| Articles |
|
Kansas City Star Entrepreneurs find that using their books as business cards increases credibility The next time you redo your business card, consider making it heavier. No, not just a heftier weight of paper, but heavier by about 200 pages. That’s right - use a book for a business card. Kansas City entrepreneurs who have converted their expertise into authorship report that books boost business. "Books can open doors for you," said Anne Baber, professional speaker and co-author of six books. Baber’s books include How To Fireproof Your Career: Survival Strategies for Volatile Times and Great Connections: Small Talk and Networking for Businesspeople. The Lenexa businesswoman recommends mailing books to prospective clients as a way to pique their interest and establish credibility ahead of time. Follow up with a phone call and you’ll find prospects willing to listen to what you have to offer, Baber said. Overland Park publisher Pola Firestone agreed with Baber. "Business-related books are marketing tools for their authors," Firestone said. Books can establish their authors as experts, create an increased demand for a company’s products and services, solidify customer loyalty, and distinguish the authors for the competition, Firestone said. For those considering writing and publishing their own books, Firestone has a 15-question checklist for writer wannabes. Included are considerations such as whether you have a vision for your life and your company that can benefit others, your desire to increase your company's visibility and revenue, and whether clients have ask you for more information. "Clients kept requesting more information," said Leslie Buterin in explaining her decision to write the book Secrets to Scheduling the Executive-Level Sales Call. Buterin is a business developer and corporate ministries pastor for Evangel Temple in Kansas City. She belongs to the National Speakers Association, an organization of experts who speak professionally. One of the association’s recommendations to its members is authorship as a way "to convert the messages of their speaking topics into marketable products." For Alan Weber, writing Desktop Database Marketing with Jack Schmid increased his credibility among colleges in the direct-marketing industry and won him the respect of students. Weber owns Data Plus Millennium, a database marketing and consulting firm in Prairie Village. He also teaches a class in database management and design at the University of Kansas. His 270-page book serves as the textbook for the class. Marketing to teachers of younger students, Cathy Newton filled a niche in education with her book, Risk It! Newton's book is about "empowering young people to be positive risk-takers in learning and life." The Platte City entrepreneur is a professional presenter and consultant to school districts. Believing that too much emphasis was placed on negative risk-taking among young people, Newton filled 187 pages with ideas about taking risks as a way of "challenging our selves to do better." Having the book available at her seminars has boosted Newton’s credibility and leaves members of the audience with a permanent source for information. Readers, however, aren’t the only ones enriched by books. "When you write a book, you’re forced to learn more," said Deborah Shouse, Prairie Village writer, speaker and conference coordinator. "The process itself makes you a better businessperson." Shouse helped write Working Woman’s Communications Survival Guide-now in its fifth printing-along with Ruth Herman Siress and Carolyn Riddle in 1994. Currently, Shouse is collaborating with Brookside antique dealer and appraiser Ron Zoglin on Antiquing for Dummies. Elizabeth Hoyt, a faculty member in the department of business and administration and economics at William Jewell College in Liberty, disagrees with those authors who compare books to business cards. "Writing a book is like taking out a giant billboard for yourself," Hoyt said. Hoyt wrote "How to Start a Business in Kansas City," in 1995. "The book has had a profound impact on my career," Hoyt said. College professors are evaluated every year on their scholarly activities, and writing a book has been a credit to her on campus, Hoyt said. The book has boosted her career as a consultant and speaker on entrepreneurship, too. The book was well received because the topic appealed to so many people, Hoyt said, and now people cede her expertise because of the book. "Just about everyone has thought about starting some kind of business," Hoyt said. "And many people have thought about writing a book someday."
|
|
Leslie Buterin, founder Top Dog
Consulting |