With hundreds of AI tools launched each week (GPT-5 has just landed) most business book writers and self publishers don’t know what AI tools to use for what and why they might choose one over another.
And, there’s more to AI for business book writers than ChatGPT…in fact much more.
The real challenge for everyone, however, is working out which AI tools to use for what and getting some kind of fix on how long it’s going to take you to master each tool so that it be useful to you in terms of really adding value and saving you time.
I’ve spoken with a myriad of people about how they’re using any number of the writing, design and photography AI tools. They’ve had great fun and explored their creativity, but don’t have the time to devote to producing high-enough quality content to use in their book or content.
And that’s the same with many AI tools.
So the trick is to work out what you actually want the AI tool to do as this will help you work out which AI tool will help you achieve that. It will also help you work out the investment of time and money you’re prepared to spend.
I’m going to break down my summary into three categories. Writing, book marketing and book sales.
What are the 3 best AI tools for writing?
Now, those of you who know me are aware of my views about using AI to write for you – in short, don’t. Firstly, good business book writing requires you to syntheise your many years/decades of practical knowledge, insight and foresight. This is NOT available on AI tools, it’s in your head…or in the draft of your book.
That said, the three top AI tools I use to ‘work alongside me’ in developing the top 3-4 themes (no more) of a book, a content outline, key chapter topics, locating current, relevant articles and commentary are:
And, there are any number of transcription AI tools from the ones embedded in Google, Microsoft and Zoom to standalone ones. If you interview a lot of people for your book these tools will save you hundreds of hours. That said, none a perfect and it’s essential that you review and edit the transcript before sending them to the person you interviewed or put them in your book. Over the years I’ve used rev.com, read.ai, Fireflies, otter.ai and now the transcript features available via Zoom and Teams. I always review and revise the transcripts I get. ALWAYS. I’ve seen the summaries of meeting overviews and transcripts and while they are OK, they are not great.
What are the 3 best tools for book marketing?
The whole area of marketing your business book sends most first time writers into a tailspin. There’s sooooo many options out there and so many offers pitching you amazing result (if only you spend thousands on a proven marketing program).
The following three AI tools may seem too obvious but they will make a significant difference to your book marketing and don’t cost the earth.
ChatGPT. Use ChatGPT to help you segment your audiences and then develop specific marketing content for each audience. Then you can test these and see which ones resonate or not and adjust. Of course, you have to know what questions to ask it and how to break these down and then explore them in more detail.
A great way to do this is to create your own BookBot – create a private GPT, set it up with the right parameters and information, upload your book- even in draft form, as well as other relevant content you have and it can then create the first draft any range of marketing content for you savings hundreds of hours.
And it’s often the re-purposing of content that most people get bored of after a while.
BUT in the AI world good content that is linked to a reputable site, platform, media is what generative AI will pick up. Imagine you are referenced in Google Overviews or ChatGPT responses! This is where Generative Engine Optimisation comes in…and I’ve written about this here.
MarketMuse and Frase.io are good for improving content creation and SEO, optimization tips, competitive analysis, and strategic planning.
Calendly Now this may seem obvious to some. Calendly makes it super easy for people to book in a time to speak with you. While is this not a book sale, it is a vital part of leveraging your book to develop a business lead funnel without getting caught up in the sausage factory of spending thousands on ads.
Canva. If you’re serious about book marketing you are going to need to create a range of social media collateral for your book. This means social media tiles, endorsement tiles, quote tiles and more; LinkedIn Article images, Insta posts, You Tube visuals and more. Canva has templates for all of these and more.
If you’re really creative have a look at DALL-E or Midjourney for creating images and illustrations for your book or even the cover of your. Personally, I don’t have the time or the inclination to play around with image generators and I know they suck a lot of hours that I don’t have.
What are the 3 best AI tools for book sales?
Amazon has a pretty good book launching service (as you would expect)…of course it’s all around Amazon ads. https://advertising.amazon.com/en-gb/?ref_=logo
So if you have a decent budget and are clear about your goals have a look at this. Your alternative is to do a slower burn content marketing strategy and build awareness and sales through organic content…remembering GEO.
Publisher Rocket. While technically not an AI tool it’s a great tool that helps you with the all important areas of keywords (and phrases), especially if you are going the Amazon KDP way. Even if you’re not it helps you to get your keywords, descriptions, overviews and more all aligned and in the right categories. I use it all the time.
BookBlaster can generate landing pages, graphics for ad campaigns, target audiences, email campaigns and more.
Also have a look at IngramSpark, specifically their book marketing section. Again while strictly not an AI tool it has some great resources on book marketing.
Other than the image generation tools I’ve mentioned, I’ve used all of the AI tools and resources I’ve covered. In many cases, I have someone who creates and delivers much of my social media as I want to focus on my writing.
And that’s the really important part to this discussion. Don’t get caught up in the hype about what AI tools can do, the time they can save you. Some will, and some won’t. Some you’ll love to play with but it’s not productive. And all need you to allocate to learn how to use to the maximum of their potential.
And, in the world of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) you need to understand how to craft your marketing content so the overview algorithms can easily ‘find you.
I liken AI book writing, marketing and sales tools to most mobile phones. Most of us use only a small number of the features available on our phones – yet people scramble to get the latest upgrade.
Enjoy your book writing and marketing, and be smart about where you spend your time and money.
If you need help or guidance, contact us here at The Book Adviser.