How to Increase Your Reviews

Reviews by readers on Amazon are a critical part of generating sales for your book: your reviews develop your credibility, and attract new readers. Readers want to see what others think of your book before purchasing it. There are several ways to increase the amount of reviews for your book:

Avoid Bias – Although it might be tempting to ask your close friends and family to read and review your new book on Amazon, be prepared for some of these reviews to be removed. Amazon is looking for completely unbiased reviews, and if there is any sign of bias, they will take the review down. If a review is extremely short and without detail, or if you are Facebook friends with the reviewer, or if you only have five star reviews, Amazon might become suspicious and remove the reviews. Be careful, and look for unbiased reviewers!


Say Thank You – By using an Amazon Author Central account, you can personally thank each person who takes the time to review your book. Do this by adding a comment, always positive, on each review. If a review is especially positive, share it on social media. This creates a connection with each reviewer, allowing you to potentially offer them a complimentary copy of your latest book in exchange for their review. Thinking of commenting on a bad review in defense of your book? Never do this; no good will come from it! Remain gracious, brief, and composed. Reaching out in this way can only benefit you, and review requests will surely increase.


Look Around – Certain websites, such as Tomoson, can act as platforms for authors to interact with potential reviewers. Once you pay for a membership, you can use the helpful services. Each reviewer has a rating, showing how reliably they review after products are sent to them, and you choose amongst thousands of candidates. Chances are, if someone is interested in receiving your book for their honest review, they will likely be interested in your other books. Along with thanking them, this is a great way to establish relationships with reviewers who you never would have spoken to otherwise. Never expect a positive review, and if several negative reviews appear, remember that a series of all five star reviews can seem contrived.


Top Reviewers – Go through the official ranking of Amazon’s top reviewers and find people who frequently review books of your genre. Then read their reviews in this same genre and try to gauge what they might say about your book. If there is an email or a link included in their brief profile, attempt to contact them about reviewing your book. You can do the same with popular book bloggers, especially those who enjoy your genre.