Julie Broad argues that treating a book as a "business card" produces forgettable books that get discarded. She urges authors to aim for transformative, conversation-sparking books that build credibility and drive opportunities, warning that AI makes low-effort "business card" books cheap and common. The segment ends with a call-to-action to learn more in her Self-Published and Succeed (second edition).
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If you've ever heard someone say you need a book because it'll be your business card, run. Business card hits the trash. Do you want your book in the trash? I don't want mine in the trash. Thinking of a book like a business card lowers the bar. I can print a business card at Staples or Office Depot. Say it with me. Business cards get tossed. Forgettable books do too. A great book doesn't just sit on a desk. It sparks conversation, builds credibility, and drives opportunity years and years after it's written. If your goal is to hand something out, bring print a flyer or a postcard. If your goal is to change lives, including your own, write a book worth recommending at Book Launchers. I've seen too many people lower that bar just because they want something to leave behind after a meeting. Yeah, that's fine. A book is a cooler leave behind than a business card. But what happens if your book is just a business card and someone actually starts reading it and they're unimpressed? When you think of your book as a tool or even a gateway to something that changes a reader's life and you think of making it so great, it actually is transformative for a reader and if they start reading some of it, they won't stop. Well, now that is going to be something great that makes them talk about you, refer clients, invite you to speak, and that is when it becomes an asset, not a flyer. Now more than ever, I think becoming an author requires we all have higher standards because AI can crank out a business card book in a minute, but a real book? That's going to take strategy, story and service to your reader and it's going to take some work, but it's work regardless. But let's work for impact and income, shall we? So please don't write a business card. Write a book people are proud to tell other people about. Learn how in self published and succeed second edition and learn how to create a book that is read, reviewed and recommended, not tossed in the trash.
