by Todd Hicks

Created on: June 12, 2009   Last Updated: July 27, 2009

Are you an aspiring author who has considered using the Internet to sell the works you have written? Have you started the process of creating a web site or blog for marketing purposes? If you have already developed a web site, are you satisfied with it? Authors who aspire to sell their works online will have an easier time marketing and selling their items if they have a fantastic web site. You will learn some steps you can incorporate to design a successful author web site.

The first thing you should do before you create a web site is establish a method to collect payments for the books you sell. It is a splendid idea to sign up for a free account with PayPal. It is best to sign up for a free premier account or a paid business account instead of a personal account so that you will be able to process an unlimited amount of credit card payments.

Once you establish your account with PayPal, take advantage of the array of things they provide for customers who are merchants. One thing you can do is insert PayPal payment buttons on your web site. If you have a web site account with Web, you can insert these buttons without having to program codes on your web site. If you have any difficulty learning how to do something with your account, the technical department for Web should be able to help you. If you sell books elsewhere online, provide the links to where your books are sold. Test your links before you insert them.

Your web site should be outstanding. Make the background and any graphics you decide to use attractive. All of the text on your site should be reader-friendly and have a font of at least twelve points. Clearly explain to your readers what your site is about and what makes your books stand out.

Establish your credibility. One way you can do this is to write articles that pertain to your expertise and submit them to article submission sites. Provide the links to some of the articles you have published on your web site.

Another method you can use to establish your credibility is to provide a professional biography of yourself on your web site. Your bio should briefly describe the materials you have written and reveal how you picked up the knowledge you used to write your books. Another great way to be seen as credible is to provide a free sample or chapter from one of your books.

Make it easy for your web site visitors to trust you. Provide a quality photo of yourself. If you need to use a special file to upload your photo, it is best to scan your photo into Photoshop and create a file that can be saved as a Jpeg file. Another thing you can do to build trust is to provide your physical address in its entirety.

Protect yourself from liability. Provide a disclaimer that lets visitors know you cannot guarantee they will see improvement from reading your books.

Follow these steps to create a successful author web site!

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