In a digital age in which everyone can share their ideas and thoughts online, it’s no surprise that the internet is chock full of content – and unfortunately, a good proportion of it isn’t exactly what you’d call intelligent… So how do you share your expertise in a way that actually engages people? 

One option is so simple it’s almost old school – write a book. 

While writing a book can seem terrifying if you’re not a writer, there are several reasons why it’s worthwhile for thought leaders to extend their knowledge and skills to the publishing world. Let’s take a look at what those are:

A book elevates your ideas

Writing and publishing a book is a bold move that takes plenty of time, energy, and effort. People assume that if you’ve gone through the journey of putting together a book, you must have something important to say that requires a larger platform than a blog post – and they’re usually right. Transforming your thoughts, ideas, insights, and opinions into a book immediately elevates them to a higher level of seriousness, and readers are likely to be more receptive to your ideas. 

Writing a book also means you can put all of your concepts and guiding principles in one place. People are unlikely to collect all your magazine columns or bookmark all of your blog posts, but a book means all your insights are between two covers and easily collated for people to access all at once. 

Many people talk about writing a book but never get around to it, so actually putting one together can help you emerge as a leader in your area of work. 

A book keeps your audience engaged

When your writing is published on a website, it’s fighting against the crowded tab bar at the top of the reader’s screen. People’s attention is divided, and they can easily click off if something rings or pings to distract them. 

Your audience can’t disregard a book in the same way. It’s still special to hold a physical, tangible book in your hands and it’s so much easier to become engaged with what you’re reading. Readers can put it down, pick it up, highlight it, (literally) bookmark it, and interact and connect with it in a way you still can’t get online. They’ll keep returning to a tangible book in a more personal sense than opening up a blog post. For this reason, a book holds the audience’s attention in a much more personal and intimate way. 

A book helps you reach more people

What’s more, you can think of a book as a publicity platform. It’s an exciting way to get your name out there, and if crafted carefully, a book can be an excellent marketing tool for your brand or business. Whether you sell it after speaking gigs, use it as a resource in your workshops, or simply promote it on Facebook as a great book to buy, there are plenty of opportunities to reach more people, as well as better connect with the people you’re already in front of. The power of a book is that it doesn’t disappear after someone’s clicked away – we pass on books, tell our friends and colleagues about them… Think of how many new people your ideas might reach, even years later, when new people continue to stumble across it? 

A book helps you leave behind a legacy

Digital content can get lost in the jungle that is the internet. Similarly, a magazine column may be great for raising awareness but can still get discarded when people throw the edition away at the end of the month, or when they’re spring cleaning. In contrast, books hold a much more permanent status. Books have a tangible legacy that people will still be reading in the years to come. 

Why not?

We often meet people who say something along the lines of, “I’d love to write a book, but I don’t think I’ve done enough to justify it. Who’d want to read it?”

Writing a book is an immensely intimidating thing to do. It’s one thing to pour your ideas and unique insights onto the page, but it’s another thing entirely when you think about who might read it. However, we have to say, if you’re already having these thoughts, you’re exactly the right kind of person to be writing a book. These kinds of questions and doubts indicate a level of self awareness that shows you’re already thinking critically about your potential audience and what they need to hear. You’re already well into the process of planning a book!

At the end of the day, why not? If you’ve got something important and new to say, let it be heard in one of the most effective ways possible. 

Here at Intelligent Ink, we’re passionate about working with thought leaders to craft their books and can offer different levels of support. Whether you just want to get the ball rolling, need help developing a structure, want assistance editing, or require a ghostwriter for all of your content, we’re here to make the book-writing process easy. Get in touch to find out more.