How to Best Use Your Book as Powerful Marketing Tool - BM348

[Susan Friedmann]
 Welcome to Book Marketing Mentors, the weekly podcast where you learn proven strategies, tools, ideas, and tips from the masters every week. I introduced you to a marketing master who will share their expertise to help you market and sell more books. 

 Today, my special guest is Ford Saeks. Ford started his first business at 15 years old and has been succeeding ever since. He's redefined the formula for business growth. His efforts have helped companies generate more than a billion dollars in sales worldwide, from startups to Fortune 500.

 Ford is widely recognized as a business growth expert with over 30 years of experience ranging from retail to wholesale. He's founded more than ten companies, authored four books, secured three US. Patents, and earned numerous industry awards. 

 A National Speaker Association colleague and someone I've admired for many years, ford, what an absolute pleasure it is to welcome you to the show and thank you for being this week's guest expert and mentor.
 
 Ford Saeks
 I'm excited to be here, Susan. I mean, people ask me a lot of questions about leveraging the power of their books, especially nonfiction authors. 
So this will be great. Can't wait.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 And since you yourself have been an author and you've worked with hundreds of authors yourself, let's look at some of the major challenges that you find that authors today face really getting seen out there in the marketplace.
 
 Ford Saeks
 Well, certainly when it comes to nonfiction authors, I always tell people that you want to be an expert first. Whether you're an author, speaker, trainer, coach, consultant, information marketer, or influencer, whatever your identity is to those labels, you're really an expert first. And so your book is just another method of packaging your value. Where do I think a lot of authors miss the mark they might be content experts, but they still need to remember how do you promote your book, and how do you leverage your book in other ways to cross-promote. And we'll get into that, I'm sure, with the questions you ask. The biggest mistake I see authors make is they're not using their book as a marketing tool to really position them to build brand equity.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 And I think that's so important. And something that I emphasize during my coaching and training programs with my authors is exactly that because they write the book and then they have this tool and they think, well, the book, just because it's been published somehow, is magically going to sell their expertise for them. There is a lot of disappointment when that doesn't happen. Talk to us more about getting out there into the marketplace, really using this book strategically, as you said so that it can provide the value that's needed for your specific target audience.
 
 Ford Saeks
 Perfect. So what we'll be talking about today is going to be perfect for those authors that are already published, maybe those emerging authors and maybe those top producers that they've done several different books, but they're just leveraging their expertise. So the first thing is to really remember that, to repurpose and repackage your content. So let's say you've got your book and it's in, let's just say, two dozen chapters. Well, those two dozen chapters are two dozen articles. They're excerpts from your book. 

 They're videos that you could turn into videos or video shorts. You want to take the content, repackage, repurpose it, and turn it into a lead magnet. So let's just detour for a second. You might say, before, this is about book mentoring. Well, you should have a lead magnet for your book if you ask yourself to look at your book title. So for those of you listening, grab your books right now, or grab your document where you have your titles and look at the title and subtitle of your book and ask yourself, what are the top ten or 15 questions that my book answers? 

 And then ask yourself, how could you create a special report, a PDF, an infographic, a download, or some other way of packaging that content that you can give away for free, that after you've given them the content, you can say, this is an excerpt from XYZ Book and it's available on Amazon or your website. You want to use content from your book as bait in the water for prospects to be able to consume. That builds trust and credibility, as well as obviously encourages book sales, as well as increases your position in the marketplace. Repurposing repackaging your content using the chapter content and then making it into multiple purposes. So if you have a podcast or like me, today, I'm a guest, I'm a guest on Susan's podcast. So I'm sharing my expertise. 

 For those of you that might not know who I am, you can just Google my name. Ford. S-A-E-K-S. Ford Saeks. And then you'll be able to say, oh, well, who is this guy? What does he do? 

 And you can visit Primeconcepts.com or you can visit Profitrichesults.com. Well, what podcasts should you be on? I could talk for hours on how to leverage your book for marketing, but start with what are the top 1525 questions that you get asked most frequently. Pull excerpts from your book, expand on that content, and then I also recommend that I'll turn it back over to you in a second so that you create supplemental content based on the book that you can use as bonuses. 

 Could you do an introduction to your topic as a video? Then have a landing page on your website that says, get a copy of my book on Amazon, come back and put your receipt number, it doesn't even matter if it's a real receipt because you don't care. You're just trying to capture leads and say, you're going to get instant access to my online vault or my toolkit or my guidebook or my bonuses. And then that way you're capturing the names of the people who bought the books. I want to slow down just to tell you this, and then I'll turn it back to Susan. If you're selling books on Amazon, we don't get those names. 

Those customers are Amazon customers. It's essential that in your book you're putting some device to encourage them to go to your website and to opt in on your list to get something of value based on your book, whether it's a checklist or survey or template or a form or questionnaire or bonus videos. That way, when someone buys the book on Amazon, in the book, you're encouraging them to go to the page, and then from there, they can download it. So for me, for example, my book is Super Power. So I have a website, Superpowerbook. com well, that's just a link that goes to the page on my website. 

When you buy the book, inside the book, there's a handbook, and you guys can go get it. If you want to see an example of a landing page, go to Superpowerbook.com It's just a PDF document that allows you to go along with the chapters in the book. At the end of each chapter, I say, hey, now is a great time to fill out your exercises in your Hero handbook. Get it @superpowerbook.com. It's a way to capture those names and do it. So I covered a lot. I know I speak fast, but that's why you want to go back. 

 You want to subscribe to this podcast and also get these episodes so you can pause it, take notes, and then, of course, ask questions because Susan will answer them on future episodes.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 Oh, my goodness. This is already folks, we're barely 5-10 minutes into the interview, and you have to go back and just relisten to what Ford has shared so far. The brilliance, too, is to listen to how Ford has been such a model podcast guest because the number of times he shared links with you that lead back to something that he wants to share with you so that you can find out more about him. Just analyzing the way Ford has structured this, which I'm sure he does with all his interviews, is just pure brilliant. So ford. Fantastic. One thing that, as you were talking about this, and this is a challenge that many of my authors who I coach and train talk about, is this fear of sharing material for free. Because frightened if they do that, that they're not going to then purchase the book. Can you address that, please?
 
 Ford Saeks
 I certainly will. First, I'm going to play a sound effect, because that's just all wrong, let me tell you. If you've got content and you're worried about sharing it for free and they're not going to buy your book, then you probably don't have a perspective. There's no way that any of us listening to this or listening to rebroadcast could give away everything for free anyway. It's just like saying a musician shouldn't play their songs on their radio. 

 They should only have concerts. Well, that's just not true. Giving away your content for free establishes trust and builds what's called reputational equity. There may be a certain formula or certain process that you want to save for the book or the repurposing of the book in your model. But it's important that you give away content through either gated or non gated. 

 So I mentioned earlier the word lead magnet. That's just a fancy way of saying something of value to get the customer or the prospect to give you their name or their address. If I say, get the special tips@superpowerbook. com, I can give away the tips all day long. But you're not going to be able to really leverage the tips without going and getting the book right. 

 I would just say you're listening to the wrong advice. Be careful. As someone who's trying to promote your business, or a nonfiction author listening to the wrong people, or drinking the Kool-Aid from someone who doesn't know what they're talking about. I've helped clients sell millions of books. I haven't sold millions of books, so I'm going to be straightforward. 

 But I'm in my niche. My keynote fee is 25 grand. I use my book as a book marketing tool to get keynote presentations. The keynote presentations lead to high-end consulting funnels and lead clients through Prime Concepts. So my book has a different purpose. 

 Your book might have a different purpose. You really want to ask yourself a bigger question, which is not how do you give the content away for free, but how does your book fit into your revenue model? What is your revenue model? What do you have that's free or at no cost? And then of course, you have your book, which could be priced at whatever price point you have. 

 And have you taken your book and made it into multiple format? And then has the book been turned into a master class or a home study course? Or has it turned into a high-end consulting? So your book should fit in your marketing plan and decide that's a device, how do they consume it? So, for example, when I did Superpower, it positions me for high-end keynote. 

 So the title is Superpower a Superhero's Guide to Business Leadership in Life. At the end of the day, it's a mindset book. How do you develop a success mindset to be successful? And the reason I wrote Business Leadership in Life is I want to be positioned as that opening keynote speaker or positioned as someone that they can bring into any organization. The reason I added the Life part is that I also wanted to be applicable to someone who might just want a book that isn't really in business. 

 Even though my target market is businesses. What if they're just a staff member? I wanted to make it relevant for them too. So, for you, how are you multipurpose in your book? Do you have it in audible kindle paperback and in hardcover. 

 So one of the great things about print on demand I'm going to shift gears for a second as a nonfiction author. Hopefully, you've done print on demand either through what's called Ingram Spark. And this is not an endorsement for any one service, by the way. Full disclaimer. This podcast is for educational and informational purposes only. 

 Do your due diligence before you spend any money. And I'm responsible to you, not for you and anything I say. If you love it, then give Susan credit. If you hate it, then just blame me. Okay, so back to how do you publish print on demand? 

 Well, I don't want to make this podcast about this, but for example, Ingram Spark allows you to have the paperback version and the hardback version on print on demand, which means it goes straight to 60 booksellers, including Amazon. And then that way, if someone wants the hardback book, they can buy the hardback book. But gone are the days of filling your garage or closet with a bunch of inventory that you're stuck with. Now, if you're an author that has done that, then you need to really look at how do I promote my book in such a way that's going to bring me other business? I'm going to stop here and just summarize. 

 How are you using your book in your marketing plan? What is your value ladder or product pyramid look like? How does your book fit? At what price point? And how have you repurposed and repackaged your book into methodologies that allow your readers to continue the journey? 

 So just spill the myth about giving it away for free. Give content away for free, but make sure there's a way for them to naturally continue the learning, just like I've done here. So, Susan alluded to the fact that I've seeded this presentation. I do it naturally. What is seeding? 

 Well, we've been talking now for 15 minutes. You already know I'm a keynote speaker. You already know I'm a consultant. You know that I have two different websites because I mentioned them. You know that I work one on one with people. 

 I've been able to softly introduce resources, deliver expertise, but then seed it so the listeners can go, oh, I didn't realize Ford did consulting. I should check him out. Or, I didn't realize that I could bring him into my organization, or I didn't realize he is an agency that could help me promote my book or turn it into a master class. 

Now, what do I do in the last 30 seconds? 

I just seed it again. 

Right. 

So back to you, Susan.
 [Susan Friedmann]
 It's like all these seeds. We're going to have a field.
 
 Ford Saeks
 Yes, we are. And it's going to grow. It's going to grow prosperously.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 It certainly is the Ford field. This is why you fortify. I believe that's what your podcast is. Ford, one of the brilliant things that you've been saying, but one pinpoint. You talked about using your book to get keynote speeches. And I know that many of my authors, that is something that they want to do. They want to build a credibility in the marketplace, build a reputation, and get speaking engagements. How do they even go about doing that?
 
 Ford Saeks
 One, you want to have a good book. So let's assume that your book is already value added, that you have a great title, a great subtitle, and it's on your website. Then let's talk about how do you leverage it? Well, before you get hired as a speaker, you definitely want to look at five different things if you want to be successful in the speaking business. Number one, you've got to have massive expertise. You've got to really develop your expertise. 

Number two, you've got to be great on the platform. You have to know how do you communicate the expertise, because there's a lot of authors that are content experts, but you need to know how to deliver it. So you need to have effective presentation skills and the ability to interact with an audience and know your content inside and outside so you can deliver it with confidence and deliver real value. Because they don't want the content in the book or the speech. They want the result of it. So one, you have to have expertise. 

Two, you've got to be great on stage. Three, you've got to have a revenue model. What's your revenue model? What do you sell? There are a lot of people who are speakers that want to consult and consultants who want to speak. I say throw that out. 

 That doesn't matter. What you want to focus on is be an expert first, because speaking, training, coaching, consulting, learning management systems, and membership websites, are just delivery methods of your content. So focus on your overarching expertise. And then, of course, you've got to have an effective digital footprint. What's a digital footprint? Sounds fancy, right? 

 Well, what shows up when someone Googles your name? Do you have Google reviews? Do you have business directory listings? What shows up in the search engines? What does your website look like? If I went to your website, is it just talking about your book? 

 Or is it positioning the expertise you have? And then of course, your social media. What shows up on LinkedIn? What's your LinkedIn profile look like? How many times do you repurpose and repackage your content on LinkedIn and YouTube and then YouTube shorts? And then, of course, there's Facebook and TikTok and Instagram and Snapchat and the new flavor of the week at Clubhouse. 

 It doesn't matter what those things are, just to distill this. If you want to use your book to leverage for speaking, you've got to focus on your expertise. You've got to be able to present. You have to have a revenue model that makes sense. You've got to have a digital footprint, and you have to take massive action on letting people know who you are because it's a crowded space right now. There's no shortage of authors, speakers, and experts. 

 Everybody with a computer calls themselves an author, and anybody with a business card is a speaker. The marketplace is oversaturated. And if you want to get fees the way you command, then you have to really learn this business, which is why Susan and I are both members of the National Speakers Association, because that's a foundation of how to use the spoken word to build your business. So if you want to check that out, it's Nsaspeaker. org. Or again, you can just google it, and there's probably a local chapter that you could go to a meeting. 

Now, this is an endorsement for NSA. NSA isn't all perfect. Not everybody in NSA is successful. So you need to do your due diligence. Just because they're a member doesn't mean anything. It's like joining the yellow pages. 

That will certainly give you some insights to do it. But back to the focus of this podcast. If you're going to really leverage your book, my question to you is, if you're smart and talented and you've written a good book and you're not promoting the book in different means through social media and the different things I said in your digital footprint, then maybe you don't care enough about trying to help people. Now, I know this seems kind of harsh for just a second. Let me clarify what I'm saying. I was working on my book for a long time, and I was not getting it done. 

Like a lot of you, I procrastinated, and I had the book, and I've got a second book that I'm actually writing now that I just got to finish, right? It said 80%. I just need to finish it. I was talking to my wife, and she's been going through all my seminars for years, and she said to me, do you care about your audience? And I was like, yeah, of course I care. I love them. 

I love how she goes, do you really? Why don't you get your book done? That was a really good point. I was waiting for it to be perfect. I was procrastinated is. I was using approach avoidance. 

I had imposter syndrome. I had all the fears of everybody else, even though I get paid a lot of money. And I was the founding member of the million dollar speakers group, which means I make seven figures speaking. And here I was afraid to get my book done because I was worried that it wouldn't be good enough. And I think that my message to you is done is better than perfect. I'm not saying use your due diligence. 

It depends on what your topic is about. Okay? Everybody use some common sense here. But done is more profitable than perfect. Maybe it's time to just get off the pot and actually get your book published or get your next book published or get your marketing plan or funnel published. So you can really use the book as a conduit to be noticed, recognized, and then that will get you hired. 

Because if your book is good, make sure in your book, not only are you crosspromoting a page where you can capture their names, but you're also positioning yourself and saying, when I worked with a speaking client or When I speak to audiences. So you want to seed your book just like I've been seeding here on this presentation, just like I do on any podcast or LinkedIn Live or anything else that I'm doing. It's where you're even in a keynote, and I'm going to share with you how to do that in a second. You should be sharing what else you do. So you never want to sell from stage as a keynote presenter. You don't want to pitch from stage and say, oh, you should hire me to do this, that, and the other thing. 

But what you can do is you can start with an origin story, which positions you as an expert, and then tell a story, make a point, tell a story, make a point, tell a story, make a point, and then close. That's a keynote. So you have an opening. You have three stories with three points and a closing. That's a keynote whether it's 45 minutes or 90 minutes. Now, the key is that you can't be the hero of all your stories. 

So even writing a book and this goes for how you do a nonfiction book. You shouldn't be the hero of all the stories. You should use an origin story that positions you as the expert to tell the story that's in the book. But then those other three stories in the middle or however many stories you want, should be how has someone taken the expertise that you've given and how have they used it and benefited? You're showing through example by making the prospect or the narrative, the characters in your story, they're the hero, how they've overcome their challenges. And then you're closing it by saying, I'm just like you. 

If you use these strategies, tactics and methodologies and apply them into your again, depends on what your book is about, then you can have similar results. 

So I just gave you a basic storyboard for a book, but it's also a storyboard for a speech. 

Back to you, Susan. 

[Susan Friedmann]
 It's like, okay, which direction do we go?
 
 Ford Saeks
 Anywhere you want to go. This is your podcast.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 No, I know. One of the things that came up as you were talking, you talked about the fears, the imposter syndrome. I think that fuels the idea of a marketing mindset that's often something that, again, authors have challenges with. They don't want to seem salesy. They don't want to be out there sort of, oh yeah, I wrote a book, and expect people to get so excited about it. Let's just take a few minutes and delve into this whole idea of a marketing mindset as it pertains to nonfiction authors.
 
 Ford Saeks
 I would start with a formula. And this is a formula that you've seen me speak about for decades. And it's three words. So get your pens out everybody. 

If you're driving, obviously wait till you get home. Method, market and message. So the message, we'll start with that your message is what's the value of your book? What's the reason that they should read the book? 

What's the compelling reason that they would crawl over broken glass to buy your book or to read your book to solve a problem? Give them the headache, sell them the aspirin? So what's your message? That's number one, this is a part of a formula. 

Number two, who needs to hear this message? And I don't mean everybody could read the book, I mean specifically, what role are they in in their organization? Are they a business owner? Are they a staff member? 

Are they a stay at home mom? Whatever it is for you, whatever your topic is. But how much do you really know about your ideal client profile, the people who should be purchasing the book? And how much do you know about the people who influence the purchase and make the purchase? 

Because you need to make sure that the narrative, the message, the brand story that you have about your book and the topic of your book is closely targeted to how your prospects think about their problem. And then what's your method? Well, your method is how are you going to get that message to the market? Well, your book is the method in this case. 

So if you're going to have the book, then you need to ask yourself, how can I get in front of my target market with something that's relevant that's going to make them pay attention so they do it. So it starts with that mindset. First you have to create a list of all the reasons why someone needs your book that's going to help you stay focused on why you need to promote your book. Because publishing the book is 10%, 90% is marketing. 

I've got tons of authors, there's new authors every day. I'm sure there's new stats from an association that tells you how many books get published every day. But I'm just going to throw out a number. I'm going to say 80% are never going to sell more than 5000 copies because they're not being promoted properly. 

The key is how are you going to have that mindset to do it? So you have to believe unconditionally that your book solves a problem and you need to stay focused on that. I recommend creating a sales dictionary where you write down all the reasons why someone needs the book. What is it going to do for them? 

So, for example, the Superpower book, well, it helps with leadership management, team building culture, customer experience, dealing with change. It helps with employee engagement and retention. It helps with overcoming fears and breaking through barriers. It helps with people who are in business, entrepreneurs, small business owners. 

It helps with franchise organizations, which I speak to and brands. So it's a book that is a part of a success library to help people work on their mindset. So it depends on what your book is about. But as Susan mentioned, developing the marketing mindset is nothing more than having the confidence and the reasoning of why your book is important. 

And the reason I said you should have a document is so that on those days where you feel a little disillusioned or maybe you're struggling to promote, you go back and you reconnect to the driving force of why did you write the book in the first place? What is the book about and who does it help? More importantly, in that cell dictionary to help with the mindset is you want to ask yourself, what are the compelling reasons why someone needs this book? Because you need to be able to articulate it. 

The biggest mistake I think authors make is they assume that someone's going to just see the book title and buy the book. The marketplace is overcrowded. I mean, just while you're listening to this podcast, I'm sure your phone is ringing, your iPhone messages, your emails popped up, whatever it is, for you to get distracted or delusional about what's going on right now. And so if you want to stand out, you've got to be an unabashed marketer. 

You have to have an opinion. You have to be willing to create some haters and be controversial in a good way. Please use this effectively to what I'm saying. I'm not saying go off to be a crazy person, but you definitely want to be to be noticed, you're going to have to be a little controversial and opinionated. 

Otherwise you're a commodity. And none of us want to be a commodity. So if you want a marketing mindset, you have to practice it, develop it, and create the resources around it by putting yourself out there on a regular basis. And that will give you the confidence. 

So one of the action steps you could take for a mindset is go Google the podcast that you want to be interviewed on. Susan is a producer of this podcast. I'm an expert in content marketing. I'm a book publisher. 

So she has me on as a featured guest. 

I get 30 minutes to help add value and then that helps me reach new market. 

Right, so where should you be interviewed? 

Where should you be positioning yourself so you can take content and share your expertise? 

[Susan Friedmann]
 Susan wow, I can't wait to get all of this transcribed because this is just gold dust. The idea of a sales dictionary, I think, is brilliant. So that you write down, as you said, these reminders of, why did I write the book? Who is it for? What is the. Value of my book. I think we often underestimate, really, the true value of what we've spent time, energy, and money into producing and getting this book out there. And by the way, stats show that the average author in his or her lifetime might only sell 250 books, which is pathetic. So your 5000 was way high.
 
 Ford Saeks
 Well, see, again, the reason I'm saying 5000 is because me, as a keynote speaker, if an average audience is 500 people, I don't have to sell ten speeches at 500. And they've sold the 5000 books, right? So I'm looking at it with a much higher number. But back to your sales dictionary. I think it's important that not only do you write down all the reasons, but you need to have the economics behind what your books solve. Name a couple of topics, Susan, that you know that some of your authors, some of people in your community have written about. Just name a topic.
 
 [Susan Friedmann]
 Oh, got a lot of motivation. People who were on drugs or were alcoholics and overcame their addictions.
 
 Ford Saeks
 All right, let's just put something in the cell dictionary. So let's assume that we're an author who has written an inspirational book of overcoming some enormous obstacle, whatever it was. Well, how do you repackage and repurpose that? 

 Well, organizations are dealing with overwhelming change right now. They're dealing with the fact that they're trying to attract and retain and engage their employees right now that people are going through enormous changes. Just what's going on in the community and with the government and with elections and you name it, spin the bottle. 

 There are a million different topics. So if you're someone who wrote about those, then you need to understand the economics. The economics could be about their personal success, how do they feel about their purpose in life? 

 How are they approaching problems, and what strategies, tactics, and methodologies did you develop that you used, which is why you wrote the book? It's great if you tell me the story of how you climbed Mount Everest, but I don't want you to tell me about how you climbed Mount Everest or overcame some enormous obstacle in your life. I want you to give me the methodology. 

 I want you to make it relatable to me. How can I take that and repurpose it in my life, or how can I apply it in my life to make a difference? So economics is the part I want to get to. 

 You need to know, what's the economic pain point. So in order for someone to spend money, they have to want what you're offering more than the cost of your book or coaching program or whatever thing that you sell right. In your sales dictionary. 

 You want to get to the pain point. So, for example, I was working with a speaker on employee engagement, and I said, well, do you know how much it costs an organization if they lose a top talent? And they're like, no. 

 And I said, well, you need to do the research. I'll give you some basic numbers. The basic numbers are that 70% of most people are disengaged or unhappy in their current job and looking for a job. 

 If a business loses an employee, it takes six months minimum of their wages to replace them, to get the new person back up to speed. Well, then you have to ask yourself, what was their salary? Six months to three years? 

 Actually, you can economically say, well, every time you lose an employee, it's costing you 100 grand or 50 grand or ten, whatever the number is. You need to bring down the pain points to economics, so that when you're talking to your audiences, whether it says a keynote or as an author, for someone to buy books for everybody in their organization or to offer your book to an association or put it in their library. You have to have the economic pain or the emotional pain measured so that they look at the cost of your book and realize it's nothing. 

 So for me, I'll give you an example. My keynote fee is 25 grand. You can google it. 

 That's what it is as of the recording. Now, in a year, it will probably go up to 35,000. 

 Why should someone spend $25,000 to listen to me for 45 minutes? 

 Well, I speak on mindset, strategy, and tactics. Without the proper mindset, all the strategies and tactics in the world won't work. 

 So when I go and I'm up for a speech for an organization, I can address the three biggest challenges, which is, if it's a mindset, I'm there. 

 If it's strategy, I'm there. 

 If it's tactical, I'm there. 

 You have to, as an author, look at what your market wants and what are the economic pain points. 

And the more closely you can describe what those pain points are to your audience, the more they understand that you understand them, and then that's more likely they're going to buy your coaching program or go through your master class or whatever the next step is of your book. 

[Susan Friedmann]
 Wow, you've mentioned it several times. However, if listeners wanted to find out more about you, what's the best way forward?
 
 Ford Saeks
They can go to any social media platform and connect with me there. Just Google my name.

Or they can go to Profitrichresults. com.

They can fill out the contact form there. But I recommend that your listers connect with me on social media.

Join me. Live Wednesdays where I go live on LinkedIn at 11:00 a. m central.

You can tune in where I cover key topics around business growth and marketing and sales and leadership and customer experience. I also have featured guests on there too, and then that's repurposed on multiple platforms on LinkedIn and YouTube and Facebook and Facebook pages.

It's really about connecting. So ask me your biggest, tough question.

For those of you on this podcast that want to talk to me. You can do 15 with Ford, the number one five with Ford, and that will get you access to my calendar.

We'll have a one-on-one confidential conversation about your specific needs. Now, what is that?

That's a lead magnet, right? I'm saying, okay, all your listeners can go to 15withford.com and grab 15 minutes on my calendar where we can chat about what you're trying to do in your business or as an author, and then you can get on a call with me. Now, there's no obligation for that.

And I'm not just going to sell you something, but that gives you a chance to continue the journey.

Let's break that down.

Susan has me as a guest.

This is her podcast, this is her brand.

Obviously, go to Susan or anything, use her resources first.

But if she's going to bring a featured guest in, she's offered me the opportunity to say, okay, where can they learn more?

Yes, you can go to my website, but I want to make it better than that.

I want to go a step above that to say if you're serious about growing your business, go to 15 with Ford.

com and grab a spot on my calendar.
[Susan Friedmann]
Fabulous. As you know, we always end with a golden nugget. Just one little takeaway out of all the hundreds of things that you've shared, but if there was one thing that you wanted to leave our listeners with Ford, what would that be?
 
Ford Saeks
I would say done is more profitable than perfect. Whatever it is that's on your to-do list, whatever it is you have on your action plan that you keep putting off, get it done. Start taking action. Because done is more profitable than perfect. You'll find that your confidence will grow, your business will grow, and your expertise will expand. You'll grow your business by taking action, by realizing that getting it done, whatever it is for you, whatever the action step is, so done is more profitable than perfect.
 
[Susan Friedmann]
Fantastic. Well, thank you. Listen, you're going to have to listen to this umpteen times so that you can even grasp the half of what Ford shared with us today. I mean, these are gems beyond gems of wisdom, his years in this business. And he shared them so generously. 

So thank you so much for it, for that. 

 And by the way, if your book isn't selling the way you wanted to or expected to, let you and I jump on a call together to brainstorm ways to ramp up those sales. You've invested a lot of time, energy, and money and it's time you got the return you were hoping for. So go to brainstormwithsusan.com to schedule your free call. In the meantime, I hope this powerful interview sparks some ideas you can use to sell more books.

Until next week, wishing you much book and author marketing success. 

Here's how to connect and book your complimentary 15-minute consultation with Ford 15withford.com
Alternatively, visit his website PrimeConcepts.com

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