You’ve written an awesome book and now you need a website to spread the word around. These days, it goes without saying that every writer needs an author website. People go to the internet where they search as per their interest and intrigue. So it becomes very important for an author to have a dedicated web presence. It helps you to up your stake in the ground and own your place on the internet.
This article is being written to walk an author through exactly how he can get his website up and running for very little money. You will be surprised to know it but if you have all the content ready, it can be accomplished within a couple of hours. You will be introduced to the best practices that are time-tested and proven in creating a dedicated online platform.
Author Website- The Purpose
Without clearly stated goals an author’s website may go haywire and be ineffective. Primarily, there are two goals that an author should be mindful of:
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Sell More Books:
The whole reason you have a website is so that people will get to know your book and eventually buy more of them. So the content of the website should accordingly be structured. It should create intrigue, stir the readers’ minds, and should precisely target the chosen set of audiences.
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Build relationships via an enhanced email marketing strategy:
Building an author email list is the most important way to build a long-term connection with your reader. Regular interaction keeps the reader informed and it helps you stay updated.
Steps in building an Author Website:
You can’t be random in building your web presence. It needs to be methodical, time-tested, and exhaustive. Precision and brevity should be prioritized while also covering everything relevant that keeps the audience glued. Here is the step by step procedure to create the desired impact:
1. A unique domain name:
You need a domain name in order to have a website. It can be .com, .net, etc that people will type into their browser to access your website. It is advisable to establish your web presence around your name instead of a particular book’s title. Chances are if you are a writer, you will likely have a body of work and not just one odd book. So choose the domain name keeping the long term in mind. It is very crucial and stays the same over an entire lifetime.
2. Choose your web host:
So how is web hosting different from your domain name? Your domain name is like having an address. It lets people know where you live. However, it’s not your home exactly. Having an address doesn’t mean you have a roof over your head. In fact, your web host is your website’s home. It’s where your actual website stays. All the various types of files have to be stored somewhere that people can access. This is where the web host comes in handy. For a small fee, they will take care of storing all of your files and make them available to people online.
3. Choosing the right platform for your website:
There exist web platforms that help you set up your website. There is WordPress, there is Squarespace and a lot of others. Choose a platform as per the ease of use, credibility, and overall effectiveness.
4. Choose a theme for your website:
Platforms like WordPress make it really easy to choose the design of your website. There are hundreds of themes available that you can choose from, install and customize. There are both free and premium versions available.
5. Create the relevant content:
In this section, you choose the pages of your website and the content therein. Usually, there are common pages used widely but you can customize them as per your preference. There can be a Homepage, About Section Page, Books Page, and Contact page. Additionally, there can be Events, Blogs, and Resource pages to make it wholesome and thorough.
6. Customizing the Plugins:
One of the great things about platforms WordPress is the vast collection of plugins that are available to help add functionality and customization to your website. There are almost 30,000 plugins available in the WordPress Plugin Directory. And that’s a lot to browse through.
Also read: About other Book promotion services
A good proper website is an author’s gateway to reach out to his specified audience. If thought through properly and strategized prudently it can do wonders. There are set procedures and processes that make it easy even for a relatively newer author.
