Want visitors to leave your website immediately? Want to not sell a lot of books? Want your author website to be a complete flop? Of course, I’m sort of kidding here. But the fact is that there are some tried-and-true mistakes that authors often make when building a website. I seem to tell my clients […]
The 5 Most Hated Author Website Features Read More »
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: writing for a website is absolutely nothing like writing a book. It’s sort of like asking a cardiologist to perform surgery on your foot. Similar fields? Sure. Same skillsets? Far from it. An author website can be an incredible tool that’s used to promote and sell
8 Tips for Writing Sales-Based Author Website Copy Read More »
Okay, so I’ve worked with published authors for the last six years, helping each of them build their own, successful author website. But what I have never been until now is a published author. Now, I am … sort of. I was recently contacted by a colleague, David Wogahn, who helps authors create e-books. I
Smart Author Sites Is Officially Published! Read More »
I was reading my trusty “Internet and Marketing Report” this past weekend, and came across an article about 9 “can’t-afford-to-forget” elements on any website looking to sell something. An author website is no exception. With that in mind, here’s what they had listed, along with my author-slanted twist on each one. 1. Descriptive headline. I’ve
9 Elements Your Author Website Must Have Read More »
One of the recommendations that I give to all of my clients is that they include a place on their author website for fans to enter their email address and stay notified of upcoming events, etc… There are so many different things that an author can do with that email list, including setting everyone up
4 Ways to Improve and Increase Your Email Sign-Ups Read More »
I’m a huge fan of Google Alerts. And, apparently, I’m not the only one. For those of you who are not familiar with Google Alerts, it’s a handy-dandy system that Google offers, through which you can receive email notifications whenever a particular search term is used on a website. So, for example, every time someone
4 Ways to Use Google Alerts to Your Advantage Read More »
I came across an article in my trusted Internet and Marketing Report magazine. In it, the manager of Brand Marketing for Gap clothing, Samantha Willems, was asked how to create good Facebook content and boost engagement. Her answers were good, but what struck me was that they’re relevant to far more than Facebook. Follow these
4 Ways to Create Compelling Content Read More »
I should start this post by pointing out that my job is to build and maintain websites for authors. Which means that I have a personal, vetted interest in making sure that all authors build websites, and they never decide to shut them down. All of that said, there are also some very good reasons
Author Websites: When to Launch Them, When to Fold Them Read More »
If you’re under the age of 30, you probably use Pinterest all the time. If you’re over 30 (like me), you’ve probably heard of it, but haven’t really used it. Well, now I’m going to tell you how you can not only use it, but use it to sell books. First, let’s define what Pinterest
Using Pinterest to Sell Books Read More »
Chances are that your book is not going to be the next Harry Potter series. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t steal some ideas from its billionaire author (and the publishing company). Just this week, it was announced that Scholastic has launched the new online Harry Potter Reading Club. You can check out the
4 Ideas Any Children’s Book Author Can Steal from J.K. Rowling Read More »
