Author websites: what to put on your homepage
You're a writer, so writing the copy for your website should be easy, right? But some writers find it a challenge. After all, it's a very different skill from writing books. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing a series of blog posts to offer some top tips and advice on what each page of your author website needs, to make sure it is working as hard for you as possible!
So let’s kick things off with the most important page of all - your homepage….
What to put on your homepage
Your homepage is usually the first page people see.
As soon as they land on your site, within seconds they need to know:
1) who you are
2) what you’ve written
3) how they can find out more/buy your books
So, make sure that at the top of your homepage you have a brief bio/summary of you and your writing.
Here's mine as an example:
Charlotte Duckworth writes psychological suspense novels about parenting, motherhood and the challenges faced by modern families. The Rival and Unfollow Me are both out now. The Perfect Father will be published in 2020.
If you'd like a friendlier feel, you can write this in the first person - it's really up to you.
You should follow this short description with an image of and the blurb for your latest release.
You book covers are your number 1 marketing tools, so make sure they are prominently displayed! And make sure you have links to buy or find out more about each book on your homepage.
Highlighting your main calls to action
On every page of your website - not just your homepage - you should be thinking about what you want your visitor to do on that page, and making sure you organise your content accordingly.
With your homepage, we want to put the most important things front and centre.
For most writers this will be your latest release, or perhaps encouraging pre-orders for your next book.
If we give the visitor too many options upfront it can become overwhelming - we want to lead them gently through your website (like weaving a path, making sure they see the most important things first).
So write down your main aim for your homepage - your number 1 ‘call to action’ - and organise the content on the page so that it supports and promotes this.
A few carefully chosen testimonials also work well on the homepage. These are known in the web design world as ‘social proof’ and can be powerfully persuasive to people who might not be familiar with your work.
But the absolute most important thing of all?
That it’s immediately obvious from your homepage who you are and what you’ve written. Don’t be mysterious!
Essential homepage elements checklist
a banner image that fits with the theme of your books
copy that shares what you write (as discussed above)
a tagline, eg 'Sunday Times bestselling author'
mention of any prizes you've won or been short/longlisted for
buttons or obvious links to buy your latest books online
a clear call to action (order my latest release, email sign up, join a Facebook group)
testimonials from other authors (a few of your best ones - snippets only if they are long)
press quotes
'as seen in' logos if you've been featured in high-profile newspapers or magazines - remembering to link these to the relevant articles if they are online
latest blog post teasers
a newsletter sign-up form
social account links for social sites you are active on
Hope this has been helpful - I will be posting specific advice about each of the core pages on your author website over the coming weeks.
But…
If you can’t wait that long - then you can download my entire Author Website Content Guide right now by signing up to my newsletter!
Looking for help with your author website? Discover my three design packages here>
