So, we’ve been doing the whole self-publishing thing on Amazon for a good chunk of time now, and let me tell you, getting those reviews for your book can seriously make a difference in your paycheck. Now, I’m not saying that the more reviews you rack up, the higher your book shoots up the best sellers rank (BSR) ladder, but there’s a solid connection between having a bunch of reviews and selling more copies. Of course, that’s as long as your book is top-notch and actually addresses the issues your readers care about.
So, in this blog post, we’re diving into the nitty-gritty of how self-publishers and authors can get honest reviews the right way—all totally by the book with Amazon’s rules. We’ll spill the beans on both paid services and some free hacks for those of us counting every penny. Stay tuned!
The Budget Friendly Route: Free Ways To Get Book Reviews On Amazon KDP In 2024
Ask Readers To Submit A Review At The End Of Your Book If The Enjoyed Your Book
This is the strategy that is super easy to add in. The idea is that you add a separate page in your manuscript just before the conclusion, encouraging users to leave their honest thoughts about your book on the Amazon book page if they enjoyed it.
Believe it or not, adding this page won’t eat up your precious time—we’re talking minutes here. And the cherry on top? Do it for both your e-book and paperback versions. Now, fair warning, it might not be the review goldmine with the highest conversion rates, but hey, a few reviews might sneak in every now and then. Over time, those trickles could turn into a steady stream. Pro tip: Even if you’re splurging on a paid service (more on that in a bit), don’t skip this step. Trust us, it’s worth it.
Use A ‘Lead Magnet’ In Your Book
Now, let’s talk about a cool strategy that’s gained serious traction lately: the mighty ‘Lead Magnet’ strategy. In plain English, a lead magnet is like a little gift (think a snappy e-book or a bonus-packed PDF) that you hand out in exchange for your reader’s email.
This method has been making waves, and here’s the lowdown: you can drop this lead magnet either at the book’s introduction, somewhere in the middle, or right before the conclusion.
What makes lead magnets awesome is their simplicity. Whip them up with a free tool like Canva, and guess what? You can make the whole thing run like clockwork with a free Mailchimp account—no rocket science involved.
A lead magnet is a step up from the basic ask-for-reviews message in your manuscript. From our own journey, we’ve seen that lead magnets tend to pack a punch compared to the first method we mentioned.
Once you have your reader’s email (thanks to the lead magnet), shoot them a direct email asking for an honest review on your book page. But here’s the kicker: It’s not a golden ticket with a sky-high conversion rate. Some readers just aren’t big fans of being nudged for a review.
In a nutshell, we’re waving the flag for setting up a lead magnet in your book. It’s super automated, meaning once it’s set up, it runs smoothly with a little help from Mailchimp. Pro tip: Dive into some YouTube tutorials to get the demo on setting this up—it’s easier than you think.
Create An ARC Campaign
Alright, let’s talk about a savvy move that doesn’t break the bank: creating your very own ARC (Advance Review Copy) campaign. Sure, there are paid services out there, but hey, you can roll up your sleeves and do it solo, even if it means putting in a bit more elbow grease.
Dive into Facebook and Reddit groups where your dream readers hang out. Hit them up with an offer they can’t refuse—a free copy of your book (usually a month before it hits the Amazon shelves). In return, you’re asking for nothing but their honest-to-goodness review once your book makes its big debut on Amazon.
Now, let’s keep it real. Doing your own ARC campaign isn’t as automated as shelling out some cash for a fancy ARC service. It does chew up some time; there is no doubt about it. So, if you’re on a budget but swimming in spare time, this could be your golden ticket. Just a heads up, though: from our own journey, ARCs tend to lose some of their charm after snagging those initial 10–20 reviews. But hey, it’s still a solid play, especially if you’re looking for a wallet-friendly strategy. Give it a shot!
Paid Services: Paid Ways To Get Book Reviews On Amazon KDP In 2024
Use A Paid ARC Service
In our ‘free ways’ to get book reviews, we listed creating an ‘ARC campaign’ as one of the potential free ways to get book reviews.
Paid ARC platforms do also exist, and they usually start at $9.99 a month, going up to $29.99 a month depending on the extra features you want with your plan.
If you did have a slightly higher budget, we would recommend that you join a paid ARC service instead of doing all of the manual tasks yourself.
Some of the manual tasks that you would have to do should you wish to not use a paid service include the following:
- You would have to find all readers externally, as you would not have access to the paid services’ wide reach of readers within their platforms.
- You would have to reach out to your ARC readers once the book is live and you want them to submit their review on Amazon. A paid ARC service does this on your behalf and automates the process. A paid ARC service will also usually follow up with your ARC readers to submit their reviews. This will save you a lot of time, for sure.
- Create a spreadsheet or some document to keep up-to-date on who you send an ARC of your book to. This is again a tedious task and will require continued updates and tweaks as you progress through your campaign. This information is displayed to you in a professional, easy-to-read manner with a paid ARC service.
As you can see, a lot of the benefits of using a paid ARC service relate to your time. If you value your time highly, then we would highly recommend that you try a paid ARC service instead of trying to figure things out yourself.
Or.. Why not wait for reviews to come in organically?
Have you ever thought about just letting the reviews roll in naturally? Well, we’ve been in the self-publishing game long enough to tell you that’s not a great idea. Some folks might tell you to sit tight, let the reviews come in on their own, and avoid using any paid services to get genuine feedback. But trust us, it’s a flawed strategy, and here’s why.
Reviews TRIGGER sales, NOT the other way around
You see, reviews trigger sales, not the other way around. Waiting for your book to sell like hotcakes before gathering any reviews is a plan that’s pretty much set up to fail. Amazon’s buzzing with around 7,500 new books every day, making it a real battleground out there. No matter how awesome your writing or how eye-catching your book cover, without reviews, your book’s likely to collect dust on the digital shelf.
Humans are wired to seek validation before making a purchase. If your book lacks reviews, potential readers are more likely to grab your competitor’s book, armed with those reassuring gold stars. Plus, considering that self-publishers usually land one review per hundred sales, banking on organic reviews is a bit of a head-scratcher.
The truth is, if you’re just twiddling your thumbs, waiting for reviews to magically appear without any active effort (be it through free or paid methods), you’re setting yourself up for disappointment on your self-publishing journey. No matter which path you choose, remember this: reviews are the secret sauce for a book that consistently sells on Amazon.
Sure, you might be ranking highly for a keyword with minimal competition and low reviews now, but brace yourself. Your niche is bound to get more crowded, and as your competition racks up reviews, potential readers are more likely to lean towards their books. And that, my friend, is just basic Amazon survival.
Why Not Try Bookblaze.co?
We are a brand-new platform that launched in October 2023. Some of the benefits of using our platform to get book reviews include the following:
- We work on a request-to-review basis. Only attract high-quality readers with a genuine interest in your book that will leave you with a meaningful review on Amazon.
- You do not have to worry about many of the tedious tasks associated with using an ARC service. One is doing manual outreach to find readers and reviewers for your book. Simply list your book on our platform, and interested readers will submit a request to review your book through our book library. This frees up time to allow you to focus on other parts of the self-publishing process that you enjoy and excel at.
- We cater to low-content publishers. We understand that there has been a massive rise in low-content or no-content publishers on Amazon within the last few years. For a very long time, these publishers had nowhere to go to acquire legitimate book reviews, as ARC services do not cater to this genre of self-publishers. Now, however, there is finally a solution that caters to low-content publishers.
- We are the first platform that offers free book promotions for e-books enrolled in KDP Select. This reader type allows self-publishers and authors to get verified book reviews without anybody having to purchase a copy of their book. Verified reviews have never been easier to get!
The best thing is that we have a 14-day free trial. Why not try it out for yourself and let us know how you like it?!
You can sign up for a free trial here
Thanks a bunch for diving into this article with us. If you missed our lowdown on ARCs and how effective they can be, catch up right here. Happy reading!
