Although often very small compared to the rest of the article, an author box can be an exceptionally powerful weapon when it comes to online marketing and improving brand awareness for your product. Just a couple of sentences in that small space can bring you so much closer to the reader and show them why you are a reliable source of information. But that’s just the beginning. Author boxes are very versatile tools, and in the right hands they can really give you a powerful boost. So let’s take a look at a few ways in which they can be utilized.
Why use an author’s box?
Like we said, an author’s box brings you much closer to your audience. With it, the text you’ve written has a relatable person behind it (and preferably that person’s face can also be seen), so it is not regarded as some generic piece of content. In short, it makes the author as well as the website the text is published on much more credible. That’s step one.
Step two is to use those couple of sentences you get to write about yourself to assert your authority on the matter you’re discussing. Now, this shouldn’t be ALL you mention in your author’s box, but some academic achievements or experience in the field relevant to the topic certainly help. People will read your text much more closely and are much more likely to be interested in your other work if they know that there is someone with real authority on the matter behind them.
A powerful promotion tool
OK, so now you’ve established yourself as someone who knows what they’re talking about. What now? Well, simple – you add a link into the author box that leads the reader to wherever you want them to go. You’re a writer with books for sale on Amazon? Great, put that link in. You have a blog you want to promote? Perfect, just link it in the box and introduce new readers to it.
But this is where you have to think about branding. Since you’re linking to something you’re using to make money (be that books, your own blogs or even a product you’re launching), the way people perceive you here can (and probably will) affect how they perceive whatever it is that’s on the other end of the link. Because of that, you have to be careful not to sound too elitist when enumerating your credentials, but you also shouldn’t be so bland to not provoke any reaction. Provide a detail or two from your life that will help you connect with your readers and show them you’re a regular person like them, you just happen to have the expertise they’re looking for. Mentioning a hobby in passing is often a good idea.
Easy communication
Other links you can insert are those to your social network accounts. And you really should add those because they further humanize you and allow your readers to learn more about you. The readers can relate to you in a much easier way when they see you eating a juicy burger, for example.
However, it also needs to be said that adding links to your social network accounts to your author box allows people to contact you quickly. That way, you can maybe set up a collaboration in just a few messages if someone likes your style of writing or likes what you have to say on a matter. Maybe someone wants a guest post written by you, which would allow you to reach their sphere of influence, too. So, if you wouldn’t mind people taking a look at your social media profiles, putting them in an author box can be very beneficial.
Which author box to choose?
Like the title of this article says, we’re first and foremost talking about WordPress author boxes. If you’re at all familiar with the world of WordPress, you know that there are loads of plugins for even the tiniest detail on your website, and the same is true here. So how to choose the best one?
Simple Author Box is one of the best solutions you can currently find. With it, you can add links to more than 30 different social network profiles. It also connects to the author’s gravatar and is fully customizable so that it can blend in and look good on any type of website, plus it has RTL and AMP support. However, that’s just the beginning because these are only the features of the free version.
Should you go for the premium version (starts from 29$ per year), you will get access to so much more. You will be able to move the author box to the top of the article and edit it in a variety of different way by adding effects to various elements of the box. Guest authors and co-authors will also become available, and you will even be able to list the most popular authors based on the comments posted below their article. And these are just some of the features the PRO version covers. So, if you’re looking to implement an author box, Simple Author Box is definitely the way to go.
Conclusion
Author boxes are a fairly small element of an online text, but they are an element that can be quite powerful when it comes to branding and online marketing. Many people actually overlook their potential, which is quite a big mistake because, when utilized properly, author boxes can help you leave an excellent impression on the reader and make them want to read more. This is where you can start converting their interest into something palpable. Simple Author Box is the best tool to do it with because it offers a heap of options with which you can entice and intrigue your readers. Install it and point them to the page you want them to visit.