5 1/2 steps to get expert endorsements for your book

One of the questions that I get asked a lot is:

‘How do I get a ‘famous’ or ‘expert’ endorsement for my book?‘

And when I’m asked this question, my reply is to just ask them!

But there is more to it than this, which is what I’ll be sharing with you in this post.

Actually it’s not so much getting this expert endorsement; it’s about aligning yourself with influential people in your industry.

It’s about these people supporting and praising your book, where they give you a fabulous foreword, a rave review or a glowing testimonial.

Or perhaps you want to feature a celebrity or well known person in your book that will enable you to get some brilliant insights and specialist contribution.

For my first book, The Secrets of Successful Coaches, I did just that. I contacted 11 successful coaches to interview them to find out their secrets.  I’m often asked how I did this and guess what… all I did is asked.

And not many people know that I didn’t stop there. I then developed a product, where I interviewed 13 more coaches and learnt their best stuff too.

Also, I have had high profile people in my industry to write the forewords for my three books too.

Plus I’ve had well known professionals review my books and endorse them with their audiences.

And how did I do it? 

Here are the 5 (and a half) simple steps I took, and you can do the same.

1. Who do you want to endorse your book? 

Start by writing down your must-have endorser(s) for your book. Who are they and why are they important? What is it about this person that makes them a must?

These might be experts in your field, other professionals you admire, or celebrities who you’d love to be involved in your book.

When I wrote my first book, I really wanted to get Supercoach Michael Neill involved with my research, among other influential UK coaches. But as he charged $50k per year for his services (at the time), how could I get him on board? You’ll find out shortly.

2. How can you get in touch with this person? 

The next step is to look at how you can connect with this person. Who do you know who can put you in touch? Also don’t undervalue the power of social media in terms of getting this connection.

If they are in the public eye, you might want to go down the route of getting in touch with their agent, or of course, you could do what I did to grab the attention of Rachel Elnaugh.

When I approached Rachel Elnaugh (formerly of Dragon’s Den and Red Letter Days) to write the foreword for my second book, I sent her a Tweet as I know that she loves Twitter. And she said yes immediately.

When I approached Michael Neill to be interviewed (twice) for my first book and subsequent programme, I found two people in my network who could introduce me, and one of them did so. And he said yes immediately.

3. Ask for help! 

It may be a simple thing to say, but if you don’t ask, you don’t get!

If you want to be connected with an expert endorser, tell people in your networks about who you want to connect with and why.

When you get in front of your preferred person, tell them why you want their help and how they can do this easily.

Although I’d be specific with your timescales, which leads on to step 4.

4. Plan ahead and send a copy to agreed endorsers 

It’s important not to wait until your book is ready to seek endorsements.

When I emailed Lisa Turner to get her magnificent review for my new book, I sent her a PDF copy to read before it had been proof read and edited, even though I knew that the book wasn’t yet perfect. Ideally you’ll want to give people at least 6-8 weeks’ notice, and if necessary give them an indication of what you’d like them to say about your book.  I’ve certainly had people purchase my book because of Lisa’s review – and no, I didn’t write it for her!

You may not choose to send the whole book, but I do and it’s the choice of my endorsers to how much they read and whether they’d prefer to skim through the content.

Also, I suggest you allow time in your diary to follow up and remind your endorser if necessary, as these people are busy, and they might need a gentle nudge.

5. A thank you goes a long way 

For everyone who has reviewed my books or contributed to them, they have received a hard copy of the book as a thank you as a minimum.  I’m sure that you will appreciate that this person giving your book a stamp of approval, so don’t miss out on this vital step.

And this is where the half comes in… 

Because it’s not just about doing everything prior to getting the book published.  There are other ways you can continue to get endorsements after you’ve gone to print.

After publishing your book, who else do you want to connect with through your book? How could they help you and how could you help them?

Who could leave you an influential Amazon review?

I’ve sent copies of my book to many people  who I have later found have been singing my praises – and it’s helped me to get more clients, exposure and a bigger reach.

I’ve been invited to do telesummits and interviews, and I’ve always been willing to give a copy of my book and my time to people who are able to help.

Found this useful?

I’d love your comments on this blog post and to find out who you’d like to endorse your book. The world is getting smaller and who knows, one of the readers of my blog may know the person you want to connect with.