Want to Charge Higher Rates for Your Services? New Data Shows Exactly How Much Writing a Book Can Add to Your Value.

AI tools and social media hacks get most of the marketing attention, but a new study shows there’s serious ROI in sitting down and writing a good old-fashioned book filled with your expertise. Published authors can charge 37% more for their time — $345 per hour versus $251 for non-authors, according to a survey of 150 U.S. professionals. And 89% of people said they trust content more when it comes from a book author.

Among consultants and advisors, published authors got the job anywhere from 52% to 67% of the time, depending on the field, compared to 33% to 48% for non-authors.

The credibility boost shows up beyond the bookshelf. LinkedIn headlines with “Published Author” tested better 62% of the time. Articles by book authors were trusted nearly 8 times as much as blog posts by non-authors. “If you’re an entrepreneur without a book, you’re not just less credible—you’re almost invisible,” says Anna David, founder of hybrid book publisher Legacy Launch Pad Publishing.