Put out the firestorm before it starts! When do you need a website? How do you get started if your book hasn’t been published yet.
In this podcast with Judith Briles on the Your Guide to BOOK PUBLISHINGwe discuss a common occurrence with new authors who wait until their book is published before they start thinking about a website. Waiting too long … starts the firestorm and panic – stop it before it starts!
Make-overs, new websites, specialized websites, blogging and getting started on all of it. Your business begins well before you have everything in place. This is not putting the cart before the horse! It’s planning with intention and creates trust with your audience and builds your tribe – who in turn, become your greatest fans and the starting place for your best viral marketing.
Ward Lucas’s new book “Neighbors at War” has gripping and shocking tales of homeowner association fraud that mirrors vicious mafia tactics and out right fraudulent behavior.
Ward has spent 40 years in investigative journalism and has won more than 70 journalism and civic awards for his reporting and writing. He was the first reporter on the DB Cooper hijacking and the Ted Bundy murders. He has interviewed Presidents and nursing home residents, Secretaries of State to street people.
From organized crime to wiretapping, to professional arson, Lucas has seen it all. In his new book, Neighbors At War, he presents startling information about how the modern Homeowners Association Movement is impacting Americans.
As the stories continue to pour in, in addition to his own horror story, “Neighbors at War” is destined to change the way Americans look at Covenant Controlled Communities. Visit his site and subscribe to his list – you’re going to want to read each one of these unbelievable stories.
When you are first starting out with WordPress its easy to get something that is beautiful as well as functional for your website appearance. So many talented people create themes on a daily basis and still, others will try them and then report back to the developers, any bugs that usage of the theme may reveal.
The synergy of many people creating and utilizing themes through WordPress makes the possibilities endless. Whether you are writing a personal blog, selling books or opening an online store, WordPress is for you. Even big corporate companies are implementing blogging as a viable means to communicate and build relationships with their customers – and WordPress is there to make that happen.
Just because a theme is free, doesn’t mean that it is without value. Thanks to the massive amount of plugins, any theme can be tweaked to take on a life of its own. The question arises that if someone labors to build something free, such as a WordPress theme or a plugin, and others profit from it, what is in it for the developers of these tools?
Just as an artist such as myself will provide free artwork, it helps to spread the word in a viral manner, what the author, artist or developer is capable of creating. Once a customer finds the theme that they like, they have a tendency to then become an advocate and a loyal customer because trust is built with consistent usage.
Not only can you access free themes from within the Dashboard of your WordPress installation, but you can also search Google to find free themes and those who develop and review them such as these sites:
There are thousands more and new ones every day. If you have a favorite theme please share with me which one it is, include the link to it and why you like it so much. Others will want to know – and the developer deserves the kudos for his or her efforts.
Planning your website is much like creating your business plan.
Make sure that they both match the business that you desire to have and LIVE.
There’s a temptation to feel pressured into creating a website AND a business that reflects what other people think you are supposed to have, and not what resonates with you.
So much information is available to you at the drop of a hat, or a Google search that it’s extremely easy to become overwhelmed with information overload. Here’s what I recommend when you find those massive treasures of information …
Create a special folder in your Bookmarks just for Internet Marketing, or Branding and save those treasure-troves for later reference
As you watch a few of them, certain things will”pop out” at you that resonate with what you need to do next and which will support your future growth.
Make mental notes of what you are weak in understanding or implementing – and hire someone else to do it. “If it’s not your genius, it’s not your job!”
Look for a good clipart/photo site so that you can buy credits for low-resolution files, suitable for the Internet. Your site will need graphics!
Take an inventory of all the articles, photos, graphics, etc. that you have on hand right now that will tell the story of who you are and what you do. If you don’t have anything – have a friend help with photos and feedback.
Remember that there are many things that you can do on your site, within your site, in regards to product development and Internet marketing, social networking, and on and on. BUT you can’t do it all at once. Take the time to do it right – not fast.
Even though we access information in cyberspace at the blink of an eye – it didn’t get there overnight. Your website is and will be and should be an ever-changing expression of your growing business and who you are. If it doesn’t resonate with you – toss it. Even if someone says you can make millions by doing it – don’t even go there. Those rabbit trails sometimes lead to treasure, and sometimes they lead to your demise.
One bite at a time! Start gathering your thoughts, your materials, and SET YOUR INTENTIONS!
