WHAT YOU NEED AS AN AUTHOR

You wrote a book, or you're in the midst of one...or hey, maybe you're just thinking of one. And that's all you need to be an author, right? A book? Not so. In today's highly connected world, you need to be connected to the places your readers will be. You can write the best book in the world, but it doesn't do you any good if no one knows it's out there.

 

That's where your marketing and promotion efforts come in. And hopefully, this section will make those choices easier for you. The two basics that I believe every author should have are one, a website and two, a bookmark or business card. The website represents you online, and the business card/bookmark represents you in person.

 

Website | First step

A website is 100% necessary in today's world. It's the first place people will go to learn more about you, to find out more about your books. Believe it or not, a website does speak to the perception of your professionalism as an author.

 

Every website should include:

• Your own domain name. Get a domain through godaddy or any other reputable company
  and secure your branding. It makes you more professional and easier to find. The first thing people will do to look you is either Google your name or type in www.yourname.com.
• An About You page, with a photo and information on you as a writer and a person. People LOVE to read about authors.
• Where to find you information. If you are on twitter, facebook, myspace or just have an airplane flying about with your name on it, tell people clearly on your site where to find you.
• A bookshelf page with your book titles, information, excerpts when possible and BUY LINKS. Make it simple for people to buy your books. If you have multiple books, include a printable (plain text) book list.
• A place to sign up to receive updates. Even if it's only a yahoo list, grab their email address so the next time you have a book out, you have a built-in audience slowly building.
• Contact information. It can be an email link, a form, but include it. DO NOT include a phone number or personal home address.

It doesn't have to be fancy or big or splashy. It just has to be you.

 

Website Don'ts

• Do not have music that automatically plays. Many people visit sites while at work and this will instantly turn them away. They aren't likely to come back.
• Don't put all your information on your home page. A long page with too much information is hard to read.
• Create a simple navigation so it's easy to find what people are looking for. People are used to the simple navigation headings: About Us, Books, Services, Products, Contact, News, Updates, etc. Don't get cute with names. It's not the focus of your site -- your books and you are.

Business Cards or Bookmarks?

As an author, you need something to hand out to people you meet. You can make the choice, but choose bookmarks or business cards. People will expect them when they meet you, and they will be far less likely to take the next step if you don't give them something tangible to hold on to after you aren't in front of them anymore. So how do you choose? Consider these points:

• Bookmarks:
  • Great giveaway to promote a specific book.
  • Something you can leave places where you aren't physically present. A bookmark is more likely to get picked up than a business card.
  • Limited shelf time. If you are promoting a specific book, the usefulness of this dwindles with time. Order numbers wisely.
  
  
• Business Cards
  • Great handout to promote you, the author.
  • A business card is more likely to be kept and not thrown away, because it contains information people may want later.
  • A larger order actually costs less per item. These are generally basic information, you can order a larger quantity.

 

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