Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie discussion
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The GRRRR!!!!!! thread
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Okay, then here are the places that I posted ARCs and the results I had with them. I hope it helps!- Advanced Copies for Review & Book Giveaways - 8 people requested an ARC and so far 2 have already posted and another 3 have requested other books. I had the best luck with this group with my previous ARCs as well.
- Authors & Reviewers - 4 people have requested, 1 posted another and another asked for other books.
- Goodreads Authors/readers - Not sure how many emailed me about it, but I think it was a few.
I also posted it in places that say you can for possible reviews and stuff, but never saw much action with those.
The other thing I did was instafreebie. Nicole Locker got me into that and since I started with them I now have almost 600 people (many are through an instafreebie promotion I did) on my mailing list and very few unsubscribers. I don't post my entire book. I just do the first few chapters and in the excerpt I provide links where people can buy my books. Since doing that, in addition to my mailing list, I've also had a few extra sales a week if not every day.
XO
Has anyone pulled their hair out over delays in Amazon's updating of their books' rankings? Have sold more than 50 books already this morning on my ENT Book Of The Day sale, and the ranking number went UP since the day started. It makes no sense at all. The people at Author Central and Kindle Direct don't have a clue and simply parrot the party line ("Well, it's based on a complex formula, it will update hourly, blah, blah, blah...")
Some support! (NOT) What's your experience?
Just received this from the Kindle Direct agent:The Amazon Bestsellers Rank shows how items are selling in relation to one another in each Amazon marketplace. The ranking is further divided into Free and Paid lists within each Kindle Store.
We base rank calculations on Amazon sales and update them hourly to reflect newer and historical sales of every item sold on each website. Recent sales are weighted more heavily. The Bestsellers Rank is relative and may change even when there are no sales of a book, or may not change when there have been new sales. For example, if you were to sell a copy of your book and the rest of the books in the store happen to be selling more often than normal, your Bestsellers Rank may not change.
While monitoring your book’s Amazon sales rank may be helpful in gaining general insight into the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns and other initiatives to drive book sales, it is not an accurate way to track your book’s sales or pages read. Neither is it an accurate way to compare your sales in relation to books in other categories, since a particular item’s sales rank does not absolutely reflect its sales or Kindle Unlimited (KU) / Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL) activity.
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My comment: 50 sales in a small category (literary fiction, short stories) should move the ranking number lower, not higher. Full Stop.
After eight years of publishing books on Amazon, one gets to know the smell of BS when one smells it.
Hm, I've never been convinced on that "updating hourly" business. For my promotions, it takes hours or even half the day to see the new and improved rank. Congrats on your 50 sales! Maybe it will update soon. It's only 8am here on GMT -8, which is the time zone I think Amazon is based on.
I don't worry about it, because it's like watching paint dry and expecting a different result.
Marie Silk wrote: "Hm, I've never been convinced on that "updating hourly" business. For my promotions, it takes hours or even half the day to see the new and improved rank. Congrats on your 50 sales! Maybe it will u..."LOL...they must have heard us...the book's page just updated...the rank "fell" from more than 500,000 to a little over 16,000, with it being 22 in Short Stories.
Wonder if Amazon was having computer problems?
Product details
File Size: 6404 KB
Print Length: 151 pages
Publisher: TJC Press (January 20, 2017)
Publication Date: January 20, 2017
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B01MSO1LND
Text-to-Speech: Enabled
X-Ray:
Not Enabled
Word Wise: Enabled
Lending: Enabled
Screen Reader: Supported
Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,354 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
#22 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction > Short Stories
#74 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Contemporary Fiction > Short Stories
#79 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction > Action & Adventure
Would you like to tell us about a lower price?
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?
Angel wrote: "I don't worry about it, because it's like watching paint dry and expecting a different result."I don't do paint well...ask my poor suffering wife of 53 years. She's only let me live this long (she tells me) because she's not "done" with me yet.
Ugh, this week is not my week. I tried to make an Amazon ad today - spent hours on the keywords. And, because things aren't going my way, it got rejected for the cover. It's not even particularly suggestive, but apparently Amazon has high standards. Ughhhhhh.I obviously have other covers that are less suggestive, but they won't be particularly useful on an ad for a variety of reasons. So I guess that's one major advertising avenue that's out for me. This sucks.
I wish we could choose images on the ads.
(I feel for the erotica writers here!)
I've been rejected for my cover before too and my covers are not particularly suggestive. Amazon also went through and removed a few of my reviews for absolutely no reason. Not happy with them at all. Hope your week gets better!
Thanks J. I'm sorry it happened to you, too. :(
Theodore wrote: "Angel wrote: "I don't worry about it, because it's like watching paint dry and expecting a different result."I don't do paint well...ask my poor suffering wife of 53 years. She's only let me live..."
LOL!
I've decided it's best for me to leave the Navigating Indieworld Group. For reasons that keep becoming apparent to me and I can no longer ignore those reasons.
Angel wrote: "I've decided it's best for me to leave the Navigating Indieworld Group. For reasons that keep becoming apparent to me and I can no longer ignore those reasons."Why what's up?
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Amy wrote: "Angel wrote: "I've decided it's best for me to leave the Navigating Indieworld Group. For reasons that keep becoming apparent to me and I can no longer ignore those reasons."Why what's up?"
I gave it a try and it's just not the place for me.
Carole wrote: "Sorry to hear that Angel- is there anything I can do?"No, there's nothing that can be done. I no longer feel comfortable here in this group. I've been feeling like this for months and have been wrestling with the idea and have been trying to hang in there with this group. The people here are great. This just isn't the right fit for me.
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No, there's nothing that can be done. I no longer feel comfortable here in this group. I've been feeling like this for months ..."
I am very sorry to hear that you aren't feeling like this group is a good fit for you. I know I personally enjoy your participation in the conversations and appreciate your input. I do not play any part in how this group is run, but I know it is a new group and they are still working on getting things into a good groove. From the interaction I have had with the moderators, I know they all have great intentions and truly want to help fellow indie authors. Be sure to send one of them a private message to know what made you feel uncomfortable because I am sure that wasn't the intention and it will help them to better the group in the future. I am hoping you change your mind, but completely understand that you need to do what you feel is best.
Erica wrote: "Angel wrote: "Carole wrote: "Sorry to hear that Angel- is there anything I can do?"No, there's nothing that can be done. I no longer feel comfortable here in this group. I've been feeling like th..."
Thanks for your kind words and advice, Erica. I might return when things are different. Maybe then this group will be a better fit for me. Until then I will press the "leave the group" button for now. I made some awesome friends here so thanks everybody for that. Have a great year, you guys!
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I partially packed away my other business this morning. It's still there, but it's currently making a loss on a weekly basis, with a small monthly profit that I am coming to the conclusion isn't worth the effort and time I'm putting in.Dad's estate still hasn't been wound up and we're still waiting for the solicitor to put ads in papers alerting any creditors that there's money available. No money will be distributed for the two months after the ads have gone in. My personal debt on credit cards and overdrafts is sitting at over £30,000.
I currently do not want to so much as contact anyone I haven't already spoken to, so spending hours on promotion isn't going to happen until I feel better about that. Anyone who suffers from anxiety will understand.
I really want to write something today, but in my current mood I may write a nuclear war and annihilate all my characters.
Amazon has done similar things with my book price Alex. Shame they had to cock it up on a book tour week.
Alex wrote: "I've just found that Amazon has the wrong price on my books; they're supposed to be 99c/99p but for some reason Amazon has them at $1.54/£1.19. It's bloody frustrating because I've been marketing ..."
Isn't that just VAT on top of the 99p?
Yeah I think it is.
It's 99p + 20% UK VAT = 1.19p and then the dollar price is 1.19 pound x $ exchange rate = 1.54 USD
I don't think there's anything you can do about it for the UK market.
VAT would explain the US price. When I look at mine from the UK looking at the US site it's always a higher price. You need someone in the US to look at the price in the US and see what it says. I don't understand why the UK price would not be listed correctly though.
Amy wrote: "I partially packed away my other business this morning. It's still there, but it's currently making a loss on a weekly basis, with a small monthly profit that I am coming to the conclusion isn't wo..."I think you shoukd write that book. Get all that frustration OUT. I hope that the estate issues get handled soon.
Alex, your prices are showing up for me at $0.99 on the US Amazon. It's probably just because you are looking at it from the UK.
Alexis wrote: "I think you shoukd write that book. Get all that frustration OUT. I hope that the estate issues get handled soon. "Thanks, I hope so too, I've had enough now. I think that would be one book that quite literally no-one would read.
Alex, I'm seeing £1.19 for the UK one too. That's added VAT on top of the 99p hasn't it! Usually it's included in the 99p.
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I can sympathise Alex. I'm the youngest of three and had to step up for both my parents when they were ill.Carole I know someone else who collapsed due to his blood pressure tablets being too strong. Not the same thing though-no congestive heart failure.
I'm beginning to question if mine are the cause of bouts of dizziness when I get out of any chair, there's no lower dose and again, not the same thing-all very minor. Just adds to the excitement of the day.
I hope they find out and fix whatever it is soon. I hate the not knowing of those situations. I'd always rather know what was wrong.Thoughts to all those having a crap time health-wise.
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Blood pressure is a tricky thing. I had the above problem and then become crazy about checking it all the time. It made me nuts!!
That's the trouble when you possess the gear to check it randomly. I had an anxiety attack a couple of weeks ago that sent mine sky high again. I honestly thought I was going to have another stroke. Thankfully I slept it off.
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Hmmm I think I'd need huge amounts of medication to enjoy what you're going through Alex. Hang in there.
Wow everyone, I don't even know where to begin. I am so sorry that you're all struggling like this. Hopefully just being able to vent your frustrations helps. Alex, I just check on Amazon here in the states and it shows 2 of your books at 99c and 2 others free. Is that wrong? I'm happy to check out more if you need.
Amy, hang in there. You're due for something good!!
Carole, speaking as a nurse practitioner, health issues can be scary. CHF can be tricky to manage especially with diuretic/BP management. I will recommend not to check your BP more than twice a day. It can have a negative benefit on the numbers if you're anxious about it. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to PM me.
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Oh my goodness, I hope everyone's familial and personal issues get some much needed resolutions soon, either in the form of answers or hopefully with treatments that work!
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Alex, I just check on Amazon here in..."
Thanks J- you are a doll. I went through a crazy time period where I obsessed about the numbers. I learned then that it would fluctuate every time I took it. The best thing I could do, was lose weight, watch what I eat and let the doctor do what they are trained to do. Much better now.
Wow Alex, I somehow missed that about your mom. Hope things get better!!Glad to hear that Carole!
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Reading this reminded me that I hadn't taken my meds today. Five different kinds. Mostly for circulation, cholesterol, bp and then vitamins and supplements (CoQ10) that kind of thing. I will say that after I started the vitamin regimen and got up out of my recliner, the Afib went away (a year now). I don't even check my bp anymore.Sorry about your mom, Alex. I've been through it. I'm the patriarch of my family now. Both parents and two older sisters have passed and I'm only sixty two.
Oh, Alex, I sure hope you hear a good update. Like Carole said, being a caregiver is hard. It's 24/7 and you run on fumes and hear things like, "Don't forget to take care of yourself!" and wonder how on earth you can take the time. Your mom is lucky to have you and we are thinking of you!Amy, sending good vibes to you for getting that figured out!
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Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie
Books mentioned in this topic
Amy Robsart: A Life and Its End (other topics)Iridessian Haunts (other topics)
I ran a promo last week that didn't do anything either. It's beyond frustrating when that happens because you feel like you just threw out your money.
Just keep plugging away! You've got something really good, stick with it and try to stay positive!