I believe every business owner, every leader, anyone who really wants to become the go-to source in their industry, has at least one book in them. This is truly the best business card that you can give out.
Writing a book might well be on your bucket list. But if you’re wondering where to start, which bit of your area of expertise to focus on, then this article is for you.
Who is going to buy your book?
I’ve just set out who I am writing this article for. You’re reading it because you want to learn how to decide what to write your first – or your next – book about. You need to do the same thing with your book. Decide who you want to buy it.
I have published two best-selling books on different topics. Virtual Freedom is about the power of building teams of virtual employees to help people grow their businesses and avoid burnout. Rise Of The Youpreneur is about building a business based around your personal brand.
I chose not to write a follow-up to Virtual Freedom (so far!) instead, I wrote about how people can utilise their experience, knowledge and personality to create a successful business built around them and the people they want to serve. Both books had a clear vision of who the people reading them would be.
You must begin by identifying your audience, who you're actually writing this book for, just as you would with any product you create.
Get specific about your reader
You’ve got a good idea of who you are writing your book for. Now you want to niche that down even further. The clearer you are about the specific person you are going to help, the more likely you are to write a book they want to read.
Your target audience might be business owners. What kind of business owners? What industry are they in? What are they struggling with that they’re desperate to read a book about? You might think that it makes sense to go wide with a book. After all, you want to sell as many copies as possible. But by niching down, focusing on a group of people who really need the information you are giving them, you are more likely to have success.
What does your reader need to know?
Before you start writing your book, you need to know what you want your reader to get out of reading it. Why do they need your book? If people do not see the value in your book immediately, they are not going to buy it, pure and simple.
Think about the key things they need to know and map them out into a clear framework they can use. Being clear about what you want your book to do before you start is really going to help when it comes to writing it.
Define your message
Your book is your opportunity to get your message out there to the people you want to serve. What do you want to say? You need to define your message.
As a personal brand entrepreneur you should have a clear idea of what you and your business are all about. Your book needs to share your message about this one specific area of your expertise with your target audience.
Is there a series in this?
When you niched down in your audience and defined your message, did you think about other people you wanted to serve and more you could say? Rather than one big complete guide to your topic, could you write a series of books? Perhaps you could cater for beginners with your first one, people who are more experienced with your second, and then go into more advanced areas with your third.
People love a series. Once they have read one book from you, they will want to read more. They want all that knowledge you’ve got to give them. Developing two or more books also means you have more products to sell.
What is your reason for writing your book?
You need to have a reason for writing your book. You might think the reason is obvious but believe me, writing a book is a lot of work. There are going to be days when you sit there and think: why am I doing this? Knowing your reason for writing your book is going to help you get through that. It’s also going to help you write a better book.
You must know the purpose behind your book, and the effort of writing it before you actually begin.
When you have gone through this process, got a clear reader in mind and know what you’re going to help them with, it’s time to start writing.
You must know the purpose behind your book. Knowing your reason for writing your book is going to help you get through any writer’s blocks you run into and is also going to help you write a better book. #Youpreneur Click To Tweet
Chris founded Youpreneur® in 2015. He is a serial entrepreneur, keynote speaker and author of the bestselling books “Virtual Freedom” and “Rise of the Youpreneur”. He hosts our podcast, live events and coaches our clients inside the Youpreneur Incubator. Chris is based in Cambridge, UK.
