Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, websites, and other electronic media platforms are important to an author’s success in the book business today. Let’s face it; you can’t ignore social media anymore if you plan to publish your book. Last week on this blog, Danielle made the point that even if you have electronic platforms up and running, they are of little value unless you can provide… [Read More]
If you have been following our social media series and keeping abreast of the free advice Swenson Book Development LLC has to offer, please take note: this post trumps its predecessors. Search engine optimization, metadata, plugins, widgets, and pretty blogs all can improve web traffic and generate sales conversions. Nothing, however, is as important as the content on your website. Presentation and formatting makes a… [Read More]
If you’ve read my last post on the difference between plugins and widgets and why every author platform should take advantage of these user-friendly tools, you will be happy to read this follow-up guide. I present to you, savvy WordPress user, plugins and widgets for a successful author platform. These are just a few of the basic plugins and widgets we recommend (and use ourselves)… [Read More]
Swenson Book Development, LLC is pleased to announce that starting in September our blog will begin featuring three weekly articles or columns. Here’ what we have planned for our subscribers to receive on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings. Tuesday: For the love of books Those who publish and sell books for more than the sake of a lousy buck are today’s unsung heroes. Ithaca… [Read More]
Last week I explained the importance of using metadata to optimize your website or blog for search engines. Metadata, as you will remember, helps drive the right traffic to your page and makes your content more accessible. Brilliant! Your web traffic is growing and you are expanding your author platform. But now that visitors arrive on your homepage and take a first look, how do you… [Read More]
Lately I’ve been doing a lot of work on websites. I spend my days playing with and installing widgets, writing meta tags and descriptions, cleaning up content, adding links, and overall trying to improve search engine optimization, also known as SEO. It takes time and focus… and sometimes a quick search for clarification and explanation. For the most part I avoid touching HTML code. It’s… [Read More]
Last week eBookNewser featured an article on ten social networks for readers. It seems online communities for readers are popping up everywhere in response to the e-book boom. Online writing and reading groups are less exclusive now; increased competition and advanced features means better options for reading and developing books across the web. Meaning more opportunities to find a website that complements the books you… [Read More]
If you are an author who wants to get published, you need a website, blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and other social media platforms. Publishers expect the author to play the primary role in social media marketing. You can hem and haw, but most book professionals are going to insist you build your author brand online. Luckily, Swenson Book Development, LLC assists authors with their… [Read More]
When Jill Swenson asked me to write a 500 word post for Swenson Book Development LLC book blog, I was apprehensive. For one, writing creatively has never been one of my strengths. But writing critiques, doing research, and procrastinating are. Helping others write is why I want to work in book publishing. Even if the publishing industry is struggling. I refuse to say publishing is… [Read More]
If you want to watch a rising star with a bestselling book, look to Andrew Kessler and Martian Summer. He’s part gonzo journalist, i.e. Mary Roach with gonads, and part wacky hip ad-man, i. e. his real life gig as Creative Director, HUGE. The social media buzz isn’t shameless self-promotion; it’s comedy central. Yup, the book trailers are only a piece to this sweet marketing mix… [Read More]
