Why "Book Yourself Solid" Works for Professionals Who Hate Marketing
The subtitle says it is for people who hate marketing and selling. For many readers of this site, that is exactly the right audience.
Many corporate professionals have spent years being good at their work without ever having to find their own clients. The idea of marketing themselves feels awkward at best.
Book Yourself Solid was written for exactly that person. Michael Port wrote it for service professionals, such as consultants, coaches and advisors, who are good at what they do and uncomfortable promoting it.
I will be upfront about the fit. Some sections are about building a full-time practice, and the chapters on online marketing show their age. The core of the book holds up well.
The Ideas That Matter Most
The parts I would read first:
- Choose who you work with. Port calls it the Red Velvet Rope Policy: decide which clients you want to work with before you go looking for any.
- Understand why people buy. People pay for help with an urgent problem or a result they want badly. Your description should start there.
- Build trust before you ask for anything. Port's approach is to be useful first and offer something small before offering your services.
- Use a few channels well. He covers several ways of finding clients, from referrals to direct outreach. Pick the one or two that suit you.
What This Looks Like for You
For readers of this site, the most useful chapter is probably the first. Choosing your ideal client sounds like a luxury when you have none. Port argues it is the opposite: being specific about who you help makes it much easier for the right people to recognize themselves.
An illustration:
"I help companies with operations" fits almost everyone and stands out to no one.
"I help growing companies of under 300 people whose systems have not kept up" tells a former colleague immediately whether they know someone who fits.
The second version is narrower, and it gets far more referrals.
How It Fits With the Rest of This Section
The Mom Test helps you find out whether a problem is real. Gap Selling helps you understand it in depth. Book Yourself Solid is the system around both: how you choose clients, earn their trust and keep the right conversations coming.
What I Like
It treats getting clients as something you can learn, without pretending you need to become a different person to do it. Port's tone is warm and encouraging without being hype.
It is also full of exercises, so it works as a workbook as well as a book.
What I Don't Like
Some sections are dated. The chapters on web and social media show their age. The principles behind them still apply.
Built for a full-time practice. Some advice assumes you want a full calendar. You will want to scale it down to a few clients at a time.
It is long. Read the first section closely and skim the rest for the channels you plan to use.
The Bottom Line
This book will not give you a single trick for finding clients. It will give you a steady, low-pressure way of finding the right ones.
Start with the Red Velvet Rope Policy. Write down who you want to work with before you contact anyone. Everything else in the book gets easier once that is clear.
Get the Book
Book Yourself Solid: The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle Even if You Hate Marketing and Selling by Michael Port
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Start With Your Superpowers
Port asks you to be clear about who you serve and what you help them with. The free assessment identifies your three core professional superpowers, which is a good place to start.
Take the Assessment (Free)Calculate Your Freedom Number
Know who you serve. Now find out how much monthly income the work needs to produce. The calculator takes about five minutes.
Calculate Your GapFortune favors the bold. But fortune also favors those who choose their clients as carefully as their clients choose them.
Scott Fulbright
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