If you're writing a book - do this first!!!

This section will discuss how to use this budding website to collect a list of names, and get pre-sale commitments.

The book is still in the process of being written, so direct content from the book is not ready to put out as content for this new website. However, there are likely other books that are already out on the topic. There are probably books that the author used as references for the book he/she is writing. These books provide the basis for this budding website. Talking about books in the same niche as the upcoming book creates 'relevant content' for the website. The search engine spiders detect consistency of the domain name with the content on the web pages and give higher marks. The books being discussed are already available on the sites of the big online booksellers, and they make it very easy for someone to promote their products and link to their websites for the sales. The online booksellers even give affiliate commissions for effort. (Affiliate income will be discussed in the third installment of this article series.)

Creating a 'review website' based around the books that are the basis of an upcoming book is a very simple way to create relevant content on a website and get that 'Age Equity' meter running. Discussing the pros and cons of these books, especially offering up independent opinions or hinting at the fact that a new soon-to-be-released book will have more information about the topic is the way to begin to create demand for the new book. Adding an e-mail form to the bottom of the website is reasonably simple and there are many websites that exist only to help the webmaster with this exercise. http://www.freedback.com/ Collect these names and e-mail addresses of the people interested in the topic, promising to contact them when the new book is released or available for sale.

When the book actually has a solid release date, add a shopping cart (or link to an online bookseller) to the website. Contact the list to inform them of the impending release, promising them some type of bonus if they pre-buy the book. Suddenly, the contact list has turned into cash and the book isn't even released yet!

The list generated will become a fabulous asset for the author. It will be a bargaining tool with a commercial publisher or, as in this example, it will be instant income when there is something for sale.

For an example of a pre-sale site with a sign up form, click through to DogLoverBooks.com. This website has a contact form on the bottom to contact the author. And the form has an option to be notified when the book is ready. It also links out to pages that collect books on various related topics and features this new book. This is a link to the 'dog cancer book' page. http://dogcancerbooks.com The other books on this page (or the recommended reading) are books she will feature in her upcoming book .

To understand categories (or niches) and marketing other books as leverage for marketing new books, check out advancedbookmarketing.com.

Now, here is the 'getting paid' part... (EJ co-wrote Secrets to Creating Passive Income and becoming financially free)

The book's new website can list other books in the same niche on the website and reviewing or commenting on them. These other books are available on the web through online book sellers. These online book sellers all have affiliate programs. Barnes & Noble works with Commission Junction and Amazon.com has it's own affiliate program. Target.com and Borders.com are also online booksellers with affiliate programs. Choose one, they all have great reputations for paying their affiliates and for having good tools to help even novice web developers sell their wares. If the website can help these sellers by sending them customers, these book sellers pay well for the favor. Affiliate income off the books that you are reviewing or recommending is one easy way to generate income from a book property that isn't even a book yet!

The second easy way to generate income from this 'review site' is to create a space for advertising. Google adsense is just one of the advertisers who pay websites to put their ads up. These banner, box or picture advertisers automatically decide, based on the content of the webpage, which relevant advertisements to place on the page. The ads are subtle, come in many shapes and sizes and can usually be worked into a web design very quickly. What happens in this case is if the web surfer doesn't find exactly what they were looking for on your website, google offers up a few related options, and if the surfer chooses a google option, google creates a paycheck! Going back to the Astronomical Algorithms example, there are three places where google adsense has been added to the page. http://astronomicalgorithms.com/ The text color matches and the fonts are pretty close. These ads blend in with the rest of the website and for the most part, aren't interpreted as blatant advertisements. In his book, "The Adsense Code"
Joel Comm says that 'box ads' pay out better than 'banner ads' because web surfers are used to 'banner ads' and have begun to filter them out. Box ads have a tendency to pay out roughly 10 times higher than 'banner ads'. Websites like astronomical algorithms track this information and have proven this to be true. Google allows three ads per web page, so websites that decide to use this technique are advised to use it fully.

Regular advertising or other private party affiliate programs can also generate passive income when carefully placed into the design of a web age. There are many 'professional affiliates' out on the web whose website is so crammed with ads that it is difficult to wade through those pages to sift down to content. Web surfers grow tired of 'being sold,' so any ads, banners or boxes placed on the website need to be designed into that space such that the reason for the website (reviews) is clearly, and readily visible. If a website has a good relevancy rating, but has a high 'bounce' rate (surfers who take one very quick look and leave), it will not rank high. Giving the surfers the information they came to find is what a website is about. Keeping that perspective is paramount. These income generating pieces need to be subtle, relevant additions to the website if they are to generate revenue. In the book, 'Secrets to Creating Passive Income and becoming financially free,' the author gives plenty of examples and tips as to how to best accomplish this.

The third way to generate income from the website of the future book is to offer a genuine pre-sale opportunity. This is done by the author making a case that if the surfer buys the book now, before the release, then it will benefit them later. This helps the author (especially the self-published author) generate cash for a print run or something similar and gives the surfer a really great deal on the book with some bonus. Creating a deal that is a win/win proposition for both the author and the reader is the key to this income generating scenario. Ideas include a deep discount on the cover price, an additional book being sent with the order, free access to an e-book, discount into a membership club or newsletter subscription. Ideas are many and boundless, so the revenue here is potentially very high.

Click back to the top of this article to subscribe to this column, so that you'll be alerted when the last installment of this article series is posted. The fourth installment will discuss how the website will create name recognition for the author, so that it is in place as the book is released, creating instant demand for the book.

Using a website to 'prime the pump' for a new book's release is a tool of the twenty-first century for authors. It needs to be done as early as possible and the web presence needs to be vast, versatile and relevant, hitting every niche the book addresses. The tools are easy to access and costs are minimal if the author is willing to do it themselves. The income has the potential to completely offset the costs and actually create multiple revenue streams making a website launch, months before the book's launch, a major part of the book's business and marketing plan.

"If you build it - they will come..." Not so much... Don't expect miracles...

Just because a website exists, doesn't mean there is any traffic going to it. The work up to this point has been to get the search engines to come and visit and score the website, and that will happen. But human visitors is a different story. Human visitors need an invitation or directions to the information.

Having effective search engine optimization is the first way the website will attract visitors. Be sure the "title" tags, "Meta" tags and content are consistent. Please check each of the Meta entries. For a good book on search engine optimization, check out one of the books on this Marketing SEO web page. SEO Marketing

There are paid ways to put the book in the top of the search engines. For instance, Google's version of this is called Adwords. Until the website is generating reliable income, wait on using this technique. Organic traffic is much better at this point.

The major task that the author needs now is to get back links into the website from popular websites. There are a substantial number of websites that will allow back links into their content. Websites like this are generally referred to as Web 2.0. What that really means is that the websites are membership sites and allow the members to post their own content. This content is then used to their benefit. Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Pet Health Focus, Squidoo, Wikipedia, Amapedia and Google blogger are among the enormous list of Web 2.0 sites. New ones are coming online every day.

Adding a signature to emails with links into websites is also a very common way that authors use to passively market their book to their direct circle of influence.

It is all very doable, and yet, it is all very intimidating if the author doesn't have a plan. Creating a reasonable web marketing campaign can and should be done. When human visitors find the future book's website, then getting additions to the waiting list for the book are possible - and the marketing relationship has begun.

"If you build it - they will come..." Not so much, but "If you tell them how to get there - they will show up!"

Go back and read all these articles and create a marketing plan for the book's pre-website that will be able to generate income even before a book is released and create a waiting list for the book and name recognition for the author. For more help on how to do this, check out the Rocky Mountain Writer's Summit, experts in all of these fields will be present to help.

Using a website to 'prime the pump' for a new book's release is a tool of the twenty-first century for authors. It needs to be done as early as possible and the web presence needs to be vast, versatile and relevant, hitting every niche the book addresses. The tools are easy to access and costs are minimal if the author is willing to do it themselves. The income has the potential to completely offset the costs and actually create multiple revenue streams, making a website launch, months before the book's launch, a major part of the book's business and marketing plan. For more information or ideas on how this gets done, please visit the website: Accelerated Book Marketing.

Getting Published
FORESITE websites
Free Books on Publishing
Rocky Mountain Writer's Summit - 50 tips on publishing
My other lenses:
Teaching Children when it is safe to tell a secret and when they need the help of an adult

Sample FORESITE websites:
Speaking with the Spirits
New Thought Books
Keep Sake Books
Dog Cancer Books
Astronomical Algorithms
Great Angel Books