I Wrote a Book, Now What?

If you’re stuck thinking “I wrote a book, now what?” Here are 7 ways to give your book away to grow your business

On October 15th, 2024, I launched my book, Nonfiction Alchemy, to the world. I presented my gift to the masses with open hands… And the people received it. Phewww!

The launch went great. People bought (and actually started reading!) the book, it became an Amazon bestseller, and I received warm feedback from my community. It was a success beyond my expectations. 

But now that it’s been a few months since the launch, what’s next? Is it time for me to go and write the next book? Spoiler alert: Not yet! 

If you just launched a book (or if you have a book you need to birth from its cocoon) It’s time to market the durned thing. It’s time to keep getting it out there and grow your business. 

But how? Give copies away. 

Sales are a lag measure. You can’t affect sales directly. Yes, run ads for your book. Capture emails, build an online presence, host workshops, throw it at passersby, etc. But giving your book away is a strong core strategy. It’s the primary way to use your newfound golden goose.

You have control: Giving books away is a lead measure you have the power to influence. You have direct control over giving your book away. It’s an action step you can take, right now. 

Giving your book away does not cheapen it. But I get it; you spent time and money on the book so you deserve to get paid for it? Right? Of course! 

People are busy; they have too many books to read, too many people to talk to, and too many things to do. Giving your book doesn’t render all your time and energy moot. It’s your ticket to start the conversation.

If you cold-connect by sending a link to your book, is the person going to buy it? Of course not. They’re going to block you. And they should!

But if you reach out with an authentic desire to connect and to give back? To support them? To help them with their problems? Dang… You’re one step ahead, my friend. If even just one of those connections becomes a client (or refers you to someone else), you will make all that money back and then some. 

This is the beyond-the-book thinking smart nonfiction authors implement: it is not about royalties, it’s about what the book does for your business. 

Giving your book is the low hanging fruit that will help get your book into the right hands, will lead to more reviews, and will eventually lead to more sales. 

Now that you’re fired up for the possibilities, let’s figure out how to give away your book. 

Give it: How to Give Your Book away to More People

This is how and where to give more copies of your book away:

1. Always have a copy or two on hand: I keep a copy of my book in my bag. Then, if I ever get to chatting with someone about what I do, I can just hand them a signed copy of my book. 
2. Make new connections on social media: Strike up a conversation and chat with new connections. Comment on their posts. Offer to send them a copy of your book if they are interested. 
3. Share it as part of your onboarding process: If your book is a relevant part of your business, give the book away to new clients as part of their onboarding package. People love to get extra stuff, and this is only a bonus if the book helps them get started right away!
4. Give the book away to qualified prospects: Are you keeping track of your leads? You should be. Send a copy of your book to anyone in your pipeline that needs a touch from you.  
5. Reach out to past clients: Tell them you just wrote a book and would love to share it with them. This is a great way to follow up and reconnect!
6. Run a giveaway: You could give away copies of your book on a platform like Goodreads or run your own giveaway. I’ve not done this yet, but check out these case studies here and here (comment section info, so do your due diligence) for more. And this case study was for a fiction book, but I like the in-depth nature of the report. 
7. Donate your book: Give it away to your local library, local, bookstore, or even the writing group that kicked you out because you wouldn’t stop writing nature poetry: Again, give back and support your community. 

If you give your book away, you don’t need to worry so much about “selling” and “marketing.” It will happen almost as a side effect. 

Author Charlie “Tremendous” Jones shared this about how giving books away grew his business:

We gave away over 25,000 books last year. This is how it all started. Years ago, I discovered that people throw away your business card. I could never imagine that people would be dumb enough to spend money on something that people throw away. I am not brilliant, but I am not dumb either: I gave away books as a business card and wrote my name and phone number in the book. People never threw them away! So I have given away hundreds and hundreds of thousands of books over the years and people remember me around the world. Many people say, ‘You’re the first person who ever gave me a book.’ 

When you give your book away, people remember you. Every single time I give a copy of my books away, people get the biggest dang smile on their face. 

So, join in this joyful practice as a new author, and everyone wins. 

Good luck!

-Jordan

PS: if you want a great book, connect with me. I’ll help you get started with my book outlining course, or we can chat about a fully customized book-writing package.