DIY Book Forum

Most book promotion websites I come across do a very poor job of actually selling books. They have beautiful artwork, videos with the author, glowing testimonials, maybe even a sample chapter. What is missing...

...an order button!

Okay, in fairness, the order button is usually there. It is just buried at the bottom of the page in an inconspicuous place. There may be little or no visual attention given to it.

In my experience, the reason for this is that writers love their work but don't like selling. So, they become timid when it comes to asking people to actually give them money and buy a book. But, it is possible to build a website that is optimized to make sales without turning into a late night infomercial pitchman.

Here are the basic rules:

 - Use the F-Shaped reading pattern to your advantage
 - Make all images into links
 - Keep things as simple as possible

The F-Shaped Reading Pattern

Eye-tracking studies have shown that most people in the western world read a web page starting at the upper-left corner and read down and across in pattern that looks like the letter F. All of your most important 'calls to action' (that's the marketer's term for asking people to do something like buy your book) should be located in this area.

Images - Attention (and Mouse-Click) Magnets

The next most important place for reader attention is images. Images of faces are guaranteed to be seen. It is human nature. So, use images to draw attention to important information. Also, people click on images regardless of whether they were intended to be links. Take advantage of this tendency by making sure your images link to something (every image of your book cover should be an order link.)

Simplicity and Focus Get Results

Your book's web page needs to stay focused. The goal is to build interest and sell a book.

You can see an example of a website built using these techniques here:

www.GoEasybook.com

This page is very simple and plain looking, but it works. Visitors click on the order links and buy the product. It is based on some solid research into web and e-commerce design. Use it as a starting point for your book site.

What have you done with your book promotion website that has been effective for generating sales?

Andrew