Summary: Why You Should Care<br> <br> Homepage is still important<br> First impression for people Googling you. <br> <br> Why You Should Listen to Us<br> <br> Thomas’s company <a href="http://www.authormedia.com">Author Media</a> has built over 100 author websites.<br> <br> Common Mistakes Authors Make With Their Homepage<br> Mistake #1 Welcome letter<br> <br> No one reads these. It makes your website look dated.<br> Tend to be a symptom of not knowing what to do with your homepage.<br> Shocking Broca, first line of your novel, first line of your website, same thing …<br> <br> <br> Mistake #2 Cramming content above the fold. <br> <br> There is no fold.<br> In professional web design, this is how we can tell if someone has not been keeping up to date.<br> <br> <br> Mistake #3 Desktop First Design<br> <br> Websites are built with computers.<br> The temptation is to design the homepage for computers.<br> Most visitors will be on a mobile device. <br> Mobile can’t be an afterthought. It must be your first thought. <br> <br> <br> Mistake #4 Focusing on the author. <br> <br> No one wants to read your bio on the homepage. <br> That is what about pages are for. And even then … boredom is not your friend. This is your second chapter …<br> The purpose of your headshot on the homepage is to help people know they are at the right place. And give them a connection. We connect with people. It’s the way we’re wired.<br> <br> <br> Mistake #5 No clear next step <br> <br> 90% of the time the next step should be to either: join your email list or buy your book.<br> In one sentence answer the question: “What do I want people to do on my website?” <br> Don’t use the word “browse” in your answer. <br> The purpose of my website is to __________________________________<br> <br> <br> Mistake #6 Sliders<br> <br> The purpose of sliders is to let your boss put his pet project “above the fold” without having to worry about anyone ever seeing it.<br> Sliders only work if everyone reads at the same pace. <br> Sliders break the mobile experience<br> Good place to hide a dead body. <br> <br> <br> Mistake #7 Paragraph Text <br> <br> Homepages are for headlines and images <br> You have seven seconds …<br> Gross Anatomy once again<br> Exception: If your homepage is a blog, you can have one paragraph of text per post. <br> <br> <br> Mistake #8 No Clickable Book Cover<br> <br> People want to be able to buy your book right away, it might be the only reason they came to your site.<br> <br> <br> Mistake #9 No Sign-Up Form<br> <br> Email is one of the most effective ways to sell books. One of?<br> Always be growing your list. <br> Scavenger hunts<br> <br> <br> Mistake #10 Ugly Design<br> <br> You are not a designer.<br> An ugly website reduces your credibility. <br> Either stay close to the theme or hire a professional. Don’t do it yourself unless you can explain the difference between hexadecimal, RGB and cmyk and when and where to use which one in design. <br> No one has the guts to tell you your website is ugly.<br> The easiest way to have a passable design is to stick with white and black. Let the color come from your photos. <br> Good design will not make your site. But bad design can break it. <br> <br> <br> The key to a good homepage:<br> <br> Put yourself in your reader’s shoes. <br> <br> <br> Answer these two questions:<br> <br> Where am I?<br> Where do I go from here?<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Apology<br> <br> We had a snafu with our RSS feed that caused some people to download old episodes. We apologize for the inconvenience.<br> <br> <br> Sponsor:<br> <a href="http://www.mybooktable.com">MyBookTable</a><br> <br>
