OLD POST ALERT! This is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date. Please click on Start Here on the menu bar above to find links to my most useful articles, videos and podcast. Thanks and happy writing! – Joanna Penn
In the last few weeks, there have been scandals about so-called sock puppet reviews, when authors have paid for fake reviews or even created them under false identities. Whatever your thoughts on this type of thing, there's no doubt that having great reviews can help your book sell.
Personally I give away books and ask for reviews if people enjoy them, and I consider reviews to be critical in the sales process online, so I will continue to seek them out (ethically) for my own books. Today, guest blogger Laura Pepper Wu provides a handy guide to getting Amazon's top reviewers to review your book.
We all want more book reviews but until you have a huge readership waiting for organic reviews can be… well, a long wait!
One way to get more high quality, (usually) well-written and highly regarded reviews is to ask the ‘Amazon Top Customer Reviewers' to take a look at your book.
Why target the top Amazon reviewers?
While I've seen some reviewers with 7,000+ reviews, the Top Customer Reviewer award is not only about the number of reviews one person has churned out. At the time of writing, the #1 top customer reviewer on Amazon has only (!) 671 reviews under his belt.
As always, Amazon uses a complex algorithm to determine this ranking – this top spot is also determined by the number of “helpful” votes the reviews have received (our #1 guy has 39,414) and “percentage helpful” (97%).
Since that #1 spot is highly coveted, and quite the achievement, you can be sure that the Amazon top customer reviewers put a lot of thought and energy into their reviews. That’s good news – these are the best and most compelling kind of reviews!
As a result, aiming at the Top Customer Reviewers is a good strategy to curating well-written, meaningful and thorough reviews for your book. Here are some more pros for putting in the time and energy to solicit these:
1. These reviewers have proven themselves to be fast, consistent reviewers who read fast (often a few books a week) and will therefore most likely have a quick turn around
2. They understand what makes a good, helpful review
3. They may also have a book blog/ large social media following or other online presence that can bring you additional exposure
4. An endorsement by one of these guys looks GREAT on your Amazon page. Remember the whole third party validation/ social proof thing from your Economics class? Well this is it exactly! Validation from someone who takes reviewing seriously and is therefore 100% objective. Here's how the review listing will look on your Amazon page:
In fact, according to the results of the recent self publishing survey by Taleist.com, Authors who submitted to popular reviewers on Amazon received 25% more reviews than average and earned 32% more revenue for their latest release. Not necessarily a case of cause and effect but a good sign nonetheless.
With the positive there are some potential downsides, and it's only fair to mention those as well:
– Doing this research, and doing it well, DOES take time and energy. You’ll be led down some dead ends, and some reviewers explicitly state that they don’t like to be pitched.
(But if it was easy, everyone would be doing it right? This is the kind of stuff that gets you ahead of the game!)
and…
– They may well be more critical/ harsh. That's why it's super important to really do the research and only target those who would be interested in your book. Otherwise you're asking for trouble!
How to contact Amazon's Top Reviewers
Here are some step by step instructions on how to contact Amazon's Top Customer Reviewers to offer your book for review:
1. Head over to http://www.amazon.com/review/top-reviewers
2. Click on any name or reviewer profile that takes your fancy!
3. Look at the books she/ he has reviewed in the past (be aware that some of these reviewers will not be book reviewers at all, some may focus solely on electronics, clothes etc)
4. Look at his/her interests for relevant info (if this section is filled out):
5. Look under their profile picture to see if their contact information is public (I have blacked it out for privacy reasons here). Also look to see if there are any common interests or a location that you can mention when contacting them.
6. Send them a short, brief pitch stating:
– How you found them
– Why you think they'll enjoy your book (mention other books they loved or genre preference)
– Offer a free copy of your book
– Thank them for their time, whether they decide to take up your offer or not.
Don't forget these people are busy (as everyone is these days!), and most likely receive hundreds of requests. Keep your pitch short and sweet to make sure it’s read.
7. Aim to contact at least 3-4 times more reviewers than the actual number of reviews you are looking for since some will pass or you won’t hear back from them.
8. Wait for your replies 🙂
High quality and plentiful reviews can go a long way to driving book sales.
It does take time and effort though but the payoff is big.
Have you tried contacting Amazon’s Top Customer Reviewers? Why not share your experience by leaving a comment below.
*** UPDATE: Comments are now closed – Jan 2015 **
Laura Pepper Wu is a writer and the co-founder of 30 Day Books: a book studio and Ladies Who Critique, a critique-partner finding site. She has successfully marketed several books to become Kindle and print best-sellers.
Laura has recently released Authorlicious, a premium WordPress theme for authors including tutorials, so if you want to maximize your blog success, check it out here! (affiliate)
Laura’s latest offering is ‘Fire up Amazon & Leave it on Autopilot!’, a video tutorial course on how to tweak Amazon to it’s full potential. When she's not glued to her laptop you can find her walking her dog, practicing yoga or “testing” out coffee shops in Seattle. Connect with her on http://twitter.com/LauraPepWu and say hi!
Images: Top Bigstock Customer Survey or Review, the rest provided by Laura Pepper Wu
Amazon Reviewer says
As a top Amazon reviewer I get a lot of offers to review books. I don’t respond to 99% of the offers because they don’t individualize their email to me or they don’t read my information to see what I will or will not review. People who want their books reviewed tend to send out a mass email that does not appy to most of the people they are contacting. Don’t send emails if you don’t first read the reviewers profile. You will have much more success with a targeted email offer.
John Beresford says
Good advice (which pretty much reiterates what the original article covered), but I feel compelled, on the strength of my experiences (which I’ll expand on in a follow-up to my original comment above), to stress to everyone that even “much more success” will in most cases translate into “not very much success.”
I’d be interested in what percentage of those queries that *do* match your genres and *do* address you as an individual eventually result in a review. There’s only so many books any one person can read, especially if you’re also writing them up afterwards. 🙂
janette says
In reply John, I am a top reviewer and get sent about four requests a week to read and review books. I very rarely refuse to look at a book, but do state that I have a bit of a bcklog, and ask writers to be patient. Most of them are very polite and patient. I tend to fast track childrens books and short book that I can read in one session, and also books that are gifted straight on to my kindle, as it takes time to download and convert different formats. I always give priority to new writers. The only time I decline to review is if the review would be too negative or if the book is badly proofed. In these cases I will read 20% of the book and give some feedback as to how I feel the writing could be improved.
I have never had a negative response to this format and most writers and delighted to get advice even if it is pointing out some errors. This is a great hobby for me I never take payment for a review, I love reading and delight in finding a freat new writer.
janette says
In reply John, I am a top reviewer and get sent about four requests a week to read and review books. I very rarely refuse to look at a book, but do state that I have a bit of a bcklog, and ask writers to be patient. Most of them are very polite and patient. I tend to fast track childrens books and short book that I can read in one session, and also books that are gifted straight on to my kindle, as it takes time to download and convert different formats. I always give priority to new writers. The only time I decline to review is if the review would be too negative or if the book is badly proofed. In these cases I will read 20% of the book and give some feedback as to how I feel the writing could be improved.
I have never had a negative response to this format and most writers and delighted to get advice even if it is pointing out some errors. This is a great hobby for me I never take payment for a review, I love reading and delight in finding a great new writer.
John Beresford says
Hi Janette – thanks for your swift reply. It sounds like you’ve hit on a winning formula there and thank you very much for taking the time to explain it. I must agree that I’ve found everyone who replied, even those who declined my requests for review, to be very polite and positive.
Celia John says
I have contacted Amazon reviewers to review my book, Get Out If You Can How To Escape An Abusive Relationship And Be Happy. So far no one has responded. I am just keeping my fingers crossed.
Lucille Zimmerman says
I wrote an article and included this link. It will post on 4/3/13 at the WordServe Water Cooler blog.
Garrett Robinson says
Can’t recommend this highly enough. I was lucky to have a top reviewer review two of my books, and luckier still that he really liked one of them. (The other one…well…harrumph). I obviously can’t directly measure the effect his review has had on my book’s sales, but it IS my best selling book. And on top of that, his critique was SPOT. ON. and has helped me with the continuance of the series. Great article!
Lonnie E. Holder says
Hey, people! I am one of those mysterious Amazon top reviewers (I am somewhere around 260-270) rumored to exist, but rarely seen (perhaps because of how busy we are – as I read several times – which is true).
Let me give you some confirmations of things you have already read, and a small amount of advice.
First, we are literally bombarded by review requests. As I explained to an intrepid author recently, I have the opportunity to review hundreds of books per month. I am not Harriet Klausner, who has the ability to “read” and “review” dozens of books per day. Of course, I was not born knowing how to read, as she apparently was (she claims to have been a speed reader since birth; I am unable to confirm this capability, though I have searched multiple editions of the Guinness Book of World Records for anyone knowing how to read at birth). I am lucky to do 10-20 reviews per month, and over the last several years, I have been doing less, on average. I love books and like to read, but sometimes I not have time to review what I read, so there goes a missed opportunity.
Second, the best possible thing you can do if you want a review is find a reviewer who has recently read and reviewed books in your genre. I know that is a lot of work, but you will raise your success rate of finding a reviewer significantly if you do that. Most reviewers who do not review your genre will likely not respond to your requests.
Third, offer whatever you have for options. So, if you can provide hard copies and ebooks in more than one format (mobi, epub, pdf, etc.), then tell the prospective reviewer what you have. Some reviewers prefer electronic because they do not want lots of paper copies, and others prefer paper because they do not have an ereader or because paper is more portable.
Fourth, be polite. I guarantee you that if someone asks me for a review and is rude, their email will instantly be deleted and they will be doomed to my spam folder. Such doom can be fatal because many reviewers are friends with other reviewers, and guess what? Reviewers do talk about authors and what they like and don’t like.
Fifth, be prepared for an honest review. Yes, I know honesty can be annoying. I reviewed two books by request that were awful, and said so. One author is really angry with me (sorry – but I call them as I see them). I have had issues with other books that cause people all sorts of heartburn, but my thought is that YOU wrote the book; if you have issues with the book (grammar, facts, continuity, and introducing a great concept that you let drop), then am I wrong if I point them out? However, if you revise your book (I have had two different authors change their books based on my input – how cool is that?), you should offer the reviewer a revised edition to see if they will change their review (I would). In fact, if you do revise your book because of inputs from a reviewer, crediting them somewhere on an acknowledgements page will win you major brownie points from that reviewer.
I am probably forgetting something, but those are the things that come immediately to mind. I am monitoring this thread, so if you have questions you would like answered, I will give it a shot. However, I do not represent any other reviewer, and not all reviewers think precisely as I do and I would ask that you consider that when you ask questions and read my answers.
Oh, and no, I do not want to review your book, thank you very much. I have too many to read right this moment and would love just to get sort of caught up.
Have a great day everybody!
Joanna Penn says
Thanks for your brilliant comment Lonnie – I appreciate you taking time out to add your thoughts 🙂 I would agree on the politeness, as even though I am not an “official” reviewer, I get pitched every day and some people are so rude!
Cassandra P Lewis says
Maybe I’m being a dummy (I wouldn’t be surprised!) but I thought you couldn’t review kindle books on Amazon unless it was a verified purchase? If I am to offer a free copy for review, how can reviewers overcome this?
Lonnie E. Holder says
*Raises hand* I know, I know! Ask me!
I am unsure of where the rumor about verified purchases and reviews started, but I can tell you that they appear to be untrue. I can give you a perfect example. I just wrote a review of “Seventh Angel” by Jeff Edwards, which you can look up on Amazon, and somehow my review popped up as being for the Kindle. I guess I clicked the wrong thing, because I thought I chose a hard copy, which I have, and which I got from the author’s representative as a review copy.
A person does have to make one Amazon purchase, of any kind, I believe, before they can review items on Amazon. Once a person has made a single Amazon purchase, there is nearly no limit on what they can review. I say “nearly no limit” because there are some special situations that make life complicated. One special situation are Vine reviews. Sometimes Vine reviewers get access to items for review before the rest of the world can review them. Other special situations may exist, but in general, these situations are extremely rare.
janette says
Hi Cassandra, I am a top reviewer rated 19000. I have been sent and gifted lots of kindle books for review and obviously cant verify the purchase as I get them free. This is not a problem, but I know some people think it is, sometimes Amazon can be a bit ambiguous with their rules.
Cassandra P Lewis says
Thank you guys x
janette says
write and tell me about your book janettebookreviews@gmail.com
Cassandra P Lewis says
I have emailed you,
Thanks
James says
Hi Joanna & everyone else,
I was wondering if it would be OK for me to go ahead and share this with you here?
I have recently built a tool for authors designed around this very strategy. It’s called Book Review Broker. You can check it out by visiting http://www.BookReviewBroker.com
The main aim of the program is built around targeting Amazon top-reviewers by genre. It means that you don’t have have to trawl through reams of data yourself. Everything’s done for you.
I am also in the process of building into this tool a top book reviewer blog targeting function. This will be great for generating reviews outwith Amazon and for driving highly qualified leads back to authors’ sales pages on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, iTunes or wherever.
Again, hope you don’t mind this plug, Joanna. I just thought it was highly relevant…
Thanks,
J
BJJimison says
Of course, most of the reviewers on Amazon don’t list their email addresses.
Katy Sozaeva says
I am a top 1000 reviewer (even broke the top 500 for a few brief, exciting days) and a Vine Voice who has been reviewing on Amazon for probably close to 10 years now. I had received a significant uptick in book review requests (and even editing requests, as I’m also a freelance editor) and was just pointed to this post. Now I know why! 🙂
While I’m a very high-output reader (on a good week I can read 10 books or more), I’m also chronically ill and do freelance editing when I’m not sick, so as of now I have around 900 books in my “to be reviewed” queue. At my normal annual pace, that’s a couple years’ worth! I don’t have much to add to the former folks who have commented, but be aware that a lot of people are no longer accepting Independently published books because so many have skimped on, or completely skipped, professional editing. That’s why I keep my rates way lower than I probably should, because I think it’s so important and like to help people. I know several other freelance editors, so if you haven’t had your book edited by someone who does it professionally (even if freelance), than be in touch and I’ll see if I can fit you in, or send you to someone who maybe can. It makes an enormous difference; no one can edit their own stuff, because you know exactly what you meant to say and your brain will play tricks on you, making you see what you wanted to be there. Also, please do not send unsolicited books to reviewers. I hate that, because often they seem to be books in which I have no interest, but which I then feel obligated to review, and that might backfire badly for the enterprising author who sent them. Fair warning!
Thanks for providing this great post. As the person who sent this to me said, “I’m surprised reviewers aren’t having collective nervous breakdowns!” from the sheer volume of books out there. The thing is, most of us do this because we love reading. We couldn’t continue our love affair with books without you all writing them. So thank you!
Gareth Worthington says
Hi
I have released two books, and like many others I have contacted reviewers and politely asked for help. Perhaps, unlike some, I am very choosey about who I contact and I do not spam three hundred people. This is perhaps why I have few reviews; however, I do feel that they are honest and genuine. I see Indie authors with literally hundreds of 5 star reviews and I wonder how real they can be. I do not claim to be a world-class writer; however, having read the sample from many of these uber-popular books, I am left with a nasty taste in my mouth. A friend of mine said that he has stopped choosing books based on reviews, because he just doesn’t believe them anymore.
Ultimately, I have decided that I am happy if a few, truly interested, people like my books. I am certainly not in the game for profit, only to tell my stories. I appreciate a verbal recommendation from a friend or colleague much more than anything else. It’s much more satisfying.
G
Lezitta says
I have never responded to a blog before, but Ifeel compelled to respond to this one. Several years ago, I published my first ebook exclusively on the Kindle and sought advice from Amazon re: obtaining reviews. A rep suggested steps 1-6 above (under How to Contact Amazon’s Top Reviewers), which I did. No reply. After a week, I ran out of email addresses b/c, as BJ Jimison correctly notes, most Amazon reviewers won’t provide them. I asked Amazon if there were other methods for contacting reviewers and was advised to write a brief, polite query in the Comments box, which I did for about 8-10 reviewers per week for 2 weeks. Not only did they not respond, but they complained that I was sending spam. Bear in mind that I was following an Amazon rep’s express advice. But instead of contacting me and looking into the matter, Amazon simply blocked me. That is, it sided with its reviewers and against its authors. I was unable to participate in any forums, reviews, comments, and Amazon cut off all communication with me, ignoring my emails. So much for Amazon reviewers being courteous, professional, and receptive to author queries. Instead, power seems to have gone to their heads.
But remember, these are individuals who couldn’t get a paying job reviewing books if their lives depended on it. In fact, their reviews are chock full of grammar and punctuation errors and devoid of mentions of style, literary antecedents, verisimilitude, etc. How many have read (and understood) Don Quixote, Moby Dick, or The Brothers Karamazov? None of their reviews would receive a passing grade on a freshman term paper.
But my biggest complaint isn’t Amazon’s censorious Kremlin tactics, but why would any reviewer who is dependent upon an online platform (or the Internet) refuse to review books exclusively published on the same platform? Not only are they shooting themselves in the foot, but these gatekeepers are impeding progress. Big publishing houses are going the way of the dinosaur, digital is on the ascendancy, and as more and more authors (famous as well as unknown) self-publish ebooks, reviewers will have no choice but to follow. So why their foot-dragging now?
Katy Sozaeva says
Lezitta, you had a bad experience, so sorry to hear about that. The best advice I can give you is to be choosy about whom you contact–check on people who have positively reviewed books in the same genre/style as your own, and who have accepted books from the author for review. See if they have a blog, and if so, see if they have reviewing guidelines publicly posted. Only contact them if they say they are accepting new submissions. A few places you can check:
The Book Blogger’s List: http://bookbloggerlist.com/
Book Blogger Directory: http://bookbloggerdirectory.wordpress.com/
If you go to Goodreads, be very careful as a lot of people there are very touchy about being contacted by authors. However, there are some good groups you can join there, such as Creative Reviews, on which you can find people to review your books.
One of many reasons reviewers might decline to review your book is that they, like me, are literally buried under unreviewed books. People can only read so much and so many books. As I mentioned in my comment above, many reviewers are deciding not to read and review independently published books because so many have not been properly edited, or because so many Indie authors have imploded over bad reviews, that they are literally afraid to cause any more drama. But there are a number of us out here who are still willing to read and review independent books.
I hope this helps you some.
Lonnie E. Holder says
Lezitta:
You make it sound as though reviewers should be waiting around specifically for your books. If there was a dearth of opportunities for review, that might well be the case. However, I get hundreds of offers each month. I read maybe 5-10 books in a good month, and less in others. If I get 500 offers per month, and read 5 books, what happens to the other 495 books I was offered?
I try to respond to each review request, typically with a “no” response (which is nearly a redundant phrase, given that I already said that I turn down more than 99% of all books I am offered). I suspect that most long-time reviewers are in the same position. If we are responding to review requests, we are not doing other exciting stuff – like sleeping, eating, reading, etc.
I personally resent your claim that reviewers are impeding progress. To the extent we have time to review, we support progress. If anything, the only impediment to progress are poorly written, self-published novels that need a good editor, and the lack of good reviewers.
It would be highly arrogant of me to suggest that any of my reviews are any better than any reviews from any other reviewer; typos, poor grammar, etc., included. However, I have received a few thousand helpful votes, and I would like to believe that I am, at the very least, sincere in my efforts. I suspect most reviewers who write regularly consider themselves to be sincere hobbyists who take their hobby seriously.
Do I mention antecedants? Yes, when it seems to me, in my opinion, relevant to the review. Are my reviews filled with grammar and punctuation errors? Perhaps the term “filled” is an exaggeration, but certainly I find both when I re-read reviews, and I try to correct them. I wish all my reviews were perfect, but that is unlikely because it is hard to edit your own work. Regardless, I always strive for the best possible review.
As the old saying goes, walk a mile in the other person’s moccasins before you criticize them. It is hard to be a reviewer, and when authors get distressed because they have a hard time finding someone to read their baby, rarely are reviewers receptive to the tantrum.
I do wish you success with your project, and I hope you find one or more reviewers to help you out.
Good luck!
Mary Kaye says
This is fascinating reading. Being a debut novelist, this whole scene is like a technicolor movie in 3D. Exciting. And I thought writing the book was complicated.
janette says
I have posted a few times on this page about how I receive books for review and how I try to favour new writers, but recently I have been sent a couple of books, pointed out some proofing mistakes and given general advice, as well as a comprehensive review posted wherever the writer wants and disappointingly, have not even had the courtesy of a reply back never mind a thanks. If writers cannot politely take some constructive criticism they would be as well sticking to their 5* friends and family type reviews and not asking for an independent review. Having said that, the majority of writers are very polite and even grateful for having a fresh eye look at their work
Katy Sozaeva says
Janette, this is due to a certain group of… shall I call them reviewers? No, because they don’t really review books, they review authors. Anyway, they are very loud, and very vocal all over the book reviewing community, and they have literally scared authors away from even writing anymore with their abuse. One of their “things” is that writers should NEVER comment on reviews or talk to reviewers EVER because it will “intimidate” the reviewer. I have no idea, I guess they’re a bunch of shrinking violets. Personally, I’ve never been intimidated when talking to authors. At any rate, THIS is why a lot of authors no longer contact you to thank you for your review or acknowledge your advice: they are afraid this will lead to them being “attacked” for “intimidating” the reviewer, especially if they try to explain exactly why they chose to do whatever it was you were commenting on (if it was deliberate). It’s very unfortunate, but that’s the sort of environment that many authors are experiencing around the web right now, and it’s scared them silent. It’s not them being rude – it’s them being AFRAID. And THAT is a pity.
janette says
Thank you Katy, I was not totally aware of that, what a strange business it all is now. It is dreadful that some reviewers are behaving like prima donnas, I love a good discussion about books and about my reviews, and some of ‘my writers’ come back with their second and third books for me to look at irrespective of any constructive critique. It’s how we all learn.
Patricia Smith says
Jeanette
I am impressed by your honesty and candor after reading your comments. I would appreciate your review of my book. I am a first time author, “The Story of Lynn”. Part one of the book is about my daughters life, she was killed in a car accident in 1984,Part II is how I have dealt with losing her.
I will be glad to send you a copy and I thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely
Patricia
Donald N Hester says
Hi JoAnna,
I recently completed a religious book with a host of topics, 336 pages. My market is just a niche of 12-million members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Of course it also may catch the attention of other religions. I now have a printed version and a digital version. Before I put it on the market, I would like to solicit some reviews. Could you recommend any reviewers for the Mormon population?
Professor Donald N. Hester, CPA
801-358-3697
Katy Sozaeva says
Donald, Rhemalda Press has a lot of LDS authors for whom they publish; you might check Rhemalda and see who does reviewing for them and start from that side of it. Alternately, check reviews of similar books on places like Amazon and Goodreads, and then see if any of the reviewers accept review request submissions, check their guidelines, and then send a personalized request utilizing their guidelines. I am not Mormon, but I’m always interested in reading about different ideas about various religions, so feel free to check my reviewing guidelines and reviews and if you think I might fit the bill, be in touch:
http://katysozaeva.blogspot.com/p/reviewing-guidelines.html
I will warn you that I am really busy and it might be a long time before I can read and review it, though.
Best wishes.
RandyJ says
I had a ‘top reviewer’ review my non-fiction book and I was a bit taken aback. While giving 4 out of 5 stars, he started by bashing my book in the first paragraph, then mentions a product that he is obviously promoting… and goes on to mention it three times in the review! He even posted an affiliate link to the product. While I don’t really have a problem with this – by bashing my book and offering up a product instead is comparing apples to oranges; a book is informational while a product is a tool. It did not make sense; and the wording of the review itself was not as professional as I had hoped. I don’t mind the 4 out of 5 stars… but after all the hype of top reviewers, it seems to me there are opportunists who are using their ‘status’ to make money instead of properly informing the public with an honest review.