Getting Book Reviews: What They Don’t Tell You

About this video

Dale lays out how to get book reviews at launch and beyond. He cites Amazon’s figures that 91% of customers check reviews before buying and that a product is ‘retail ready’ with at least 15 reviews averaging three and a half stars or more. The foundation is a review call to action in the book’s back matter (he dislikes front-matter asks, though he praises Noah Kagan for placing one partway through Million Dollar Weekend after delivering value). To remove friction he builds universal links: Books2Read for a universal book link, then per-region Amazon review URLs combined into one universal review link via Geniuslink (about $6 per month), wrapped in his own subdirectory or subdomain using the free Pretty Links WordPress plugin so the link can be printed — even as a QR code in print books — before the ASIN exists, then pointed at the real destination at launch. Next he covers ARC teams: his ’law of thirds’ says only about a third of ARC readers actually review, so 50 readers yield roughly 15 reviews; StoryOrigin (about $10 a month or $100 a year) helps manage distribution, newsletter swaps and group promos. Paid options include Hidden Gems Books (which took up to a year to accept him and skewed fiction), BookSirens (about $10 per ARC plus $2 per reader, or $100 a year — they rejected his author-focused book rather than take his money), Booksprout (free up to $290 a year) and a NetGalley co-op through Victory Editing (about $55 a month or $500 a year). He warns that direct author review swaps are banned on Amazon, treats indirect swap sites like Pubby with caution, and condemns hiring cheap virtual assistants to farm reviews. Finally, editorial reviews: free options like Readers’ Favorite, and paid ones from about $20 (ebookfairs) to $50 (Independent Book Review) to $500-plus (Kirkus) — useful only if you actually market with them, via Author Central’s editorial reviews section.

Key takeaways

• Put a simple review call to action in your back matter; per Amazon figures Dale cites, 91% of customers read reviews before buying and 15 reviews at 3.5+ stars makes a product ‘retail ready’.
• Remove regional friction with one universal review link: per-region Amazon review URLs combined in Geniuslink (~$6/month), fronted by your own subdomain/subdirectory via the free Pretty Links plugin so it can be printed or QR-coded before you know your ASIN.
• Plan ARC numbers by the law of thirds: only about a third of ARC readers leave a review, so a 50-reader team yields roughly 15 launch reviews; StoryOrigin (~$10/month or $100/year) handles distribution and support.
• Premium ARC services vary widely: Hidden Gems can take up to a year to accept you, BookSirens charges ~$10 per ARC plus $2 per reader, Booksprout runs free to $290/year, and a NetGalley co-op via Victory Editing runs ~$55/month or $500/year.
• Never do direct review swaps (banned by Amazon) or hire virtual assistants to collect reviews; editorial reviews (free at Readers’ Favorite, ~$20 at ebookfairs, $500+ at Kirkus) only pay off if you feature them in Author Central and your marketing.

Episode details: published July 21, 2024 · 29:22 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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