How-To Tuesday: How To Become an Expert by Writing an eBook

Written on August 18, 2009 by Susan Payton

Hello folks. Today’s topic is on becoming an expert by writing an ebook.  Now, I know what you’re going to say. “I’m not a writer. I couldn’t write a paragraph, let alone an ebook!”

Blah blah blah. Excuses. In fact, you don’t even have to be the one to write the ebook. If you’re not a writer, hire a ghostwriter (college kids are pretty prolific) to write an ebook on a topic in your industry.

Why write an ebook?

1. It shows you know your stuff. If you’re in, say, marketing, and you write an ebook on email marketing, people get that you know all there is to know on the topic.
2. People need solutions. People spend hours every week searching for answers to their problems. If you can write an ebook that provides that solution, so much the better for you.
3. People spend money with people they trust. After reading your ebook, people trust you. Out of all the marketing people in the world, many trust me simply because I’m the one they read. Once they trust you, they will buy from you and stay loyal customers.

What do I write about?

No matter what industry you’re an expert in, you can probably make a list of problems people come to you about. For me, it’s how to generate publicity and SEO with press releases. For you, it may be understanding the difference between a regular and synthetic oil change. Or how to save money at the grocery store. Just think about those conversations you have over and over again with people, and think about the advice you churn out again and again. There’s your topic.

You may have several ebook topics, so write them down and save them for later.

Do I charge for my ebook?

This is a question of some debate. I currently charge for my ebooks, but many people give them away in order to get email addresses for their newsletter database. I say if you have a short ebook, just a few pages long, give it away. Anything longer, sell it. But remember: you have to promote it (something I’m actually not very good at). People won’t buy it if they don’t know about your ebooks.

Once you’ve written (or had written) your ebook, play it up! Use it in your bio (Susan Payton has written several ebooks on marketing…) and make sure your website has a clear link to where they can access the ebooks.

From here, maybe you’ll get the writing bug and start churning out print books too!

Do you write ebooks? If so, share a link to them with us!

Posted in How To Tuesday

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