An author platform, built from scratch
Launched in four days. StandWatch Digital designed, built, and SEO-launched mikewilliamsbooks.com for Christian author and speaker Mike Williams — custom code, no templates, live in September 2026.
Imagery from the live site at mikewilliamsbooks.com.
The client
Mike Williams is a Christian author and speaker with three published books: Rescuing God from the Bible (new release, September 2026), The Cult of Christianity, and Drop Dead. He takes paid speaking engagements alongside book sales.
Before and after
Before
No dedicated home for his books. Retailers owned his search presence, and an unrelated namesake dominated searches for “Mike Williams author.” Readers landed everywhere except a place Mike controlled.
After
One site Mike owns, with all three books, a speaking page with a booking call to action on every screen, a press kit, and a blog — plus the structured data search engines need to tell him apart from his namesake.
Timeline
- September 15Preview draft up on a test address.
- September 15–19Build, book and speaking content, forms, and search setup.
- Before launchEvery page checked on desktop and mobile: renders, forms, structured data, and sitemap.
- September 19Verified launch on mikewilliamsbooks.com.
Screenshots
What we built
- Custom mobile-first siteHand-built and deployed on Cloudflare. No templates, no page builders.
- Book showcaseAll three titles with 3D covers and format-specific retailer links.
- Speaking pageEmbedded media reel with a persistent booking call to action.
- Media pageDownloadable press kit for interviews and events.
- Contact and booking formsProtected from spam with Cloudflare Turnstile.
- Blog and privacy pagesA blog at blog.mikewilliamsbooks.com, wired into the sitemap.
Decisions we made, and why
- Custom code, not a template
- Nothing unused slowing the pages down, and full control over the search markup that fixes the namesake problem.
- Schema linked to his author profiles
- Connecting the site to Mike’s verified Audible and Amazon pages tells search engines which Mike Williams this is.
- Format-specific buy links
- Readers go straight to the edition they want, and retailers still handle payment and shipping.
- A booking button on every page
- Speaking is income for Mike, so “Invite Mike” is always one tap away.
- Turnstile, not puzzle CAPTCHAs
- Blocks spam on the forms without making real people click traffic lights.
- A downloadable press kit
- Hosts and interviewers get his bio and photos without having to email and wait.
What a site like this is good for
- Authors who want readers to find them, not just their retailer listings
- Speakers and ministers who book engagements and need an easy way to be invited
- Anyone whose name is shared with someone else in search results
- Launching a new book with a professional home already in place
The technical foundation
- Entity schema
- Person schema with a stable ID and links to Mike’s verified Audible and Amazon author profiles, so search engines can tell him apart from his namesake.
- Book schema
- ISBN, publisher, and publication date for all three titles.
- Per-page metadata
- Unique titles and descriptions, plus a distinct social card for every page.
- Performance
- Optimized WebP images, 44px touch targets, and no sideways scrolling on mobile.
The result
From preview draft to a verified launch in about four days, September 15–19, 2026.
Every page was checked on desktop and mobile before launch: clean renders, working forms, valid structured data, and a complete sitemap. The live site carries the credit “Powered by StandWatch Digital Web Design.”
- Client
- Mike Williams, author and speaker
- Scope
- Design, build, SEO launch
- Timeline
- Four days, September 2026
- Platform
- Custom build on Cloudflare
Case study prepared September 2026. Traffic and sales results are Mike’s to share, not ours to claim.
Need an author or speaker website like this?
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