interest to your book and provide easy to remember memory assists for your important ideas, improving retention, creating a shortcut to your brand.

What’s fascinating about the list that follows is that you can learn so much about the book from simply analyzing the new words and phrases it introduces:

  • Dreamers, Doers, and Incrementalists. These refer to the three types of creative individuals described in Making Ideas Happen. Dreamers are always generating new ideas. Doers s are obsessively focused on the logistics of implementing ideas. Incrementalists shift between dreaming and doing, but often fail to totally profit from their ideas because they often dissipate their energy by working on too many different projects. (pages 113-115)
  • Action Method. Action Method refers to the process of immediately following-up new ideas by identifying the specific tasks needed to bring an idea closer to reality.
  • Creative’s compromise. Creative individuals, i.e., designers, authors, and entrepreneurs, must be prepared to adopt new restraints and best practices that may initially be uncomfortable. (18)
  • Done walls. The practice of hanging examples of completed Action Steps from previous projects on the wall of your working area, as motivation tools to maintain team enthusiasm and morale. (91)

How Thought Leadership Authors Can Benefit from Making Ideas Happen

If you’re having trouble finishing your book, you’re not alone! Authors often need help finishing their books. As Belsky puts it: nearly all new ideas die a premature death.

He concludes: The journey to a more productive life as a creative leader starts with a candid self-assessment of who you are, your tendencies, and the greatest barriers before you.

In addition to a dash of reality and a description of how others handle the challenge of the new and the creative’s challenge, authors will be exposed to concrete steps they can take to work more efficiently. They’re also likely to be inspired by the example of writing and organization that Making Ideas Happen presents – prompting them to create their own recipe for success.

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2010 07 30 rogerparker Book News
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What does writing a book tell clients, prospects, and potential employers about you?

Writing a book remains the best way to drive business and build your personal brand, establishing you as an expert in your field. But why?

Here are a 7 major conclusions about you that your clients, co-workers, customers, prospects, and potential employers are likely to draw from your book:

  1. You know your topic. A published book is proof of what you know about your topic–the challenges, tools, trends, and needs of others in your field. Your book is also proof that you not only know information, but know how to apply and deliver it.
  2. You know how to analyze, select, and organize. A published book proves your ability to separate the important from the unimportant. No book can contain everything; in today’s world of shorter, more focused, books, your expertise is reflected not only by the ideas and information you share in your book, but also by what you leave out and how you logically you organized the information you included.
  3. You have empathy. A successful book proves that you are an empathic individual, who can view information and situations from someone else’s point of view.  Successful authors write and publish books that readers want, rather than writing books that simply showcase information. Your ability to understand and serve your reader’s information needs is compelling proof of your ability to influence, motivate, persuade, and sell.
  4. You are creative. A published book reflects an author’s creative ability to present familiar information in new ways, often by rearranging familiar tools and technologies, or making it easier to take advantage of existing resources. Often, the height of creativity involves eliminating clutter and presenting from a different perspective or a simpler perspective.
  5. You are committed to self-improvement. A published book shows that you are a proactive, forward-thinking, individual, not content with with the status quo. Instead, you have the iniative and self-motivation to master new skills.
  6. Confident. Clients, prospects, and potential employers respond to confidence. Confidence radiates strength and ability. A published book proves that you have enough faith in your ideas to invest time and money in your own success.
  7. You are disciplined. Books don’t write themselves (although you can get help, if needed).  A published book proves not only that you’re an “idea person,” but that you are committed to doing whatever is necessary to act upon your ideas and make them happen.You’re a hard worker, and you don’t leave jobs unfinished.

Write, or not write?

The future is going to arrive, whether you write a book or don’t write a book. The calendar is going to turn–May is going to turn to June, and 2010 is going to turn to 2011.

How you choose to spend your time will determine how others will view you down the road.

Writing a book has the power to change the way others perceive you. A published book differentiates you from your peers, and others with the same knowledge and skills. Perception equals reality.

You can always tell others that you are an expert in your field. However, published books do the talking for you, getting you noticed and pre-selling your qualifications 24/7.

There are only so many people you can speak to in your immediate circle, but there are hundreds of thousands you can communicate with when you have a book to use as an online search engine magnet and proof of your abilities. For more information, including case studies, about the benefits of writing a book, see Mitchell Levy’s 42 Rules for Driving Success with Books. Profit from the experiences of others!

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2010 06 17 rogerparker Networking/BizDev Comments (0) Permalink

Branding Secrets You can Learn from American Idol

As American Idol gears up for its finale with an estimated 28 million viewers, now is a great time to think about this TV show not as a singing competition, but a branding competition – really!

Just as in business, the goal of branding is for prospects to remember you in order to do business you. Or, in this case, the goal is for viewers to remember you in order to vote for you.

If we look back at Season 10, we’ll note that the show is comprised of judges and contestants who have morphed into hot personal brands by using these proven branding techniques.

  • Unique Vocabulary – Thanks to Randy Jackson for introducing us to the “dog pound” and “dog” as a term of endearment. And, an honorable mention to Top 10 Guy Alex Lambert for putting front and center the reality of how today’s teens speak with “like”, “umm”, and “you know” littered throughout. Your job? Determine how to speak a language all your own.
  • Attitude – Paula Abdul showed the world not only her loopiness, but her ability to find good in everybody. Of course, Mr. Simon Cowell demonstrated his brutal honesty by earnestly telling contestants that they need to find a new career opportunity. If we strut like Mo’Nique or Jamie Foxx, we too can have our attitude became a critical component of our brand.
  • Dress -  New judge Ellen DeGeneres fervently sticks with her trademarked pants and vests look while Simon has yet to be able to afford anyone other shirt except, apparently, a Fruit of the Loom T-shirt.  Of course, the winner of dressing to stand out must go to season9  performer known simply as “Bikini Babe!”  What are you doing to dress appropriately for your brand?
  • Nicknames – Nicknames are always a sign of endearment and 4th runner up, Michael Lynche earned his moniker of “Big Mike” with his 6’1 and 300 lb frame. Crystal Bowersox also quickly morphed into Mama Bowersox too. If your own name is popular (Megan), generic (John Anderson), or taken by someone else (Loni Anderson), feel free to use a nickname.
  • One Name Brand – I had never met a Siobhan or even how to pronounce it until Ms. Magnus made her debut this year. Clearly, she has the opportunity to join the ranks of Cher, Beyoncé, and Shakira by becoming a one-name show! Do you?
  • Solid Analogy – Crystal Bowersox became the “Janis Joplin for 2010” with her spot-on, yet modern interpretation of the legendary singer. Referencing the familiar (Janis) to the unfamiliar (Crystal) helps to introduce and recall a new brand. I consider myself the Suze Orman of branding; what’s your reference?

Remember that when it comes to branding, every interaction counts: from your voice message to your email to your blog entries to personal encounters. Ensure that they project the same image and you too can be on the road to winning votes and business from your customers!

Branding speaker and expert Liz Goodgold is a fiery redhead with over 25 years of experience in marketing and branding. She is the author of RED FIRE BRANDING: Create a Hot Personal Brand and Have Customers for Life and DUH! Marketing. For more hot branding ideas, sign up for her FREE newsletter, The Brand Finale.

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2010 05 19 lizgoodgold Marketing Comments (0) Permalink

Why authors should share their commitment to write a thought leadership book

Sharing your commitment to write a thought leadership book is one of the most important first steps you should take. Sharing your commitment write a book ensures its completion and paves the way for its success. Here are 7 reasons to share your intention to write a thought leadership book:

  1. Support. Sharing your intention with employees, family, and friends enlists their support. As a result, they will be more likely to overlook an occasional missed family or social event. If you also share your intended writing schedule with family and co-workers, they’ll also be more likely to respect your privacy and not bother you during your scheduled writing sessions.
  2. Determination. When you share your intention to write a book with others, you’re likely to be benefit from added discipline and determination. After you’ve made your intention known to others, you’ll find it harder to put off a writing session in order to sleep an hour later, or watch television.
  3. Assistance. You’re likely to be surprised by others who will offer to help you, if the occasion arises. You’re apt to receive newspaper clippings relevant to your topic, or e-mail containing links to blogs and websites. Others may offer to help you by reading and commenting on your initial drafts.
  4. Networking. Announcing your intention to write your book on your blog or website adds credibility to e-mails you send to subject area experts and others asking for advice, case studies, or requests for interviews. “Anyone” can claim to be writing a book, but your requests will be taken more seriously when you have displayed your intention online.
  5. Speaking. Your public commitment to write a book will also increase your desirability as a speaker in your area of expertise, opening the door to speaking at local events or appearing as a panelist at trade events. Your commitment to write a book will also add credibility to teleseminars and webinars you host while writing your book.
  6. Anticipation. Describing your commitment to write a book online will also enhance your search engine visibility, increasing your visibility to individuals searching for information on your topic. Your blog or website will be more visible to prospects, event organizers, and–even–publishers looking for authors with expertise in your area.
  7. Familiarity. Each time you blog or discuss the book you’re writing, or post a sample downloadable chapter, you’re creating familiarity, which builds your prospective reader’s confidence in your book. Accordingly, by the time your book emerges from the printer, you’ll have a market that’s ready to buy your book. If, on the other hand, you’ve kept your book a secret, you’ll have to overcome a skeptical market unwilling to take a chance on something new and different.

The advantages of writing a book to drive business and position yourself relative to the competition are well known. Your ability to write a book is proven each day by your continuing success working for others, or running your own business. The first step to writing a successful author thought leadership book is to publicly share your intention and commitment to writing your book. Your public commitment paves the way to success by helping you both write and promote your book, launching it to a market that’s ready to buy.

Roger C. Parker invites you to explore Published & Profitable’s Sample Contents and sign-up for his Writer’s Writer’s Tip Blog. Roger’s latest book is #Book Title Tweet: 140 Bite-Sized Ideas for Compelling Article, Book, and Event Titles.

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2010 05 15 rogerparker Mind Mapping
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Reflections: What Makes an Expert Different?

Individuals and subject area experts interested in establishing thought leadership through a published book might enjoy checking out Conor Neills’ recent blog post, What Makes an Expert Different? This is one of the most concise and useful discussions of the elements of expert status I’ve ever seen.

Conor Neills is professor at IESE Business School in Barcelona. Conor an entrepreneur who’s founded 4 companies. He’s currently writing a book on making the best of your journey through life. His Rhetorical Journey blog is a compass for those who want to become confident and effective speakers.

Lists as a teaching tool

One of the many lessons What Makes an Expert Different? teaches is the importance of simplifying complex topics down to their essence so they can be better understood. Conor makes excellent use of lists and selective emphasis (created by setting keywords in bold) to provide a new context and a perspective for further exploration. Short blog posts, like short books in general, i.e., 42 Rules for Driving Success with Books, are often far superior to encyclopedic treatments that readers may not have time to read.

Not only Conor Neills’ What Makes an Expert Different? valuable in its own right, but it also contains links to additional sources of information on becoming an expert.

Your opinion counts

What do you think of Conor Neills’  What Makes an Expert Different? Which of the characteristics that he describes do you think is the most important/least important? Are their other characteristics of “expertness” that you think should be included in the list? Share your ideas and opinions as comments, below.

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2010 04 09 rogerparker Marketing
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7 questions to ask before writing a nonfiction book to drive your success

Writing a nonfiction book is the proven way to build your business by attracting new prospects, pre-selling your competence, opening doors to new product and service opportunities, while differentiating yourself from your competition. (Mitchell Levy’s 42 Rules for Driving Success with Books for details and examples.)

However, you have to write the right book! Here are 7 questions to ask yourself before you begin to write your nonfiction book attract new clients and prospects:

  1. Who should I write my book for? Before writing a book, take the time to identify your best prospects and clients…the types of individuals and firms you want to attract because they’re challenging, profitable, and fun to deal with. Few books, by themselves, sell enough copies to provide an author’s sole source of income. Today, books are written to generate post-publication business by attracting qualified prospects who want to benefit from the author’s proven expertise through sales of back-end products and services.
  2. What are their problems and concerns? Publishing success is not about how much authors know they know about their topic, but how much they know about the information their intended readers need to know! Successful, career-building, nonfiction books are actionable; they help readers solve problems or achieve goals. Success is all about helping readers experience positive change! Instead of taking an inventory of what you know, take an inventory of what your prospects and readers need to know.
  3. What existing books are already available? Before you you start to write your book, you must research existing books and learn as much about them as possible. Writing success involves bringing new information to the table (or the bookshelf). No publisher wants to publish a book that covers familiar ground. Likewise, no readers want to spend money on a “me, too!” book.
  4. How are their authors profiting? In addition to studying existing books in your field, you need to research the businesses of the authors who wrote the book. Authors who are actively publishing books in your field are usually frequent speakers who also offering coaching, consulting, or training services. Visit their websites and examine the topics they speak and present on, as well as the client case studies they describe. Examining their blog and website may provide several new ideas for topics for your book.
  5. How motivated is the market? Look for markets that are active and characterized by books with consistent, healthy sales.  More important, look for markets that are experiencing change and are urgently looking for solutions. Hint: if you are writing for businesses, look for situations where failure to solve problems or achieve goals is costing firms a lot of money, either in wasted opportunities or reduced profitability. If you are writing for consumers, look for health, employment, or personal development issues causing pain and stress.
  6. How can I set my book apart? The more time you invest exploring your market and your competition, the easier it will be to identify and organize a book that brings a new approach to your topic. Look for something fresh: look for a way to bring new information, new examples, new style, or a new process (or system) to help readers solve their problems or achieve their goals. Question current assumptions and look for new approaches.
  7. How can I finish my book as quickly and efficiently as possible? Efficiency and speed are important, but often overlooked, considerations. The sooner your book is completed, the sooner it can begin opening new doors of opportunity for you. This does not mean not presenting a complete solution or sacrificing clarity, responsibility, or quality. Experienced book coaches and editors will be able to suggest ways you can enlist the help of others to get your book into your prospective clients’ or customers’ hands as quickly as possible without losing control of your book.

In many ways, writing a book is like playing chess; planning and strategy play a bigger role than action. Writing a book for a market that can’t afford, or doesn’t want, your products and services is as bad a mistake as writing a book that duplicates existing information.

Likewise, a book that comes out after a wave of demand has begun to lose power is another prescription for failure.

By all means, write a nonfiction book to drive business by positioning you as the go-to expert in your field. But, before you begin to write, ask the above questions to make sure your writing the right book!

Roger C. Parker invites you to explore Published & Profitable’s Sample Contents and sign-up for his Writer’s Writer’s Tip Blog. Roger’s latest book is #Book Title Tweet: 140 Bite-Sized Ideas for Compelling Article, Book, and Event Titles.

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2010 04 06 rogerparker Marketing
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How to get started writing a thought leadership book

The easiest way to get started a thought leadership book that will drive business and career success is to ask a deceptively simple question:

What does my most profitable customer segment need to know to solve their problems and achieve their goals?

Asking what your most profitable customers and prospect needs to know achieves several important goals:

  • Puts the focus on what’s really important. Success is not about “your” experiences or the knowledge you have accumulated. Success is all about your readers! What they want to read is more important than what you want to write. It ensures the success of your book among the market segment that’s most valuable to you.
  • Simplifies topic choices and writing. By identifying the change your reader’s desire, i.e., the problem they want to solve or the goal they want to achieve, makes it easier to identify the 42, (or whatever), topics your readers need to know and addressing them as clearly and concisely as you can.
  • Shorter books mean more books. By replacing “creative writing” with reader-driven topic choice and clear, concise expression, offers many additional benefits. For example, you’ll be better able to write your book in short, frequent working sessions, each one focused on a specific topic. This will help you get your book into your prospect’s hands faster (so it can begin driving business sooner). Once your first book is published, you can begin thinking about a follow-up title (which will make you twice the expert in your market’s eyes!)

Each published book with your name on the cover and a listing on Amazon.com, reinforces your position as the “go to expert” in your field!

Writing a thought leadership book can be a lot easier than the “time trap” many think writing a book has to be. Writing can be difficult and time-consuming if you try to impress your market by sharing everything you know. But, if you start by asking “What do my most desired prospects and clients need to know?“, you’ll find it easier to identify and write a book that establishes you as the thought leader in you field. Let me know if you have a comment, or question, via e-mail or as a comment, below.

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2010 02 14 rogerparker Planning Tips
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8 habits needed to write your way to success

Although the rewards of writing a book have been extensively documented in books like Mitchell Levy’s 42 Rules of Driving Business with Books, the underlying habits needed for writing success and author thought leadership are not as widely known.

The big idea

The starting point is very simple, and beautifully described in books like Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Les Hewitt’s Power of Focus and a slim book by Robert Maxwell entitled Make Today Count.  Both books stress the same idea:

Your daily habits determine your future

How you approach each day in general, and how you approach writing in particular, determines your future–and the future of those who depend on you.

Everyone has the same 24 hours each day to live, work, play, and sleep. However, somehow, some people write books and advance to the front of the room, while others dream, read books, and remain in the back of the room.

Habits of writing success

During the past decade, I’ve interviewed hundreds of authors (plus their editors and publicists) who have changed their lives and written their way to success, building lucrative, high-visibility author thought leadership in their fields.

I’ve studied their habits, as well as the habits of writing coaches who got their training in the world of media, where deadlines are non-negotiable. What I’ve listened to and read has convinced me that a few crucial habits spell the difference writing success or continued writing stress and frustration.

The 8 habits of writing success

Here’s a distillation of what I’ve found. Successful, branded authors share these traits:

  1. Daily progress. Successful authors don’t participate in writing marathons; they commit to writing a little every day. They commit to consistent progress. You can make significant progress in 30 minutes a day, even more if you spend a little extra time reviewing what you’ve written and what you want to write tomorrow right before you go to bed.
  2. Delegation. There is usually a team behind a successful author; sometimes co-authors, sometimes ghost writers, sometimes book coaches and development editors, and sometimes a variety of contributors. Success does not have to involve martyrdom!
  3. Planning. Few nonfiction authors depend on their creativity and inspiration to get their books written. Instead, they begin with outlines or mind map that identify the topics they’re going to write about in each chapter. When they sit down to write, they know what they’re going to write about. As a result, they never start with an empty screen.
  4. Purpose. Successful nonfiction authors recognize that their books aren’t purchased for entertainment or style. Instead, books are purchased for reader change;  the goal is to help readers solve problems or achieve goals. By focusing on what their readers want, rather than showcasing their knowledge, authors write books that attract the readers they’re interested in serving later on.
  5. Efficiency. Successful authors are efficient authors; they choose the right tools and take maximum advantage of them. When working with Microsoft Word, they use keyboard shortcuts to save time and eliminate the need to remove their right hand from the keyboard and reaching for the mouse. They write short, concise books with focused, actionable content. Most important, they harvest and recycle previously-written ideas and content, such as blog posts, newsletters, reports, and speeches. They use templates whenever possible to speed content creation and formatting.
  6. Standards. Successful authors refuse to be intimidated by the authors held up as role-models by their their high school and college teachers. Writing is typically taught from a “classic” point of view, rather than a pragmatic, information organization and sharing point of view. Successful authors write for efficient information transfer, striving for brevity and clarity. In doing so, they forgive themselves for the C’s and D’s they might have received.
  7. Rituals. Most important, successful authors establish rituals, which can be considered “habits on steroids.” Whenever possible, they write at the same time and in the same place. They print-out and back-up their work at the end of each writing session. They track their blog posts and teleseminar topics, identifying which topics generate the most response.
  8. Confidence. Most of all, successful authors are confident in the expertise they want to share and the people who are around them to help them succeed. Successful authors recognize that lousy first drafts often result in excellent final drafts. They are confident in the process of writing, reviewing, and rewriting.

In short, successful authors reject the idea of write their way to success, one word at a time. They reject the view that writing as a talent-driven special skill, and–instead–are willing to do what it takes to cultivate their own skills. (Many of the authors I’ve interviewed don’t consider themselves especially proficient or talented writers.) The basis of writing success are found in simple daily habits that anyone can put to work.

Roger C. Parker invites you to explore Published & Profitable‘s Sample Contents and sign-up for his Writer’s Writer’s Tip Blog. You’re also invited to e-mail your writing questions and concerns.

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2010 02 05 rogerparker Planning Tips
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