Customer Reviews

Empire-Building by Writing and Speaking: A How to Guide for Communicators, Entrepreneurs, and Other Information Merchants

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Because I suspected this book was a bit heavy on hype and lean on practicality, I sampled it from my local library first. Much to my surprise, the material is well organized, timeless, insightful, and pleasantly written. (It's a shame that the sample chapter shown here is on research, and not even the best part of that chapter... Because the books starts out with a strong introduction and then continues to build momentum with each chapter.)

If you are in a business or profession where you have the opportunity to provide information others value, then you should seriously consider becoming a merchant of ideas. This book is an excellent start for discovering and implementing ideas that you can transform into income. Along this line, I would also suggest these books as companions in creating a well balanced game plan. First the undisputed bible of self-publishing, THE SELF-PUBLISHING MANUAL: HOW TO WRITE, PRINT AND SELL YOUR OWN BOOK by Dan Poytner, Then, an outstanding book on creating an integrated vision of your life and business, MAKING A LIVING WITHOUT A JOB: WINNING WAYS FOR CREATING WORK THAT YOU LOVE by Barbara J. Winters.

Why did I give this book only four stars, not five? Because, although the book works in its current form, it would be nice to see a second edition. One would hope the author has new and improved insights to add, and at the very least this book deserves a fresh cover that matches the content.

The book IS all hype. There is an inherent danger in having a business that shows people how to have a business. The danger is getting swallowed up by self-generated hype. Some books manage to escape the danger, but not this one.

This book has very little useful information. If you're interested in this subject, you will need to buy a book on self-publishing, one on public speaking/seminars, and one on PR. How could this little book cover all these topics adequately. It can't.

This book is like so many other money-making books; they get you excited, but fail to deliver any useful information. Gordon Burgett spends the entire book talking about the planning stage. At the very end of the book, he slides over the implementation stage in only a couple dozen pages. In reality, building an 'empire' takes a lot more than planning!

If you have enough enthusiasm to buy this book, Gordon Burgett's book will offer nothing else to you. I feel I have wasted [money].

I was extremely disappointed in the Burgett book from the moment I opened the cover. If you had no idea how to build an empire through speaking and writing before reading this, the unfortunate likelihood is you are still clueless.

I give this book 1-star because it is an outstanding NEGATIVE example of a self-published book. The book is a poorly formatted and the content is 98% fluff.

Sadly, Burgett lists Dan Poynter's SELF-PUBLISHING MANUAL in his bibliography, but does not follow any of his advice.

A much better use of your money is the paperback edition of MONEY TALKS by Alan Weiss. It's a 5-star read!

The concept is excellent, and is clearly explained here. He went on to develop it in greater detail in books titled Niche Marketing and Publishing to Niche Markets. Burgett provides the mental tools to take one idea and build from it forever.