If you have your own personal brand that you need to promote and put some real marketing power behind, self-publishing could be the best marketing strategy for you. A personal brand is different from other brands as it centers around who you are and what you represent. A personal brand can benefit greatly from self-publishing in ways other brands can’t. And, you will be surprised at just how accessible self-publishing is.
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Marketing for a Personal Brand
Marketing for your personal brand has its own set of unique challenges. You’re not just trying to promote a product, a service, or an experience – you are promoting yourself. It takes a little more creativity and intention to do this effectively. Whether you are a fitness coach, organizing guru, finance wizard, or life coach, you need to promote what you, specifically, can offer the world that others can’t.
This task is daunting for many as it requires a lot of self-exposure and building up your own credibility in your niche. Oftentimes it involves publishing videos, regularly posting on social media, doing webinars, giving away swag, or maybe partnering with other likeminded brands. As the face of your own personal brand, your involvement in the marketing process and exposure on multiple platforms is key.
One marketing strategy that has proven to work for many people with their own personal brands is self-publishing a book. Now, while this can seem like a hefty investment, in today’s fast-paced world, it is easier than ever and can be a huge benefit to the growth of your brand.
Self-Publishing as a Marketing Strategy for Entrepreneurs
Self-publishing is the process of printing and distributing your own book or even your own DVD. This kind of marketing can lead to great success for one’s personal brand. When Tim Ferriss self-published his book The Four Hour Work Week, its sales skyrocketed, and he basically became an overnight sensation. Everyone was talking about that book, and in turn, Feriss’ personal brand grew exponentially. He became famous through self-publishing.
Fear not though! You don’t have to come up with a brand-new concept from thin air. Many success stories begin with a professional simply publishing a book within their niche field. This can help a personal brand gain exposure and credibility, leading to things like public speaking opportunities at industry conferences or events.
Joe Dispenza, a medical professional specializing in neuroscience and mind-body medicine, is a great example of this. He published his book Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind and became an industry powerhouse with countless speaking appearances and now even holds his own retreats.
The point is, if you want to grow your own personal brand, self-publishing a book is one of the best ways to market yourself to consumers. The best part is, it is easily within your grasp to do so.
How Self-Publishing Works
Self-publishing is really just what it sounds like. Once your book (or other marketable product) is edited and formatted the way you envision, you can then get it printed and turned into a product ready to sell. Instead of going through a publisher who would take a cut of the revenue, you get to partner with a printer and distributor yourself. You get full say in the process and reap the financial benefits of having that control.
Step 1: Decide What to Publish
First things first: decide what you are going to publish. With self-publishing, you have a wide range of marketable options to choose from. You can choose a traditional hardcover book, a DVD, or even a workbook to go along with a course or online class you’ve created. Focus on whichever medium is the right fit to market your personal brand.
Step 2: Build a Customer List
Not working with a publishing company means that you don’t have the benefit of their built-in distribution tactics. However, you still have the power to get your published product into a multitude of hands. Building a customer list is the best way to do this, and there are many ways you can do it on your own.
Use your social media platform to garner contacts, have people sign up for a webinar that promotes your book, or create a weekly newsletter to build a solid following that is interested in your content. If you put the time and effort into pre-sales, you can come up with an expansive customer list to promote your book to.
Step 3: Manufacture Your Work
Actually getting your product manufactured is the most intensive and time-consuming part of this process. You want your work to be high-quality when the point is to promote your brand and services. If you want customers to trust you and be invested in what you’re producing, you have to have a superior product. To ensure you get the best self-published product possible, it’s important to choose a reputable, experienced printing/publishing company, like Print Bind Ship, to produce your product.
Step 4: Marketing & Distribution
Alright, here is the linchpin of self-publishing. You must get the marketing and distribution right. Without an effective marketing and distribution plan, all of the effort put into publishing your own work could be all for naught. That’s why it is so important to build your customer list before finishing the project.
In order for self-publishing to work as a marketing strategy, you need to have built-in customers ready to consume your product. To do this effectively, you’ll want to work with a company that is experienced in marketing fulfillment and distribution.
Self-Publishing with Help from a 3PL
Since self-publishing is an involved process, choosing a company that knows what they are doing is vital to your success. A lot of self-publishing companies require a minimum order. This causes many first-time self-publishers make the mistake of overstocking, which leaves them with hundreds of books sitting around. No one needs that kind of clutter in the living room or garage! Using a 3PL (Third Party Logistics) company can eliminate issues like this.
As a 3PL, Print Bind Ship does the hard work for you. They take care of production, packaging, inventory management, and shipping. This leaves you with the time and energy to focus on business growth. Like using your other platforms to drive the success of your personal brand. All the while your book is promoting you and even making a passive income.
How a 3PL Makes Self-Publishing a Cinch
With a 3PL company, the logistics of self-publishing are all accounted for while you, the entrepreneur, focus on your product. An experienced 3PL company provides you with a team of experts who have worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs before you. They know how to get your book into the hands of the right customers.
A good 3PL company manages: customer data; manufacturing of the product; warehousing and inventory; shipping and packing; custom packaging options; and order fulfillment. This means your self-publishing journey will be as smooth as it can possibly be.
Choose Print Bind Ship for Marketing a Personal Brand
Print Bind Ship is an experienced 3PL company that can provide you with what you need specifically for your brand. Contact Print Bind Ship today for a free consultation to see which solution will work best for you. Whether it’s through apparel, DVDs, books, direct mail marketing, or workbooks to go along with virtual workshops; Print Bind Ship can help you find the perfect solution to market your brand to the right customers. Don’t miss out on an opportunity to increase your sales and drive your business forward with a trusted self-publishing partner.