Book Reviews - Part 8

Part 8:
NAKED REVIEW: HOW TO GET BOOK REVIEWS
What to do now that Amazon closed all loopholes (2017)

ONE OF THE MOST PERSISTENT RUMORS

Though it is one of the most persistent rumors that Amazon tracks authors’ social media feeds and spies on Facebook groups I do not believe this to be true.

The #1 reason is that filtering out relevant data on Facebook would be extremely complicated. Most authors are members of at least eight Facebook groups.

The #2 reason is that occasionally I read articles about algorithms “infused with A.I. (artificial intelligence).” To sum it  up: Not only are these algorithms already great in identifying “common denominators,” they get better every day.  

Reason #3: In 2015, the cybersecurity company Avast made their case who spies on whom, and Amazon is not on this list but Google, WhatsApp, and Facebook were.

http://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/Google-WhatsApp-Facebook-spying-on-users-Avast/articleshow/49571541.cms

Hence the following scenario is much more plausible than the rumor that Amazon spies on authors on Facebook. 

Many authors join Facebook groups to find reviewers. Though all Facebook author groups I know stick by Amazon’s guidelines and advise against direct review exchanges, typically authors who DO NOT seek reviews elsewhere run into problems at some point.  They lose reviews.

The following simplified illustration depicts a potential scenario for “reviewing and seeking reviews” in a Facebook group.

In stage 1 some authors read and review another author’s book. Clearly, the scenario is completely random.

(Still, if Amazon would really “spy” on Facebook they’d know that

• authors A – Q are in the same Facebook group and apparently know each other
• A read N’s book,
• B read C’s book,
• D read G’s book,
• H read B’s book,
• I read J’s book, and
• L read Q’s book.

In stage 2, a pattern begins to emerge.

In stage 3, the pattern is completely clear. Probably, Amazon’s algorithm can identify it.

The authors who do NOT also read books from other authors who are not represented in this group, have just self-identified themselves as authors who engage in some kind of review exchange.

What if the group is larger and has 1,000+ members?

It does not matter how large the group is, the deciding factor is how many members are actively reading and reviewing.

In the past, I noticed author friends reading as many as five books from other authors in the same group. Occasionally, I stumble over a book which features eight to ten reviews, all from authors who I know are in the same author groups. It is a reasonable conclusion that after churning enough data Amazon’ algorithm can see the previously illustrated pattern and deletes some reviews.  

Summing it up: Seeking reviews from “peripheral friends” can be a good idea to get “starter”-reviews, but if you want your book to become a bestseller, inevitably, you need to make an effort to get your book known to many more people than you could know personally or on any social media platform.

TWITTER

Similar to Facebook, even on Twitter, it does not help authors to follow back every author who follows them.

Just as on all social media sites, here too quality beats quantity. If you had only 200 followers all of whom bought your book within six hours of its release, you’d score a bestseller. Alerted by their algorithms, in the second hour, Amazon would begin showing your book on all of its fitting pages, thereby boosting your book sales from their side, too.

Consequently, to sell books, you need to find followers who appreciate your niche and will buy your book.

I noticed the following excellent ways to find Twitter followers:

HASHTAGS

Apply three or four hashtags of which two are much-used hashtags like #Romance and #FridayReads, add a trending hashtag, and a hashtag you create to arouse interest.

This works well because most people are looking for new stuff.

As an example – A tweet that includes the hashtags #Romance, #FridayReads, #kennedyassasination, and something completely unusual like #Julie (a book’s main character’s name) is bound to make people wonder, “Who is Julie? Was she one of Kennedy’s lovers? Or, maybe a mafia boss’ lover?”

Curiosity prompts people wanting to find out more.

GUEST BLOGGING

People like to discover things. Therefore, it really pays off if you guest blog for other bloggers. This allows the blog owner’s followers to discover you. Every time I contribute a blog on HuffPost, I gain new followers. The same goes for being a guest on a podcast. Not everybody who reads your guest blog or hears you speak on a podcast will buy your book(s) right away. But, since Twitter is relatively noncommittal, people who discover you by chance will follow you in droves. By tweeting quality tweets, you can win them over so they’ll buy.

On the other hand, if you retweet tweets from authors who write a completely different genre or, even worse, write material which contradicts your own writings, the followers who read your guest blog or who heard you speak will unfollow you.

COLLABORATION WITH OTHERS

Twitter is the one social media platform where forming alliances pay off. Obviously, it takes longer to write a book than to read a book. Consequently, it makes sense to follow authors who write the same genre. If they follow you back, you may be able to share followers who profit from this collaboration. Readers can read the other author’s book while you are writing your next one, and vice versa.

One of the best way to find collaborators is asking real life contacts to team up with you.

The second best way is to do favors and/or toot others’ messages if they fit to your message.

The third best way is to form alliances on other social media platforms, but always keep in mind that sticking to your genre will help you the most.

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Gisela Hausmann dares to write what others' won't say or don't know. Her work has been featured in regional, national, and international publications including Success magazine and Entrepreneur, and on Bloomberg's podcast "Decrypted."

Gisela tweets @Naked_Determina.
Her books are available at Amazon and other fine book stores.

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• The Little Blue Book for Authors: 53 Dos & Don’ts Nobody Is Telling You
• The Little Blue Book for Authors: 101 Clues to Get More Out of Facebook
• The Little Blue Book for Authors: Essential Manners for the Modern Author

• NAKED TRUTHS About Getting Book Reviews 2018
• BAT SHIT CRAZY Review Requests: Email Humor (paperback only)

© 2017 by Gisela Hausmann

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