How Authors Build Authority When Anyone Can Publish with Sarah Bean

Words are cheap now, but trust is not. When anyone can publish a book in an afternoon and AI can mimic almost any style, the real question becomes: why should a reader choose you? 

We sit down with Sarah Bean, a marketing expert at Book Launchers with 20+ years in publishing and entertainment and more than 800 author launches behind her. Together, we challenge the romantic myth that “a great book sells itself” and get honest about what happens after the manuscript. You’ll hear why modern authors must think like CEOs of their intellectual property, how your backstory becomes your brand origin story, and why your book is usually a trampoline to the next level, speaking, workshops, courses, leads, or a stronger professional reputation. 

Then we zoom into authority building in the age of AI search. Sarah breaks down how generative engine optimization (GEO) and AI recommendations are changing discoverability, and why you need to define the one question you are the answer to. We also talk practical, unglamorous platform moves: a website as your hub, simple content with transcripts, and consistent publishing on the channels where your readers already are. Finally, we cover how to use AI for speed without losing your voice, and why networking still beats cold outreach for real opportunities. 

If you’re writing a nonfiction book, self-publishing, or trying to grow an author platform with real thought leadership, this conversation gives you a clear plan and the permission to stay human. Subscribe, share this with someone sitting on a book idea, and leave a review with the one question you want your name to be known for.

Transcript

When Words Become Cheap

SPEAKER_00 0:14

Dear listeners, here's a strange thing about moment that we are living in. Like, anyone can write a book now. Yeah, it's quite easy right now, right? Anyone can publish it in an afternoon, and increasingly anyone can ask a machine to write it for them. Which sounds like a great democratization of authorship. And in some ways it is. But it has also created quite a crisis. Because when everyone can produce the words, the words stop being thing that actually matters. And what matters is something a machine cannot manufacture. The actual human behind them, the real story, the reason this person and not the algorithm had to write this particular thing. So the question underneath is all of it becomes surprisingly old-fashioned in a world which is drowning in content, and how does a real human voice still get heard?

Meet Sarah Bean And Her Lens

SPEAKER_00 1:23

So hey dear listeners, welcome back to another powerful episode of Mind Meets Machine. I'm your host, Avik, and this is the podcast where we sit right at the I'd say scene between human creativity and the technology that is reshaping it. And tonight we are talking about something close to a lot of people who are listening right now. The dream of writing a book, building authority, being known for what you actually know and what that dream looks like now that AI can intimate, or I I'd say imitate, not intimate, so imitate almost everything except the one thing that counts. So we'll get into it, but we have a very lovely guest with us today. Uh please welcome Sarah Bean. Welcome to the show.

SPEAKER_01 2:11

Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 2:14

Amazing, amazing. And uh lessons, before we delve deep into the discussion, I'd quickly love to introduce with Sarah. So Sarah is the marketing expert at Book Launches with over 20 years in publishing and entertainment, and she's helped more than 800 authors launch and market their books. So she uh started in the uh lift department of a global booking agency, became a speaking agent representing the best-selling authors, celebrities, athletes, and business leaders, produced live events including TEDx, and even covered red carpets as an entertainment journalist. So, a lot too much of your time, dear listeners. Let's just start. Welcome to the show, you can sit up.

SPEAKER_01 3:00

Thank you so much. Yes, that's a great info. Yep. I've been in publishing for over 20 years and seen all parts of it and seen the evolution in what has happened between how books were published 25-30 years ago and how they're being published today. Yeah, it's been quite a ride.

SPEAKER_00 3:15

Exactly.

Writing Is Not The Hard Part

SPEAKER_00 3:16

Exactly. Thank you so much for joining us and definitely would love to take advantage of your experience. And so so I want to start with something it's a misconception, right? So uh because I think it is one of I mean that uh that derails most first-time authors before they even begin. So people believe that the hard part is writing the book.

SPEAKER_01 3:40

Right.

SPEAKER_00 3:41

That once the manuscript is done, the work is basically over the world and uh yeah, we'll will somehow find it. But I have a feeling that from where you where you are, uh that's almost kind of backwards. So if you can if you can share, right? Like I mean, yeah, w what do most authors fundamentally misunderstanding this all of this?

SPEAKER_01 4:03

I mean, I think you nailed it. I think you nailed it when you said that most authors think the hard part is writing the book. It's actually well after that that comes the real work. And I'll tell you why. I mean, I think it's mainly a lot of authors. Now, this is a little bit different whether you're talking about fiction or nonfiction, but a lot of authors want to say, well, I'm an author, not a marketer, or I'm an author, not a business person. But in a world that is drowning in content, as you say, in order for a book to be noticed, you have to be able to treat it like a business. And so what authors need to understand, especially self-publishing indie authors need to understand, is that you are effectively starting a business. You are effectively becoming the CEO of a business that is in ideas. You have IP, you have property that you are selling. And so, in order to get those ideas out there, you have to build a little bit of a business and marketing and a little bit of a platform behind it to get it in front of the right people so that your book can help the people that it's intended to. And so I think that is the misconception is that the hard part is writing the book. It's that's once that part's done, you have to do a whole lot of other things to get those ideas out into the world. And so it's important to start thinking like a business.

SPEAKER_00 5:23

Exactly. Exactly. So, like when an author comes to you with that belief still intact, so how do you gently break the news to them?

SPEAKER_01 5:33

Well, I think the great news for authors out there that just heard what I said and cringed and died a little bit inside. I think the nice thing is that there are so many now organizations or services out there that can help them with that, book launchers being one of them. That if an author comes to us and they're like, I don't have the knowledge or the capability or the bandwidth to be able to market my book effectively, be able to get it out there. There are people that you can work with that will do it for you, that will do it with you. So there are services out there that can help someone along the way. There are organizations or companies like Book Launchers that bring together experts to ensure that that book is produced in such a top quality way that it is available in the market everywhere that it needs to be, and then can help you build the pieces around the platform so that it can sell and it can actually do what it was intended to do. So when someone comes to me and they're like, I don't know what the next step is, that's when I say you work with me because I know how to do those things and I can help you and help you build it in a way where it is a natural, excuse me, a natural and seamless fit into your brand.

SPEAKER_00 6:46

I mean, obviously, like uh it cracks because uh I think there's this uh romantic idea that that's uh that's a great book sells itself, and what you're saying is far more human and far less magical. So the book is uh obviously beginning of a relationship, not the end of the project. So and and and if you if you just go a bit uh inside into it, like the marketing tactics underneath. So and and also about the stag bestseller, right? So bestseller strategies. So there's something more fundamental, yeah. I mean, more fundamental that you you are really helping people find that which is their actual identity as an author, their brand. But in the trust, in the uh kind of truest sense of that word. So when you sit with an author, what's the deeper thing you are actually trying to kind of excavate?

Unearthing Brand Story And Goals

SPEAKER_00 7:47

Like uh what is the real work beneath the marketing work?

SPEAKER_01 7:51

I I think you you said excavate, and that's a great way to put it because that is what I do. I work with all of our authors to dig beneath the surface, right? It's not just enough to want to write a book. Why do you want to write that book? What do you want that book to do, either for you, for people, for your audience, for you know, individuals. And a lot of times what I end up doing is uncovering something that is within their backstory, their background, their experiences, their perspective that make them the right person to write that book. It's not enough just to write a book. You in order to sell that book, you have to be able to prove why you were the right person to listen to. And so I spent a great deal amount of time with my clients really breaking down what it is in their story that brought them to this point, because that thing that is in their story that brings them to the point becomes part of their brand origin story. It becomes their identity as an author. It's what others really connect to and react with or see themselves in. And so we spent a lot of time on that. We spent a lot of time on goals. Everyone writes a book for a different reason. Some want it to be a bestseller, some don't care about bestseller, but they want to use the book to get on stages. Others want it for lead generation for their business. Others want to just write books because they love to write books. So everybody's got different motivation. And the marketing for that book needs to follow that. It needs to use those goals as a compass. There's no one size fits all marketing for every book. There's not one magic phrase that you slap on a book tagline and suddenly it flies off the shelves. It doesn't work like that. So narrowing down their goals and what it is they're really trying to build. The book is rarely the end game. It's usually the jumping off. It's the trampoline that is going to get them to that next level. And that next level could be in the form of courses or workbooks, retreats, speaking engagements, you know, workshops. It could be a lot of different things. And so you need to make sure that when you're working on that book and you're marketing it, that you're marketing it with that goal in mind. So you know how to position things correctly. And that's what we spend a lot of time doing.

SPEAKER_00 10:07

Exactly. And and also like I have to bring I mean into into this discussion is like you named it yourself as a topic, and like I I think it's the question for the moment that uh building authority in the age of AI, right?

Authority In AI Search And GEO

SPEAKER_00 10:25

So when right we we are now in a world where a machine can draft a kind of competent book in an afternoon.

SPEAKER_01 10:33

Right, right.

SPEAKER_00 10:34

Every platform with the content, they can flood it with the contents and imitate almost any style, any tone, right? So in that world, what actually makes a human author stand out anymore?

SPEAKER_01 10:47

Well, it's a great question because as we're seeing everything turn towards GEO, generative engine optimization. Google just released their new frameworks, right, for what they want websites to follow so that you know AI can can read and recommend people effectively. And this is something that we really take a look at is how do you become an authority? How do you become the voice that AI recommends to others? You know, and it really has to go back to what the reader is starting to do. The reader is no longer, you know, just finding books on the bookshelf. They're going to AI and saying and asking for specific answers to their questions. And so, how do you become that voice that AI recommends? And a lot of that has to do with beyond just the book, it is in order to become that authority that AI recommends, you need to, as an author, determine what is the one question that I am the answer to. It can be as something as simple as I help leaders, or you know, I help mid-level employees recover after failed promotions, or I help leaders reconnect to their love of spirit so that they can become better leaders. Whatever it is, whatever it is that you do that is specific, your book should reflect that. Your website, website needs to reflect that. The content you put out needs to reflect that. Then when someone goes to AI and says, How do I recover after failing to get a promotion? You're the one that they recommend. Oh, if you look at Sarah's framework on, you know, here are the five steps on what to do after you don't get that promotion, you suddenly become an answer. But you have to be very clear and very strategic because that content needs to be used sort of everywhere. So it's interesting because we're not reinventing the wheel when it comes to positioning or branding. We're simply now having to look at it as what is the way that my reader is going to find me? And how can I position my content so that it's easily picked up by AI? It's looking at AI as a tool. How can I use this to my advantage so that I'm getting to the people that I know I can help? Now, I will say when AI is out there flooding the market with content, everything is so much simpler, easier now. You can do things in a fraction of the time. But at the end of the day, it still has to be you that is being represented. So it's what I really encourage a lot of our authors to do. I don't discourage using AI for marketing. I think it can be an incredible asset, but you still have to look at it, put it through the human filter, and sure that it actually sounds like you, that it's actually giving your information out there before you, you know, no cut and paste just straight from AI into, you know, your LinkedIn posts. Please. Make sure you're putting it through the human filter. And by all means, my Lord, please do not use AI to edit your content because that's the step where you're losing the humanness in it. Once you ask, once you write a draft and you ask AI to fix it, you're losing all of the things that make it yours. So it's a really interesting give and take. You have to ensure that everything that you are putting out is representing who you are, what you do, and who you want to help. Instead of letting AI do that for you, you use the AI as a tool to make some of the steps faster. But you still need to go through and show that it's 100% accurate for who you are and what you do.

SPEAKER_00 14:36

Exactly. And I mean, he I totally agree on this, but still, like, how will you how will you re revert to people who say that I know like when I'm writing a book, uh, I know what want to mention in the inside the book, what I want to share with people. But to save my time, I am taking help of AI just to strengthen things, just to make things easier for me, so that what I was doing in five days, I can do in one day. Kind of. So how will you how will you yeah, this? Yeah.

Use AI As A Tool

SPEAKER_01 15:13

Yeah, I mean, I think that's a great way to think about it. I mean, AI can save you a lot of tasks that used to be sort of draining and difficult to do. They could take a lot of those things off your plate and do it in a fraction amount of the time. I think your book becomes a content goldmine, right? So every idea that's in there, every single concept, the key theme or or idea that you're trying to get across, every chapter is a goldmine of content. And one of the things that you can do is maybe give AI a chapter, ask it for the main ideas out of each of those chapters, then ask it, okay, give me an outline for a blog post, give me five social media posts out of this, you know, get me, get me a new lead magnet based on this concept. So give me five video scripts that I can create out of this. And it can do that in the fraction of the time. Then you're still the one that's going to be producing the work, right? AI videos, I think people are catching on to those pretty quickly. Um, what we're tending to find is a rise in engagement on videos that are coming from humans. You know, just that sloppy, I'm speaking to you in my selfie cam, you know, as I'm walking down the street, videos are getting higher engagement than those highly polished AI avatar videos that are out.

SPEAKER_00 16:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:27

People want humans. We want to hear from the humans. And so I would use AI to give me script ideas or to give me, you know, content ideas, but you still have to be the face. You still have to be the present entity within it. Um, and so I also also always encourage my authors to take a look on your channels. What's getting the most engagement? Is it that AI content you put out, or is it that video of you walking down the street talking about how pretty the leaves were that day? Like that content is what people are really reacting to and wanting to connect with. So I encourage all authors or all creators out there, look at what people are engaging with most before you just assume AI can create an accurate plan for you.

SPEAKER_00 17:13

Exactly. That's interesting. Yeah. And obviously, so like, and also I want to make this uh real for the listeners now, like because authority building can some, I mean, sound abstract until it touches an actual person's week, right? So if you can take us into a kind of everyday version, like for someone who is listening, who has expertise, a story, maybe even a finished manuscript, also, but no platform and no idea where

Platform Basics For Real People

SPEAKER_00 17:41

to start. So, what does the real and unglamorous Tuesday afternoon work of building authority actually look like?

SPEAKER_01 17:50

Right. I and it's a great question and something my authors deal with all the time. We get a lot of people that come in and they don't have a website. Maybe they have social media for their friends, but they don't have a platform. And that idea of, oh, I'm an authority that has to have a platform sounds really scary. But when you break it down into simple pieces, platform just represents how you were showing up in the marketplace. Okay. It's showing who you are, what you do, and who you help. So the simplest thing I tell people is to just start with a website. That becomes sort of your hub. Okay. That's what the machines are gonna be reading. AI is gonna immediately want to connect you with that idea. So they're gonna look for websites. Now, on that website, you can be doing things as simple as blog posts or video content that can be there that has transcripts with it so the AI can read it. Start with those small pieces. Now, when it goes to looking at how do I start to build an audience, well, you have to look at who is the audience you're trying to attract and what is your closest avenue to them. And a lot of times it starts with your friends and family. They may not be buying your leadership book or they may not be your ideal reader for, you know, maybe that health and wellness book, but chances are they know somebody who is. So start with just speaking, even to just that small audience of friends. From there, start to build out slowly. Now, I used to be able to say to my authors who would come to me and say, Yeah, I don't want to, I don't want to be on social media, I don't want to do it, I've never enjoyed it. I used to be able to say to them, okay, well, then you have to find another avenue to connect with your readers, and that can be in real world situations. Maybe it's library events, maybe it's in your local community. Um, but unfortunately, with the days of AI, as I was already talking a little bit about AI discoverability and how LLMs recommend people, in order to really start to connect with the people that you want to, you have to start having a presence online. Start with very simple content, one or two posts a week, right? And like I already said, if you already have a book, you have content gold mine. Start talking about the ideas, start getting them out there. Um, start connecting with people and networking with people. One of the best ways to grow a platform is to network and to go out to events that have your target reader or start understanding who are the other authors, speakers, and thought leaders that are in this space. Get familiar with them, know what they're talking about, share it. It's really step by step. It's not about going from zero to 10,000 followers in an overnight. It's about building small steps and putting the foundation in place so that they can come, is the build it and they can come idea. So at the bare minimum, you have to have a website and some type of social media presence. Now, the great news, like I mentioned earlier, for those authors who don't want to think of themselves as business people, there are services that are out there that'll do it for you. There are people that'll build websites, there are teams that can build your social media plan. So you don't have to do it all yourself. You can delegate this to people who are really good at it.

unknown 21:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:03

So I usually recommend some of those small steps. Just start with a website. Start with a website and putting some content out on just, you know, do it for like three months straight and then see how you feel about it. I don't think you have to be on every single platform. I don't think you have to be on all 50 different social media sites, but you do need to be on the ones where your target reader exists. Especially if your end goal is to be a speaker. This is one of the biggest things that I think is a hurdle for people because they want to be on stages talking to people, but they don't want to build the platform that showcases their ability to do that. Buyers are looking for proven entities. They want to have someone come speak on their stage to their audience that they can trust. Without a website, without social media, without regular content, without validation from third parties, it's really hard. To get that proof of cross. So I would go back to your end goals and say, okay, well, if my end goal is to be on a stage, I'm gonna need to be able to have a buyer look at me very quickly and easily and understand why I'm the perfect person for that stage, because I already have a credible track record as a thought leader in this space. And it's hard to do that without a digital footprint.

SPEAKER_00 22:24

Exactly. Very true.

Networking As The Best ROI

SPEAKER_00 22:27

And also, like uh I mean part of that work most people want to skip. And that part, I mean the part that actually matters the most, what is it?

SPEAKER_01 22:38

I would say networking is probably the single best ROI you're gonna have for your time and your effort. Because if let's put it this way, every time you go to an event, you have the opportunity to meet somebody that either you can help or potentially they can help you. Now it's important to not go into any of these situations with a transactional mindset. You need to go in with an open mindset. I don't know who I'm going to meet, but I welcome the opportunities they may bring into, you know, whoever it might be. And so by going and networking, not only are you going to start to understand a lot more about your category. Let's say you are writing about business development or business leadership. Join a local leadership networking group. Right? Join a local small business organization. Go to those events. Understand in real time what are the challenges they're dealing with, what are the problems that they have? Can you offer solutions? You never know what door might open. You might get a podcast interview, you might get an invite to go to another event. You might get an invite to come speak to an organization because you had an interesting conversation with someone. Deals are made in face-to-face situations. Rarely are things made because you sent a cold email out to someone who had never heard of you. Deals are made when someone meets you face to face and they understand your energy and they understand immediately how you can benefit their life. So networking can be one of your strongest tools. And the great news is it's something you can do for relatively inexpensive. You don't have to invest a lot of money or time into going to local events or national events or conferences or events. Not only are you going to learn, but you're going to meet more people who are doing cool, exciting, interesting things that you maybe had not even considered. So I recommend everybody carve out the time for networking, meeting the other people that are in your industry, follow up with them afterwards, add them on LinkedIn, check in with them after a couple months, set up coffees and talk dates and opportunities to hang out afterwards. And again, you want to make sure you're never going into it with, oh, I want something out of this person. It is, let's connect, let's see where we're aligned. Let's see what you need help with that maybe I can provide for you. Some of the best deals that have happened in my career have just been over fun conversations I've had with people, you know, dinners with people or coffees with people that I met at events. And over the course of talking, you start to realize here are all of these cool opportunities that come from this connection point. So networking, hugely valuable.

Be The Answer To One Question

SPEAKER_00 25:28

And so today, people who are listening, or maybe they'll be listening later as well. If you have to give one advice, one constructive advice, what that would be.

SPEAKER_01 25:38

I would say for those of you that are out there that are hoping to write a book or launch a book or are just looking to get your ideas out into the market, whether that's through content or videos or otherwise, go back to that idea of how are you the answer to a question? What are the questions? What's the one big question that if somebody put it into Chat GPT or to Google that you would want your name to pop up at? Be specific with that question and then carefully craft how you are the answer and put that information everywhere. Put it in your bios, on your website, in your social media profiles. You would be surprised at the recommendations that come to your door when you are not afraid to niche down and really showcase why you're the best person to answer that question.

SPEAKER_00 26:27

That's really amazing. And also if listeners want to connect with you, what absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 26:32

I would love for anybody to reach out if they have further questions. You can reach out to us at booklaunchers.com or send an email to team at booklaunchers.com. I'll get all of that. You can check out book launchers on all social platforms at booklaunchers. I also highly recommend people check out our YouTube channel. We have hundreds of videos there about self-publishing and all of the things that you need to know to be able to produce the best book you can. That's booklaunchers.com.

SPEAKER_00 27:01

Amazing. So, dear listeners, what I'll do is I'll put all the links and the details into the show notes for easy reference. And if there is one thing that I want anyone who of you are listening to carry from today's conversation is like in a world where machines can make the words, the most valuable thing you have is not about your ability to produce content, it's your humanity, like we were discussing. Like people love to meet human. I mean, you can take the help of AI for to make your things speedy, but it's human. Human is always something which people prefer. And yeah, we also we we we do not uh believe someone uh robot or a machine is just selling us or explaining us, right? So we will always think of talking to a human because when so suppose just take an example, a very uh I mean very common example, like whenever we purchase something or we take some services from any any site, right? And we get some issues, we try to connect with their customer service, but are not are not we get irritated when we are not getting a human response every time we get something.

SPEAKER_01 28:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 28:16

Myself, I I I definitely get irritated sometimes. Like, I don't need to know all those links and go check that. I just want someone to just help me, right? So that is a very good example to understand. So, yeah, people love to connect with humans, and it's your humanity, your story, your reason, and the lived experience, no algorithm can fake. So use the tools, but don't let them carry the part that was only ever yours to carry.

SPEAKER_01 28:45

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 28:46

Exactly. So uh thank you so much, this was exactly the conversation I hope it would be, and practical and human at the same time, like which which is definitely a rare uh combination. And I think a lot of people who are listening and people will be listening later also, like just got the permission and the clarity that they have been waiting for. So, everyone who is listening, if there's a book in you or maybe a story that you have been quietly carrying, then let today be the nudge. The machines are not going to write the only uh or one and only uh you can write. Notice which part of the conversation uh stayed with you and share it with someone who's been talking about their book someday or too long, right? So maybe someday is closer than they think. So, with this hope, this is your host, Avik, and this is Mind Meets Machine. We will definitely meet you back here soon. Until then, make the thing all e you can make. So, thank you so much.

SPEAKER_01 29:46

Thank you for having me.