Julie Broad (Book Launchers) explains how authors can use a nonfiction book to build their personal brand. She gives four practical principles: 1) be willing to stand out and accept judgment, 2) use your book to define a memorable identity, 3) leverage your author identity to access media/speaking opportunities (with concrete pitching examples and niche-book advantages), and 4) approach conversations as service, not selling (example: partnering with a magazine by asking what they need). The video closes with CTAs (like, comment, subscribe) and pointers to related videos.
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If you think you're gonna write your book, launch it, and have a brand. Sorry, that is not how it works. You still have to do the work so people know you exist. The good news is now you have an almost magical tool in your hands to get out there and get noticed. If you want to build a brand from your book, then this video is for you. Hey there. I'm Julie, the book broad from Book Launchers. We're your professional self publishing team helping you write, publish, and promote. And a nonfiction book that will help you have a huge impact on your readers. And done right will help you grow your brand, build your business, and make you money. The best part, You. Yes, you keep all rights and royalties. Many nonfiction authors write a book to grow their brand and become the known expert in their field. But they expect that will happen when their book comes out. But there's a whole lot more to it than that. First, not just any book is going to build your brand. You have to stand out to build a brand. If you want to have an impact on others, you must stand out. I just said that. But when you stand out, you will be judged, and that can be terrifying. And a lot of authors get really afraid of standing out, so they don't say the very things they know need to be said. And those are the very things that probably would have helped you build a really strong brand. So let's just clear the air, shall we? Your book is going to be judged. Heck, I get judged on YouTube just about every video I've had. Everything from my hair to my clothes, to how much coffee I drink, to my voice, to what I say. Be judged and criticized. But here's what you need to know. I stand out. My videos are not boring. And I take a stand and say some things that people don't agree with. And that is okay. That is what your book should do. And the people who judge and criticize you are not the ones typically achieving greatness, creating success, and having lasting, positive impact on others. Also, most people do want to support you and see you succeed. Just look at how long my list of YouTube besties is. Look, you guys are great. Oh, boy. And that is not even all of them. If I missed you, I'm sorry. But the besties are my best supporters, and I am so grateful for them every day. So know that there are a few folks who may criticize you, but those are not the ones that matter, and they're not the majority. So find your voice and use it. Stand out so you can build your brand. Second, use your book to define your brand. One of the things we spend time with our clients on is figuring out how to brand themselves. Think about it. ZZ Top would just be another band without those beards. Lady Gaga would not make so many headlines without her outrageous outfit, and William Nye would just be another scientist until he labeled himself Bill Nye the Science Guy. I've called myself Julie the Book Broad for a reason. So how do you want to be known in your marketplace? How will you be memorable? Your book is a tremendous opportunity to define yourself, so you need to spend some time thinking about how you want to be defined. Most of us resist who we really are or who we want to be. We see many authors hold back the good stuff because of fear and that's going to make brand building very difficult because the very thing that makes you memorable is you. So share yourself. 3. Use your new identity to unlock doors there's the key. One of the things I discovered as I made the shift to my author identity was my peer group went from being in the audience to being on the stage. I was now one of the folks featured in magazines, speaking on stage and getting interviewed by the media. But that didn't happen only because my book was out. I had to make sure my book was in the hands of event organizers that the media was getting pitches so they knew I existed. I was writing and submitting articles to those magazines and I submitted for tons of speaking opportunities and I hunted down like minded blogs and media that would be interested in the things I was sharing every day. I made it my mission to contact at least one place to offer something of value in exchange for a shout out about my book. It's definitely work, but what you need to know is being an author makes this easier. Easier because you can say I wrote the book on blank and your email will be more likely to be moved to the top of the pile when you can say that it is more credibility or it does give you more credibility. This is also, by the way, why I think it's so powerful to write a niche book. Because you will stand out more being the person in a smaller category than trying to be the person in a big category where there's already a lot of experts. For example, Pat Watson came out with the book on lock picking for emergency responders. It's called Tactical Lock Picking. When we were pitching him to those in the space of training firefighters, it was a heck yes, we want him and his book. Let's get that guy on our show, on our webinar, or even featured on our website. Eric Brotman wrote Don't Retire, Graduate, and he's positioning himself beautifully in the crowded personal finance space as the guy who will help you transition from your career into a really great time in your life that isn't defined as retirement anymore. You're not done working, you're starting something new, and it's a really great space. Spin on things. He takes you through all the freshman, sophomore, junior and senior year as he walks you through options and what to do. As you're planning your graduation, not your retirement, I know you might be afraid to ask for it. And that's where hiring a company like Book Launchers that does a bunch of pitching and asking for you can really help. If you ever want to see Sarah Bean, our book marketing manager, light up, ask her about one of our authors. Sometimes it's easier to shout about someone else from the rooftops and it can be more difficult to do it for yourself. But you should, and doing so is how you're going to build your brand. 4. Approach your conversations from a place of service, not selling. Ask questions and you can uncover opportunities to serve if you ever wondered why networking events don't work, take a look at how you network when you speak. Is it all about you or do you carefully consider the person you're speaking with and what will matter to them? One of my favorite deals I did was with my first book, More Than Cash Flow, and it was a partnership with Canadian Real Estate wealth magazine. I was speaking speaking at one of their upcoming events and chatting with the organizer. I was trying to get clear on what would make my talk a success for them and I was asking, you know, questions like what do they really want a speaker to do? Who will be in the audience? Who do they want the talk to appeal to? And this important question of how do they judge the success of their event? It was that question that got us talking about subscriptions because it turned out a huge number of their attendees signed up for their magazine subscription at the event and that was one of the driving reasons for events. So I started asking questions about what else worked to get subscriptions and they said when we give away books with a new two year subscription, it tends to do really well if the book is a great fit. I told them about my book that was coming out and that I would love to do that with them and boom. I gave them 250 copies of my book and got massive value in exchange for this, including magazine ads, features in every magazine for my book, stage time and more. If we ever meet. You might be surprised at how quiet I am. I'm a very strong introvert. But you if I think I can add value or help you in some way, I come to life and asking questions so I can find how I add value is something I've always tried to do. If this isn't already something you do, try it. You'll be amazed at what you might learn and what opportunities you might uncover for you and your book. There you go. Be brave enough to stand out. Write a book that clearly defines your brand and use your new author identity to grow your brand and finally, serve don't sell. That's a crash course in using your book to build your brand. What did I miss? Let's chat about it in the comments below. And right before you do that, please smash that thumbs up button on your way down. Go on, try it. It feels so good. And when you comment the day a video is released, you'll be entered to win some sweet Hashtag no boring books. Swag. Sometimes we even have these hoodies. Super soft. This is our newest one. We have new videos every Tuesday and Friday. Make sure you catch everyone by subscribing to the channel and turning those notifications on. Well, would you like to keep hanging out? I know I sure would. This video right here is the one YouTube thinks you need to see. And this one is all about how to write a book that stands the test of time. You know, the kind of book that someone could build a big and powerful brand around? Hint. Both are pretty much guaranteed to give you something great to think about and maybe even make you smile. So go on, click on over. I'll put the coffee on and see you there.
