5 Things Your Author Site Needs to Sell More Books

Your author website is your main platform for finding new readers and communicating with existing fans. Here are the 5 things your writer’s website must have to help you sell more books.

As a self-published author, your website is more than an online business card. Your author website is your main platform for finding new readers and communicating with existing fans.

The stronger the relationship with your readers, the more likely they’ll spread the word about your work and bring in more book sales for you.

This is why it’s so important to make sure your website has all the essential elements that will keep your readers coming back. Here are the 5 things your writer’s website must have to help you sell more books.

1. Great First Impression

In many cases, your website will be your future fans’ first impression of you. You want to make sure your author site communicates your brand. Ask yourself these questions, and if your answer to any of them is ‘no’, then it’s time to reevaluate.

• Does my website visitor know what I write within seconds?
• Does the voice, tone, attitude and mood of my site resonate with my ideal reader?
• Can website visitors navigate around easily?
• Does my website appear credible?
• Is it clear why viewers should buy my book or subscribe to free updates?

Best-selling fiction author Lauren Groff’s website is an excellent example of a clean and attractive site design that highlights her most recent book, and uses design elements from that book in the site design to further her brand consistency.

 

Source: laurengroff.com

2. Keep It Clean

A minimalist web design and easy-to-use layout is key to keeping readers on your site and interested in your work.

Poor design elements such as cluttered pages or a complicated and non-intuitive site navigation may make website visitors close out before getting to know you.

The following tenants will help you keep your site looking polished and professional, and invite readers to stay and look around:

• Go for a clean and uncluttered look — white space is a good thing.
• Your site proves your credibility as a writer to potential new readers. Make sure your website copy is simple, clear and void of spelling and grammar errors.
• Keep navigation simple and intuitive, making it easy for users to find out how to contact your or buy your book.
• Keep all calls-to-action are the same color, and that you don’t use that color anywhere else.
• Avoid unnecessary distractions like Flash, animated backgrounds or music.
• Ensure your site is compatible with different browsers and devices by checking how your site how looks on your mobile phone and laptop.

Whether you love her books or not, provocative author E L James’ website is clean and  simple, and utilizes white space to make the essential features pop out.

3. Write a Killer Author Bio

Your author bio is where you prove your authority on your book’s topic. This is why your author bio needs to impress your target audience.

From showing off accolades to listing your publications, a great about page can convert browsers to buyers. Learn how to write an about the author page that will help you sell more books.

4. Clear Contact Info

From media outlets to agents to publishers, you want your site visitors to find your contact information quickly and easily.

Here’s how to make your contact information as easy to find as possible:

• Include a contact tab in your top menu that leads to a page with your contact information
• If you use a contact form, keep it simple — only ask for the information you need to reply
• If you provide your email address, use yourname[dot]com to avoid spam harvesters
• Provide multiple ways for people to contact you and follow you across your social media platforms

Best-selling author Peter Heller’s website is a great example of a clean and easy-to-navigate menu bar that includes his contact page clearly in the top menu.

5. Email List Sign-up Form

Building your email list is critical to marketing your book. Your email list is where you provide relevant content, exclusive updates, and nurture your relationship with new and die-hard fans. So you want to make sure you provide many opportunities for new fans to sign up and join the line of communication.

In exchange for a user’s email, you can provide exclusive content and insider updates about your projects, book signings and more.

Use a high-quality credible email marketing site so emails don’t get pushed into your subscriber’s spam boxes. Sites like Aweber and MailChimp can help you do that, and you can also use the tools manage your email list easily, even if you’re a beginner.

Your site is critical for hooking new readers, communicating with fans, and selling more copies of your book.

Here are five awesome author websites that will inspire your own >