This Sunday we are going to talk about reviews.
Where do we find them? Beg, Borrow or Buy them?
While researching this topic I ran into two articles about paid reviews. Attitudes and feelings about paying for a review are extreme. Some are acceptable and some are highly frowned upon.
Book Reviews: Should You Pay for Them?
There is no right or wrong way to get reviews for your books. If you have the money to pay for a review, and feel comfortable doing it, then do so. It pays to remember that getting reviews for your book is akin to getting publicity for it. Time, effort, some money spent, and being tenacious are needed.
Are Paid Book Reviews Worth It?
Here are three questions I ask authors when advising about the value of paid reviews:
- Do you have a well-thought-out marketing plan that targets librarians, booksellers, or schools?
- What is your overall marketing budget, and does it include hiring a publicist or outside help?
- What’s your book category? Are you trying to market a children’s book?
After reading the articles above the following Mini Guide is going to be our chat room topic.
If your book isn’t selling, reviews are usually not the culprit.
That being said, if you have no reviews, or are staring at two reviews with a 3.5 Amazon rating, you likely don’t believe me. Only the ice-water of harsh experience convinced me otherwise.
But although they’re hardly the skeleton key to success, reviews are still important for a few reasons we’ll discuss below. Thus, I’ve assembled a comprehensive mini guide outlining a number of techniques and services that you can use to get legitimate, unbiased Amazon reviews (no black hat stuff here).
If you cannot make it to the topic chat feel free to follow the links above and check into review options on your own. Hit Reply and tell us about your experiences.