Janet Taliaferro: Novelist, Poet, Short Story Writer & Activist

An Author’s Success Story with the Social Web

Janet Taliaferro is an award-winning novelist, poet, and writer of short stories whose political activism focuses on women’s health and access to healthcare.

As the author of self-published fiction and poetry, Janet’s web presence is vital for marketing, connecting with publishers, and staying in touch with her fans. In 2009, Janet came to us for a website redesign because the site her publisher provided focused solely on her award-winning first book, A Sky for Arcadia. At that time, Janet needed to change direction and promote newer works as well as increase the site’s appeal to a web-savvy audience. Janet also needed to learn how to use the Web more effectively—especially for social networking. After that first redesign and some targeted coaching, she began blogging and developing a presence on Facebook and Twitter.

Jo also took videos of Janet reading her poetry and prose, and then Tracey edited them for posting on Janet’s blog and Facebook page. As a result, Janet has had good luck connecting with publishers who are interested in her work and continues to explore new publishing options. Tracey also converted several of Janet’s books into digital formats to help reach new readers.

When Janet was ready to launch her latest novel, Virgin Hall, to coincide with the anniversary of Roe v. Wade in January of 2012, it made sense to revisit the site structure and content, freshen up the look by moving it into a different WordPress template, and revisit the search engine optimization (SEO).

Strategy: Showcase Janet’s current range of publications in ways that will appeal to her audience and set up a process for launching and promoting her most recently published work.

Challenge: Update the site structure, design, and content in preparation for the book launch, build on Janet’s existing social media presence, run a Facebook Ad campaign, create a social media landing page, issue an online press release, and provide useful press and media resources on her site.

Audience Groups: Fans of fiction, poetry, and short stories dealing with women coming of age, life transitions, loss, abortion, war, alcohol and drug addiction, and more importantly, recovery and the influence of twelve-step programs.

The Team

Web Strategy & Information Architecture: Jo Golden
Content Strategy & Creation: Jo Golden
Design & Development: Tracey Holinka
Maintenance: Tracey Holinka

Jo began by updating the site structure to display Janet’s recent publications more effectively and accommodate her growing body of work. Changes in site structure lead to content changes and Jo created the content appeal to readers and be search engine friendly. Consolidating Janet’s publications in one section of the site, then removing her blog as the homepage and creating a new home page allowed us to take advantage of a better platform for marketing additional publications. In addition, a Press & Media page helped prepare for a media push that included Janet’s social networks, an online press release, and a Facebook Ad campaign.

Tracey selected a new WordPress template to better meet Janet’s current needs, developed the site, and put the contents of the Press & Media page together. She also created the social media landing page and monitored site usage and user click-through patterns in preparation for future book launches.

We continue to provide coaching and social networking support as needed, and Tracey maintains the site as she always has to make sure that everything keeps working smoothly.

Website: janetmtaliaferro.com
(Launched January 2010. Updated January 2012.)