Realtor Linda Liberatore on the Success of Her Books [INTERVIEW]

Linda Liberatore was an author, speaker, and businesswoman.

She came to us to help her with her book after hearing me interviewed on a podcast. Linda helps busy real estate and property investors with a strong desire to grow their portfolio and take the next steps. We can relieve you of the stresses associated with your properties and provide you with the time needed to reach your investment goals.

She is the founder and president of My Landlord Helper, a unique virtual assistant solution for DIY real estate investors. I’ve spent over 20 years evaluating the process of reducing expenses for business and property investors spanning six housing agencies in Illinois as well as nationwide.

Let’s jump into the interview!

Rob: I’m super excited to be doing this video with a past client and really dear friend Linda, Linda Liberatore. She’s the CEO of securepayone.com. We had the great honor of helping Linda do her latest book, which is a fantastic book that you’ve been using. We happen to be on the telephone the other day and she was telling me about a lot of the cool things that have been happening. And I was like, “Let’s, let’s get on a call. Let’s talk about it because people can learn from it.”

Linda, you just mentioned to me that you heard me on a podcast I was on to talk about Best Seller Publishing and our recent book and you sought me out. You told me you were like, “you know, I’ve got to do a book and I want to do a book with this guy. And of course, there was no selling involved. You heard me, you knew what you wanted and that’s kind of what we want to do, right? We want to create authority and get in front of people on platforms and then the magic happens.

Linda: Yeah, absolutely. If you’re asking me, you’re right. I 100% sought you out. I was actually doing some interviewing at the time, really for real estate investors and I said, I have to have this man to interview because I think what he offers is really valuable. And then I said, could you do that for me?

Rob: I remember! We hit it off immediately. You have a really cool story. You’ve done some amazing things in business and, and more recently you’ve done some really cool things with your book. Obviously, what we do Best Seller Publishing, we get the book done and we want it to be a professional and amazing, but that’s not where the story ends. That’s where the story begins. So we do the book launch and PR, get a client on radio and/or TV, but you took it really higher from there. So can you maybe share a little bit about that?

Linda: Yeah. And if I could go back just a little bit, I have to say your process is absolutely awesome. So let’s start from there.

Rob: Okay, thank you.

Linda: I had done it once on my own, shortly before I came to and heard your podcast and I can’t tell you how painful it was. So God willing, that everybody wants to do that, great, but there’s a much easier way.

You guys just really made that process seamless and it was just wonderful from the very first person I met after we talked. Everybody was awesome, cooperative, and really helpful. I remember how accommodating everyone was with my schedule because I’m sure everyone that does this has tough schedules. Then like you said, an added bonus is the fact that then you got us out there in terms of PR and it was so great.

I would say I learned something through that process. It’s not just the fact that you have a book, that’s not why people want you on TV. So now you have to have a topic that somebody would want a feature on the news related to your book, of course, but the book validates that you’re an expert. Otherwise, why are they going to bring in Linda Liberatore? Who cares what she thinks, you know? Well, people would care because I also had a book. Then your team helped me to sign on a cool topic that was something of interest and quickly filled my schedule.

And I do mean that quickly. Your team had four interviews lined up within a week. I already had this summer booked. This all happened within not even six months. Then from there, you go right into podcasts and now people call me because they heard me on this podcast and they ask me “What could you do for us? You know, how could you help us?”

Rob: We talked about so many neat things before we started recording. For starters, there’s Secure Pay One. Linda manages over one thousand residential and commercial real estate units.

Obviously, it’s good to be on real estate related podcasts and things like that where there are those kinds of listeners that are available. You’re saying nice things about us and I want to say thank you, but I always tell our clients, after we do what we do (the book launch, making it a bestseller, get you media and PR), we map out a process and then you’ve got to take it from there or it slows down. There’s a shelf life and you did it. And you’re continuing to do it, which I totally love. Maybe you could talk a little bit about what you did and the podcast that you did and what it led to and all that stuff.

Linda: Well, I think I’m going to go back to the book again.

Rob: Which is amazing by the way, if you’re in real estate, you need to get Linda’s book and check it out because it’s awesome.

Linda: Well thank you, but the point is the book does lend a level of credibility. Years ago I did a lot of training and there was one training I did at one of these large international technology companies and I remember they really wanted to be sure that each of the trainers was legitimate. They didn’t want just anybody doing training.

So I would use that same analogy to the book. It proves to somebody that you really do know what you think you know because you’ve taken that effort to get it written. That really did make a big difference. It was the same thing with podcasts. When we took it from where you left off, we were sending out emails to different media groups, different podcasts, real estate investment associations, and smaller groups in different locations. When you send them something that says you have a book, they’re inclined to think this person must know something. Maybe it’s not a whole lot, but she’s got something.

Rob: You’re the real deal. They know it from your book.

Linda: Right. Exactly. It positions you in a better spot. I honestly sincerely recommend it to anybody that’s on the fence about it. If you’re wondering if you should or shouldn’t write a book, I would say you should definitely do it. It gives you credibility. To be quite honest, I’m not sure exactly what event led to this particular one. One more thing I’d like to make a point of is some of the REIA groups, in most of those cases, definitely, they need somebody that’s a proven expert.

So the book becomes part of your bio when you’re submitting to and explaining why you want to speak at those conferences. I was able to speak at two of those back in February and May. The book, of course, helped validate that I was credible to speak at conferences, podcasts, and most recently Think Realty, which is why I wanted to call you. I think it’s really important for people to hear about this who are the fence.

Rob: Right. So let’s map it out because you just said a lot of different things and then that’ll lead us right into what happened from the speaking event to Think Realty. What you’re, what you’re saying is you used the book to position yourself as an expert. The past media that we helped book you on, which included some TV appearances and various things like that, combined with the book and your expertise allowed you to book great speaking engagements.

You just said it as though it was no big deal, but no. You got major speaking engagements in front of national associations. Who wouldn’t want that? If you’re a realtor, wouldn’t you want to be in front of some type of National Association where people are all interested in buying homes or investing, etc.? Wow. How amazing that is. You got that. You’ve got these podcasts. Or did I skip a step? Did you get podcasts that led to that or was it a combination of those things?

Linda: I would say it was a combination, honestly. I don’t think you can pull apart which one of those set it off if you will.

Rob: You did it all.

Linda: I think it’s integrated. It’s like that term they use, work-life balance. You have to integrate them. It’s not one versus the other. I do feel it was definitely integrated. It all becomes part of, for lack of a better word, your resume. Your credentials. What have you done that makes you qualified to speak here? Those national ones were a big deal because then they make the local ones easier.

Rob: Right. So tell us what happened. Go from there.

Linda: So then we had the opportunity to submit ourselves for a property management award that was being offered by a national, Think Realty publication.

Rob: Let’s see the publication.

Linda: I guess I’ll start with the front. So this is Think Reality. We submitted and we became a finalist for the property manager of the year. What’s really cool about this particular war is that it’s submitted by your clients. We can’t submit it ourselves. Your clients have to submit and it has to be done in multitude. You can’t just get one letter. Then we won!

Rob: Congratulations! You won the Property Manager of the year! A National Award. You sent me the magazine. You have it too. You got a full page in their national magazine

Linda: Absolutely! It’s actually three pages!

Rob: That’s right. These are national magazines that are much their monthly magazine that go out to thousands and thousands of subscribers all over the country that are real estate investors. Your more ideal client. Those are the people that are reading the magazine. It says the Think Realty, the magazine for real estate investors. You are the property manager of the year. Let’s see the hardware.

Linda: It’s so beautiful! It was so exciting. They didn’t allow us to give a speech, thank goodness. Just so people understand, I’ve been in business eight years and as excited as I am here today, there are 24 hour days that match this. It wasn’t just walking on stage. It’s a lot of hard work. Some people may be able to pull that off in 24 months, but I think I am a bit more humble by nature. I think these things help you realize you really do have something to offer which is tough to remember.

Just so you know, along with this spread, I was selected to be a coach for them. That is hugely significant to me because while this hardware is really pretty, it’s gonna sit on a shelf. Nobody in 2020 is going to want to hear about what you won in 2017. I’m hoping that this issue will allow me the opportunity to continue to grow and continue to learn.

I just was able to give a talk to their leadership circle about technology because we work with so many different technologies and how it’s all changing with the advent of AI and everything. So who knows? There might be another book there.

Rob: I love it. Let’s talk about, let’s talk about, Think Realty for just a second because I don’t think you mentioned that you also became a contributing author to their magazine, which means now every single month you are going to have an article in here besides being the property manager of the year, besides being an international bestselling author, you are going to be a content creator every single month in their magazine which is going to give you free publicity on an ongoing basis.

You mentioned they made you a coach. Now you and I mapped out a coaching plan together where if you got 10 new clients a month, that’s going to add a half a million bucks a year to your bottom line by an entirely new flow of income and opportunity into your business. Bravo. How amazing.

Linda: Thank you, and I do have to mention something just because I think it’s important, because of Best Seller Publishing. I submitted to be a contributor for Think Realty around the time we released the book. So I was contributing on a smaller basis which I know was bringing their attention to who I was. Then I saw the award and we went from there. So there were multiple opportunities to let this snowball the way it has.

I’m sure there’s so many more like this that I don’t even know of, but it can be hard as an entrepreneur to look when you’re focused on the day-to-day. Luckily we’ve actually had two different publications reach out and ask if we could write for them. I don’t know even know if you’re aware of this, but I just got accepted this week to the Forbes Real Estate Council to be a contributing writer for them.

Rob: Wow. Forbes! That’s fantastic!

Linda: Yeah, we’re excited. We are definitely trying to make positive steps in the right direction. We’re trying to follow your lead. You’ve talked about webinars and classes and that’s really the next thing. We have been doing more of an interview style of Webinar as opposed to a teaching style, but it’s still at least it’s out there on a regular basis. So now we think it would be helpful to switch into something that will allow us to help people who want to set up their own business instead of “training the trainer” so that they understand how to set up a property management company.

Rob: That’s really, really smart. We’ll have to map out a whole other million dollar business for you around that. I like to tell my clients that with a traditional publisher, the book is the end of the story, pun intended, but at Best Seller Publishing the book is the beginning of the story. In addition to the book (with a massive number of sales), we want to book you on podcasts, TV appearances, speaking engagements, and then help you become a contributing author, all of which brings in more clients. I know you’ve been getting more clients than ever before and opportunities to coach people which you hadn’t even thought about previously.

Linda: Absolutely. We definitely talked about how I could gain some recognition so that after the book was written there was a plan for what would come next because I needed the recognition. The world is a really big place. I had been working and going to meetings for 8 years but what kind of radius is that? How many people can you reach one by one by one? I realized how important the book was in addition to the interviews, speaking engagements and appearances.

Rob: Yeah. Congratulations Linda. I’m so happy for you. I’m proud of you. When we first met, I loved your spirit and your heart and we just totally connected. I’m very, very fortunate in my business to work with really great people like yourself. My team and I are honored to have played a small part in all of this because we just love what you’re doing.

Linda: Oh, you did, you played a big part. You guys do a great job that you really do.

Rob: Thank you. In summation, you can learn more about Linda at securepayment.com. This is where it begins, with your book. It’s your positioning tool. It needs to be led to what we call “Publish, Promote, Profit.”

Promotion is getting the book purchased and thousands of real downloads. The profit is through speaking and real PR. Then all of that generates leads and opportunities which can include things like national publications, national speaking events, and even national awards. Then that has led to entirely new income streams where you’re training, your coaching, and new business all because of the book.

If you’re listening, that’s what you need. Do what Linda did and in turn, you’ll get what Linda got. Success leaves footprints as has been said. So thank you.

Linda: Thank you. Thanks for taking the time to share this because I know I would have liked to hear when I was trying to decide, what I should do. It’s an investment in yourself and you definitely want to do it.

Rob: Well, I hope this helps a lot of people and I want to thank you again for taking the time to share it, Linda. You’re awesome.