Below is the presentation I did for the Author Marketing Institute’s AMLive Virtual event in January. Enjoy!
Your website needs to represent you as if you were standing in a bookstore selling your books, doing a reading from your books or were at a book signing.
Feel free to post questions in the comments and we will use them to create another webinar in the future.
Transcript
1. Deborah Carney Building Amazing Author Websites: The Absolute Necessities
2. What?
Authors need a website in addition to a social presence as a home base to build their platform. What are the absolute necessities to building an amazing author website that attracts readers?
3. Why?
• Amazon or other booksellers have hundreds of thousands of books – how can you be found?
• Home Base – all your social points to home • Search Engine Optimization – Give the search engines a way to find you
• Talk directly to your fans and potential fans
4. What Every Author Website Needs
• About the Author
• List of books WITH links to buy
• Mailing List – with incentive to join
• Social Media Home Base
• Navigation is KEY
• Contact Form
5. About The Author
• Readers want to know about the authors they choose to read.
• Remember the back flaps of the books you grew up reading – When I was deciding to spend money on books I would read about the author as part of the decision
• SEO – Give the search engines something to grab onto that isn’t on your Amazon page or social profiles
6. List of books WITH links to buy
• Your books need to be listed on your site
• Main Page with all of your books grouped by genre/series
• Page with Series
• Page By Genre
• Books MUST have links to buy on EVERY page – Cover needs to ALWAYS be linked to a way to purchase
7. Mailing List
• You must have a mailing list. Must.
• Incentive to join – short story, extra chapters, free first book in a series
• Why? – You control your destiny – You control your message – You create your own fan club
8. Mailing List Sign Up Forms
• Popups – Popover – Slider – Lots of options – delayed popover is a good choice – Be aware of people viewing your site on mobile – lightbox popovers “lock” the screen so readers can’t access your site
• After posts, in sidebar, at top and bottom of site
• Special page in navigation – Link to it everywhere
9. Social Media Home Base
• Social links to all of your social
• All Social POINTS BACK to HOME
• Social is necessary but all social needs to link to your author website where you capture email addresses and build your following on your terms
• Think of it as a huge wheel with your website in the middle
10. Navigation
• The key to how readers get around your site
• Clear, easy, obvious
• Leads readers and search engines into your site
• Buttons for – Mailing list – About us – Main Book page
11. Sidebar Navigation
• Mailing list at top with a Search box underneath
• Social boxes at BOTTOM if you must use them – Facebook, Twitter posts, Goodreads – all that stuff slows your site down and sends traffic away from your site – KEEP your traffic – minimize use of those boxes
• Awards etc. should be at bottom of page or on separate awards page
12. Contact Form
• Don’t need to give out your email address
• Very good form plugins for WordPress
• You want your readers to reach you
• Use a separate email address – not your personal one, use Gmail or something similar to create an email address but be sure to check it regularly
13. Search Engine Optimization
Be found in the search engines by using unique content on your website
•About us should be different than your Amazon page and what you post on social and other websites
•Book Descriptions should be expanded
•Sample Chapters
•Page about your inspiration
•Content = search engine food
14. RSS
While not technically a website element, it is a by product of a website that has a blog component or that is blog based
•Can be added to your Amazon author page
•Can be added to your GoodReads author profile
•Can be fed to your newsletter
•Can be fed to your social media
15. Recommended Platforms
Wordpress.org – your own website on your own domain
•Easy to install on most webhosts
•Can find hosting for under $10 per month
•Doesn’t have to look like a “blog”
Blogspot, WordPress.com or other free platforms
•Can decide your content isn’t appropriate & delete your site
•Limit your themes and plugins
•Doesn’t look professional
16. WordPress Site Tips
• Make your book page your home page
• Use your blog RSS to feed your posts to other sites (see RSS slide)
• Lots of great plugins for images, custom posts and pages
• Great themes to make your site look professional and awesome
• Easy to manage
17. General Site Tips
• Guest Books – NO – they are outdated spam magnets
• iFrames – DON’T use them • Amazon ads for your books – NO, use text links instead, links to book covers. You *can* use the Amazon Affiliate Program for links but don’t use their widgets.
• Author Marketing Club members can create nice Amazon widgets
18. Things to Think About
• Should you be giving advice to authors on YOUR author website?
• Who is your target audience? • Should you interview authors on your site?
• Who is your target audience? (yes that is a repeat!)
Your website needs to represent you as if you were standing in a bookstore selling your books, doing a reading from your books or were at a book signing.
19. Questions & Next Steps
Reach me via our Contact Form
25 Ways to Improve Your Website by Vinny O’Hare
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