For book/ebook authors, publishers, & self-publishers

Is your website marketable?

I used to think the web address had to be short, sweet, and snappy, but no. Some of the most lucrative and impactful sites have long names. So what's the deal. BRANDING CONSISTENTLY. If the name capsules the site, and people see it all the time, that's the answer.

Martha Tucker

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Linton Robinson on April 30, 2008 at 11:49pm

There's a lot to that. And a lot of misunderstanding about domain names. A long name can contain more keywords, for instance.

And ultimately you could be using tincan.not if you can drive people to it.

Authors get confused sometimes because so much advice on websites is slanted towards people who are internet marketing: just trying to get traffic to their ad clicks. Trying to get high on google so they can sell clicks ot ringtones or something.

It's different when you are trying to sell your novel. And the chances of a novel being highly rated on google is almost non-existent.

It's a good idea to size things us, use SEO and such techniques as they apply.

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Permalink Reply by Peter N. Jones on May 1, 2008 at 12:46pm

I'm still a believer in having your url be as close to your websites purpose as possible. So if it is for you as a writer, I would have my name in the url. If it is for my book, I would have the book title in the url. If it is for my company, same thing.

I agree with Lin, most of the advice on the web concerning this is geared towards IM folks (or wannabe IM folks). Not towards writers or authors.

_____________________________________________
Director: Bauu Institute and Press
Publisher: Great New Books Reviewed
Editor: Indigenous Peoples Today Blog
Editor: Indigenous Peoples Issues & Resources

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Permalink Reply by martha tucker on May 1, 2008 at 1:58pm

my site name is: www.newimagewriters.com.

I named it that because we are the only writing team with a program that pays writers to write improved images of African Americans. They can be white people, black people, anybody who writes a new image of AA people, other than the negative images we see all the time.

When I had my book publishing company name in the early days, it didn't seem to resonate. Now it does. I started noticing other sites--and if it relates to the content of the site and is consistently marketed, it resonates.
Martha Tucker
blog.newimagewriters.com

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Permalink Reply by Eylon Israely @ Eco-Libris on May 1, 2008 at 2:12pm

Martha,

Branding consistently or Branding consistency?

You site touts two different brands and it is quite confusing. What's New Image Writers, and how does it relate to Urban Classic Books?

Eylon @ Eco-Libris
http://www.ecolibris.net/
Plant a Tree for Every Book you Read!