SEO for Your Author Website: What Level is Right for You?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for your author website isn't just about Google any more. Increasingly, readers are discovering books, experts, and businesses through AI-powered search tools as well.
The encouraging news is that the same fundamentals still apply
A clear, well-organized website with genuinely helpful content is easier for both search engines and AI systems to understand and recommend.
And, just as there's no one-size-fits-all author website, I firmly believe there's no single level of SEO/search effort that's right for every author. The right approach depends on your goals, your business, and how your readers are likely to find you.
One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that SEO is something you "set" once, and forget about. It isn't. Far too many clients (or would-be clients) ask me to “do” their SEO. In fact, SEO is a spectrum, from making sure your website follows good technical practices through to developing an ongoing content strategy that builds authority over time.
For example, if you were trying to win a 10K race, I can kit you out with the right gear and a training plan. But you’re going to need to do the training. And, frankly, whether you can win the race or not depends heavily on how many other participants there are, and how fit they are!
Here's how I describe the different levels of author website SEO that I offer:
Level 1: SEO Foundations
The goal at this level is to help search engines—and increasingly AI-powered search tools—understand that your website is professional, trustworthy, and useful.
But it might be too early for you to pursue a full SEO strategy, or you might be the kind of author where readers will discover your work in other ways.
I include this level in my Express package because it’s suitable for an entry-level author website.
Here’s what I do for my clients at this level:
Design website pages that are responsive — that’s to say, they look great on different screen sizes
Avoid making your pages so heavy with images and content that they load slowly
Name your page URLs appropriately — so instead of, for example, yourwebsitename.com/new-page-6 your URL would be yourwebsitename.com/media
Create a “meta” description for each page, so that search engines and AI systems can see immediately what the page is about
Create a “meta” description for your website overall
Add “alt” tags (alternative descriptions) to all of your images so that visually impaired website visitors know what the image contains … this helps search robots, too
Check that all links are working, and lead where they should
And Squarespace helps us by:
Issuing a SSL certificate for your website (at no extra charge)
Generating a sitemap
Level 2: Basic SEO Keywords
The goal at this level is to begin understanding what your ideal audience might be searching for, and to incorporate some of those terms in your website pages.
You might choose this level of SEO if you want to start laying a foundation for future SEO efforts, or if you believe you have niche keywords where you could rank fairly easily, and be found.
I usually include this level in my Impact package because this is often where an author is sharpening their business mindset and getting intentional about being found.
So in addition to the steps at Level 1, I will:
Research words and short phrases that would make sense for you as SEO “keywords” (yes, a keyword can be a phrase). Often, these will be much more specific than you might imagine. For example, keywords like “Squarespace designer” or “website designer” are too general for me to be found. Instead, I use keywords like “author website designer” or “Squarespace author website”.
Use these keywords not only when naming your website pages, but also in page meta descriptions and, if appropriate, in image tags.
Make recommendations for minor headline edits, to naturally incorporate those phrases into your website copy. The main heading on each page (“H1” in technical terms) is important, and if appropriate, other headings (H2, H3, H4) can help too.
Level 3: Content SEO
The goal at this level is to commit to the ongoing work needed to rank for your specific keywords (remember, these are usually short phrases).
It’s important to realize that you build reputation with search engines over time, so although I’ll set you up for success, this is a marathon, not a sprint. The same applies to AI-powered search and recommendation tools. They tend to favor websites that clearly demonstrate expertise, answer real questions, and build a consistent body of useful content over time.
I usually include this level of SEO in my Authority package because this is often where my clients have a body of work such as articles or thought leadership pieces, that lend themselves especially well to creating a strategic, deep amount of content.
However, SEO isn't just about more content—it's about helpful content that answers the questions your audience is already asking.
So in addition to the steps at Level 1 and Level 2, I will:
Go deeper into keyword research, spending longer to identify multiple short phrases that your audience is searching for and that are not so competitive, you’ll struggle to be seen
Make sure we use some of these phrases in the blog posts or evergreen articles that we publish when your site goes live
Recommend topics and article titles that you can write in future
A note about AI and llms.txt
Squarespace now makes it easy to publish an llms.txt file—a simple document that helps AI systems understand the structure and purpose of your website. It's an emerging standard, and there's currently very little evidence that it makes a measurable difference to visibility on its own.
If you choose my Authority package, I'm happy to configure this for you on request. I see it as a sensible piece of future-proofing, rather than a magic bullet.
Level 4: Deep SEO Strategy
Surprise: I don’t provide this level! Search Optimization is a highly specialized and constantly evolving field. Depending on your business, it can add thousands to your bottom line. And it’s a full time job not only to keep up with what’s working today, but to optimize your website and your content generation strategy.
So although I don’t have many clients who are ready to go beyond Level 3, I want to be transparent that:
there are specialized companies out there to help with strategy
to get the best possible long-term results from SEO, you (or more likely, a team member) need to spend considerable time creating and posting the right content on your website
For authors and business owners who reach the point where they need a dedicated SEO strategist, I'm happy to recommend Love at First Search. Founder Meg Casebolt specializes in helping experts create content that demonstrates their authority, answers the questions potential clients are already asking, and supports long-term search visibility. If you decide to work with them, I'm also a proud affiliate partner. And if you found this article through searching, it’s likely because of the skills and strategy that Meg taught me!
Conclusion
The good news is that not every author needs an ambitious SEO strategy.
If you're publishing your first book, especially if it’s a novel, an SEO-friendly website may be all you need for now. As your platform grows, your SEO strategy can grow with it.
My goal isn't to sell you the highest level of SEO. It's to recommend the level that's appropriate for where you are today—and to build you a website with room to grow tomorrow.
If you're not sure which level makes sense for your author website, I'd be happy to help you figure it out during an Author Website Clarity Call.
More for your author website SEO:
50 step author website checklist (aka, 50 reasons to hire me to do it for you!)
Should your author website be named after you, or your book?
Save 10% off your first subscription for a Squarespace website by using the code PAULINE10
This article contains affiliate links. I only recommend products and services that I love, and I may earn a small commission if you purchase through one of my links. But you don’t pay any extra.
