Meet Woman in Business Stephanie Chandler Author, Speaker, CEO of Authority Publishing
Tell us about your business.
We provide custom publishing services for business, self-help, memoir, health, and other non-fiction books. Our mission is to provide high-quality services including professional editing, custom cover design, and custom interiors. We also distribute books to Amazon, BN.com, many other online outlets, and Ingram—the world’s largest supplier of books to bookstores. And we offer ebook formatting, marketing consulting, author website development, and more.
Our clients are entrepreneurs and professionals (doctors, therapists, consultants, coaches, attorneys, etc.) who are busy and want a serious solution to have their books developed with an emphasis on quality.
Our tagline: Where professionals publish!
Please tell us what being a business owner means to you and why you became an entrepreneur in the first place?
I worked in the Silicon Valley for a decade and grew to dread Mondays. Things moved at an incredibly fast pace and I was burnt out. I left in 2003 and have never looked back. Though it hasn’t always been easy, it has been a great ride!
What or who has been your greatest influence in business and why?
Most recently, my mastermind group has had a huge impact. I’m involved in a group of ten business owners who get together once each month to brainstorm ideas. It’s been a valuable source for helping me flesh out ideas, stay focused, and maintain momentum. Everyone should be involved in a mastermind group because it’s like having your own board of directors.
What would you say is your greatest professional accomplishment to date?
Publishing my books! Seeing a book to fruition is incredibly rewarding. I’ve written seven including Booked Up! How to Write, Publish, and Promote a Book to Grow Your Business, LEAP! 101 Ways to Grow Your Business, From Entrepreneur to Infopreneur: Make Money with Books, eBooks and Information Products, and The Author’s Guide to Building an Online Platform: Leveraging the Internet to Sell More Books.
What’s the best advice you have received in business that you wish to pass on to our readers?
Before my first big sales meeting, one of my managers in the Silicon Valley told me to “Walk in that room like you own it.” What I learned is that confidence matters in business. It made me an effective sales person back then, and has served me well as an entrepreneur. It’s also funny how you might not be feeling so confident, but then you step into a situation and project confidence anyway and suddenly you own it!
What has been the most effective marketing initiatives or programs you have used to promote your business?
Ooh, lots of things. Here are some of my favorites:
Optimizing my website for the search engines.
Blogging consistently.
Internet radio interviews.
Publishing a book (definitely leads to business growth!).
Professional speaking.
What one thing have you learned as a small business owner that has served you well over the years?
Hire help! Even if you think you can afford it. When you take the tedious work off of your schedule, you make room to focus on what you do best. So that extra help ends up not only paying for itself, but frees you up to make more money!
Are there any resources or tools you’d like to share with other small business owners that have helped you run your business?
Well I suppose I’ll toot my own horn for a moment and recommend http://BusinessInfoGuide.com, which is a directory of resources for entrepreneurs that I started in 2004. It’s also become my own personal catalog for information. I frequently search the site to reference an article or other details that I have forgotten about! We also have lots of opportunities for others to contribute guest articles or interviews.
Do you have any new projects coming up? If so, please tell us about it.
I’m always working on a new book (I actually have several book projects going right now!). One that your readers may be interested in is an anthology of essays and interviews about entrepreneurial life after corporate America. We are currently accepting submissions and encourage you all to contribute! Details here: http://authoritypublishing.com/resources/call-for-submissions/
What do you do for fun/relaxation?
Read, power walk around my neighborhood (!), play with my 4-year old son, visit with friends and family, and crank up the music and a spontaneous dance party in my living room! I am always looking for ways to add more fun in life!
What is Number One Business Goal you plan to accomplish over the next year?
Release two new books. One is the anthology about life after corporate America, and the other is a guide to marketing on the internet without the hype! There is a third on the horizon, though I’m not quite ready to talk about that one yet!
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
We are so lucky to be entrepreneurs! I am grateful for this lifestyle every day. I feel really lucky.
What’s the best way for our readers to connect with you (feel free to include the links to your social networks and websites)?
I also run a LinkedIn Group for Nonfiction Authors :
