A good rapport between the client and the website designer can make the difference between a mediocre author website and a great, memorable one. If a client is unprepared, unrealistic, or indecisive, the designer’s job becomes harder, and it will be more difficult to get the results the writer wants. The design team at Web Design Relief has some tips to help you be the client every designer wants to work with—and to create an author website that meets or even exceeds your expectations.
Be The Client Every Author Website Designer Wants
Do your research: It’s important to know what author websites in your genre generally look like. Are they large-scale websites or simple blogs? What kinds of pages do they have? Search for your favorite authors online and look around their websites to get a good sense of what yours should contain. Check out our author website portfolio for more inspiration.
Before purchasing a design package for your author website, learn the basics of how a website looks and functions. It’s important to know if your design ideas are feasible before you start work on your website.
Have a realistic budget: You get what you pay for. Focus on getting the most inexpensive package, and that’s exactly what your results will look like: cheap and unprofessional. However, you don’t need to break the bank and spend tens of thousands of dollars either. Research the average costs for author websites to plan an appropriate budget.
Web Design Relief offers professionally designed, affordable packages for almost every author’s budget. Take a look at our pricing overview for more details.
Know your style preferences: Before starting the process, it’s helpful to have a general idea of the design scheme you’re envisioning for your website. While the heavy lifting will be done by your design team, it’s still up to you to share your aesthetic preferences. Your web designer can’t read your mind! We recommend having a list of colors, textures, and fonts you like to help your designer build a personalized author website for you.
Get your content ready: Before beginning the actual process of creating a website with your designer, have at least a rough draft of your copy and a few images ready to go. This content can always be edited later, but it allows your designer to start building the site with some pieces in place so you’ll get a better idea of what the completed project will look like. You’ll score a few bonus points with your designer if your content is ready and proofread before you purchase a website!
Be responsive: When your designer sends you questions or samples to review, try to answer promptly (in twenty-four hours or less). When you’re an active participant in the design process, everything moves along more effectively. Building an author website is a collaborative venture between the writer and the designer. Being responsive with your ideas and feedback will make the development of your website less frustrating for everyone.
Listen to expert advice: There is a reason why you hired a professional design team. Your web designer will steer you in the right direction and make certain your website functions seamlessly and looks sharp. The best clients are always open to suggestions!
When you come to your author website design project prepared with reasonable, well-thought-out expectations, respond promptly to inquiries, and are open to ideas, you’ll be the type of client that designers clamor to work for. And the end result will be the very best author website design! Ready to discuss an author website with our team of experts? Schedule a free consultation with Web Design Relief today!
Question: What author website best represents what you’d like your own website to look like?
Fantastic, and very helpful. I always struggle at running my website even though it’s been 5 months, but I often come here to learn something new about websites. Thank you for such great help and guidance.