Tag: SEO for Authors

  • On the 10th Day of Christmas, Chanticleer Brings to me Marketing Tips! | 12 Days of Christmas 2024

    Celebrating the Twelve Days of Christmas! – One Day at a Time

     

    The Tenth Day of Christmas gift of Ten Lords a’Leaping represents the 10 Commandments of the Old Testament that guide the faithful. We could use a lot of rules of ten for different writing practices!

    On the Tenth Day of Christmas, Chanticleer brings to me…

    Best Practices for Marketing your Book by Maximizing your Services!

    On the 11th Day of Christmas, we’re focusing on how you can get your book the recognition it deserves in 2025. Whether you’re an indie author or a seasoned pro, marketing your book effectively is key to connecting with readers. That’s where Chanticleer comes in! From the Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBAs) to our Editorial Book Reviews, we provide tools and services to help your book shine and grow its audience.

    Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBAs): Boost Your Book’s Visibility

    One of the best ways to promote your book is by entering it into the Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBAs). As one of the most prestigious book awards programs for indie authors, the CIBAs offer incredible visibility for your work. Winning or placing in the CIBAs can propel your book onto readers’ radar, and with the exclusive badges and stickers we provide, you’ll be able to showcase your achievement wherever you promote your book!

    Winning an award is great, but CIBAs also offer much more than just recognition. Each entry includes SEO-optimized technology, enhancing your book’s performance on our website and boosting its visibility online. With our dedicated SEO efforts, your book will be more discoverable by readers and search engines alike.

    Whether it’s sharing your award badge on your Amazon author page, website, or across your social media platforms, the CIBAs provide the resources you need to amplify your book’s success. And with the white-glove service Chanticleer is known for, we’re always here to support you every step of the way.

    Editorial Book Reviews: Enhance Your Book’s Reach with Professional Insight

    In addition to awards, one of the most powerful ways to promote your book is with a Chanticleer Editorial Book Review. Not only do we provide in-depth, professional reviews for your work, but each review is packed with blurbs that you can use across various platforms. From social media posts and Amazon descriptions to website content and in-store shelf talkers, the blurbs we provide will help capture attention and intrigue potential readers.

    Beyond the blurbs, our Editorial Reviews also come with comprehensive SEO optimization. This gives your book greater exposure on Chanticleer’s website and makes it more likely to be discovered through search engines. A great review helps you stand out, but the behind-the-scenes work ensures that your book gets the recognition it deserves.

    Our team is committed to giving each author a white-glove experience, whether it’s crafting a tailored review or helping you optimize your marketing strategy post-review. We’re here to make sure your book gets the attention it needs to thrive.

    The Power of a Badge and a Blurb

    You know you want it…

    Badges and blurbs are more than just accolades—they’re tools that can help you market your book and connect with readers. Whether it’s an award-winning badge from the CIBAs or a glowing editorial review blurb, these elements give you a professional edge that resonates with readers. Display them proudly on your book’s page, share them across social media, and use them to highlight your success.

    At Chanticleer, we know how much effort goes into writing, publishing, and promoting a book. That’s why we’re here to support you with services that enhance your book’s visibility and marketability.

    Get Ready for 2025: Make Your Book Stand Out!

    This holiday season, take the opportunity to set yourself up for success in the new year. Whether it’s through the CIBAs or an Editorial Book Review, Chanticleer’s services are designed to give your book the recognition it deserves.

    On the 10th Day of Christmas…

    “But Jiminy Crickets, it’s after December 25th! Is it not too late for the 12 Days of Christmas?” you say.

    Not to fear, Chanticleerians! The 12 Days of Christmas begins on December 26th! And it continues to the 6th of January – Three Kings Day. The four weeks leading up to Christmas is known as the Advent.

    So if you haven’t finished wrapping presents, sending out those cards, and baking cookies—don’t worry—you still have time! Well, a couple more days. 

    Happy Holidays to You from the Chanticleer Team! 

    On the Tenth Day of Christmas, my true love sent to me

    Ten Lord’s a’Leaping

    Nine Ladies Dancing

    Eight Maids A-Milking

    Seven Swans A-Swimming

    Six Geese A-Laying

    Five Golden Rings

    Four Calling Birds

    Three French Hens (Chanticleer’s favorite #justsaying)

    Two Turtle Doves

     And a Partridge in a Pear Tree 

     We’re not sure why the lords are a’leaping over the 10 Commandments, but they sure do look happy.

    Stay tuned for the 11th Day of Christmas!

    The Chaicleer Rooster logo wearing a santa hat

    Our favorite part about having the 12 Days of Christmas is that we can have the time we need to celebrate with our loved ones. We have time for wrapping our presents, meeting with friends for hot cocoa, and setting ourselves up in the New Year  for publishing success (with Chanticleer Professional Services and the Chanticleer Authors Conference).

    Wishing you Happy Holidays from Chanticleer from Kiffer, David, Dena, Scott, Anya, and Argus!

  • Chanticleer’s Once-A-Year CYBER Sale: Conference Discounts and more!

    Rooster Approved Discounts?

    You Betcha! 

    A beautiful auburn rooster with a red comb
    “I give it two talons up!”

    Yes Please!

    Chanticleer’s ONLY cyber sale of the year is here!

    With discounts on the Chanticleer Authors Conference and all of our Editorial Book Reviews, the time has never been better to launch your marketing journey for 2025!

    We can’t save the turkey, but we can save you $$$ on our Authors Conference and more!

    This is your chance to unlock incredible savings and set your author journey on the path to success! Our annual CYBER Sale is the biggest discount event of the year! It’s live NOW through Cyber Monday (December 2nd). Let’s dive in!

    Auburn rooster with a red comb pecking at the ground
    “This looks like a good place to start!”

    Here’s what you can save on:

    The Chanticleer Authors Conference (CAC25)

    Save $100 off CAC25 Registration with the code: CAC25TRZRFH4X

    Banner for CAC25, the Chanticleer Authors Conference

    Join us April 3-6, 2025, at the beautiful Bellingham Yacht Club! Conference seating is limited, so don’t wait!

    You’ll learn from industry professionals across sessions on:

    • Expanding Readership
    • Audiobook Creation
    • Advanced Writing Craft
    • Social Media and Content Creation
    • SEO & Metadata Strategies
    • And much more!

    Seats are filling up fast – secure your spot today!

    A Gold Ribbon dividing this section from the next

    Editorial Book Reviews

    A $100 discount with code WEDTAKZV6XUZ

    Regularly $495 – Now Only $395!

    Your book deserves the best

    • SEO
    • Metadata
    • Tagging
    • Long Tail Promotion

    Purchase now and redeem at any time!

    A Gold Ribbon dividing this section from the next

    Editorial Audiobook Reviews

    We are in an Audiobook Renaissance going far beyond the reach of Audible to encompass the incredible Libby App and Libro.fm.

    Take $100 off using the same code for Editorial Book Reviews: WEDTAKZV6XUZ

    Your audiobook deserves the same high-quality attention that the physical copy receives!

    Blue button with a speaker that says Chanticleer Reviews Audiobooks
    Chanticleer Reviews Audiobooks

    A Gold Ribbon dividing this section from the next

    Children’s Picture Book and Early Reader Reviews

    DISCOUNTED FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!

    We’ve never offered a discount on Children’s Book Reviews before!

    Save $50 with the code PZ44KAAPAG9H

    Regularly $325 – Now Only $275!

    Whether you’re an author of heartwarming stories for kids or early readers, this is an unbeatable deal!

    Get started today!

    But wait, there’s more!

    These Discount Codes for the Conference and all our Editorial Book Reviews are Valid from now through the end of Monday, December 2nd, 2024!

    You don’t want to miss out on these one-time-only discounts! Whether you’re an established author or just starting, Chanticleer’s service help elevate and vet your work for outside audiences. From the Editorial Reviews to the life-changing Conference experience, you don’t want to miss out!

    Need assistance?

    We’re here to help! If you have any questions, please connect with us at info@ChantiReviews.com. Our team is standing by and ready to assist you.


    From all of us here at Chanticleer, we wish you and yours a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving! We’re thankful for you, our amazing Chanticleer family. Keep writing, and we’ll see you soon!

    Kiffer, David, Anya, Scott, Dena, Argus, and the entire Chanticleer Team!

  • Demystifying SEO: Your Pathway to Potential Readers in the Digital Age

    An author’s role has grown exponentially over the years.

    The classic image of the man in Caps for Salenby Esphyr Slobodkina takes on a whole new meaning!

    Now, when we say “I’m an author” we should be adding, “and a financial expert, a promoter, a marketer, and a search engine optimization (SEO) expert.”

    This last designation might sound bewildering to some in our writing community, but it is an essential component needed to reach your books’ sales goals.

    SEO, Man, computer, gear, magnifying glass, target, arrow

    Don’t be frightened by SEO! 

    In today’s crowded digital landscape, authors face the unique challenge of not only crafting compelling stories but also ensuring those stories reach their intended audience. SEO plays a crucial role in this process. From optimizing website content to utilizing social media effectively, a strong SEO foundation can transform how authors engage with their audience and grow their readership. Whether you’re a seasoned novelist, a traditionally published author, or a first-time self-publisher, embracing a strong SEO foundation is essential for navigating the complexities of the digital age and growing your readership.

    Read on for a closer look into how authors leverage SEO.

    book, flying, squatting, man

    Understanding SEO Basics

    At its core, SEO is all about increasing traffic to your website through organic search engine results. A potential reader inputs their selected keywords into the search engine, perhaps a character type or specific genre, and the search engine presents its results. Authors who effectively employ SEO practices into their online marketing improve their website’s chance at being placed high up in the results, increasing the author’s visibility and expanding their reach to new readers.maginfying glass, man, graph, megaphoneHow to Increase Your SEO Rankings Using Effective Keywords

    Reaching the highest SEO goals means creating quality content and optimizing their online platforms to attract organic traffic—and it all begins with effective keywords. The keywords you insert into your content is the pavement on the road that connects your website with potential readers. In order for them to be effective, you need to understand what people are searching for online in relation to your work—what words they’re using to find you and what type of content they want to read. Knowing this will provide you with information regarding which topics to write about because you now you know what the targeted audience is looking for. 

    But how do you know what keywords are most effective?

    Authors should identify key terms and phrases that potential readers are likely to use when searching for books in their genre. Looking at what other authors are doing is a great first step to better understanding effective keywords. Looking at how other websites think about writing, like Amazon’s BISAC codes or Thema can help give you some guidance of where to start. Incorporating these keywords into book descriptions, blog posts, and website content can significantly improve search engine rankings.

    SEO, blue, red, white, Website, link, traffic, Keyword

    Optimizing Your SEO

    Creating high-quality content is key to SEO success. Blog posts that explore topics related to their books, sharing writing tips, giving peeks into their daily lives, or discussing industry trends are all topics that can contain the keywords you’ve decided work best for your work. Authors will not only be positioning themselves as thought leaders; you’ll also be connecting with readers and encouraging them to engage with you. For your keywords, you want to be sure to use the most specific options available. For The Hobbit, you might think High Fantasy, and Action and Adventure is enough, but fixating down on the nitty gritty helps you stand out from the crowd with keywords like Hobbits, Dwarves, Epic Quest, Children’s Fantasy Novel.

    SEO,

    Here are four steps you can take to increase your SEO

          1. Websites

    An author’s website serves as a central hub for their online presence. Focus on optimizing your the meta data and descriptions for your titles as they are the snippets that appear in search results and work best when they contain high-ranking keywords.

    A compelling meta description can entice users to click on a link, thus driving more traffic to your site. Consistently publishing new and updated content also signals to search engines that a site is active, which can further boost rankings—so consider plan on publishing new content on a regular basis.

          2. Building Backlinks

    Backlinks, or links from other websites to an author’s site, play a significant role in SEO. The greater number of reputable sites that link to an author’s content, the more credible they appear to search engines. Authors can cultivate backlinks by guest blogging, collaborating with other authors, or being featured in interviews. This not only improves SEO but also expands their audience reach by building a digital network to other websites.

    Graphs, arrows, blue, green

           3. Understanding Analytics

    Authors should familiarize themselves with tools like Google Analytics to track the performance of their website. Understanding metrics such as page views, bounce rates, and user demographics can help authors refine their strategies and focus on what resonates with their audience. This data-driven approach ensures they are continually improving their online presence, and points them to the right keywords when interest changes.

            4. Leveraging Social Media

    A strong social media presence can have an indirect but greatly positive impact SEO by driving traffic to an author’s website. By sharing blog posts, book launches, and engaging content, authors gain interest in their work and that can encourage their followers to visit their website, effectively increasing their overall visibility. Engaging with readers on social media platforms will create a community that further supports their work and their reputation with readers. You can learn more from us about Social Media here.

    computer, cell phone, cup, shadows, desk, papers

    The Importance of SEO

    Embracing SEO is not just an option; it’s a necessity for authors in the digital era. In a world where readers often turn to search engines to find their next book, effective SEO strategies can mean the difference between being seen, or remaining invisible. Effective use of keywords empowers authors to take control of their marketing efforts, increase their search engine rankings, reach a broader audience, and ultimately drive up book sales.

    Whether you’re just starting out or looking to refine your online strategy, now is the time to invest in good SEO!


    Chanticleer Editorial Services – We’re ready when you are ready!

    Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services?

    We do and have been doing so since 2011!

    Tools of the Editing Trade

    Our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in the Chicago Manual of Style. They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, McMillian, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, Simon Schuster, etc.).

    If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or David at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or DBeaumier@chantireviews.com for more information, testimonials, and fees.

    We work with a small number of exclusive clients who want to collaborate with our team of top-editors on an on-going basis. Contact us today!

    Chanticleer Editorial Services also offers writing craft sessions and masterclasses. Sign up to find out where, when, and how sessions being held.

    A great way to get started is with our manuscript evaluation service.

    Here are some handy links about this tried and true service: https://test.chantireviews.com/manuscript-reviews/

    Writer’s Toolbox

    Thank you for reading this Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox article.

    Writer Toolbox Helpful Links: 

    BISAC Headings List

    Thema Subject Categories

    Making Social Media Easier for Authors by David Beaumier

    Ready to dive deeper? Check out Getting the MOST TRAFFIC out of your Website by David Beaumier

  • AIOSEO – More than Alphabet Soup – Getting the MOST TRAFFIC out of your Website — A Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox Article

    AIOSEO – More than Alphabet Soup – Getting the MOST TRAFFIC out of your Website — A Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox Article

    Demystifying AIOSEO

    AIOSEO (All In One Search Engine Optimization) is a profoundly popular tool for marketing. Now you don’t have to respond to the daily emails offering you the First Page of Google, and you can instead feel confident you are doing the best you can.

    Disclaimer:

    One important thing to consider is that this article is written in early 2021. If the date is considerably later, then it is out of date.

    Technology grows and changes rapidly, and we must always rise to meet it. This article won’t look too deeply at categories and tags, because those should just be already listed on your website. If you’re interested in learning more about tags, click here for our article, by Kiffer Brown on using hashtags, which follow a similar rule.

    KEY TIP: Always click save when working on anything, especially after adding images. Don’t count on the program to autosave things for your website. Save your draft work early and often.

    AIOSEO – More than Alphabet Soup – All In One Search Engine Optimization — will help you drive more traffic to your website.

    More Web Traffic = More Book Sales

    We will be using WordPress as our example, and you can see our initial AIOSEO score on a new article below:

    A list of WordPress Options with an AIOSEO score of 0/100

    If you pay a web service, like WordPress, for your website, they should have a help system that you should be able to email if you have additional questions to address. Let’s dive in!

    We know what AIOSEO Stands for. What Does it Do?

    The AIOSEO looks at how search engines will read your website. Yup, they are reading your website to try and guess how the website will be read by humans. A human programmed a search engine to try to read a website like a human in order to determine if the website will be easy for actual humans to read. If that feels circular to you, you are not alone.

    A black and silver laptop
    We all have a lot of time in front of computers in our future

    Here are things that help your website seem more readable:

    • Headings every few paragraphs
    • A Post Title of 60 Characters or slightly fewer.
    • Meta Description of 160 Characters or fewer
    • A Focus Keyphrase that appears everywhere
    • Less than 10% of the piece should be in passive voice
    • No more than 25% of sentences should be over 20 words
    • Paragraphs should be no more than 120 words
    • Images and Videos should be included
    • External and Internal Links should be included

    Wow! That’s a lot! When do we know that we’ve done enough?

    Sites like WordPress give you your AIOSEO score to see. The score is out of 100, and most website score between 60-80, so that’s a good place to aim. Obviously some of these won’t be reasonable for your website to accommodate depending on the material you promote.

    For example, as a website with a lot of reviews, we have more passive voice in our reviews. Why? We don’t want to give away who is responsible for the action in the book! Passive voice avoids answer who is responsible for an action, and allows us to provide excellent, spoiler-free reviews.

    Let’s break down some of those bullet points together.

    Why AIOSEO is important

    Headings

    See the word “Headings” immediately above this sentence? That’s a heading! Usually websites offer the opportunity to choose between Paragraphs, Headings, and Quote Text. A heading lets your reader know you are moving to a new subject. They are an excellent way to signal a change in subject, and lets the reader find the information they want to locate right away.

    Within a section, you can use multiple headings, usually in the form of “Heading 1” “Heading 2” and so on to create subheadings within a section. You can see what our Heading dropdown menu on WordPress looks like below.

    A Drop down menu with style options

    From here, we’ll move to looking at the keyphrase and title.

    Focus Keyphrase is essential for AIOSEO

    This is the main idea of your post. For this post you are reading our keyphrase is AIOSEO. You want it to be ubiquitous throughout your post. This is where it should show up:

    • Title
    • Post Title
    • Meta Description
    • The First Paragraph
    • Tags
    • Alternative Text
    A box for the Focus Key phrase
    This is how the Focus Key phrase appears for us

    Remember, these will appear differently to everyone based on a number of factors that we can’t predict, so take your time looking for them or Google what you’re looking for and the name of the website you’re using.

    Post Title

    Post Title with Snippet Preview

    See how above the “Post Title” is a “Snippet Preview” to see how your post will appear in a web search? That’s a great way to really see what it looks like. And in the bottom right corner you can see that it only uses 38 out of the 60 recommended characters.

    Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about Alternative Text, it just needs a little more explanation than a quick screenshot.

    Alternative Text adds a couple AIOSEO points

    An alt text box in an image editor

    Generally, if you click “edit” on an image, one of the categories that pops up will be alternative text or “ALT text.” ALT text is what a screen reader will read out when it comes across an image on your webpage. This helps anyone who has issues seeing the webpage or even people who can see the webpage fine and simply prefer to have text read to them. Simple and direct is usually best with ALT text.

    Internal and External Links add a few AIOSEO points

    Internal links are simply links that go to somewhere else within your website. External Links go somewhere outside your website. We always recommend making sure your Links “Open a New Tab” rather than navigating away from the website you are on.

    A checkbox marked next to "Open Link in New tab"
    That top box is the ticket!

    Opening to a new tab fulfills both your readers need to not lose their place in what they’re reading, and it fulfills your need to keep them on your website!

    Thinking of screen readers again, remember to make it clear what is and isn’t a link, by stating exactly what the link leads to, and then hyperlinking it.

    Hyperlink Recommendations

    Which link do you find more appealing to look at?

    https://www.chantireviews.com/chanticleer-conference/

    OR

    Click Here to Learn about the Chanticleer Authors Conference!

    Probably the second one. Now imagine you are using a screen reader. Would you rather have a computer voice attempt to read that full URL to you (h t t p: w w w…), or would you rather a direct description of where the link will go followed by the words “Click Here”?

    Most people recommend the hyperlink as opposed to the full URL. If you really want to use a full URL, you can always consider using a custom tiny URL by going to the Tiny URL creation website here.

    One Last Note: #Hashtags

    Everyone loves the Hashtag, or as we like to call it, the octothorpe. When using Hashtags, we recommend capitalizing every individual word. For example #chanticleerauthorsconference would be #ChanticleerAuthorsConference or for Twitter #CAC21 #SeriousAuthors

    Octothorpe aka Hashtag aka pound symbol has 8 points

    The capitalization won’t make much of a difference to the computer that analyzes your work, but it will make a huge difference in terms of whether your hashtags will actually be accessible and readable by a large audience.

    So How Did We Do?

    We looked at this post a couple of times before posting. Here’s how our score looked.

    Here is a look at our AIOSO score throughout the writing of this article:

    • Text and Title Only: 58
    • After Adding Headings: 68
    • Adjusting Post Title and Meta Description to appropriate word count: 79
    • Adding AIOSEO as the Focus Keyphrase: 89
    • Adding an image with the alt text AIOSEO: 90

    When we finish with adding our links, the score raises to 95! Tightening up language as suggested by the AIOSEO brings us all the way to 96!

    Update from 10/24/24: We’re now at 98!

    The increase in score is likely due to us always purchasing the latest p0ssible services to promote our authors.

    Before you hit publish on your site, check out the AIOSEO score.

    A list of WordPress Options with an AIOSEO score of 96/100
    Remember, between 60-80 is considered pretty good!

     

    Good luck, and happy posting!

    If you are interested in participating in a Hands On AIOSEO Workshop, please send us an email to Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com

    Writer’s Toolbox

    Thank you for reading this Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox article.

    Writers Toolbox Helpful Links: 

    HOW HASHTAGS can INCREASE ONLINE BOOK SALES by Kiffer Brown

    The 2021 Virtual Chanticleer Authors Conference

    The Tiny URL website

  • SEO for Authors – Part Three of Five Things Every Author’s Web Site Needs

    SEO for Authors – Part Three of Five Things Every Author’s Web Site Needs

    The Third Post on the Five Pillars of Effective Website Design will Focus on SEO (Search Engine Optimization)

    What good is having a website, if no one can find you?

    Recap

    Does your website have these five essential website pillars to be effective for promoting you and your work?  

    1. Your Branding Message in a Tagline
    2. Calls to Action – Driving Your Audience to Action
    3. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
    4. Interaction with Your Visitors
    5. Usability and Readability

    3. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Authors

    Content must be coded in text, not as a graphic

    It is important for your website to have certain elements in text rather than images so that search engines will be able to find them and then index them (so that your website will come up on browsers such as Bing, Google, Yahoo). Navigation (links that go to other pages on your website), the site title, your book titles, your author name, page titles, and of course, your content needs to be coded in text, not as a graphic with text embedded. Google “indexes” your site following these page links. With so many Google fonts available, it’s almost a crime to use graphics as navigation elements. WordPress automatically uses text for your navigation, and many themes offer background, font and color options to make your navigation menu more interesting visually.

    Translation: Do not only use an image of your text embedded in a graphic in the header of your website or your digital book cover images and expect to have your website found easily by search engines. Make sure that you always use text in addition to the image graphic of your book covers.

    A photo is worth a thousand words

    Did you know that you can make your images work for you in your search results? They just need an appropriate “title” and “alt” text. These tags don’t show up to the reader, but the search engines will track them IF they are tagged with text. WordPress has text fields you can easily fill in with key words when adding your graphic. Don’t leave these valuable tag fields empty! It also helps if your files are named with a word that describes them, rather than the series of letters and numbers a digital camera might give them.

    Use the correct image size for faster web site load time 

    When you use images, make sure they are optimized for the web. Big, high-resolution profile pictures and book covers are great for print, but will slow down your page load times. Images for the web need to be measured in kilobytes (kb), not megabytes (mb). Google considers page load times when ranking your site; the faster the better. Your site will also rank higher if it is mobile friendly (more on Usability coming up in section 5). As of April 21 2014, Google will begin penalizing sites that are not mobile-friendly.

    Fresh content aids in SEO – even a small paragraph

    Fresh content keeps your site on top of the heap. If you have a blog, it should be incorporated into your website. If you’ve been using Blogspot (blogger) or WordPress, another blogging platform, you can easily integrate those into a domain-based website. It’s recommended to update your blog at least every two weeks. If you don’t have time to blog, there’s no shame in it; just don’t have one. It looks worse to have your last post dated from Christmas 2012 prominently displayed than not to have one. But remember consistent short and sweet  blog posts are better than none. It is freshness and frequency that count, not length and complexity.

    Plugs-ins: The special sauce for ramping-up your SEO indexing

    WordPress has some great paid and free plug-ins to help optimize your site for better search results. All in One SEO Pack has a free and a paid version. These plugins make it easier to add your page titles and meta information.

    Part of the process of discovery when setting up a web site is figuring out what people will be searching for to bring them to your site. These words and phrases can be integrated into each page. Individual pages also need their own titles, so that Google and other browsers will index them correctly.

    Use Google Plus Social Media for extra Google SEO Goodness

    We have a handy guide to getting started on Google Plus. Click here for more information.

    Use words in your URLs instead of numerical codes

    These words can be automatically generated in WordPress by going to the “Permalinks” section in the administrative screen and choosing “Post Name”. Think about the words that a potential visitor to your website might type in her browser search window in order to find your web site. For instance, www.mywebsite.com/bookreviews/ is better than www.mywebsite.com/?p=7846, even though they go to the same page.

    When writing your pages, use sub-headings when topics change. Be sure to use the proper tags, such as <h2> and <h3> for subheads, rather than just enlarging and bolding your text.

    Link from other sites

    Having a trusted site like Chanticleer that has your review listed and linked back to your website will increase your search engine rankings. These are called inbound links, or backlinks. When linking to content from your website, make sure that the links open in a new browser window, so that your site stays active in the viewer’s browser.

    Our next post will focus on interacting with your web site’s visitors.

    We hope that this article has shed some light on areas where your website can be improved to help you reach your audience. The best part is all of these improvements are free if you know how to do it yourself. If not, Chanticleer Reviews offers website assistance and creation as part of their book marketing services targeted specifically for authors.

    Read Part Four Here!

    Rochelle Parry, Chanticleer Reviews’ Creative Director   You are welcome to email me at: RParry@ChantiReviews.com

    Rochelle Parry, webmaster