Feb

The Power of Keyword-Rich Domain Names in Book Promotion

The Power of Keyword-Rich Domain Names in Book Promotion

Guest Post by Dana Lynn Smith

Many authors choose a website domain name that closely matches the title of their book. That’s great for book promotion purposes. But if your domain name doesn’t include important keywords, you could be missing out on search engine traffic in promoting your book.

According to Search Engine News, a domain name that exactly matches the keywords entered into a search engine will automatically give that domain a significant advantage in the search results. Having keywords in the domain name also increases the chance of the searcher clicking on your link when they see it on the results page.

For example, I purchased the domain name “SellingToLibraries.com” for my book The Savvy Book Marketer’s Guide to Selling Your Book to Libraries. My book promotion site appears on the first page of Google if you search for “selling to libraries” or “selling your book to libraries.”

Using Multiple Domain Names

If your important keywords aren’t contained in your existing domain name, it may be wise to purchase one or more additional domains for book promotion purposes. You can “point” or “forward” keyword-rich topical domain names to your home page or to specific pages within the site. Anyone typing or clicking on the domain will be automatically redirected to the page the domain points to.

If you have multiple products, you can purchase a keyword-rich domain name for each product and point it to that product’s page on your site. It’s probably not a good idea to point more than a couple of domains to the same page—you don’t want to give the appearance of trying to manipulate the search engines.

I also recommend buying a domain for your author name. You can point it to the Media Room or About page on your website, or set up a separate author website that contains your bio and media information and links to your other sites, articles you have written, etc. For an example, see www.DanaLynnSmith.com.

Finding Domain Names

The best domain names for are memorable and brandable and contain important keywords. To create a keyword-rich domain for book promotion, think about what keywords potential customers would be most likely to use when searching for information on your topic. If you haven’t already done keyword research, try using the Google Keyword Tool and the free version of Wordtracker.
Finding good domain names for book promotion that aren’t already taken can be a challenge. Try adding additional words such as central, hub, book, source or how to. You can use free online tools like Nameboy and BustAName to generate ideas.

Some other tips:

Try to get the .com version of the domain name if possible. The second choice is .net
Don’t use hyphens or other characters in your domain name
Don’t make the domain name too long

Make sure the words in your domain name don’t spell something unintended when they are run together with no spaces.

Domain Registration

When purchasing domain names for book promotion, look for a domain registrar that has low prices, good domain management tools, and free and easy domain forwarding. I’ve written a free tutorial on how to purchase domain names through GoDaddy, the domain registrar that I use.

I pay a little extra for “private registration” to keep my contact information out of thepublic WHOIS database which lists the owners of all domain names.

If you get your domain names through your web hosting service, it’s best to have the domains registered in your own name in case you change hosting companies.

Conclusion

Compare your existing domain name to your most important keywords and consider the benefits of buying additional domains for your home page or other pages on your site. In the battle for web traffic and book promotion, every advantage counts!

Dana Lynn Smith is a book marketing coach and author of the Savvy Book Marketer Guides. For more tips, follow @BookMarketer on Twitter, visit Dana’s blog at www.TheSavvyBookMarketer.com , and get a copy of the Top Book Marketing Tips ebook when you sign up for her free newsletter at www.BookMarketingNewsletter.com.

Andrea Kalli
Certified Internet and Social Marketing VA

WishList – Wordpress Membership Sites and Retention Strategies, Wordpress Support

MATERIAL CONNECTION DISCLOSURE: You should assume that I, Andrea Kalli, have an affiliate relationship and/or another material connection to the providers of goods and services mentioned in this page and may be compensated when you purchase from a provider. You should always perform due diligence before buying goods or services from anyone via the Internet or offline.

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