Conversations to help
your business grow and thrive.

It’s like having your own board of expert advisors in your pocket

The Business Behind Your Business is the go-to podcast for entrepreneurs, small business owners, and anyone looking for practical business ideas and strategies. Hosted by Paul Sweeney, each 15–30 minute episode dives behind the scenes of real businesses to uncover the challenges, solutions, and strategies that drive success.

Whether you’re exploring how to make money, launch a new venture, or scale your existing business, our expert guests share actionable insights on entrepreneurship, marketing strategies for small business, financial planning, leadership, and more.

From start-up tips to advanced business strategy, we bring you the tools and advice you need to build a thriving business — one smart decision at a time.

Watch on YouTube Sign up for the podcast newsletter Get merch

latest podcast

How to Turn Your Expertise Into Authority

September 14, 2026

You may have years of experience, a strong track record and a proven ability to help clients. But if the market cannot quickly understand your value, you can still find yourself chasing opportunities and repeatedly explaining why you are the right person for the job.

In this episode of The Business Behind Your Business, Paul Sweeney speaks with Henry DeVries, publisher of Indie Books International and a contributor to more than 200 business books. They explore how writing a book can help business owners clarify their expertise, build trust and attract better-fit clients. More importantly, they explain why the finished book is not the final goal. It is the starting point for speaking opportunities, podcast interviews, referrals and stronger business conversations.

You’ll learn:

Why a book can be a powerful authority-building tool for professional service providers
How becoming an author can help potential clients understand and trust your expertise
Why you do not need to write your book alone
How interviews, workshops, articles and voice recordings can become source material
Why your first draft should focus on ideas rather than perfection
How to identify your niche audience and the specific problem your book will solve
Why client stories are one of your most valuable hidden assets
How a book can open doors to speaking engagements, podcasts and referrals
Why you only need to become well known to the right audience, not everyone
How to break the book-writing process into manageable steps

Henry DeVries also shares a four-question framework for starting strategic conversations with potential clients: clarify the goal, identify hidden assets, uncover roadblocks and share a relevant success story.

If you have ever thought you should write a book but felt short on time, confidence or writing experience, this conversation offers a practical way forward. You may already have the raw material in your client experiences, workshops, articles and ideas. The next step is to organise that knowledge into a tool that helps the right people recognise the value you bring.

Henry DeVries is a freelance journalist, ghostwriter, and bestselling author. The author of twelve marketing books and a columnist for The California Business Journal, he is a partner at Indie Books International. Prior to that he helped double revenues as president of an Ad Age 500 PR agency and was a vice president of marketing communications that doubled awareness for a $5 billion insurance company. After serving as adjunct marketing faculty and the assistant dean of continuing education at the University of California San Diego, he has been a ghostwriter, co-author, and publisher of more than 300 business books.

henry@indiebooksintl.com

www.marketingwithabook.com

Listen Now

Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Listen on Google Podcasts