Your Book and a Great Website
Build a great Website. I can't state this often enough or
strongly enough: you must have an attractive, easy to use
Website that lets your visitors do four things:
a.Buy your book. b.Register and download sample chapters or get
your e-newsletter. c.E-mail friends about your book. d.Find out
more about you.
Your Website should be ground zero for your book business, the
place where everyone comes to buy copies, give you their contact
information, communicate with you about media interviews or bulk
orders, and just learn about your book and why they should buy
it. It's the single most important aspect of your marketing plan.
Notice that I said, "great" Website. There are thousands of new
books coming out every month, and many of them are amateurish at
best. Having a sloppy, clunky, poorly written Website only makes
your book look like one of those amateur-hour productions.
Invest the money in a professional Web developer, someone who
can design a classy, beautiful site, build your e-commerce
system and give you the means to easily update your site's
content at any time.
Good sites all make the books and their authors appear
professional, legitimate, and smart. They're inviting
information centers for people to come to and spend time getting
to know both book and writer.
You should have your Website up and running before you begin any
PR or sales activities, probably at least two months before your
book hits the streets. Talk to several Web designers or get a
referral from someone you trust. In any case, make sure your
site has at least these features: