Last quarter we audited forty publisher and small-press websites, from single-author imprints to mid-size catalogues. The results were consistent enough to turn into a checklist.
The twelve checks
Search that actually finds books. Catalogue pages that load in under two seconds. Covers displayed large enough to read. Buy links that don't route through three redirects. A newsletter signup that states its frequency. Author pages with working links. Mobile layouts tested on real phones. Accessible contrast ratios. Descriptive page titles. An about page that says who you are. A contact method that isn't a buried form. And an SSL certificate that hasn't expired.
Why this matters commercially
Every failed check is a reader who leaves before buying. The publishers in our audit who passed ten or more checks converted visitors at roughly triple the rate of those who passed five or fewer. None of the fixes above requires a rebuild — most require an afternoon.
Working on something like this?
We give the same advice to clients — backed by a fixed quote and a delivery date.
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