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Learn MoreCreate A Website, Offer A Lead Magnet & Grow Your Email List
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Create A Website, Offer A Lead Magnet & Grow Your Email List
Build a marketing 'Free Page' with custom domain, use a digital lead magnet, and build your email list (no monthly fees)
Created byChris Green
Last updated 11/2024
English
What you'll learn
- Create an eye-catching, professional website for your book, business, or brand, complete with your own custom domain
- Create marketing landing pages to offer various digital lead magnets such as sample chapters or extra content
- Grow an email list of interested prospects, readers, and customers
- Write compelling email newsletters that convert into blog posts
- Sell digital products, subscriptions, and memberships
Explore related topics
Course content
8 sections • 32 lectures • 5h 12m total length
- Chapter 1: Introduction - Your Book Needs A Website9:11
PDF copy of Chapter 1 of The Free.Page Setup Guide
- Introduction to Free Page5:28
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 1
Welcome to The Free.Page Setup Guide!
My name is Chris Green and I’m an author and a professional book marketer. I self-published my first book in 2011 and have since sold hundreds of thousands of books and worked with hundreds of authors directly.
It's my strong opinion that if you're doing any kind of business online (especially as an AUTHOR), YOU NEED A WEBSITE.
But not just any website. There are some 'must have' features that your website needs in order to be both professional and effective at building your author business and SELLING MORE BOOKS.
So, what are Free.Pages and do I even need one?
Free.Pages are websites, complete with custom domains, built on Kit.com, an email marketing service.
And like I said earlier, in today's world, YES, YOU NEED A WEBSITE (for your book, for yourself as an author, as an influencer, or as a personal brand).
Free.Pages includes the two MUST HAVE features that every author’s website needs: their own CUSTOM DOMAIN and the ability to COLLECT EMAIL ADDRESSES.
Now, when I describe Free.Pages, it sometimes feels like I'm settling for something or down-selling things a little bit.
Because one way to describe Free.Pages is that they are both "good enough" and also FREE.
And "good enough" can make it sound like you're settling for something or giving something up. And, in a way, that's true. Free.Pages don't have EVERY feature, but they do have the important ones, especially if you're just getting started and if you don't want to commit to paying monthly fees.
I would make the case that Free.Pages will do 99% of the things that 99% of authors need from their websites. And they do it all FOR FREE.
Like I mentioned, there are really two MUST HAVE features that you need at a bare minimum.
And there are also three "WOW, I get that too!" features that you get with Free.Pages.
First, my TOP TWO "must haves" for a website:
#1 is having your own Custom Domain
You must have this. You need this if you're going to have your own website. It just looks so much more professional to have your own website with your own custom domain.
And Free.Pages lets you use your own custom domain for your website absolutely FREE.
#2 is to be able to Collect Email Addresses
Growing your own email list is arguably the most important (and valuable) thing that you can be doing as an author, influencer, or as a business. Your email list is something that you own and control.
It's your current and future customers. It's a list of people who have told you that they are interested in you, what you have to say, what you’re writing, and what you're selling.
And Free.Pages let you offer lead magnets (like sample chapters of your book) in order to collect email addresses and build an email list from your website visitors absolutely FREE.
Honestly, I would be happy with a free website that just had these two features, but here are three more features that are included.
These are my TOP THREE "really amazing bonus features" that I can't believe are included and are still completely FREE:
#1: Free.Pages automatically post your email newsletters as blog posts on your website
This is such a great feature. As you send out email newsletters to your subscribers, they will be converted into blog posts and added to your website automatically. That means that your posts and content will now be discoverable by search engines like Google. (CHAPTER 5)
#2: You can create unlimited Landing Pages
Free.Pages are not just a single one-page websites. You can have additional landing pages with different links such as /book or /freeoffer or /instagram.
This means that you can have multiple offers and different lead magnets all built into a single Free.Page. (CHAPTER 6)
#3: You can Sell Products
Yes, you can create and sell digital products using a Free.Page. You can even set up your own online store showcasing the products of your choice. (CHAPTER 7)
Now this is what it would cost to have JUST SOME of these features from other providers:
GoDaddy: $13/month
Wix: $17/month
Wordpress: $18/month
SquareSpace: $25/month
Shopify: $39/month
Free.Page: ZERO dollars per month
See? It really does feel too good to be true.
And sure, there are other services have features that you don't get with a Free.Page. That's ok. If they do what you need then you should use them. This isn’t a competition. You just need a website.
But I'd guess that for 99% of authors out there, a Free.Page will be plenty "good enough" and do 99% of the things that they need from their website.
And have I mentioned that Free.Pages are FREE? And if you ever need to change or upgrade, you can always switch to something else down the road as needed. Just like having no monthly fees, Free.Pages have no commitments.
So, if you are just starting out and want the 'must have' features for $0/month, then a Free.Page is for you.
If you're an author or influencer and just need a website for your book or an online project with a proper custom domain and the ability to offer a lead magnet and collect emails, then a Free.Page is perfect for you.
A Free.Page is great for quick web projects to get something online that's functional and inexpensive (namely FREE).
This is why I say that having a Free.Page is the best kept secret in web publishing and "good enough" for most authors, books, influencers, projects, and even businesses.
Compared to other email marketing services, a Free.Page built on Kit simply stands high above the rest.
And here's another bonus thing that I almost forgot to mention:
Not only do they let you add a custom domain to your account for your landing pages. but you can add as many domains as you want!
Which means that you could have 100 different domains tied to 100 different landing pages, all offering different digital lead magnets and collecting emails FOR FREE.
And I also forgot to mention their secret weapon: The Kit Creator Profile. It's simple and basic, but it looks great and gets the job done. It’s easy to build and manage, it's effective, and it’s plenty "good enough" to use as a complete author website.
So, Free.Pages are not JUST simple landing pages with one function (offering a lead magnet and collecting emails), but also something that can be used as a full website.
It’s where your newsletter posts are automatically turned into a BLOG and where you can sell products and link your online store.
And I know that other email marketing services will let you make simple profile websites, but they don't let you do it with your own domain for free. Basically, you want your own custom domain for your website from any other email marketing service, you're going to have to pay up MONTHLY.
I know I know; I'm probably overselling it at this point. It's just that I'm excited about Free.Pages and I hope that you are too.
Let’s get started.
- Free Page Examples2:27
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 1
Take a look at some Free Page websites built on Kit:
Obviously the Free Page website is a Free age.
https://free.page
Nick Hutchison, author of the bestselling book, Rise of the Reader, uses a Free Page for his book.
https://riseofthereader.com
John Lohrenz, a Wall Street veteran, financial advisor, and author of The Prosperity Project, uses a Free Page.
https://johnlohrenz.com
- Your Book Needs A Website3:16
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 1
I see people online asking if they SHOULD make a website for themselves or for their book. Or they ask if the NEED a website for themselves or for their book.
The answer is YES, YES, 1,000 TIMES YES!
But WHY do you need a dedicated website for your book? Can't you just share on social media and post links to Amazon?
The answer is because you need to collect email address and build an email list. This will be the most important (and valuable) part of your business as an author.
Why? Because an email list is something that you OWN and CONTROL. No one can take it away from you the way that every social media platform can take away your organic reach that you may be enjoying today.
Email is people's 'HOME BASE' on the Internet (for the foreseeable future).
Think about it. When was the last time that you changed/updated your email address?
When you have an email list full of people who have directly expressed interest in you, your book(s), and your content, then you now have a place where you can get attention, ask questions, and SELL MORE BOOKS (and other offers/services).
You may be asking yourself, "But don't customers WANT to buy books from Amazon?"
YES, OF COURSE.
You just want to collect their email address BEFORE sending them to Amazon. Once they are on your email address, sending them to Amazon to make a purchase is the correct course of action.
Linking directly to Amazon without attempting to collect their email address first is THE BIGGEST MISTAKE that I see authors make with their books. It's an easy mistake to make and it's one that I made for many years. Let me explain why should only do this in certain circumstances:
Amazon is the BLACK HOLE of book marketing.
When someone clicks a link to go to Amazon, you won't know if they actually bought your book (or not) and you definitely won't get any contact information such as their name or email address. If they buy your book from Amazon, they are Amazon's customer (not yours).
So instead of posting links directly to Amazon, you want to post links to YOUR WEBSITE where you can connect with your readers and hopefully get them on your email list BEFORE you ultimately send them to Amazon to purchase your book.
To do this, you obviously need a website and that's why you're taking this course.
And one of the best things about this is that everything you'll learn in this course, other than registering your own domain (~$10/year) is COMPLETELY FREE so there's no excuse to not set this system up like a proper author.
And you don't just need a website in order to tell people about your book. You also need a website so that you have a place that you control where you can send your readers for more information within the pages of your book.
This is one of the biggest reasons why I highly recommend that authors write their books in such a way that you can still collect some kind of customer information even if you give your book away or if someone buys the book directly off of Amazon without going through your website.
I always recommend that authors include some kind of additional offer or digital download offered near the beginning of their books. Depending on the type of books that you write, it could be an extra chapter/video, a printable PDF workbook, or some kind of study guide. Whatever it is, you provide a link to a page on YOUR WEBSITE where people can enter their email in exchange for the digital download or supplemental material.
I also recommend encouraging readers to follow you on social media the same way. To do this, just include links to your profiles and you can also use QR codes to make it easy for your readers to find you.
The good news is that if you're watching this video, then you know how important it is to have your own website for yourself as an author or for your book. By the time you finish this course, you'll have your very own website working for you 24/7.
- Chapter 2: What Is Kit.com?3:16
- What Is Kit.com?5:30
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is the easiest way to build your author platform.
- Create Your Kit.com Account0:30
- Your Kit Account Settings3:17
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 2
You can access your Kit Account Settings here:
https://app.kit.com/account_settings/account_info
Here is where you can change or update things like your name, address, email address, and password. You can also upgrade or downgrade your Kit account (if you are on a paid plan).
Some of the more useful account settings that you can change are under General where you can save specific colors that you may use frequently such as brand colors or colors matching the cover of your books. You can also save different links that you find yourself using frequently.
Under Email is where you would add additional 'send' email addresses that you may want to use when sending email newsletters. (CHAPTER 5)
Click on Domains to add a new domain or edit any domains that you have already connected to your Kit account. (CHAPTER 3)
If you plan to sell any products through Kit, you will have to connect your Stripe account under Commerce. If you don't have a Stripe account, just sign up for one (free) and then connect it to your Kit account. (CHAPTER 7)
Billing is where you'll find your current Kit plan with the options to upgrade or downgrade.
If you want to be an affiliate for Kit, you can sign up under Advanced.
Developer has some advanced settings that most Kit users will not need.
Kit.com Support
If you get stuck anywhere, Kit has amazing support!
https://kit.com/support
- Kit.com Support0:53
- Kit Case Studies (Authors)0:18
- Instant Domain Search3:57
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 3
Instant Domain Search is the way that I prefer to search for available domains. As you search, they will pull up the available domains in GREEN but will also show you the matching domains that are FOR SALE in BLUE. The domains that are not available will be shown in RED.
Registering an available .COM domain will cost about $10-$12 per year. This expense is unavoidable. Other extensions may be more expensive (even hundreds of dollars per year).
.COM is obviously preferred, but I also like .CO, .IO, .AI, .PAGE and sometimes .NET, .US, and .ME.
They also have dedicated apps for iPhone and Android so that you can quickly look up a domain on the fly.
- Connecting Your Domain4:42
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 3
If you've never done this before, this may feel intimidating, but YOU CAN DO THIS! Just follow the video or the steps in the included PDF. Kit and GoDaddy have great online support if you need help.
- Using a SubDomain2:59
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 3
If you've never done this before, this may feel intimidating, but YOU CAN DO THIS! Just follow the video or the steps in the included PDF. Kit and GoDaddy have great online support if you need help.
- GoDaddy Support0:01
- Your Kit Creator Profile4:22
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 4
I believe that a Kit Creator Profile will do 99% of the things that 99% of authors need from a website.
If you don't already have a website for yourself as an author or for your book specifically, you can use the Creator Profile in your Kit account as your homepage.
If you do have a website already, you can set up your Creator Profile as a subdomain on your existing website.
FYI/disclaimer: The Kit Creator Profile is surprisingly useful, but it also has some limitations. If you need more features for your website that aren't available through Kit, you may have to look at other options (likely with monthly fees). Personally, I love Kit's Creator Profiles and I use them for multiple websites and for client websites.
- Customize Your Creator Profile2:31
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 4
To edit/customize your Kit Creator Profile, go to Grow, Creator Profile, Customize, and click on Design & Template (on the right-hand side).
Here you can change the templates that you're using (I prefer to use Flow).
You'll be able to change the background image and logo/icon image as well as the colors and fonts.
IMPORTANT: You can change the Header Background color to lighten or darken your background image. This is useful when trying to create contrast between your background image and the color of your text so that it is easy for your visitors to read.
Settings that you change will affect all of your Creator Profile pages such as your Newsletter Posts, Products, Recommendations, Links, and any Custom Pages that you create.
If you change your Creator Profile template, your settings (colors, fonts, etc.) will carry over to your new template.
- The Sign Up Form (Lead Magnets)3:38
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 4
This is arguably one of the more important parts of your Kit Creator Profile. This is where you want to incentivize people to enter their email address into your website. In exchange, you're going to give them some kind of digital product/download.
This might be your entire book as a PDF, a sample chapter, an extra chapter, an exclusive video, a study guide/workbook, or even something as simple as a link to a curated YouTube playlist related to your genre/category.
When you set up your Sign Up Form properly, your website visitors will clearly see your offer and where they need to enter their email address.
Once they have entered their email address, Kit will automatically send them a confirmation email and, when they confirm their request, they'll either be redirected to a landing page of your choice or they'll begin to download the file that you've uploaded to Kit. This is commonly referred to as an autoresponder.
This is not the only place where you can offer digital lead magnets this way. You can create additional Landing Pages that each have their own unique incentive/download and test to see which ones work the best.
- Adding Custom Pages3:47
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 4
You can add up to THREE Custom Pages to your Kit Creator Profile.
You can add text that can be highlighted Bold, Italic, Underlined. You can change the color of ht text as well as the background color of the text. You can also add clickable links.
You can add Buttons, Images, Videos, Dividers, as well as many other features and elements.
These pages can be rearranged or even turned ON or OFF as needed.
- Images & Mockups0:18
- Custom Email Address2:06
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 5
There are several ways to use your own domain as a custom email address. Personally, I like using Google Workspace (formerly G Suite or Google Suite).
- Sending Broadcasts (Email Newsletters)3:15
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 5
I recommend repurposing your email newsletter content as LinkedIn posts and for your blog (or the other way around). Write something once that can be used three (or more) times on different platforms and for different purposes.
Your email subscribers will want to read it now but your social media posts and blog can be found and indexed by Google for people to find you in the future.
- Blog Posts (Publish To Web)2:22
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 5
This is one of the big reasons why I like using Kit. I can choose to have my email newsletters automatically posted on to my website (Creator Profile) as blog posts. This way my website continues to get updated and grow as a source of content. The public posts can be indexed by Google so that people can search for and find you in the future.
It's very easy to do and it's similar to sending a Broadcast through Kit. Instead of selecting only 'Send email', you can also select 'Publish to web' and the Broadcast will be sent to. your email subscribers AND published as a public blog article on your Creator Profile.
You also have the option to ONLY publish a Broadcast to the web if you wanted to post a blog article but not send it to all of your email subscribers.
- Landing Pages7:38
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 6
Free landing pages for your next idea
As an online creator you are full of big ideas, and we believe the best way to get those ideas into the world is with landing pages. And when you can start with a well-designed free landing page template, you don’t even need a website to start gathering interest and email addresses.
Build beautiful landing pages in minutes
Designed by world-class pros, our customizable templates are made to catch eyes and grow email lists. Whether you’re new to landing pages or have design experience bursting out your fingertips, these landing page templates will help you get your ideas out the door in record time.
No code necessary
You can have a beautiful landing page without knowing any code. But we’ve still made custom CSS an option for all our code nerds out there.
One click to 100,000+ images
‘Stock photography’ doesn’t have to be a bad word. Our integration with Unsplash makes finding free, unique imagery for your landing page a one-click wonder.
Look good on all devices
All our templates are fully responsive. That means you’ll have a perfectly formatted landing page that can easily be viewed on any device.
Stay connected with your audience
Your customer’s journey may start at your landing page, but really kicks off when they fill out your opt-in form, giving you permission to enter their world and their inbox.
Our opt-in forms not only create a seamless path to turn your readers into subscribers, they also help you gather information to connect with your audience and increase your sales.
Collect custom data
Automatic lead magnet delivery
Customizable success messages
Connect to an automation
GDPR compliant
Integrations with other tools
Landing page templates for your next big idea
Creators use landing pages to build their business in so many ways. Whether you’re ready to deliver a product, promote an upcoming project, or tell your audience about yourself, landing pages help you get the word out quickly and easily.
Delivering a lead magnet
No one gives their email address away for free these days. You’ve got to give them something irresistible to make that exchange happen.
Landing pages help you deliver that tempting lead magnet easily and instantly. Your reader gets valuable content and you get their email address. Everyone wins!
Keep creating better landing pages
Our free landing page builder not only provides quick metrics updates for conversion rates and subscriber counts, you can also easily set up your favorite tracking methods and give your landing page the optimized boost it deserves.
With all this data, you can learn how your audience interacts with your landing page to improve your conversions and keep creating irresistible pages to grow your thriving business.
Find out more about your audience
For more advanced tracking options, simply add your Google Analytics, Segment, and/or Facebook business IDs to connect powerful analytics to your Kit landing page builder.
Help readers find your landing page
Give your landing page the best chance to reach new readers by filling in the SEO Title and Description with keyword-smart copy. The more targeted the keywords, the more likely your audience will find you.
- Forms3:34
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 6
The Kit Form Builder
Creating opt-ins to gather subscribers is simple using Kit's form builder.
Design stunning opt-ins that will engage your audience immediately.
In this guide, we'll cover how to use the Kit form builder to create beautiful, engaging opt-ins that will help you convert followers into fans.
Please see the accompanying PDF for more information on creating Forms in Kit.
- Tracking Pixels (Facebook and Google Analytics)0:49
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 6
This is a little more advanced, but if you are using tracking pixels from Facebook or Google Analytics, you can connect these to your Landing Pages.
To do this, go to the Settings section of your Landing Page and then click on SEO & Analytics.
- Chapter 7: Selling Digital Products4:29
- Selling Products6:40
PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED PDF: Chapter 7
As an author, one of the main reasons why you want to have your own website is so that you can sell your book(s) directly to your customers.
Obviously you could just send customers to Amazon to purchase copies of your book(s) (Kindle and/or paperback/hardcover) but sometimes you may want to offer something directly for you, the author.
With Kit, you can easily sell ebook/PDF versions of your book that customers can automatically download once they complete their purchase.
Currently, selling physical products is not as straight forward because Kit does not collect the customers address on purchases. You can work around this by adding custom 'required' fields to your order forms so. your customers can enter their shipping addresses, or you can ask for their address after they complete their purchases.
Hopefully there will be an update from Kit that makes it easier to sell and ship physical products (such as books).
- What's Next? CALL ME0:38
- Soft Launch Day 1/4: Registering a Domain and Connecting it to Kit1:01:32
This was Day 1/4 of the 'soft launch' of the Free Page Guide. Follow along as we go over Registering a Domain and Connecting it to you Kit account.
- Soft Launch Day 2/4: Customization of The Kit Creator Profile54:05
This was Day 2/4 of the 'soft launch' of the Free Page Guide. Follow along as we go over 1: Registering a Domain and Connecting it to you Kit account
- Soft Launch Day 3:/4 Lead Magnets, Landing Pages, and Forms54:48
This was Day 3/4 of the 'soft launch' of the Free Page Guide. Follow along as we go over 3: Lead Magnets, Landing Pages, and Forms.
- Soft Launch Day 4/4: Email Newsletters and Automatic Blog Posts50:06
This was Day 4/4 of the 'soft launch' of the Free Page Guide. Follow along as we go over Lead Magnets, Landing Pages, and Forms.
Requirements
- No experience necessary, everything required in included in the course
- There are fees involved when using a custom domain for your website and/or email
Description
You know that you need a website.
Whether you're an author, an influencer, or just starting your own business or side hustle, you know that you need your own website.
And you also know that you should be collecting email addresses and building a list of interested prospects and potential customers.
You've probably seen other sites doing this and wondered how to set it all up but felt overwhelmed by the entire process.
How do you set it up? What services should you use? What will everything cost? What will it cost every month? Plus a million other questions.
It's common to feel OVERWHELMED by the entire process.
That's where a Free Page comes in!
Whether it's for yourself, your brand, your business, your book, or even your clients, setting up your own proper website (complete with professional marketing features like offering lead magnets and collecting email addresses) is actually EASIER THAN YOU THINK.
You just need someone to show you what to use, how to set it up, and how to use it.
In this course, you will learn how to build websites (for yourself or for clients) that include:
Custom Domains (a must-have feature)
Unlimited Landing Pages (for various offers)
Digital Lead Magnets (to incentivize joining your email list)
Email Address Collection (to build your email list)
Email Newsletters (to stay in contact with your subscribers)
Selling Products (products, subscriptions, and memberships)
Conversion of Newsletters into a Blog (streamline your content creation)
All with ZERO monthly fees (up to 10,000 subscribers).
If this all sounds "too good to be true", I understand.
But hear me out; sometimes you come across something thats includes 99% of the features that 99% of the people who use it need. And all with zero monthly fees.
That's what a Free Page is and I'll PROVE IT TO YOU in this course.
You'll learn all of the secrets that the most successful authors, influencers, brands, and companies are using to build their business online by using the power of a proper marketing website.
By the time you complete this online course, you'll have your very own website that offers a digital lead magnet
A digital lead magnet might be something like:
Sample chapters of your book
Companion workbook
Private video training
Your entire eBook/PDF
Secret/curated lists
Or anything else that you can think of that would bring value to someone
When you have your own website that offers visitors an irresistible digital lead magnet in exchange for their email address, you'll be able to grow your email list through social media outreach, engagement, and even paid advertisements.
And with a Free Page, all of your Email Newsletters are automatically converted into Blog Posts on your website (Google & SEO friendly). A Free Page truly does it all (and with no monthly fees).
Who this course is for:
- Business or brands who need a proper marketing website to grow an email list
- Authors who need a website and want to sell more books (self-published authors)