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How can professionals and other business owners distinguish themselves as a preferred choice in the marketplace? Prospective customers are bombarded with advertising both online and offline and with sales letters and other marketing communications. In many cases, it's hard to tell which would be the best choice.

One way to stand out from the crowd and establish yourself as an authority figure is to be the author of a book.

Marketing expert Mike Capuzzi says that, for many business owners, an ideal solution is to write a promotional short book, which he calls a "shook". A shook is designed to be read in about an hour, which is inviting for many time-pressed prospective customers.

In The Magic of Short Books, Mike explains the concept and process of producing a shook. This book also serves as a model of what a shook looks like.

The physical dimensions of shooks are smaller than other books. For example, one of my books is 6" by 9" and The Magic of Short Books is 5" by 7 3/4". The smaller size makes it inviting to carry in a pocket or purse and read on an airplane, bus, trolley, train, park bench or beach.

A shook is a great replacement for a business card. Prospective customers value them and are less likely to throw them away than a business card. If they aren't ready to take action now, they might put the book in their bookcase and refer to it later when they are ready.

A shook is an adaptation of the "magalog" that has been a very successful way to sell books and subscriptions for companies like Rodale and Bottom Line, Inc.

The purpose of a short book is to identify the problems that ideal customers are dealing with and the solutions that are offered by the author, without providing a lot of techical detail. (For example, dental patients don't want to become a dentist; they want a beautiful, healthy smile.)

A shook includes a "next step" – usually an offer of some type. For example, a service provider might offer a free or discounted initial consultation, with a satisfaction guarantee. At least an invitation to get additional information with contact information should be included.

For The Magic of Short Books, Mike Capuzzi offers a free online video training program and an invitation to consult with him about coaching for writing your own short book. I have seen and studied shooks that Mike guided to production and was very impressed with them.

Even before getting this book, I created my own publishing company and produced books to promote my CPA firm and found it to be an effective way to distinguish myself as an authority figure and attract clients.

I highly recommend that professionals and small business owners get a copy of The Magic of Short Books and create their own shooks.

Buy it on Amazon: The Magic of Short Books: Discover a Unique & Different Kind of Book to Attract Your Ideal Customer.

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