Business mentor: Get a book into print and boost your credibility

Q. I bought a long-established business (28 years old) two years ago and started writing a book on the history of the company. We have a good story to tell and I thought a book would be a good way of capturing it in a format that can also help us market the business. However, I've been distracted and it seems to have got a bit hard. Are there people out there who could help me move this book project along? 

A. Warwick Grey, of book production company Egan Reid, replies:

When I tell people I meet that I am in the book business, almost everyone says they have a half-finished book but are not confident enough to finish the job or don't know how to obtain professional support.

It may not be the first thing you think about as part of your marketing plan, yet one of the fastest ways a small business can build market credibility is by having a book in print.

A book allows you to tell your full story with facts and figures or with humour and human interest and, when the book is complete, you can then secure publicity from newspapers, magazines, television and radio programmes, bookshops and business-related websites.

It can create a great tie-in to your website and firmly establishes your credibility as an expert in your field. It will also give you a competitive advantage to be the published expert in your subject area.

Once the book is completed, you can choose new prospects in your target market, send them a copy and, in all likelihood, achieve a much greater impact than you would expect.

Despite the pervasiveness of the internet and the early fears among publishers that it might be the death-knell of printed words, the opposite has occurred. Although computers have expanded options for obtaining information, consumers still prefer paper.

So who could benefit from a book to support their business? Well, if you want to call yourself an expert in your field, speak at conferences or seminars, write for publications or just need to impress your business community, then a book will certainly work for you.

A book allows you to add a value to your brand equity. Once you are known in a specific field one book can grow into a series.

In New Zealand, Martin Hawes has shown how this can evolve. His titles include Secrets of Investment Success, 7 Ways To Beat The Market and Money and Divorce.

Debbie Mayo-Smith has also become a successful author of customer communications books. Her latest title, Unclogging Your In-Box, will be released in June, and supports her primary business of speaking engagements.

Often a writer will seek a literary agent who would tout the book concept to publishers, but it is possible to go direct to some publishers. They usually want only a book outline and details about you, the book and the potential market. For all things to do with finding agents and publishers in New Zealand have a look at www.authors.org.nz or www.eganreid.com.

One of the difficulties you might face is that you don't have any writing skills, but that doesn't matter today as there are professionals who can provide most of the back-up you may need.

Be aware most agents and publishers reject more than 95 per cent of the unsolicited manuscripts sent to them because they all have their own specialist genres. It pays to research agents and publishers online in advance.

Finding a commercial publisher is the best way to go because they have the contacts, experience, sales and distribution services to help your book succeed.

However, if you cannot get an agent or publisher to accept your proposal, you can publish your book yourself.

If that's what you decide to do, the four things you must consider are:

* Working out a budget.

* Planning your sales and distribution strategies.

* Working out a timetable and marketing plan.

* Contact a specialist book design and production company.

Egan Reid and other book production specialists can provide an end-to-end support service by providing writers, designers, editors, illustrators and printers.

More questions on this topic can be directed to Warwick Grey, of Egan Reid: Ph 09 3784100