Write an e-book to kick up business or personal brand

Global tech guru Mike Elgan just posted on what he terms the e-book revolution in his column in Computerworld. There are six trends, he says, which are conspiring to drive e-books into the mainstream. Elgan, whose own blog, The Raw Feed, monitors the intersection of technology and culture, delivers some tidbits of practical reasons we might all be soon carrying a Kindle reader.  In short, already in play are the following trends:

1. The tanking economy: It's just cheaper to download
2. Environmental concerns: Hey - save a tree
3. The current publishing revolution: Mainstream old school publishing is struggling to stay afloat in a world that can deliver new info in an instant.
4. The rise in aggressive e-book marketing: See aforementioned #3
5. The shift from print to electronic everything.

The trend towards e-books has remained pretty much in the wings, but if what Elgan says is true, writing one is not such a far fetched marketing tool. Content is king, and if you've got something special and unique to share, you might not want to wait a year to share it with the masses through the typical publishing channels. Someone might beat you to it.

A few months back I posted on this topic - Raise Your Business Profile with an e-book,  when I interviewed Mary Martin Ph.D., who happens to be my sister and has ghost-written a few dozen books. At that link you'll find a WorkLife Nation Podcast (formerly WorkLife Monitor) which is about 8 minutes long. Mary and I dish on what you need to know before you head into e-book territory. I promise,  it's a great download of information from one of the funniest and smartest people I know.

And for those of you who are interested in the elements of writing a book or e-book from a publishers perspective, check out my post, Baby Boomer Takes Authors from Brainstorming to Bestseller, with HCI Books' Communications Director Kim Weiss. There's a WorkLife Nation podcast there as well.

Meantime, here are some benefits of publishing an e-Book:

• It has a fixed cost per book. Whether you produce one or 10,000, your cost doesn’t change.
• You don’t have to go through the obstacles and headaches involved in finding an agent and a publisher.
• You don’t have to wait on what might seem like an interminable queue, until it’s finally time to print your book.
• As soon as you release your book, your credibility as an expert in your field will rise exponentially.
• It gives you a reason to contact your customers and prospects.
• It can be used as a premium with a membership or subscription, and it can also be sold on your website, either as a whole or in parts.
• It creates added value for you.