To be honest, I’ve been a bit disappointed with the reception for this book. I worked really hard on it and filled it with information from my experience on how to develop your business, say no to clients, get your client balance right, get your work-life balance sorted out, blog, engage with social media – all the stuff I think is important once that first rush of starting your business is over and you’re settling in to make it work. I changed the title after some market research that suggested it appeared to be a “growing old gracefully” book, and I ran a competition in my newsletter to win a copy, hoping for some reviews or feedback … that never came.

So I was really pleased when I sent a review copy to business consultant Roland Millward and not only did he tweet about reading it, but he posted a long and careful review on his blog, making sure to tell people all about the book and who it could help. I particularly liked this comment:

“Liz has worked her way through that early period of starting a business and the challenges that self employment brings. She is therefore writing from experience and I believe that you will always learn more from people like Liz.”

and he also pointed out,

“This book is certainly for anyone who has started a business or indeed I would be happy to recommend it if you are considering starting out. The book covers many aspects of business including advertising, social media, blogging, pricing, return on investment, different ways of finding customers and much more.”

Roland also kindly popped a review on Amazon for me, something that we indie publishers always appreciate just as much as a review on a blog. Read Roland Millward’s full review here, and see the Amazon review page here.

A final word: if you enter a competition to win or request a review copy of a book by an independent or small publisher in particular, please do try to post a review, even if the book isn’t for you but you can recommend it to part of your audience. A friend was recently worrying about posting a review of a book an author sent her which she didn’t love. She did, however, explain why it wasn’t quite for her and made it clear who the book would appeal to. She asked my advice and I suggested that she did tell the author about the review, as they would want to know it had actually been read and reviewed. And she received a lovely reply from the author, thanking her for being good-hearted enough to explain her reaction to the book and talk about why he wrote it.

Find out more about “Running a Successful Business after the Start-up Phase” including where and how to buy (Amazon and otherwise, print and e-book).