Last Updated: 11/20/2021
They said, “build an author brand”…
Then they dropped the ball on how to do that. Don’t you wish all of this was simplified?
If you’re struggling with your website, email marketing, or other aspects of your author brand and platform, ABK can help!
There is SO MUCH information out there about what you should be doing as an independent author and how you should be doing it. Wading through all of the information and noise is a full-time job you don’t want. After all, you’re a writer! That’s your thing. It’s what you do best. All this other “stuff” isn’t what you signed up for, but…
You want to sell more books.
And…in order to do that, you need a platform where you can have an audience and build a rapport with them. The days of writing and releasing to a hungry organic audience are gone. Once you’ve gone through the ordeal of capturing a reader, you want to retain them.
If you don’t have a place for them to go, you risk losing them forever.
But how or where do you create a place for your readers to go…
Your dedicated fans will seek you out online. They will look for ways to connect with you on a more personal level.
Tools like social media help you keep in touch with your readers and direct them to your new releases, extra content, special offers, events, and more!
However, the most important place you can send your readers is to your website to join your email list.
Once they’re on that list, you can message them any time.
If the only relationship they have with you is a buy button on Amazon, those are Amazon’s customers, not yours.
Make them yours by having a place for them to go to find you, learn more about you and your books, and get notified when you release new content.
This is how Author Brand Kits helps you build a robust author platform:
1. We begin by purchasing your dot com domain.
2. We create your custom email account on your domain.
We will create an email address for you on your own domain. This email will be the basis for your Author Brand Kit as we will use it to create the various accounts we set up for you.
3. We build a WordPress website showcasing your books.
We bring nearly 15 years of WordPress experience to the table when we put together your website. When we are done, you will be handed the login credentials to a complete website that is ready to be your home on the web.
As a part of your website package, your site is hosted on premium hosting by Siteground.com.
As a Siteground customer, you’ll enjoy their daily backups, super-fast servers, free SSL (HTTPS protocol), and so much more! Having used mediocre hosts in the past, take it from us, Siteground is top-notch!
Your website will include a minimum of 4 pages, including, but not limited to:
- Home
- About
- Contact
- Books
Your website can include a blog, but it is not a requirement. It can always be added later if you’re not quite ready to start blogging yet.
4. We set up your email marketing platform on MailerLite so you can keep in touch with your readers.
We use your branded email account and completed website to set up a MailerLite account for your brand. We have spent 15 years in the Internet Marketing world and used the likes of email marketing platforms like Aweber, Constant Contact, Mailchimp, GetResponse, and ActiveCampaign.
We use MailerLite for our own brand and it’s the one we choose to set up for our Author Brand Kits. It’s versatile, feature-packed, and affordable. In fact, it’s FREE until you reach 1,000 subscribers, so you don’t pay until you’ve built a robust following.
We’ll install your email opt-in on your website so you can begin collecting email addresses right away.
5. We secure your brand on up to 10 additional networks.
We will secure your brand name across online networks so no one else can use it and also so that should you choose to expand your online presence in the future, you don’t have to worry about your name being taken or copycats trying to steal your thunder.
We will secure your author brand on these networks:
- Facebook (if applicable)
- Twitter (if applicable)
- Medium
- Goodreads
- Feedly
- Quora
- WordPress.com
As a part of your Author Brand Kit, you’ll receive a spreadsheet with links to all of your online properties including log-in credentials. We hold nothing hostage. You own everything included in your Author Brand Kit.
We build your platform slowly over a 4-week period. Upon final delivery, you get:
- A WordPress website hosted on SiteGround (1 year)
- Dot com domain (1 year)
- 2 social media assets (if applicable)
- A custom email address on your own domain
- Everything you need to build your email list (MailerLite account + opt in form installed on your website)
- All the bonuses as outlined below
NOTE: Domain and hosting are subject to renewal after 1 year.
No more piecemealing together tutorials, articles, and videos trying to figure out how to do this stuff. As an author, you get to focus on what you do best…WRITE!
Wanna see our work? Have a look.
You also probably want to know who we are and what experience we have…
My name is Ava, and I created Author Brand Kits to fill a huge gap I saw in the self-publishing community from my experience working as a Virtual Assistant (VA) to authors and publishers over the last 7 years.
I self-published my first book in 2011 and by 2016, I was helping other authors do the same. Even before I got into self-publishing, I was a student of making money online and messing around with WordPress websites and social media.
I started working with WordPress in 2006. In 2014, I took a full-time position as a Social Media Manager for an established SEO company. I built the Social Media Marketing department nearly from scratch. We posted content for clients in a wide array of fields ranging from garage door installers to house painters to motivational speakers.
Can you imagine trying to make garage doors interesting? From that experience, I learned how to find and create interesting content on almost any topic.
So, I created Author Brand Kits with one simple purpose in mind:
To help you quickly build your author platform so that you can concentrate on writing without wasting tons of time trying to figure out technical stuff you don’t want to know in the first place.
What’s the community saying?
We are still brand new, but the accolades have already begun rolling in and will be added here as more arrive.
There’s a ton to learn and do starting out; ABK provides a solid foundation and adds ease and professionalism, so you can level up and continue to build into the future. Tremendously valuable, I recommend it without hesitation.” – Rob Archangel, ArchangelInk.com
“Author Branding Kit is an incredible value and a key service for the indie author just starting out. As the owner of a publishing firm for self-publishing authors, I can vouch for how difficult it can be as a new author to keep on top of all the moving pieces. Every day is a new step up the learning curve, with new skills to learn and options to navigate…It’s time for the burning question: How Much?
Author Brand Kits are available at $499.
After a year at a $749 price point, it became apparent that this wasn’t affordable for most independent authors.
I am here to serve this community, and I hope this new affordable price point shows that.
How much would you expect to pay for just an author website?
We are not talking about Wix. We are talking about a professional site built on WordPress which powers nearly 40% of the web?
Some prices you may have encountered in your search are $500, $1000, $1600, or even up to $10,000!!!
How much time would you expect to spend figuring out how to install your email opt-in on your website?
The aspects of building your author platform are technical! I’m not going to lie. I’ve spent YEARS gaining the knowledge to create an Author Brand Kit.
How would it feel to email that literary agent from your personal email hosted on your custom domain?
Your Author Brand Kit puts you on a level playing field with authors from all backgrounds, even traditionally published ones.
The value here speaks for itself.
Our personal guarantee…
Every Author Brand Kit is handcrafted with care. I, personally, build your brand platform using the same services I use because, after 16 years, we know a good webhost when we see one. We’ve handpicked MailerLite because it’s intuitive and easy to use. We deliver your Author Brand Kit and ensure it’s our best.
Bonuses
What would a great offer be without a few bonuses?
Social Media Graphics
It’s just crazy for authors to not take advantage of what social media has to offer as far as reaching our audience. To that end, Author Brand Kits creates 2 social media properties for your brand if you don’t already have them: a Twitter account and a Facebook Page (not to be confused with a profile).
We create the following graphics to flesh out your social media properties:
- A Twitter header
- A Facebook Cover
- 5 mockups for sharing with your audience
Branded Email Signature
I will create a branded graphic that you can use as your email signature that includes your logo or picture and information about where to find you online. I’ll even load this up in your new email account so it’s ready to go the first time you send out an email.
Knowledge Sheets
What are Knowledge Sheets?
They are the beginning of our Knowledge Base. They are packed with quick info to help you use your Author Brand Kit. For example, if you are completely new to WordPress, it can be a daunting platform. If you’ve never blogged before, there is a bit of a learning curve. The WordPress Knowledge Sheet included in your Author Brand Kit is designed to help you understand WordPress better.
So, are you ready to get your Author Brand Kit?
That’s great. We are ready to go to work on your assets!
When you click Purchase My Author Brand Kit, you’ll be taken to our secure checkout page. Type your email and click Continue. Click Complete Order to complete your purchase via PayPal. If you don’t have a PayPal account, you can still pay via PayPal using a credit or debit card. When your purchase is complete, you will be prompted to download your Onboarding Package.
Onboarding Package
Onboarding PackageThis is a package of materials that will gather the information we need from you in order to begin setting up your Author Brand Kit. Your onboarding package will also include a detailed timeline that shows you when to expect the completion of your Author Brand Kit.
P.S. Our relationship doesn’t stop there.
Your Author Brand Kit includes a limited amount of support. If you have any issues with your website, we will do our best to advise you. The assets we create for you come with their own support features. Your website host, Siteground, has support as well as MailerLite.
We will be releasing content designed to help you manage your new platform and how to use it to the fullest over time. Access to all of our future Knowledge Sheets and documentation is included in your Author Brand Kit.
P.P.S. Do you already have a website, social media, or email marketing platform?
The other side of my business is as a Virtual Assistant for authors and self-publishers. That’s more of an a al carte service at an hourly rate. Find out more here – heyyoava.com.
P.P.P.S. Wondering where we are on your Author Brand Kit?
Once you have purchased your Author Brand Kit, you will receive an email containing your Onboarding Package. This is where you need to take some action.
Go through the Onboarding Package and complete the following steps:
- Fill out the General Information form. We will use this information to get started on and complete your Author Brand Kit.
- Use the Author Bio Worksheet to craft an author bio if you don’t already have one. This will appear on the About page of your website.
- Review the timeline.
We will begin creating your Author Brand Kit once we have received your General Information form and Author Bio.
Over the next 4 weeks, we will create your Author Brand Kit. At the end of 4 weeks, we will deliver your assets via email. You’ll receive all the links and log in credentials to the online assets that we’ve created for you including, but not limited to:
- Hosting
- WordPress
- MailerLite
- All of your secured brand accounts
P.P.P.P.S. Are you ready?
We’re excited to work on your assets. Let’s get started!