Support for Indie Authors discussion
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How well are you doing getting reviews from your Kindle free days?
I also had a lot of people downloading my books but didn't get any reviews at all. I think with freebies the thing is people get them with the intention to read them but then they get more freebies and the old ones go down the list. And not to forget that many people read books but don't leave any reviews. My husband is one of those. He says he leaves a rating at the end of the book but he forgets that if you don't add a minimum of words to it, it doesn't post. :/
Hey, G.G.Thanks for the response. I get that some people will just except without ever reading the book, but a less than 1/5th of 1% response, just leave me scratching my head.
As for the minimum amount of words to leave a review, I'm not sure on because I did have one person leave me a review of just, "Yes"
Eh, to be honest, I think 1/5 of 1% is optimistic. ;pI once had an extremely successful free day where about 2800 books went out. Over the next three months, I got about five reviews. I don't think that's typical. I think I got just as lucky with the reviews as with the download numbers.
Hmm I tried the other day after reading a short book on horses and it was telling me that I was missing words to be able to post. Strange. I added just enough to make it count so I don't know if it would have posted other wise. I hate not leaving reviews. :/
I'm glad to know it's not just me. I did a free day over the summer and a little over two thousand went out. Til this day, only one person left a review. I'm happy for all the authors out there, but I do wonder how the ones that don't have a publishing company behind them get so many reviews as quickly as they do!
Christian wrote: "I'm glad to know it's not just me. I did a free day over the summer and a little over two thousand went out. Til this day, only one person left a review. I'm happy for all the authors out there, bu..."That's exactly what I was thinking. I see indie authors with a thousand reviews and I think, "They must be selling/giving away a ton of books" because at the rate that I'm getting reviews back I'd have to giveaway a million books to reach a thousand reviews.
Today, I mentioned my new book to a friend, and she said she can't wait to read it. She went on to tell me that she love the last book I wrote which was released six months ago. I'm thinking to myself, oh I didn't even know you read it. Then I thought, well why didn't you leave a review? I've had that happen quite a few times where people read it, thoroughly enjoy it, say their going to leave a review, and then don't. Can definitely get frustrating!
Hi Christian,My friends too generally don't leave reviews either. I think it may just be a familiarity thing. I don't let it bother me because I just imagine that they must be really busy. Sometimes it is not deliberate, life just gets in the way. The fact they bought the book at all is enough for me.
I've thought about offering a cash reward for reviews, but know that Amazon will beep that.
I didn't get any from over 200 downloads on the last one-day book blast. But keep in mind, they may just have a long list of free books they're working through.
Chikamso wrote: "Hi Christian,My friends too generally don't leave reviews either. I think it may just be a familiarity thing. I don't let it bother me because I just imagine that they must be really busy. Sometim..."
You know what, it doesn't bother me anymore. When I wrote that first book though and a lot of friends and even family didn't even get it. That drove me crazy for awhile. I got more support from strangers, but I've come to learn this for whatever reason seems to be typical amongst new/indie authors. Now I just accept the congratulations, and don't expect friends/family/coworkers to get it. Those that do, great, those that don't I just accept that there's other things going on in their lives!
I had a similar experience to Christina's. I had a great promo in November where I gave away over 2000 copies between both of my books and I think I got 2 reviews, possibly from those freebies, I'm not sure. And they didn't show up until January.
Rarely have I gotten reviews that I can say came from an Amazon giveway. I had better success with goodreads paperback giveway, or from checking with reviewers personally. I figured out why after I started becoming a serious reviewer. I get an email from manybooks.com every day with free eBooks. My kindle is overflowing with books now, i must have over 100. I have requests to review books from tweets, too. I currently have 4 or 5 personal request to review a book, and I keep them on my Kindle's carousel. And then there's some more I really want to read.
This thread is simultaneously depressing and comforting. Lol
Mod
Very roughly, it appears that maybe about 1% of people who buy a book will leave a review, although that varies by genre. For example, I've noticed that romance readers appear to have a greater tendency to leave reviews than sci-fi readers. For a free promo, I've heard it quoted than the percentage of people who actually read a book they got for free varies from 60% on the high end to 20% or less on the low end. And (of course), it may take them months to get around to reading the book.
If one accepts those very rough numbers and tendency to leave a review in not affected by whether the book was paid for or not, the "expected number" [I use that term very loosely] of reviews for 1000 free books downloaded is 1 or 2 to maybe 5 or 6. And those may come in over a period of many months. Therefore, it is typically going to be difficult to gauge if those reviews are due to the free promo or not.
As Dwayne wisely points out, free giveaways are just that. Anything that results is a win. The purpose is to get a book in the hands of readers, not to garner reviews: 1000 people reading a book is vastly more powerful in terms of marketing than the very small number reviews that might result.
Mod
For my giveaway I gave away a few less than 2000 (1916 less in fact) books.
So with 84 books given away I ended up with
1 Goodreads Review.
2 Facebook friends that think I am the bees knees.
1 ebook sale and 1 physical copy sale confirmed (people that liked the book and think I am knees so much that they bought it for real in support)
1 ebook sale that happened minutes after the free day ended, so I am pretty sure it was bought by mistake, but they didn't return it, so hey, I'll take it.
I figured that was pretty successful.
And Owen is right. 1000 people reading your book is better marketing than 2 reviews! Word of mouth trumps all! :D
Mod
Thanks for the good information. I was trying to figure out when to use my free day, but maybe I won't use it at all. Did any of you use the countdown deal to make the book cheaper? What kind of results did that get you?
Grace wrote: "Thanks for the good information. I was trying to figure out when to use my free day, but maybe I won't use it at all. Did any of you use the countdown deal to make the book cheaper? What kind of re..."I've done several Countdown promotions (I don't do free days) on a few different books. The effectiveness has waned a bit over the past year, thanks to Kindle Unlimited, but you still have to promote/advertise the Countdown in order to get results.
I think the best one I had was with ENT a while back, when I got around 80 sales. I recently did one with FKB&T for a new release and got just under 30 sales. It didn't pay for the cost of the ad, but it was a decent spike.
Mark wrote: "Hey, G.G.Thanks for the response. I get that some people will just except without ever reading the book, but a less than 1/5th of 1% response, just leave me scratching my head.
As for the minimu..."
Yes, It's pretty true. When my book came out in Portuguese a person wrote only Help! I can't stop Reading! I guess writing isn't something people enjoy doing as much as we do ;) That may be why getting a review seems so hard. On the other hand, reviewers tend to be writers too so I feel we're treading Waters in the same pond here.
I usually get 20-30 downloads, but no reviews.
In my experience;Free book giveaways are dropping in numbers. Without an additional promotion the number of giveaways of a highly rated book might be 40-50.
I did a giveaway yesterday of "lower review rated book" and was VERY disappointed. Interestingly, the UK reviews for this book are very positive and the US reviews are more mixed. I gave away more UK than US copies. The US has about ten times the population. So...?
Anyway, with promotion. I expect my higher rated book to shift 150-250. The most I have given away at any time, is 1070 with advertising, kindle nation daily. I actually got about 5 reviews. Which is good.
My estimates, for what it is worth., are like many here, 1 in 100 that buy the book will review. Of free books, I think about 1 in 400.
So, I guess that many free books are never read!
However, you never know where the next review will come from. For quite a while I had sold 0 (zero) books in Cananda. Then I gave one away and - presto, one Canadian (5* :D) review. I now sell the occasional Canadian book.
Dwayne wrote: "Free giveaways are just that - free giveaways. Anything positive that results is a win for you. Perhaps you only got one review from it, but that's one review you didn't have before. Perhaps you go..."I like how you think Dwayne - very positive :)
Lyra wrote: "This thread is simultaneously depressing and comforting. Lol"I agree this thread is DEPRESSING, but we are all taking it with humor. When you have a husband, sister, friend who are too lazy to post reviews, you 'understand' or at least adjust your expectations to the general public...hahaha.
I guess, trip advisor and other 'review' sites are still fairly young, and not part of everyones life. We need to be patient and educate generations to come...:-)
I'd like to say that free days are worth doing because it helps spread the book and the author. Readers usually are friends with readers and even if they don't write a review for whatever reasons, they spread the word when they like the book.
Luciana wrote: "I'd like to say that free days are worth doing because it helps spread the book and the author. Readers usually are friends with readers and even if they don't write a review for whatever reasons, ..."I'll admit that I'll take up a book on the advice of a friend over a random reader, so I'd prefer they do this.
In addition, books are connected when people who purchase them purchase other books. "People who bought this also bought..." So even if a review isn't written, it gives readers a better chance to find your work.
On a positive, I find that following free book days sales increase. People may not review, but they do talk!
Anthony wrote: "On a positive, I find that following free book days sales increase. People may not review, but they do talk!"I always get a few sales after free days so if nothing else...
Mimi wrote: "I guess, trip advisor and other 'review' sites are still fairly young, and not part of everyones life. We need to be patient and educate generations to come...:-) "Remember that reviews are a courtesy and no one is obligated to review any product or service. Giving away a product, whether it's through an Amazon free day or a Goodreads giveaway are no strings attached. People may review and Amazon might even ask via email, but it is and has always been a choice.
Christina wrote: "Mimi wrote: "I guess, trip advisor and other 'review' sites are still fairly young, and not part of everyones life. We need to be patient and educate generations to come...:-) "Remember that revi..."
I second that. When I do the free giveaways, I am looking to get my work into more hands in the hopes that they will like what they see and buy something else I've written. A review is just icing on the cake, and not to be expected. If someone gives me a review, I love it, but if they don't, I don't think any less of them.
Free giveaways are a mixed bag in terms of reviews. I recently gave away nearly 1000 books and have only had 6 reviews. One of the drawbacks of giving books away is that if they don't like your book, the claws come out - "Glad I didn't waste any money on this rubbish" and so on. This can have a dire impact on sales.
It seems to go by the same laws as paid books - people only leave reviews if they adored or detested it. And that's if they've read it at all. I can't speak for anyone else, but my Kindle is full of freebies I save for a rainy day.
Free giveaways are a mixed bag in terms of reviews. I recently gave away nearly 1000 books and have only had 6 reviews.6 reviews from a thousand free books is good!
One of the drawbacks of giving books away is that if they don't like your book, the claws come out - "Glad I didn't waste any money on this rubbish" and so on. This can have a dire impact on sales.
I think the reader is more likely take a chance on a book not in their prefered genre, and therefore are perhaps more to dislike it in the end. Yes, some can be unfairly critical. However, they do not owe the author anything, paid or free.
It seems to go by the same laws as paid books - people only leave reviews if they adored or detested it. And that's if they've read it at all. I can't speak for anyone else, but my Kindle is full of freebies I save for a rainy day
Well, I think the lukewarm review is little support. Damning with faint praise? we'll all get some!... it was absolutely okay... alright(meh!)
Controversial books may be more polarising, and provoke a greater reaction. A poor review can stir the buyer if they disagree with the reviewer!
Amazon reviews are more likely polarised than Goodreads, Goodread readers are more likely to rate a book.
Mod
Agreed. A thousand downloads, in itself, is a good thing. At least a thousand people have shown some interest in your book, even if it takes some time before they actually read it. Any amount of reviews from any amount of free downloads is a plus.
Anthony wrote: "I think the reader is more likely take a chance on a book not in their prefered genre, and therefore are perhaps more to dislike it in the end. Yes, some can be unfairly critical. However, they do not owe the author anything, paid or free."
Again, Anthony speaks the truth, especially the bolded line. It's a hard lesson to learn, but we need to realize that readers owe us nothing. They don't have to read our books, they don't have to review them, they don't even have to buy them or take them for free. We are completely at their mercy and the best we can do is remain grateful for any amount of attention they afford us.
The indie author in our little group at Knockin' Books ran a 5-day free promotion and had 8,000 copies downloaded. That only resulted in 6 new reviews. Now, it did also result in a sales boost for her other books, but reviews seem to always remain elusive.
Mod
Last month i published my book, i got around 80 downloads in free days, little sales after that, but reviews i managed to get from goodreads readers only who entered in my free ebook giveaway.Still being a newbie i was happy for that!
I had 90 free downloads, but it's too early to say whether it'll generate any reviews, but sales have bumped up a bit. Apart from reviews, giving books away for free is a good way for other readers, who like your book, to spread the word.
Yes, not to knock down your excitement..., but many will attest that thousands downloads doesn't necessary translate into reviews.People are still not accustomed to it. We need to educate the readers, do it on your websites, on your social media platforms. Not begging for reviews, just explaining how the algorithm works.
:-))
Mimi wrote: "Yes, not to knock down your excitement..., but many will attest that thousands downloads doesn't necessary translate into reviews.People are still not accustomed to it. We need to educate the read..."
What algorithm again?
Please be careful about spreading things that may not be true. I only have three reviews on one of my stories, but it has gotten recommended to other readers. Many other authors have had similar results as well.
Mod
*Wince* No thanks. I'd rather just entertain my readers. If they want to leave a review, fine. If not, no sweat.
Mimi wrote: "Yes, not to knock down your excitement..., but many will attest that thousands downloads doesn't necessary translate into reviews.People are still not accustomed to it. We need to educate the read..."
As someone who reads a lot and leaves reviews because not only I want to help readers choose their next book, but I know authors also happen to crave them, I couldn't ask for anyone to do it.
Writing reviews takes a toll on reading and reading is supposed to be a relaxation. I write books. One would think leaving a review would be easy for me and it's not. Too often I would love just to leave a rating and go on with my next book. I can only imagine for those who don't have the writing virus in them. Why would I want to impose on them what I find difficult myself?
I've had a few readers send me PMs or emails telling me how they loved my book, readers who never left a review. For them, it was easier to tell me that way. Who am I to complain? It's more than I could ever ask. I cherish those moments with a smile and a warm feeling in my heart: they have read my book! Who could ask for more?
Mod
Ditto everything you said. Two of my biggest fans are a coworker and a former coworker. They've probably bought more of my books than anyone. Neither has ever left a review and I'm fine with that. The coworker tells me all the time how much he loves my writing and that's good enough. I don't want to educate him or tell him he must write out his thoughts in a review. I'm afraid he'd go find another favorite author if I started making demands.
Also, maybe I don't get a lot of reviews, but I love that they are all completely organic. Since I don't ask for them, it's just a nice surprise to find a review now and then. I think if I started asking for and expecting reviews, I'd end up frustrated when I didn't get many.
Mimi wrote: "People are still not accustomed to it. We need to educate the readers, do it on your websites, on your social media platforms. ..."I have to agree that educating readers is neither necessary or desirable. They already have paid us the huge compliment of becoming our readers: investing time and money on our work that they could have spent in other ways. To think they should be "educated" strikes me a as step too far. To think we could educate them, I view as problematic. That assumes we have superior knowledge to impart that will better their lives. The first proposition (that we have superior knowledge) I find dubious, and as for second, in this case, is the aim is to benefit our lives, which I believe is something we should not attempt. In the end, attempting such things are unlikely to redound to our benefit.
Maybe ask readers to leave reviews on the last page of your book. This may help with reviews.
By the way, how do you guys get so many downloads? I'm lucky to get over 50.
J. wrote: "My problem is not that I am not getting reviews, it's Amazon's broken review process that likes to single out some people and remove their reviews because "their system flagged" the review."Strictly speaking, Amazon's review process is not "broken" because it serves the purpose for which it is intended -- by Amazon. Amazon's policies are in place because of persistent attempts to game the review system, partly based on persistent misunderstandings regarding on-line reviews.
I apologize in advance if this is off topic and any mod is at liberty to simply delete if it strays too far, and I will strive to be concise about a topic that is convoluted. But first, I've been conducting business on-line for 20 years now, and I have learned a great deal about reviews and their effect on sales in various markets in that time. To start with, the impetus for reviews had not much to do with sales; it had to do with adding interactivity to websites. People like to be heard and reviews allow that, so they became popular. In some cases, (restaurants and auto mechanics are two obvious cases) on-line reviews have a significant effect. In others, they have very little effect. On-line businesses know which is which.
But independent of that, business will court reviews, just as they do FB likes etc. Why? Why especially if they know these have little effect? Simply because the opportunity cost is ~0. Regardless of the effectiveness of a marketing tactic, if it costs the business essentially nothing, why not try it?
This low opportunity cost, coupled with the fact that reviews matter in select cases, has led to the reviews becoming commodified. That in turn tends to feed a perception that reviews have value in some general sense. That perception is useful to those who supply reviews, and they nurture it.
Amazon knows exactly how well reviews help to sell books, TVs or refrigerators. Amazon also knows the customer's perception of review system is much more important than the reviews themselves. If customer's perceive the review system is being gamed, they will lose faith in the company that allows this. So Amazon is aggressive in its review policy because it knows that the reviews are worth very little, but its reputation is worth quite a bit.
Lastly, the fact the reviews are a very weak driver of book sales has been known for decades. It was a subject in marketing research way back in the day, when it was noted that movies lived or died by reviews but books [fiction] were hardly affected. There were no on-line reviews then, of course, but there is no evidence that on-line reviews has moved the needle much here. The whys and wherefores and what-ifs of this are a different topic entirely.
I see I have failed to be all that concise, and I apologize for this being longer than I intended. The bottom line is that the perceptions of the value book reviews (especially) is not based on their value to sales drivers, but on the distortions caused by a weak driver with a near-zero cost that was instituted primarily as a means to make websites more entertaining by letting people have their say.
That's all, folks.
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I'm just trying to gauge how well other authors are doing in receiving reviews back after their Kindle free days? I have multiple books that I have published recently, and one of my books is a thriller that I gave away 2500 copies of on its last free day. That was a month ago and I only received three reviews from that promo, very disappointing. I do have links in the book to take the reader directly to my review page, and of course I have a message asking politely if they'd leave me a review. Maybe, I just have to give it more time, but I guess I thought that giving away 2500 copies would have returned better.