The material in this article was graciously provided by Peter Winick and his company, Thought Leadership Leverage. See the full ROI report here.
Is writing a business book worth it?
In 2024, four author service organizations—Amplify Publishing Group, Gotham Ghostwriters, Smith Publicity, and Thought Leadership Leverage (TLL)—surveyed 301 authors of business books and other nonfiction books.
They found that although business books rarely resulted in high royalties, the books boosted the authors’ credibility and visibility, leading to sizable increases in speaking, workshops, consulting, and other sources of revenue and impact.
Most critically, the study found that, on average, having a clear marketing strategy doubled the ROI of publishing a book.
Here are some of their key findings (shared with their permission):
Authors had various goals
To define a book’s return on investment, we first need to know what return we are looking for. Is it purely monetary, or something else?
In the ROI survey, authors reported various goals, with the main ones being to share knowledge, elevate a topic that needs attention, get more paid engagements, and generate leads.
Money from book sales was a goal for only 27% of authors, and the primary goal for only 4%.
Most authors accomplished their goals
Most authors in the survey reported accomplishing at least some of their goals:
Book sales low, but not crucial to ROI
Book sales rarely met expectations. Median sales were 4,600 for traditionally published books, 1,600 for hybrid published books, and 700 for self-published books. These numbers were a fraction of what authors were expecting.
However, book sales were not the primary predictor of success; many authors accomplished their goals despite selling fewer books than expected.
More speaking, workshops, and consulting
Among authors with books out six months or more, 18% reported $250,000 or more in income. Speaking, consulting, and workshops generated much more income than book sales and royalties.
- Speeches generated a median revenue of $30,000
- Consulting, $50,000
- Workshops, $40,000
More than 70% of authors also reported increases in leads or gigs.
Other revenue included online courses, partnerships, and salary increases.
Greater credibility & brand visibility
Among the authors surveyed, 68% said they were now more credible to prospects and clients, while 61% said their personal brand was worth more. Authors also saw improvements in podcast requests, social media mentions and followers, and global visibility.
More than 90% reported some form of nonmonetary value in their books.
Median gross profit: $11,350
For the 301 authors surveyed, the median gross profit (total increase in revenue minus total expenses) for writing and publishing a nonfiction book was $11,350.
There was a wide range of results: one author spent $180,000 more than they made, while another generated a gross profit of nearly $8,000,000:
Two-thirds of books out for at least 6 months had a net positive gross profit.
Traditionally published books were the most profitable, with a median of $52,500, but hybrid-published and self-published books were also mostly profitable.
In terms of ROI: the median book generated a profit of $2.33 per dollar spent.
Was it worth it?
Of authors surveyed, 89% said writing a book was a good idea.
Having a clear strategy doubles ROI
Of all factors, having a strong strategy was the biggest determiner in how much gross profit authors received from their books:
* Indicates analysis limited to books out for at least 6 months.
**Strategy analysis is limited to authors with a primary goal of increasing engagement, generating leads, or selling books, 81 authors in all. Strong strategy includes authors who responded “I had a very specific plan for achieving my goal with every single step outlined” or “I had a moderately specific plan for achieving my goal with a few steps outlined” for their primary author goal.
For these authors, having a strong strategy looks like having a specific marketing plan with each step outlined.
Develop YOUR strategy at BookPlan 2025!
Our three-day online workshop, held April 2-4, will teach you a proven framework for marketing your book successfully. We’ll also guide you through each step of creating a detailed, cohesive book marketing plan.
You’ll have blocks of time throughout the workshop to complete each part of your plan, as well as plenty of times to get feedback and ask questions, so that by the end of the three days, you’ll have a complete, ready-to-implement strategy for your nonfiction book!
The material in this email was graciously provided by Peter Winick and his company, Thought Leadership Leverage. See the full ROI report here.
Peter will speak at BookPlan 2025 on the detailed findings of this ROI study and its implications for nonfiction authors.