Getting Book Reviews: What They Don’t Tell You

Рет қаралды 5,408

Dale L. Roberts

Күн бұрын

Пікірлер: 64

@SavvySelf-Publishing 2 ай бұрын

I haven't taken advantage of the universal link but I probably should.

@DaleLRoberts 2 ай бұрын

Oh, definitely get on those UBLs and URLs. It makes a HUGE difference.

@AuthorDLTillery 5 ай бұрын

This is such helpful info Dale! Thanks so much! I'll be doing this once I release my new book.🎉🎉

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Nice! Glad you found it helpful. More to come! With eight books in a series, I’ll be covering a lot of aspects.

@AuthorDLTillery 5 ай бұрын

@@DaleLRoberts Looking forward to it! 😁

@Reikifairy 5 ай бұрын

So much info in here, thanks so much Dale!

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful! Stay tuned! I have a KILLER video in the works sharing how I publish books. It perfectly works in tandem with this video.

@adventureswithtime 5 ай бұрын

Very complete video for review options. 👍 Thanks. I was going to handle the ARC team myself, but you may have convinced me to use a service.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Right on; glad I could help. I just found out from Evan at StoryOrigin that you could create a universal review link with an UBL by affixing /amazon/review at the end. Yet another reason why I love StoryOrigin so much.

@TheOneEyedMonkey 5 ай бұрын

Really useful video Dale, I have released my first book a few months ago and I am currently 60% through the sequel my question is should I spend my extremely limited funds on book award pro trying to get an award to build my reputation as a writer or spend it on newsletters in the hope ai get some more reviews? If you could do a sort of prioritisation and life cycle of a book when should you stop promoting and spend your funds on future projects if you dont have a lot of money. Sorry for rambling hopefully you can help you videos have been a life saver for me being a new author thank you for everything you do Dale.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Book awards are great for marketing purposes, but won't get that immediate results you'll get through email marketing. If I'm forced to choose - newsletters. That's just my opinion though. And, only you will be able to know when it's time to shift your focus. Remember, nothing promotes your last book like your next book. Get on that next book ASAP! 😎🔥

@TheOneEyedMonkey 5 ай бұрын

@@DaleLRoberts thanks Dale really appreciate the advice 😁

@ErikLessmann 3 ай бұрын

Excellent resource, as always. Thanks

@DaleLRoberts 3 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@NathanGregoryAuthor 5 ай бұрын

I had 75 readers on my ARC team. I got six reviews.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Oof! I thought 30% was low. Make sure those 75 readers never get on your ARC team again.

@TimRoot-dotcom 5 ай бұрын

I had 200 and only got 9 reviews. Even though ARCs are permitted (and we are trying to be good and follow the rules) ... I suspect that Amazon's algorithm deletes some of these early reviews. I got a LOT more reviews with free KDP days and newletter/bookbub promotions.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Wow! We need to have an intervention with all these ARC readers. haha Only 9 from 200?! Ouch!

@577zkerr 5 ай бұрын

I'm considering Pubby, but I've also heard to be wary of it. I'll let you know how it goes if I throw down on it. Thanks, Dale!

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Yeah, it's not my preferred way of getting reviews, but I understand how some authors might need it to seed their initial reviews. Keep us posted on how it goes.

@matthewj.evans-author 5 ай бұрын

Thanks for another great guide.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

It's my pleasure. I was just chatting with Evan at StoryOrigin and apparently he has a universal review link feature for StoryOrigin...I just missed it. hahaha Go figure! Time to shoot another video. haha

@johnparnham5945 5 ай бұрын

Your Review links re very clever . Thanks for the tip.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

I wish I could take credit, but I picked these up from some source years ago.

@FZWbooks 5 ай бұрын

Yes, I love reader's favorite as well. The other one I've tried is Reedsy editorial reviews and they cost $50 per review. Thanks for another great video!

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Ooo, I forgot about them. I used them with Amazon Keywords for Books. I need to give them a shot again.

@wadecoleman20 5 ай бұрын

THANKS. lots of good info.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@manuelaprestianni 2 ай бұрын

This is very useful and interesting but, I didn't get one point, sorry, newbie here. How can you put this link that includes your ASIN if you don't have it yet? I mean, I need to put this at the end of the book but I haven't published the book yet, so how can I do it? Sorry for the silly question but your help is really appreciate!

@DaleLRoberts 2 ай бұрын

Let's take it apart step by step. I own the domain name DaleLinks.com and have webhosting for that site using WordPress. There's an extension for WordPress called Pretty Links (I use the free version). I'll create a link called a subdirectory (i.e., DaleLinks.com/ReviewKeywordsBook). Now, if someone visited that address BEFORE the book launches, it'll go to my website. Once the book is live, I go back into my WordPress site and redirect that address to point to the reviews page.

@splatterdaynightmares 5 ай бұрын

When I ask for comments I'll say leave a comment on the platform or go to my website where you heard the podcast so maybe it might work with the book, too.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

That's certainly a good way of doing it. Keep it up! 😎🔥

@sharonjanethague7181 5 ай бұрын

Hi, I received a 5-star in-depth Reader's Favorite review which I am scared to post! Can I use it in the customer review section or is better/safer in the editorial section of Amazon?

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Post it in the editorial reviews section of your book.

@victory1607 21 күн бұрын

Hi, Pls will ebook fares be good for me? I have only just launched my book. I live in the UK, but selling in the US market. Pls how do I reach them?

@DaleLRoberts 21 күн бұрын

There's a link in the description.

@BABACHRISTOS 5 ай бұрын

Hello, i only have a tablet and an app that downloads it in pdf for formatting, is this ok with kdp ,and would you recommend any other self publishing platforms aswell as them ,or apos to adjust formats that are easy for a beginner on an android device , i do nt have a PC.?.....thank you.....

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

KDP will accept PDF for ebook, but I wouldn't recommend it. Get it formatted in epub if you can. As for print books, you'll need PDF. You can get your manuscript formatted for free through services like Draft2Digital's automated interior formatting tool. And, you do NOT have to use D2D for distribution to use this tool. Get to the last step of the upload process and you'll be able to download the epub, PDF, and mobi files.

@BABACHRISTOS 5 ай бұрын

@@DaleLRoberts hello again Dale,thank you for your help, may I ask as I'm currently using vista create to do the pdf format ebook, if I would be able to download that to d2d, as I've made quite a lot of progress already, as I said I only have an Android device ,so is that all still good for d2d please?...thank you again....🕊️🤍ps it's intially to do an e-book....🙏

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Give it a shot. Or contact D2D support for guidance.

@BABACHRISTOS 5 ай бұрын

@@DaleLRoberts Sorry I think the term was upload onto d2d not download,...also are you aware if different coloured texts on coloured back ground paper is an issue with kdp or other publishers , as long as the text is clear for readers , again,this initially for a public ebook .... thanks 🙏......🕊️🤍

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

I'm not sure I know what you're asking. KZbin is burying your comments, so if you need a response, pop into my Discord community.

@elbashwaty 5 ай бұрын

I am the author of 4 educational books for children and there are no sales. How can I market my books when my financial circumstances do not allow advertisements?

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Think about who your audience is and where you can find them. Off the top of my head, you should be approaching schools, libraries and book clubs. If they're educational books, they'll fit right in at a school. I'd recommend your first step be reaching out to your local library's brand manager. See if you can host a reading or workshop. Do a little asking around about if they accept self-published books. Bring the books to them in person and speak directly to them so they know you're a serious author who is genuinely enthusiastic about your topic. If you need other ideas, hit me up in my Discord community. We have a season publicist there who can give you even more ideas. Oh, and nearly 1,000 other authors, so you'll be in good company.

@Earlykdp 5 ай бұрын

Are emails allowed in books?

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Sure. Why not?

@BrettRoehr 5 ай бұрын

Is it ok just to tell readers to leave a review at the retailer of their choice?

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Yep, that's what I mentioned from the start. You can make a blanketed request and be done with it, but you do leave it up to them to follow through. Take the extra steps, it's worth the few extra minutes.

@adventureswithtime 5 ай бұрын

When using this universal review link process, will Amazon recognize that the reviewer has purchased the book such that the review will be "Verified"?

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Only if they bought the book.

@snoopyfanno1 4 ай бұрын

I use a QR code to make it easier, they can scan and go

@DaleLRoberts 4 ай бұрын

Good job!

@AutumnAprodithe 5 ай бұрын

Its like unless you have a large following self publishing wont be successful.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

That's 100% untrue. When I broke into the business, I didn't have an email list, a KZbin channel, not even a single reader. Yes, you need a solid following, but no one is born with or handed a following. They have to build it one reader at a time. The same goes for you. You have to work for it.

@lm8543 5 ай бұрын

Great book, book cover, reviews, social media, extensive marketing - almost zero sales in 3 months. Must be luck of the draw.

@DaleLRoberts 5 ай бұрын

Have a group of peers analyze your book and what you're doing. I find when authors aren't selling any books (despite marketing and promoting) something is fundamentally off. They THINK their cover is good. They THINK their marketing copy is solid. They THINK their social media engagement is fine. I recommend popping into my Discord community if you want that honest feedback. Share your cover, share your book description, share your promotional strategies. If you have, in fact, been diligent about promoting every day and still haven't seen any sales, you have a marketing issue. Either you haven't correctly pinpointed your audience or your cover design and marketing copy are off. You can always run Amazon Ads to find out for yourself. With the right targets, if you're getting lots of impressions and no clicks, your cover needs work. If you're getting a ton of clicks and no sales, you've got a marketing copy issue. Don't lose heart. This business is NOT easy as some KZbinrs would have you believe. You're going to have to be resourceful and resilient. Test, test, test some more to find out what works best for you. Good luck!