An author’s website serves as a personal portal connecting an author with his or her audience. It complies with the modern definition of a business, combining the social aspects of an actor, promoting, and distributing one’s published work.
An author website is not just about creating a profile and showing off your book; author websites are crucial in defining the marketing of the exposed work, making it more visible to the desired audience. There are several website builders today, and choosing one can be challenging.
This article will discuss seven author website platforms that will make the authors more appealing to their target audiences and have a better chance of being top sellers.
All seven platforms have their specialties and can cater to different audiences and levels of expertise, so one can select the right one that meets his/her writing career needs. These platforms allow both experienced and debut authors to promote them, present their books properly, and efficiently reach their target audience.
1. Wix
Wix definitely deserves to be praised as one of the most adaptable author websites owing to its ease of use and its customizing features. The platform is perfect for authors who wish to publish a polished look of a website, without needing any technical skills.
The editor allows users to easily drag and drop templates to create designs that make it simple to showcase books, blogs, and personal bios in an aesthetically pleasing manner. The platform also comes with more than enough templates that can be modified to cater to various literary needs. With that users can head over to literary and grab the template that caters to the genre and style they are looking for.
A key advantage of using Wix for author websites is the sophisticated SEO offerings they offer. Such tools will make it easy for you to get your work to the right set of people which in the world of literature only makes it easier to be heard.
Wix also allows the use of social media which authors can use to promote their works and raise awareness among the audience as well. Authors can also use the built-in blogging feature to let their audience better understand how they think about literature or their writing style altogether.
By utilizing Wix one is able to add multimedia content such as videos and images which can prove beneficial to the client. Authors who want to sell their work or merchandise from their websites should consider using Wix as the website offers shopping features that are easy to manage.
Also, with the help of 24/7 Customer Support, authors can write more rather than worry about their websites since help is guaranteed. To sum up, Wix can be a good alternative for authors who are seeking personalization alongside having control over all features of the website as well as making the website improve its branding.
2. Squarespace
Another best author website builder is Squarespace which is known for its beautiful and professional author website designs. This platform is great for authors that want to make a statement through their website and brand as it has a well-thought-out design. The Squarespace user’s interface has block section editing which makes it easy to create beautiful websites without people having to focus on each detail independently.
The templates provided by Squarespace are dynamic in response meaning whether it is a desktop or a mobile device the template will self-adjust making your content well displayed everywhere. Squarespace also has built-in marketing features and SEO tools. This allows authors to market better. Authors can also use analytic tools to assess how visitors to their websites engage with their content and revise their content strategies, if necessary.
Furthermore, they can have a look at how their books are doing or what is going on in their writing lives, as Squarespace allows blogging as well. This Kind of interaction of readers with authors and their works will help increase the chances of the readers coming back for more. For individuals searching for a professional author website with eye-catching features and usability, Squarespace is a brilliant website that can add value to your author’s website.
3. SITE123
One of the author’s website builders that puts a certain stress on the ease of use is SITE123. So, if you are a newcomer to concept building or presentation and have no technical skills, SITE123 might be able to address your needs. The platform makes it easy for users to set up borrowing management by logging in, selecting the web design style due to the specified features, and modifying the new site created to accommodate their needs.
In addition, this platform has curated over 160 templates that capture various purposes including the author’s website. The templates are not only practical images as SITE123 ensures that authors are not overwhelmed with many choices as it would employ the services of new authors attempting to create a professional identity online. Further, SITE123 contains the relevant tools to assist engaging readers including the blog creation and integration and even the basic search engine optimization features that increase chances of travail finding your work online.
Although some of the advanced capabilities of other builders are not fully available on SITE123, its aim is to aid newcomer authors who have no time nor creativity to struggle to build their online identity. As the case with non-direct probe, in all these instances, the simplicity of the builder must enable authors to focus solely on the writing portion of their work, as well as leave no doubt in the brand of the website they own.
4. WordPress
WordPress is considered one of the most powerful and versatile website platforms geared towards writers/authors. It gives an author complete independence in managing everything that deals with his or her site’s look and operations. There are thousands of themes and plugins on WordPress, which means that as a writer, you can greatly customize your author’s site to fit you.
One of the strongest reasons to choose WordPress is its dynamic content management system (CMS) which combined with a blog section, allows any writer to have a great author page. Each of the books can be given a separate page along with a comprehensive description, snippets, reader reviews, and links to buy the book for the potential readers to have easy access to them all.
WordPress journalists and writers do have the added task of having to learn a bit more than what is required on platforms such as Wix or Squarespace, but the extensive capabilities that WordPress offers make it worth that undertaking.
Besides, there is great support from the WordPress community as well; one may find hordes of online guides and tips for solving many problems or even for improving the site by adding functions. For authors who seek a content-rich site that comes with robust management tools and that would develop along with their careers, WordPress continues to be a good choice.
Read also: 7 Best Website Builders for Authors with Built-in Newsletters
5. Weebly
Moving on to Weebly, which is one of the most popular author website platforms focused solely on creating e-commerce websites. The platform allows authors to sell their books and other products using their websites with minimal technical skills. Weebly has a fairly simple interface, allowing amateur users to develop websites quickly and in a professional manner.
The platform has templates designed for different screen sizes so an author’s website maintains its quality whether a user is using a desktop or mobile device. Weebly also has multiple multimedia features including video galleries and image sliders that are useful for any author marketing their books via an author website.
Weebly also has built-in analytics tools which can be useful to authors in determining the nature of their audience in terms of engagement levels on their websites. This data serves many beneficial purposes including helping develop and implement sound marketing strategies and determining the best content to post for the readers. If your goal is to make retail purchases but you’re looking for a website that is lightweight and has good analytics, the best option is Weebly.
Read also: Steal These Ideas: 7 Inspiring Author Website Designs
6. Web.com
Web.com is another author website builder that markets itself as a good author-focused website builder. The platform includes advanced SEO tools meant for literary form content. This tool is very important since it helps in getting you new readers as it elevates your site in search engines.
Web.com offers different types of portfolios allowing you to present most of your writing samples while also providing a custom design service for those who are still searching for the right website style and functionalities. This combination of Search Engine Optimization supplementation and focused services is quite enticing for popular writers who want to improve their brand endorsement strategy without having to change the target audience.
Also, Web.com has email advertisement campaigns and social network management applications. This campaign can increase your visibility as an author even more. With those features, combined with good SEO, you can come up with a good marketing plan that will drive traffic back to your site.
Read also: How To Build an Author Website with a Blog That Readers Will Love
7. Ucraft
Ucraft is unique because of its sleek looks, its author website platform can be integrated with multiple languages which is a plus. This feature enables creative authors to reach diverse customers in many languages. Ucraft has a simple drag-and-drop editor that allows users to create professional-looking sites with ease.
The platform additionally provides logo creators and landing pages that can help in book marketing strategies. This assists in promoting an image across all marketing platforms. Built-in SEO features allow content to be searchable while e-commerce features make it easy to sell books or other items from the site.
Another plus with Ucraft is their customer support who remain on call even when one is setting up the site/or customizing the site. For creative authors, who have detailed images and texts, Ucraft is still a perfect fit when needing both text and design in a website.
Read also: How To Create a Killer Author Website for FREE (No Coding Required!)
Conclusion
To sum up, the author’s site is of great importance in the current competitive book market because it assists in creating a brand and readers in a better way. For each of the seven platforms put forward – Wix, Squarespace, SITE123, WordPress, Weebly, Web.com, and Ucraft – one can find different functionalities that are customized to suit different types of authors. The way each author’s website platform is made available handles ease of design, functionality, online store capabilities, and search engine optimization features that can assist one in selecting the one that is in sync with your requirements as an author. One’s visibility and thus reliance on chances of becoming a bestselling author can greatly be altered with a good-looking page!