How to get book reviews
by Debbie Emmitt
A five-star book review can seem like gold dust. Editor and proofreader Debbie Emmitt shares some effective ways to attract book reviews before, during and after your book launch.
You’ve spent many months, maybe years, carefully crafting your book. Before you send it out into the world, give it the respect it deserves by gathering some reviews in preparation for launch day. If your book is already published, don’t worry! This article also covers how to get book reviews after launch.
The advice here is mainly for authors going down the self-publishing route, but some tips also apply to those who are considering traditional publishing.
Book reviews versus testimonials
It’s always good to start with a definition! There is a subtle difference between a book review and a testimonial:
· Book review – An honest account by a reader, which could be positive, neutral or negative.
· Testimonial – Curated by the author or publisher, and always positive.
The terms are often used interchangeably, as any good review could be used as a testimonial.
Why are good book reviews important?
We know positive reviews are a good thing, but let’s take a moment to consider why that is.
Credibility
If people leave a positive review of your book, it suggests to potential readers that you know what you're talking about. This is especially true if the reviewer is someone in your field – even better if they have their own impressive set of credentials.
If a testimonial by Elon Musk or Sheryl Sandberg were to appear on the cover of a new book in the business genre, it would instantly raise the esteem of the author in the eyes of many potential readers.
More visibility
Good book reviews play an important role in where your book features in Amazon’s search results. In addition, visitors can filter results based on star ratings.
And we’re not only talking about online visibility. Amazon's physical bookstores choose their stock based on online reviews.
Social proof
If you’re considering an online purchase but the item has no reviews or none above three stars, does this put you off buying it? Probably. As shoppers, we tend to be interested in products that are already popular.
This is why good book reviews are important for driving up your sales. If a potential reader sees that other people have given your book a five-star rating and raved about how much they enjoyed it, that potential reader is far more likely to become an actual reader.
Where are book reviews and testimonials displayed?
Book reviews may pop up in any number of places, including:
· Amazon
· Goodreads
· Book review websites
Testimonials appear in places such as:
· On your book cover or in the front matter
· Your website
Bear in mind that you can’t necessarily just copy and paste reviews from one source to another. For example, you are not allowed to use a positive Amazon review as a testimonial on your website without the express permission of the reviewer, and that isn’t easy to achieve, given Amazon’s communication guidelines. A solution to this is to link from your site to your book on Amazon, so your visitors can read the review in its original location (and may even purchase a copy!).
How to get book reviews
Before your book is finished
The process of getting reviews starts before you launch your book, or even before you finish it! Here are some ways to prepare for future positive reviews:
Write a good book – This should go without saying, but if your book isn’t what people are looking for, or isn’t written well, you won't attract good reviews.
Hire a professional editor and proofreader – Your book may contain ground-breaking research or unbelievably useful insights, but if it’s full of errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation and formatting, this will seriously affect people’s opinion of it.
Include a direct ask for reviews – A page at the end of your book asking for reviews is an easy way to remind people to do so once they have finished your book.
Hire a professional cover designer – Before you get a review, people need to read your book, and before they do that, they need to notice it among all the others in your genre.
If you are going down the traditional publishing route, your publisher will handle the cover design, editing and proofreading. If you are self-publishing, you will need to seek out these professionals yourself. Jessica’s article covers questions you should ask before hiring an editor for your book team.
Before your book is launched
The earlier you can gather some positive book reviews, the better. If you already have some good reviews on the all-important launch day, this will encourage more sales, which will, in turn, increase the visibility of your book and garner more reviews.
On Amazon, you can only have reviews of your book prior to launch if it’s already available in another format (e.g. you’re launching the paperback version and the hardback is already available). But that doesn’t stop you from harnessing a team of people willing to post a review on the day of launch.
If possible, start the review-gathering process four to six months ahead of your book launch. This allows time for:
you to find people willing to write a review
them to read your book
them to write their review
Here are some places you can seek out book reviews before your book is launched:
Amazon reviewers
If you’re self-publishing via KDP, you can set the e-book version as available to pre-order. This will allow you to gather Amazon reviews ahead of the official launch date, which can be crucial for encouraging more sales. Dale L Roberts has shared some top tips on using the pre-order option.
As well as requesting Amazon reviews from your network, reach out to Amazon reviewers who have reviewed similar books to yours. This can be time-consuming as you need to research which reviewers are interested in your genre. Discover who has left positive reviews for some popular books in the same ballpark as yours. Explain to them that you saw they enjoyed a particular book and ask if they would be interested in reading yours.
However, you need to be careful not to flout Amazon’s rules. Amazon says: “You may provide free or discounted copies of your books to readers, as long as you do not require a review in exchange or attempt to influence the review. Offering anything other than a free or discounted copy of the book—including gift cards—will invalidate a review, and the Amazon Community team will remove it.”
In other words, you are not allowed to offer a free book for the sole purpose of receiving a positive review, but as long as you expressly state in your request that honest reviews are welcomed but not expected, you should be covered. Author Imprints covers in detail how to request an Amazon book review.
They can’t post advance reviews, but you can make it clear when your launch day is and ask that they provide an honest review on the day.
There are also people known as Amazon Top Reviewers. They have posted a huge number of reviews and have gained a certain number of ‘helpful’ votes. The idea is that the opinions of these people are trusted, so if they review your book positively, they will have a greater influence over potential buyers.
While this is theoretically true, a 2018 study by Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business found that reviewers who post more informally may be seen as more trustworthy.
If you’re interested in approaching some Top Reviewers to review your book, work through the lists of reviewers and find those who are interested in your genre:
Rachel Straub’s guest post on BadRedhead Media describes the process she has used to approach Amazon Top Reviewers.
Amazon editorial reviews
This is a great opportunity that not all authors know about, and a way to bypass the whole ‘no free books in exchange for positive reviews’ rule. Editorial reviews form a section on your book’s Amazon page where you can upload reviews from anyone (with their permission).
Shoppers pay attention to them and, as you can curate these and would only add positive reviews, they are essentially testimonials. Dave Chesson’s guest post on Jane Friedman’s site explains how to harness this opportunity.
Advance reader team
An advance reader team forms part of your book launch team. This is a core group of fans who will rally together to make your launch a success. They may be self-selected from your mailing list or colleagues/acquaintances from other networks.
Marketing consultant Rob Eagar describes one of the many ways to organise a book launch team.
Beta readers
If you had a group of beta readers for your manuscript, they have, by definition, already read your book! Ask them for a testimonial you can use on your website or social media, or to leave an Amazon review once it is launched.
Social media
Whether you’re on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn or TikTok, social media is a platform you can harness to request book reviews.
Your mailing list
If you have a mailing list, this is the perfect vehicle through which to get some reviews ahead of launch day, or to post one on Amazon as soon as your book is available (if you aren’t offering pre-launch copies). Subscribers are already supporting your work by having signed up for updates, so many should be willing to provide a review or testimonial.
Your professional network
This could be your social media network or a physical network, such as academic colleagues. Leverage your contacts by asking them to review your book, whether on Amazon or elsewhere. As they are probably already your target audience, you are likely to get a few reviews or testimonials in this way.
Goodreads book review groups
Goodreads seems to be falling out of favour with some authors. One of the main reasons for this is review bombing: when users leave negative reviews on a book, often before it has even been released.
However, the Goodreads app/website is used by droves of authors and booklovers, so in the interest of presenting a balanced view, read why Claire Bradshaw thinks indie authors should use it.
If you’d like to post your book on Goodreads and gather reviews, you can approach several book review groups that are interested in your genre. It will take some time to browse the list of review groups and pinpoint those that may be best for you, but hopefully it will mean more reviews.
Reedsy Discovery
This is a paid-for platform that authors can use to promote their work. Reedsy Discovery brings together authors, reviewers, publishers and readers.
At least one month before your book’s launch, you can pay $50 and submit your manuscript to gain reviews. You can also submit your book to specific reviewers. Carefully select those who are interested in, or who have already reviewed, books in your genre.
Electra Nanou on makeuseof.com (MUO) gives some in-depth tips for authors on how to use Reedsy Discovery.
Services connecting authors and reviewers
Platforms like BookFunnel, Booksprout and StoryOrigin offer a range of author services that aim to connect them with readers, including book reviewers. This isn’t a free option (although StoryOrigin’s basic plan is free and the other platforms start at reasonable monthly rates), but these services can streamline the review process and offer useful tools for authors, such as newsletter management, group promos and more.
Carefully research them to see if this is a good option for you.
After your book is launched
Once your book is out there, most of the pre-launch ways to get book reviews will still apply.
Others for post-launch are:
Book review blogs
There are hundreds of these but be careful to only approach those that are interested in your particular genre, or you’ll be wasting your time. Reedsy provides a useful list of ‘The Best Book Review Blogs of 2022’.
Offer your e-book for free
Giving away the e-book version of your book for free increases your chances of gaining organic reviews, as more people will read your book. This can just be a temporary arrangement.
Ensure that you have a request for reviews in your book, and during this promotional period, market your book far and wide!
Relaunch
If you launched your book a while back and sales have stagnated (or never took off in the first place), a relaunch may be just what you need to freshen it up and seek out some reviews. Consider updating the cover and getting it edited and proofread if you didn’t the first time round, then follow some of the tips in this article on how to gain reviews before and after launch.
How not to get book reviews
There are a few things to avoid, or be careful of, when seeking out book reviews:
Offering payment or incentives
When seeking Amazon reviews (and possibly for other platforms), it’s against their rules to pay or incentivise someone to leave a review. This includes providing a free book for the express purpose of gaining a positive review.
However, as already mentioned, you can still legitimately provide a free copy and receive reviews; you just need to pay attention to the wording of your request. Make it clear that:
· You do not require a review, but any reviews are welcomed.
· You encourage honest feedback, whether positive or negative.
· They need to disclose in the review that they received a free copy, for example: “I received a complimentary pre-release copy of this book, and this is an honest review.”
Outside Amazon, while it isn’t against the law to offer payment or incentives for reviews, the reviewer must include disclosure in their review, even if the incentive is just a free copy of your book, otherwise you can get into hot water.
Review swap
There are a few reasons why review swapping isn’t a good idea, and it is prohibited by Amazon as it is seen as gaming the system. If Amazon discovers you have received a review in exchange for giving a review to another author, it will give you a warning, and if you continue, you are likely to be removed from the system.
Poppy Kuroki offers six reasons why you shouldn’t review swap.
Not asking your target audience
Approaching people who are not in your target audience is not a good idea. They are unlikely to reply, let alone leave a review. At worst, they will leave a negative review because they aren’t interested in or captivated by the subject matter.
Asking family and friends
Amazon prohibits reviews from family and friends. They have ways and means of finding out who these people are (comparing contact information on your Amazon accounts, looking at data that you have freely opted to share, e.g. Facebook). Any reviews that Amazon discovers are from family and friends, they will remove (or never post in the first place).
Sending the wrong genre to a book review site
Some book review sites will specialise in a particular genre. Read their submission guidelines carefully to ensure you fit the bill.
Not taking no for an answer
If the blogger or book review site that you approached has said they’re not interested or haven’t replied, don’t persist. There are plenty of other opportunities out there, and antagonising people won’t do you any favours.
Reviewing your own book
Tempted as some of you may be, this is against Amazon Community Guidelines!
In summary
Positive book reviews lead to more sales. In light of this fact, it’s no wonder that authors are keen to gather as many five-star reviews as possible.
There are several ways to get book reviews before, during and after your book launch, which have been covered in this article. By trying some of these out, you will increase your chances of collecting those sought-after reviews and ensuring your book looks more appealing to potential readers.
About the blogger
Debbie Emmitt is an editor and proofreader with 20 years’ experience in working with content of all kinds, especially full-length fiction, non-fiction and web content. She is also a debut mystery author.
Sign up to her mailing list and receive a free e-book: ‘The 3 Most Common Writing Errors – and how to fix them’ for a detailed overview of how to correctly use hyphens/dashes, commas and capital letters.