Bad Book Reviews: Dealing with Negative Book Reviews

About this video

(Summarized from the Dutch caption track.) In an unscripted Sunday video prompted by a loyal viewer’s comment asking for real information on handling negative reviews, Dale offers four ways to respond to negative book reviews. First, report abuse: he acknowledges that people are indeed hired to post negative reviews for competitors, saying his earlier research found payments ranging from $5 to $30 per negative review, sometimes arranged through vague Craigslist offers requiring an active Amazon account. If a reviewer shows a suspicious pattern of one-star reviews trashing books in your niche, use Amazon’s report-abuse function — he says he has found it effective at times, though Amazon sometimes ignores clear abuse with a standard everyone-is-entitled-to-an-opinion response, so authors should weigh whether chasing one review is worth the time versus getting more valuable reviews. Second, downvote: clicking ’no’ on ‘Was this review helpful?’ lowers a review’s credibility and ranking, while upvoted reviews rise to the top; he suggests showing readers a one-star review and letting them judge its helpfulness, while noting you should not manipulate the system. Third, respond professionally: stay calm, be empathetic, acknowledge the reviewer’s position, apologize that they did not enjoy the book, and ask them to clarify so you can improve — while distinguishing a trolling one-star review from a genuinely critical reader. Fourth, use one-star reviews as feedback: critical reviewers scrutinize every typo, error, plot hole, and low-resolution image, so fix what they flag in this book or the next one; Dale also reads one- and two-star reviews during market research to find opportunities where other authors fell short.

Key takeaways

• Report abuse for suspicious reviewers with a pattern of one-star attacks; Dale says paid negative reviews have gone for $5 to $30, though Amazon enforcement is inconsistent
• Downvote unhelpful negative reviews via the ‘Was this review helpful? No’ button, since upvoted reviews are the ones shown at the top
• Respond professionally and empathetically: apologize, acknowledge the reader’s position, and ask for clarification instead of reacting angrily
• Distinguish trolling one-star reviews from genuinely critical readers who may be pointing at real flaws
• Mine one- and two-star reviews as feedback — fix typos, plot holes, and other flagged problems, and use competitors’ low reviews to spot market opportunities

Episode details: published September 10, 2017 · 6:59 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dale L. Roberts’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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