Last Updated: 11/20/2021
We have done our best to answer some of your frequently asked questions. Don’t see the answer you’re looking for? Drop us an email.
Who are Author Brand Kits for?
Author Brand Kits are for authors who are struggling to build their own website and brand platform. We are here to help you get through the noise of establishing your website, social media, and email marketing easily for less than you might expect to pay for just a website!
Can I see some websites you’ve built?
Well, I built the one you’re looking at now. If you’d like more examples, check the links on this page.
What if I already have a website?
If you already have a website, you can still utilize our services. We can:
- Build a new website on WordPress
- Revamp your existing WordPress website
- Offer feedback on your existing website built on another platform
Will my WordPress website be mobile-friendly?
Absolutely. Building a website that isn’t mobile-friendly in this day and age is unheard of. In 2014, mobile search exceeded desktop search for the first time. Since then, creating assets that look great on mobile devices is a must.
Can you make my website ____________?
Maybe. Just ask. While we can set up a professional and functional WordPress website for you, we are not developers. If you want some heavy custom work on your website, you may need someone with coding experience.
Can you change the font or colors on my website?
Your theme dictates the design elements of your WordPress site. WordPress is highly customizable, but there are limits to what one can do without coding knowledge. The long answer is maybe. Just ask.
Can I sell my books directly from my website?
Yes, but you’ll need to integrate a shopping cart with your WordPress site. If this is something you want to do, just reach out to us. We can add this service for a nominal fee.
I’m getting “problems with WordPress” emails from WordFence, what do I do?
WordPress updates frequently, so that’s probably all it is. Under Dashboard in the left navigation of your WordPress Dashboard, click Updates. Follow the prompts to complete any updates to WordPress core, plugins, templates, or translations.
NOTE: SiteGround performs daily updates, so you can update WordPress with confidence. Your files and databases are already backed up.
I already have [insert ABK element here], can we still work together and how much would that be?
We’ve had several people approach us with partially-built platforms not really wanting to start over, but wanting to integrate what they already have with what ABK is offering, so…we listened and answered with access to a la carte VA services via heyyoava.com.
I already have an email that I prefer, why do I need another one?
Having an email on your own domain is as professional as it gets. You can forward the email to the email address you like best. It also creates a boundary where you don’t have to use your personal email for your business.
Why are Author Brand Kits so expensive?
An insane amount of work goes into building an author platform. The purpose of Author Brand Kits is to shoulder the majority of that work for you so you have a launchpad for your writing. It takes a lot of man-hours to handcraft your Author Brand and we have done everything in our power to pack as much value as possible into what we do.
Our introductory price was $749 with the intent to raise it to $999 a few months into our business. After one year, it is obvious that this pricing structure isn’t affordable for the average indie author and self-publisher. Rock-bottom pricing it is! You won’t get a rock bottom product!
We’ve been told we don’t charge enough, but we have a very personal conviction toward making services for the self-publishing community affordable.
How long will it take to complete my Author Brand Kit?
We take a full 4 weeks to build your Author Brand Kit. A timeline of what we will be doing is available here.
Why does it take 4 weeks to create my Author Brand Kit?
While we exist to help you build your author platform more quickly, we’re not here to do a rush job on your brand assets. We are handcrafting your author brand. We don’t take that lightly. We want to ensure that we have plenty of time to deliver on EVERYTHING we promise. We also don’t want the Google gods to be suspicious of a new brand popping up and developing too quickly. We like to drip feed the different assets we create for you.
Why are you behind on your own timeline?
If this happens, you will have already heard from us as to why and how much more time we need to complete your assets. The most likely cause of us falling behind will be the quick influx of a large volume of clients. We have already taken steps to ensure this does not happen, but it’s possible.
Does my Author Brand Kit include a logo?
No. You should work directly with a designer if you’d like a logo. If you submit a logo, we will gladly include it on your website and social media.
Why don’t you offer any services like editing, publishing, or writing?
Author Brand Kits is pleased to complement other businesses that offer these services rather than compete with them. We don’t want to reinvent the wheel. If you need other services, we probably know someone who can help.
Another person online has my name, how can I create my brand?
If you have a more common name, it’s highly possible that someone else is already using it online. You can either use a pen name and build your author brand around that name, or you can come up with a brand for your books that doesn’t include your name.
Are you going to market my books for me?
No. We build the platform from which you can market your books and we provide you with access to information and proven strategies to help you market your own books more effectively.
In our experience, book marketing is a full-time job and you have to be an active member of the audience to which you are promoting. It would be impossible for us to market books for all of our clients. We could offer press releases just like every other place out there offering “book marketing”, but we know it would be a waste of time.
My website is messed up. Do you have support?
We do have a limited amount of support. We can probably handle most WordPress fixes. Problems with your hosting account or MailerLite should be addressed via their respective support platforms. Shoot us an email and we’ll do everything we can to help.
Do you have experience with authors of [insert specific criteria here]?
So far, I have experience working with 30+ authors ranging from real estate to children’s books over the last 7 years. Not all of this experience was via Author Brand Kits since we are still very new as a company.
Do you know a good self-publishing course?
Sure do. Dale L. Roberts of Self-Publishing with Dale has a great course and you can get started completely FREE – https://dalelinks.com/diyfree
Why am I being charged more money for my Author Brand Kit a year later?
We will contact you when your hosting and domain are ready to be renewed to ensure you want to keep going with your website and email. Only then will we charge you.
Your Author Brand Kit includes one year of hosting for your website and domain. Those items come up for renewal after one year is up. You will never be charged more for the assets we created for you such as your email account, website, or social media properties; however, it does cost money to host most of those assets.
MailerLite will ask you to upgrade if you reach and exceed 1,000 subscribers on your email list.
Are there any hidden fees?
Nope. We are not a fan of fees. The only additional money you’ll ever be asked for is after 1 year to pay for your hosting and domain renewals. It will be about $99 per year.
Do you have an affiliate program?
We sure do. You can find out more about it here – https://authorbrandkits.com/affiliates/
We have some creatives and high-res logos available for your use. Let us know if you need anything else.
How do I cancel?
Your initial payment is good for 1 year of website hosting. Should you choose to discontinue your website at that time, we will package up your website and send it to you via email with instructions on moving it to new hosting. Any future payments will be canceled. We can either push your domain to you or renew it for you at an additional cost.
Can I get a refund?
Creating your Author Brand Kit is labor-intensive. We can offer a refund only if you haven’t completed your Onboarding Package questionnaire, the work hasn’t begun on your assets, and it’s been less than 30 days.
We will consider refund requests on a case-by-case basis if these criteria apply.
If you are unsatisfied, we would prefer to work with you to make things right, but we will consider refunding a prorated amount if we can’t come to a unified conclusion.