Well Hello There Modern Authors,
I got into a little bit of a heated conversation this week on a call.
I'm usually pretty mild mannered on calls, but it was with an author who had published a book a few years back and it flopped... like only a dozen copies sold flopped even though he'd spent a ton of time and money on the book.
He blamed the marketing.
I told him, "I think you were trying to be too clever. And you wound up with a book that didn't spark conversations."
"No, everyone loved the book," he insisted. "If I had a better marketing team like Dan Pink or Simon Sinek, I'd be Dan Pink or Simon Sinek."
“You’re right,” I said, pausing. “Dan and Simon had world-class marketing teams… their readers. Word of mouth built their brands.”
I could see the shift in his face. So I kept going.
“If you want your book to spread today, your big idea has to do two things:
It needs to be simple enough to understand quickly, and different enough to make someone want to share it.
Not clever. Not complicated.
Simple, clear, and just intriguing enough that people talk about it to sound smart.”
If your reader can’t explain it in one sentence, they won’t talk about it. If they don’t feel smart sharing it, they won’t spread it.
And I get why that individual was frustrated. Like most aspiring authors and thought leaders, he was chasing the same dream:
- Write a great book.
- Share valuable content.
- Build trust.
- Attract clients, gigs, and opportunities.
And yet, somewhere along the way… they stall.
They build credibility... but not demand.
They have ideas... but not a system.
They show up... but they don’t stand out.
And it’s not because they aren’t good. It’s because they’re playing the wrong game. They don't create word of mouth?
In this article I'm going to break down what I shared with this author about how to create word of mouth from you readers.
To do this, you have to become "the only"...
Let's break it down.
The Invisible Threat: Becoming “One Of”
Here’s the risk no one talks about in the creator economy:
If your book, your offer, or your brand feels like it could belong to anyone… it won’t belong to anyone.
It becomes nice. Helpful. Smart.
But not essential.
Not magnetic.
Not uncopyable.
I think of people today I can recommend easily...
- Justin Welch is the "only" who gives tools and content for the Solopreneur
- Angela Duckworth is the "only" who teaches about the power of Grit.
- Bob Burg is the "only" who talks about being the Go-Giver.
Why this matters? You become instantly recommendable.
It’s what happens when you write a “business book” or a “leadership book” or a “memoir with lessons.” You blend into the background, even if the book is good.
What you want is clarity... and it's that clarity that creates instant separation.
- “Oh, you’re the one who teaches companies how to design conflict into innovation.”
- “You’re the one who helps authors turn their books into recurring revenue ecosystems.”
- “You’re the one who built a whole coaching system around unspoken power dynamics on teams.”
This is what it means to become the only. You occupy a space no one else can credibly claim.
It's not clever.
It's not marketing.
It's recommendability.
You Don’t Need Better Marketing.
There's often this gap I see in any knowledge entrepreneur. You're able to get some clients, some traction, some leads, and some scale.
And the next play is investing in marketing. They assume the fix is tactical:
- “Maybe I need a better email list.”
- “Maybe I should post more often.”
- “Maybe I need a new funnel.”
But tactics aren’t the problem.
The problem is category confusion.
You’re selling your knowledge like it’s a product... something people compare, price shop, and Google alternatives for. It's really difficult to market and sell generic consulting service or leadership training or executive coaching to people you don't know.
But Modern Authors don’t sell products. They sell problems only they can solve.
That’s what a category is.
It shifts the conversation from “how much is this?” to “where do I sign?”
It makes recommendability marketable. Your customers can refer you easier. Your marketing can amplify their testimonials.
Marketing only works if you can amplify what's already simple and unique.
What It Looks Like to Be “The Only”
Let me show you how this plays out in real life. Think back to the three individuals I discussed earlier:
- Justin Welch is the "only" who gives tools and content for the Solopreneur
- Angela Duckworth is the "only" who teaches about the power of Grit.
- Bob Burg is the "only" who talks about being the Go-Giver.
Why do you think I talk about being a Modern Author?
Why do I teach people to become Super Mentors?
Like those three, my aim is to be "the only"... most authors at their “the best” looks like this:
- Great content
- High-value free resources
- A credible book
- Some podcast appearances
- A decent social presence
A Modern Author who is “the only” looks like this:
- A book that defines a category
- A system that solves a high-stakes problem
- A business model built around that system
- A platform that constantly reinforces their unique lens
- Clients and partners who say, “I’ve never seen this before”
- Testimonials that use your language, your framework, your system in their description of you
Being “the best” makes you impressive.
Being “the only” makes you recommendable.
Putting this to Practice for Modern Authors & Thought Leaders
If you're writing a book, launching a consulting practice, designing a coaching platform, or selling any type of knowledge-based service, here's what you do:
Give people language they didn’t have before.
A lens they want to share. A flag they want to fly.
And here’s how you do that:
Step 1: Define What You Make Possible
Every Modern Author who builds a category does one of two things:
They teach people how to do something differently,
or they help them be someone new.
These are the two most powerful types of category-defining books.
A. The “Action Shift” Book or Offer
Examples:
- Start With Why → How to lead by purpose, not profit
- Brave the Wilderness → How to stand alone and stay true
- Lean In → How to step forward when you’ve been told to hold back
- Think Fast and Slow → How to understand your own mind’s hidden biases
These authors didn’t just explain a skill.
They reframed how we think about action.
B. The “Identity Shift” Book or Offer
Examples:
- Outliers → You’re not just successful, but you’re the product of hidden forces
- Originals → You don’t have to fit in to lead
- The Go-Giver → You grow by giving, not grabbing
- Untamed → You don’t have to follow anyone else’s rules to thrive
These authors didn’t give people steps.
They gave people permission.
Step 2: Build Your System Around That Shift
Once you’ve clarified your big promise, what you help people do or become, you have to engineer how they get there.
This is where your book becomes the blueprint for everything:
- Your frameworks teach your belief system
- Your offers deliver transformation, not just access
- Your marketing makes people feel like insiders
- Your branding reinforces your POV, not your résumé
Too many authors launch their book, then scramble to build a funnel.
But real category builders reverse it:
Ask yourself:
- What identity are you inviting readers to step into?
- What outcome are you uniquely helping them achieve?
- What roadmap do you walk them through to get there?
When you answer those three questions, you unlock the core engine of your category.
And you stop being “a coach” or “an expert”...
You become a guide to a new kind of future.
This is why I encourage authors to give away their book to anyone who's willing to read it. Don't spam it out there, but don't make paying for it on Amazon as the gate. Ask if they want to read it and instantly send them the PDF. Ask if they listen to Audiobooks, then give it away to them.
Build your system around giving them your new language.
Step 3: Tie Everything Back to the Category (Relentlessly)
Now comes the part most people skip:
Once you define it: you double down.
You tie your entire ecosystem back to your one idea. Over and over.
Because categories aren’t built through cleverness.
They’re built through consistency.
Every product, every client conversation, every podcast interview, every visual, every diagram... it all drives belief in the same thing:
That’s why people pay premium rates.
That’s why speaking gigs find you.
That’s why content spreads organically.
That’s why your name shows up on shortlists.
You become relentless in amplifying whatever makes you "the only."
And you do it until everyone who knows you instinctively says... "oh, you're doing ____."
And then you keep doing it.
Real Talk: Being “The Only” Isn’t a Vibe. It’s a System.
A Modern Author doesn’t just publish a book.
They build a platform around a lens.
And that platform becomes the business.
Here’s what it looks like in practice:
TL;DR: Want to Build a Category? Do This:
- Do you help people do something new or become someone new?
- Define the path. Design the transformation. Turn your lens into a roadmap.
- Be relentless in repetition. Tie your book, brand, business model, and marketing to the same clear, ownable idea.
Because Here’s the Truth:
You don’t need a “better book.”
You don’t need a “better funnel.”
You need a bolder lens, and a commitment to build around it.
That’s how categories are born.
And that’s how Modern Authors stop chasing, and start leading.
Final Word
Thanks to the author who sparked this article... and funny enough, he's even committed to work on his next book with our fall author community.
I appreciated his willingness to listen and learn... and not quickly blame the game, but instead learn the new rules that others already playing.
It's never fun to have your ideas, your offers, your books, or your initiates fail to realize their potential. I get it... and frankly, it feels hard to understand why you see others thriving.
Don’t focus on being better. Don't try to be clever.
Focus on being:
- Different.
- Remembered.
- Uncopyable.
Wake up knowing
And if you're struggling to figure out how to turn your best into the only... reach out and I'm happy to see if I can help you. It ain't easy, but it's sometimes darn near impossible when you're trying to do it alone.
Happy Writing Y'all. And be different!
Eric
Originally published in The Modern Author newsletter.
