“If you don't contribute, you don't matter” celebrates its first year

In the end it is as if it were a son. A book of your own, paper, becomes one of the milestones of your life. My book "If you don't contribute, it doesn't matter" celebrates its first year, and I wanted to celebrate it with you as the occasion deserves: with certain lessons learned. 

If you're short on time, I'll sum it up for you in a minute:

The challenge is not that they buy the book, is that they read it

How right is the writer Neus Arqués in her book "Marketing for writers" (Alienta, 2021) when he says "that they read us will be more important than publishing".

Few non-fiction authors publish with the intention of earning a living. Maybe if you carry 14 works behind your back you can do it, but as a rule, who is not a professional writer seeks to disseminate knowledge, position itself in a specific market or also present a portfolio of services in a veiled way.

So, who we publish, what we want is for it to be read, and don't think that's so normal. I myself must admit that some books I have bought because they have to be in my library by the time the time comes.

The title is important, very important

Let me tell you what was the inspiration for the title "If you do not contribute, don't matter..

The title book is based on a basic principle that for me is a personal mantra.: 

Whatever you do, if you don't contribute, you don't matter

At this point, I must make a confession: I thought that for the subtitle, not for the title. And Francisco Alcaide (he does make a living from his books."Learning from the best") he advised me to change the order and raise "If you do not contribute, you don't matter". Thank you Paco, good advice from a friend.

And an anecdote: initially the editors suggested I "positivize" the title by calling it "If you contribute, you import". It didn't take me long to convince them that reverse psychology works., and that the negative "sells", if not, what would the press live on??

Marketing never ends

Think that when the book is in bookstores - physical or virtual- you have already finished the job is a mistake. In fact, I would say that this is where the party begins.

The book has to be sold in bookstores, they say you are what you sell. If not, soon they stop sning and already work on express order.

I use Twitter and Instagram a lot to move the book, but perhaps the best idea I had was to create a website with an exclusive area of readers.

In www.sinoaportasnoimportas.com I present the book, the places where it can be found, a synopsis, the most important reviews, the presentation video...

but there is a unique area that is accessed with a key related to the content of the book. And there are downloadable templates, videos referred to in the book, Infographics, Stories, interesting links...

Less is more (also in books)

It took me years to write the book, I'm embarrassed to tell you how many. And that happens when you are not clear about the "solver" of the book, your value proposition, the reason someone would read it.

He wrote it and destroyed it.. And it started again. And so three times. I wanted to cover too much.

I finally decided what the difference would be between "If you don't contribute"., you don't matter" and other books under the umbrella of personal branding: apply my vision and my experience in branding, brand management, and focus on the value proposition, which makes us eligible.

Words are important

It's not what you think. I mean sometimes we offer something whose name doesn't match what people are looking for.. For example: personal branding or its result, the personal brand, is still very unknown or mistakenly associated with an excess of personal promotion.

I wanted to avoid that the word personal branding or personal branding were in the title, because it could confuse. Nor the word "value proposition". So I chose a phrase that provokes a reflection such as "If you do not contribute, you don't matter."

Find a good publisher

That, it is important that you find a good publisher, and if you can't find it, self-publishing. It is now possible to do it on a multitude of platforms. That's for sure., if you haven't done it before, hire someone who has done it many times, Believe me, you'll save time and money.

I will not deny that publishing with an editorial has many advantages, as the distribution that facilitates the physical presence of the book in bookstores, department stores... Another is the prestige of the publisher itself (if you have it, Of course), and another is that you have help in one part of the process.

The main advantages of self-publishing (I have self-edited a book, as "The Black Pill") are the speed, you do not have to wait a year after the delivery of the manuscript, and perhaps the most important, is that you own the rights. That allows you to control the paper book., the e-book and audiobook, making it easy to reach the entire planet the same day you launch the book. And another advantage is that self-publishing is business, since your percentage goes from a -approx- 10% to 60%… Not bad, No?

Always remember who you're directing the book to

The book is not addressed to those who are going to give you their opinion. Probably not addressing your relatives, professional friends or colleagues. Target your customers, which in this case we will call like-minded readers.

It's an important issue., as sometimes we may be tempted to use language incomprehensible to someone outside our industry. It is key to include examples of what you explain and some exercise (what is read is remembered for a while, what is done is memorized). 

"If you do not contribute you do not matter" celebrates its first year, and I hope it's still there

"If you don't contribute, no importas" is a book in which I was obsessed that there was a very clear proposal of value, since, deep down, it's about that, of value proposition, which makes us eligible.

I think my competitive contribution is in my knowledge of the brand world. 25 years in branding and 16 in Personal Branding they have inspired me so that people who read it know how to face their personal brand diagnosis, your personal brand strategy, and your personal brand communication plan to be, At last, chosen in a project that makes them excited.

Here's the podcast. You can hear it in iVoox, Spotify, And Apple Podcast.

Stock Photos from Whole Hearted / Shutterstock

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Monday 18 October, Pedro Soriano interviews me live on Instagram at 7:30 afternoon Spanish time, with the talk entitled How can we work on digital prestige? Follow us on the user @enfermero_enred

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