For an author, I feel a website is one of the most important promotional tools. This is especially true for authors who offer e-books and print books. If your readers are savvy enough to use the internet to download books, you need a web presence. Many things impact the effectiveness of your website.
Content Which Promotes Your Books
We have all visited boring and unorganized websites. If you visit a site that has boring content, do you visit it again? Most people will not. The sites which are interesting, can teach us something and keep us entertained are the ones we visit again and again. Another secret is to add new content for your website visitors on a regular basis. We want visitors and readers to visit our sites so that they can learn more about us and our books.
Make It Easy to Navigate Your Author Web Site
The most effective promotional websites are easy to navigate. Thismeans that visitors can easily find the information they want. This sort of website design encourages visitors to come back. Each time they come back to your site, there is a greater chance they will buy your books and tell their friends about your work.
How to Create An Attractive and Pleasing Website
Does your website attract visitors or drive them away? Some websites are hard on the eyes. There are some color combinations which should not be used, while others appeal to visitors. We will discuss effective ways to make your site more attractive.
Anytime a visitor comes to the site for your online book promotion, they should enjoy the visit. Does your site make people feel welcome? Do they want to stick around and read more? Is there more for them to read? All of these are important questions. We will discuss techniques to be sure that your website stacks up with the competition.
Nikki Leigh
Author of the Book Promo Series
www.nikkileigh.com/promo.htm
Showing posts with label author website. Show all posts
Showing posts with label author website. Show all posts
Friday, April 4, 2008
Free Website Services for Book Promotion
Have you visited unprofessional promotional websites? There are some I’ve seen, but I won’t post the links. Some sites were designed by amateurs and it shows. I’m not saying that amateurs can’t design sites. We were all beginners at one time. An unprofessional appearance can drive people away from a site. I’ve talked to many business people and one thing most of us agree on – is that a business should avoid using a free site – that looks like a free site. Let me explain that in more detail.
Free Promotional Websites For Authors
Some free sites include their name in your domain name.
For example:
www.geocities.com
www.angelfire.com
www.freesite.com
www.bravenet.com
and many more
How Will Readers View Your Free Author Website
The majority of website users know these sites are free. I personally have 6 sites online and each costs less than $60 a year for my domain name and hosting. For $5 a month you can have a website which has a more professional appearance. There are other service that are even less. Isn’t it worth $5 a month to look like a serious business? Two of the big benefits are that there are no pop up ads and the word “free” does not appear in the URL.
Create An Effective Author Website To Promote Your Books
Recently, I was working on a promotion for local bed and breakfast business and I visited all of their websites. One was cute, but looked like a family website that was targeting children.
Several others were very attractive and professional. One was an award winning site. I should add that the area is expensive, influential and targets wealthy tourists who want a quality location for their vacation. If you were going to spend good money, which one would you choose?
Think about how visitors will view your site. Also, think about what you want to sell to your visitors. Does your site have the appearance and presentation that you want? If not, it is important to make adjustments in order to create the web presence that offers the best exposure for your books.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction Author
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
Free Promotional Websites For Authors
Some free sites include their name in your domain name.
For example:
www.geocities.com
www.angelfire.com
www.freesite.com
www.bravenet.com
and many more
How Will Readers View Your Free Author Website
The majority of website users know these sites are free. I personally have 6 sites online and each costs less than $60 a year for my domain name and hosting. For $5 a month you can have a website which has a more professional appearance. There are other service that are even less. Isn’t it worth $5 a month to look like a serious business? Two of the big benefits are that there are no pop up ads and the word “free” does not appear in the URL.
Create An Effective Author Website To Promote Your Books
Recently, I was working on a promotion for local bed and breakfast business and I visited all of their websites. One was cute, but looked like a family website that was targeting children.
Several others were very attractive and professional. One was an award winning site. I should add that the area is expensive, influential and targets wealthy tourists who want a quality location for their vacation. If you were going to spend good money, which one would you choose?
Think about how visitors will view your site. Also, think about what you want to sell to your visitors. Does your site have the appearance and presentation that you want? If not, it is important to make adjustments in order to create the web presence that offers the best exposure for your books.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction Author
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
Design Your Author Website for DSL and Dial Up
Is your author website “dial up” friendly? High speed internet is very popular, but there are many people who still use dial up. This may be their choice or they could live in areas that don’t offer high speed access. Either way, we need to create websites with dial up visitors in mind.
Create a User Friendly Author Website
When you click on a link and the website loads slowly, what do you do? I click the back key and find something else. Not the most admirable quality, but I usually have limited time to surf the internet. When I’m looking for something, I want the page to load quickly.
Learn To Make Author Web Pages Internet Friendly
What things slow down your webpage? Consider the graphics on your site. Do you have large picture files? It is best to save your pictures as jpeg files and optimize them before including them on your site. This helps the page load quicker. Do you have a background picture? That can also slow down your page.
Audio files can discourage some visitors from staying at your website and they slow your page loading speed. If there are audio files you want to include, let visitors make the decision to click on the files. Many websites include a time estimate of how long it will take to load the files. This allows visitors to make an educated decision about whether they have the time to download or open a file.
Is Flashy Best For Your Author Website
There are many bells and whistles that you can offer to your visitors on your website. Flash animation makes your website move slower. I read another article that said 70-80% of the people who click on a website with a flash opening, leave before it loads. That is critical information for website owners. Bells and whistles aren’t necessary and sometimes they actually hurt you. If there is something on your site that encourages people to leave, it will hurt your sales and your site.
When you create your website, visit a friend with dial up and check your site. Find out how quickly or slowly it loads. This can be critical to your visitors. Remember you want to attract visitors and your site is for their benefit.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
Create a User Friendly Author Website
When you click on a link and the website loads slowly, what do you do? I click the back key and find something else. Not the most admirable quality, but I usually have limited time to surf the internet. When I’m looking for something, I want the page to load quickly.
Learn To Make Author Web Pages Internet Friendly
What things slow down your webpage? Consider the graphics on your site. Do you have large picture files? It is best to save your pictures as jpeg files and optimize them before including them on your site. This helps the page load quicker. Do you have a background picture? That can also slow down your page.
Audio files can discourage some visitors from staying at your website and they slow your page loading speed. If there are audio files you want to include, let visitors make the decision to click on the files. Many websites include a time estimate of how long it will take to load the files. This allows visitors to make an educated decision about whether they have the time to download or open a file.
Is Flashy Best For Your Author Website
There are many bells and whistles that you can offer to your visitors on your website. Flash animation makes your website move slower. I read another article that said 70-80% of the people who click on a website with a flash opening, leave before it loads. That is critical information for website owners. Bells and whistles aren’t necessary and sometimes they actually hurt you. If there is something on your site that encourages people to leave, it will hurt your sales and your site.
When you create your website, visit a friend with dial up and check your site. Find out how quickly or slowly it loads. This can be critical to your visitors. Remember you want to attract visitors and your site is for their benefit.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
How to Enhance Your Book Website
What are you trying to accomplish with your website? This may sound funny, but do you have goals for your website? One common goal for an author website is to sell books. Another goal could be to promote your books and to make money. Do you have other goals for your website?
What Do Readers See On Your Author Website
Take a fresh look at your website.
What Does Your Author Website Offer
The first item to consider is – What do your visitors get from yourwebsite? Do you offer things they can use? Find items, details and articles that are useful for your target market. To do this, you need to determine what type of people make up your target market.
Learn To Determine Your Target Audience For Your Books
Who do you want to attract to your site? Many people say they want to attract “everybody”. It’s more complicated to attract “everybody”. A good approach is to determine what sort or category of people would be attracted to your books. Then, include bonus items, articles, links to helpful info or anything else that would be helpful to your visitors.
Many times people will share your website link with their friends when you have helpful and interesting information. This will help you find ways to give visitors information about your books and encourage them to return. It will help you draw their interest and convince them to buy your books.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
What Do Readers See On Your Author Website
Take a fresh look at your website.
- What do your visitors see?
- Does it have an appealing appearance?
- Did you use “friendly” or “harsh” colors?
- Do your pages load quickly or do they move slow with dial up service?
- Can visitors navigate through your site easily or is it confusing?
- Is your contact information available?
- Does your site “teach” your visitors anything?
What Does Your Author Website Offer
The first item to consider is – What do your visitors get from yourwebsite? Do you offer things they can use? Find items, details and articles that are useful for your target market. To do this, you need to determine what type of people make up your target market.
Learn To Determine Your Target Audience For Your Books
Who do you want to attract to your site? Many people say they want to attract “everybody”. It’s more complicated to attract “everybody”. A good approach is to determine what sort or category of people would be attracted to your books. Then, include bonus items, articles, links to helpful info or anything else that would be helpful to your visitors.
Many times people will share your website link with their friends when you have helpful and interesting information. This will help you find ways to give visitors information about your books and encourage them to return. It will help you draw their interest and convince them to buy your books.
Nikki Leigh - Fiction and Non Fiction
Author of the Book Promo 101 Series
www.nikkileigh.com/book_promo_101.htm
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