Meet Paulo Sousa, Web Developer and Publisher

Paulo Sousa moved from Brazil to America in 1995. He has always been passionate about computers and technology, and around the same time that he came to the US, he began researching the workings of the internet. Soon he discovered the secret to ranking at the top of search engine results. This discovery made him one of the pioneers on SEO field, when this word still did not exist.

Over time, he became interested in e-commerce and attended Boston University to study web development. In 2010 he started a self-publishing website, www.e-selfpress.com. Since late 2015, he has been revamping and updating this site to provide more resources for customers. Learn more by following e-selfpress on Facebook. You can also learn more about Paulo and his work on http://www.askpaulo.com/.

1. How was SEO changed since you first began learning about it and using it?

When we look back 20 years ago, we did not have the idea of how SEO would change the way to do business online. SEO in those old days was a very simple thing to do, since the search engines then did not have enough technology to evaluate all aspects of the site. Today, the engines acts like a very smart human being, looking at every aspect of the site in order to deliver the best results for the searchers. Today, we have many more areas to work on each site to achieve a good recognition on the engines.

The engines are getting smarter and smarter, acting like a human. But 20 years ago, if you just created a good title for your site, it would be enough. Today, titles still remain as important as before, but they're just a fraction of the game. The engine needs to read your site, and follow the links from and towards to the site in order to understand what is the site is about. It's very easy for a person who does not know SEO but understands HTML to make a web site and fail to please the search engines with information in the source code of the page.

To succeed today, you have to start with a domain where you have keywords on it, instead of choosing a URL that does not tell anything to the search engine. We always have a solution when we talk to our clients. Of course you can always work on names that do not have keywords in them. If you sell, for instance, mattresses, the ideal URL should have mattress in it. This factor increases your relevance to the engines, and a website with this behavior gets some consideration of the engine doing that.

In short, each business website is evaluated differently, but the evolution has been huge.

2. What interests you most about doing web development work?

First of all, I love to see the happiness of my clients at the delivery of the work. The second beauty of this work is to perform a search and see your results in the top results of search engines. This is a priceless reward.

3. Would you tell us a little more about how you and your wife got into writing and publishing e-books and how you found success in that project?

Before I had even thought about starting my self-publishing website www.e-selfpress.com, I wrote a book about Secrets of the iPad, since Apple did not sell the iPad with a manual. This book became a bestselling book in Brazil. After that success, I decided to create my own publishing platform to help people in Brazil.

With my knowledge on SEO, I received over 70K "likes" on my Facebook page ( www.fb.com/eselfpress) in just one year, and then I knew I was on the right path.

Last December (2015), I decided to invest $96K to rebuild the platform which will be done at the end of September (2016) when I will re-launch the platform with a wide advertising campaign on the internet.

The success came because people were looking for such services in Brazil. I had an entrepreneur here in USA and also in Brazil who came after me offering an investment in my eSelfPress project. I did not accept by that time, since I could handle financially the initial expenses of the project. So I declined, but now, after the new version been made available, I can talk with potential investors about it.

4. Why did you decide to start e-SelfPress, and what are the services you provide?

The decision to start e-SelfPress came after the success of my book "Segredos e Atalhos do iPad" when I discovered that the world was changing the way to buy, sell, write, and read books.

We provide a friendly environment where people can easily understand the concept of how to use our platform. We offer services such as cover design, proof writing, and a free ISBN for those who also buy our services for wide distribution on stores such as Barnes & Noble, Apple Store and more.

The list of services is available in Brazilian currency at http://e-selfpress.com/services.

5. As someone who provides services to people in many different countries, what would you like people all over the world to know about you and your business?

We are very serious about business, and our goal is always make people happy by giving then the best option to write and sell their books. I know that writing a book is only part of the process: writers need to learn how to market their book.

We have a blog that we will teach writers how to succeed like I did with my book Segredos e Atalhos do iPad. That is going to be a big difference between e-SelfPress and the other guys. We are also going to help people who want to write a book and do not have an idea. We will help them to create content.

Please feel free to contact me at paulo@askpaulo.com. Thanks, Paulo!

Meet Andrew Hendricks of Human Creative Content

Andrew Hendricks grew up in southern Mississippi, and he now lives in Davis, California where he manages his team at Human Creative Content where he is editor-in-chief.

In his own words: "I founded HumanCreativeContent.com to help my clients make the Internet a slightly less crappy place, one website at a time." Learn more about the ways that Human Creative Content supplies written and visual content to websites by checking out their creative services page.

1. For you as a writer and a reader, what distinguishes human-focused web content from other content that's out there?

Too many people have come to the philosophy that because you can publish instantly on the web, web content matters less. With the continuing shift to all-digital media, this is an oddly myopic view, considering there is a HUGE demand for high-quality, thoroughly edited content that is entertaining to read. Just because a story isn't printed on dead trees doesn't mean your reader wants it to be any less entertaining.

2. What would you say are some common misconceptions that small business owners have about SEO?

SEO is a process, not a thing. If someone is selling you "SEO," there's a good chance they have no idea what they're talking about, or more likely, they're hoping you don't. SEO is Search Engine Optimization--it means making your content able to be understand by Google. It doesn't mean writing nonsense, keyword-pumped articles.

The biggest misconception business owners have is thinking that getting their blogs respected by Google is the goal. That is just an aspect of getting your content seen by the viewer, and THAT is what matters. Google can tell if your link was viewed for half a second or 30 seconds, and it treats the two VERY differently.

3. Is it really so difficult to get visitors for a new website, or are people making things hard for themselves without realizing it?

People are focusing on the wrong things. I see this so often--it's not that so many of these website owners are lazy, but you can spend hours and hours trying to funnel traffic to your website, and if you have a fundamental lack of understanding regarding what type of reader you want, then you're really just talking past each other. It is hard to write web copy that doesn't sound like an infomercial or a carnival barker, even if your business is a totally legitimate one.

Getting coherent, concise copy to explain your website is the #1 most important step in even beginning to optimize your web presence and try to get viewers. You want to make sure they have something to view first.

4. What do you enjoy most about your job?

I have found the transition from freelance hustler to Editor-in-Chief very satisfying, but not for the reasons I would have thought. Now owning my own business and publishing platform, I am the first paid gig and portfolio piece for many new talented writers. Being that first leg-up is very rewarding.

5. What is your best advice when it comes to creating a website that people will want to visit again and again?

They used to say "content is king," and that's still true, but all content is not created equally. I don't mean just SEO-oriented blogspam, which has its own problems, but any good website should have content that is tailor-made to the brand and that clearly and coherently explains what the website is, who it services, and why it is a good thing that it exists. This sounds very basic, but you'd be surprised how many people skip this process entirely.

Thanks, Andrew!

Introducing Englanti Editing, a Useful Site for Writers and Readers

Englanti Editing is a Finland-based business offering services for people who need documents, websites, and other materials edited. The cool thing about their website is that it also provides a variety of free resources for writers and readers.

The site showcases good writing and helps to promote the work of up and coming authors. On the Featured Books page, you can read about books from independent authors, learn about the authors themselves, and read excepts of their work. The genres/topics of the book vary, and I found some interesting selections including flash fiction, historical fiction, and a coming of age novel. Authors are invited to contact Englanti Editing to ask about having their books featured on the website as well as on Facebook.

Authors can also contact Englanti Editing to ask about having one of their short stories published in its entirety on the website. The site has a nice selection of stories, all of which are suitable for readers of all ages. You can also find author interviews by clicking the Interviews and Insights link on the site. I always like to find another website which features author interviews, so it was a pleasure for me to visit this link in particular!

Writers who visit the site are invited to participate in the Leaf Writing Challenge; writers can share stories written from the perspective of "a leaf being carried on the breeze," and the editors at Englanti Editing will feature selected stories on their website and also give award certificates to the best stories received by December of 2015.

It's always nice to find a business that gives back to its community--in this case, the business gives back by providing a platform to help authors get their work out into the world, and by providing readers a place to find new authors and works to enjoy. I'll be interested to see what other literary content EnglantiEditing.com features over time!

Meet J. J. Hebert, Author and Publisher

J. J. Hebert is the author of the bestselling books Unconventional and Weepy the Dragon. Unconventional has spent time on the Amazon.com Top 100 bestseller list and has also occupied Amazon's #1 spot on the Inspirational and Christian Fiction bestseller lists. Meanwhile, Weepy the Dragon has also found success, spending time atop the Children's Dragon Stories bestseller list at Amazon and frequenting other Amazon bestseller lists.

J.J. is also the founder of MindStir Media, a self-publishing and book marketing company. When he's not busy writing his next book, he's busy helping authors self-publish their work and offering personalized guidance along the way.

1. When it came to getting your own books published, what inspired you to publish through your own company?

I self-published Unconventional back in 2009, before the big self-publishing "boom" that we've seen today. I was originally represented by a literary agent. The agent's job, as many know, is to shop a manuscript around to major publishers and secure a deal. I had my agent for about six months and we decided to split amicably... My writer friends encouraged me to try self-publishing. At that point, I felt like self-publishing was my "last resort." After much hard work on my end, Unconventional went on to become an Amazon.com bestseller. I've sold over 100,000 copies to date. After seeing the success of that novel, I decided to go ahead and self-publish Weepy the Dragon, a children's picture book I had written many years before. I didn't bother pursuing traditional publishing this time. I went straight to self-publishing as a "first resort."

2. Do you find that most of the sales of your books have come online, or do you also sell a number of books in person at events and in brick and mortar bookstores?

I'd say over 90% of my sales have come from online retailers such as Amazon.com. As a self-publishing author, I realize that in-store/brick-and-mortar distribution is very difficult to secure. Most chain bookstores work almost exclusively with traditionally published books. Thankfully, for the self-published author, most people buy books online nowadays--so there is a very large market for selling books online.

3. Why did you decide to reach out to authors through MindStir Media?

After the initial success of Unconventional, authors actually started contacting me for help. They essentially wanted to pick my brain and understand how I had achieved that level of success. Of course, I can never guarantee a certain level of success for anyone, but the marketing tools and strategies I used on my own books are proven and have done wonders for my career. I ultimately decided to open MindStir Media to the public in order to professionally assist authors throughout their self-publishing journey.

4. In addition to actually publishing your clients' books, what are some of the services you provide for authors?

MindStir Media offers what I call assisted self-publishing. Many authors see the term "self-publishing" and think they have to do everything themselves. MindStir actually offers full-service publishing services such as book design, illustration, professional editing, printing, ebook conversion, distribution, and marketing. I also personally mentor each MindStir Media author.

5. As you touched on earlier, a lot of self-publishing authors feel they have to totally "go it alone." What are some of the reasons that you would recommend that authors collaborate with other people in getting their book on the market?

Self-publishing authors need to remember that they are competing with traditionally published titles. Those titles are professionally edited, designed, and marketed. A serious self-publishing author needs to focus on quality above all else. This means hiring an editor and designer, and even collaborating with a marketing expert/team if possible. There are instances where an author is also a professional graphic designer, and in those cases it makes sense for the author to design his/her own book, but an author should always hire a professional editor. Assisted self-publishing is perfect for authors who want the extra hand-holding and advice. There's no shame in an author assembling a team around him/her. It makes a lot of sense to surround a book with professionals. In my opinion, this gives it a better chance to succeed.

Thanks, J.J.!