Prepare Your Author Website for the New Year: Day 2

We’re preparing our author websites to attract a bigger audience in the new year.

We’ve completed the first step of removing the clutter. Now we're ready to give your blog a fresh look.

Many authors overlook the importance of blog design. This is a mistake — a big one.

Your theme needs to be modern and an easy-reader. If you've been growing your blog this year, it's time to evaluate whether you've outgrown your current template and design.

No matter what website platform you use, there are thousands of themes (or templates) available, but you'll do well to keep your site clean and simple. Unless you're writing and selling content concerning web design, you're not showing off your programming skills here. With so many pre-designed choices by professionals, customization by us nonprofessionals is a waste of time, which we could otherwise use for creating content (which is what our viewers want).

Take a look at other author websites in your genre to get ideas of the type of look that works for your ideal audience.

If you prefer buying a premium theme, go ahead, but there are plenty of free choices that work well. My free theme meets all my needs and more.

IF YOU SWITCH THEMES, MAKE SURE YOU PAW THROUGH EVERY PAGE TO CHECK FOR TRANSFERABILITY OF YOUR CONTENT.

Changing my theme is where shit went wrong for me and I had to make several manual adjustments.

CHECK FOR BROKEN LINKS (404 ERRORS) AND OTHER TECHNICAL PROBLEMS.

Viewers and search engines hate broken links. Here is how to find them:

Ask yourself, do all the pages you've linked still exist? Have you changed a URL for a page on your site?

For a larger WordPress site, the best way to find broken links is to use the site auditing tool that combs the website. My techie husband recommends Screaming Frog because it’s downloadable free and fast software. He also recommends SEMrush. This is an SEO platform with a free trial and tons more features than just a site-auditor.

ONCE YOU'VE FOUND THE BROKEN LINKS, ELIMINATE OR FIX THEM. 

External link – These links send your viewers to other websites (probably not a good idea). Eliminate them if you can.

Internal link – Either update the link to the new URL or redirect for the ease of viewers and search engines. Check online resources if you're not familiar with this process. Here is a tutorial for beginners.

Now, all your links are working and you've eliminated those that don't serve you as an author. 

THAT’S IT FOR DAY 2! 

Tomorrow we'll look at how to examine your website content to increase traffic and author revenue.

If you are an author committed to doing everything in your power to getting your books into the hands of the right readers, the Happily Ever Author Club is for you. It’s strategy, coaching, feedback and an inspiring community of fellow writers — all in one place.