amazon book review link

Do-it-yourself book marketing tips, tools, and tactics

How to give readers a direct Amazon review link

Not getting enough reader reviews on Amazon?

Make it easier for readers by giving them a direct Amazon review link they can use to write an honest reader review.

I’ve created a short video that shows how to send them directly to the review form for your book on Amazon.

Table of Contents

Finding your direct Amazon review link

All it takes is a few clicks. Here’s how to do it:

Abbreviated transcript/instructions:

On your book’s sales page, go to the review stars at the top under the book title. (No reviews yet? I cover that later in the video.)
Hover your mouse over the stars. Click on “see all customer reviews.” That takes me down the page to my reviews.
Underneath the summary of reviews, you’ll see the option to “review this product.” Click on “write a customer review.” It takes your readers to the review template. This is where readers review your book.
To share that specific link, go to top of your screen and copy the URL. Use a URL shortener (I use bit.ly but there are others) to make a shorter version.
When you don’t have reviews already, from your sales page, scroll down to customer reviews. (You’ll still have the customer review section.) You’ll see the “write a customer review” link. Click on that.
Copy that URL and shorten it.
Share the link with readers. In particular, include it when you give them the Build Book Buzz Reader Book Review Form .
Add it to the end of your book so readers can click on it in the e-version or type it into a browser for the print version.

Why this is important

Like it or not, reader reviews are the “ social proof ” readers look for when making a decision about buying a book.

Most authors struggle to get reviews, so the easier you make it for readers to write a short, honest, and meaningful review, the more likely they will be to support you with a review.

For help finding readers who write reviews, be sure to read “ 9 places to look for readers to write reviews ” on this site.

What’s your best tip for getting reader reviews? Please tell us in a comment!

Like what you’re reading? Get it delivered to your inbox every week by subscribing to the free Build Book Buzz newsletter. You’ll also get my free “Top 5 Free Book Promotion Resources” cheat sheet immediately!

Sandra Beckwith is an author, book marketing coach, freelance writer, and national award-winning former publicist whose Build Book Buzz book marketing blog is ranked 7th among thousands globally and has been honored as a top website for authors and writers seven times.

48 Comments

Thanks so much for this helpful tip, Sandra!

You’re welcome, Jarm! Thanks for stopping by.

An excellent tip! You always share valuable info — thank you. I’m going to share with my authors and St. Louis Publishers Assoc. community 🙂

I’m so glad it was helpful, Peggy, and thanks for sharing it with the SLPA. You and I met when Bobbi Linkemer recruited me for an in-person workshop for the group! You have so many fantastic members.

Is there a way to include a link that will connect to the reader’s specific Amazon marketplace? As a Canadian, nothing ticks me off more than to be constantly punted over to the US site.

Start with your book’s listing on the country-specific Amazon marketplace. If your book is available in Canada, that’s the review link you’ll want to share.

What I am looking for is a universal link that will direct the reader to whete to leave a review in the Amazon marketplace in their own country. My books are sold all over the world. I can direct readers to book pages in their countries but not the review link. It is frustrating.

I don’t think you’ll find a universal link because there’s no universal sales page.

Thank you so much for sharing this video and instructions, Sandra. I continue to appreciate you and your great blog posts!

You’re welcome, Phoebe! Thank you for such a lovely comment.

Thanks for this easy and important tip! Supplying direct URL links to specific pages on sites is a great idea for this and any other time you want to direct someone’s attention with fewer distractions. It makes it so much easier on the readers. THX again!

So true! Thanks for that important and helpful reminder. It applies to so much more than your book’s review form on Amazon!

It may have been well-intentioned but it does not work. See All Customer Reviews does take you to / Write a Customer Review – but once you click on that, it takes you to YOUR OWN log-in page to Amazon, and once you log-in, it will tell you that you don’t have enough purchases to review this book and there is NO LINKK that you can provide to your readers. I’ve no idea what these readers above thanked you for – but this ‘helpful suggestion’ does not work.

Edita, did you try logging in first?

Also, Edita, you have to have spent at least $50 on Amazon in the past 12 months to review any product, so that’s part of your problem.

Thanks for the post. I do know how to do this, and I include a direct link in my back matter and in my newsletters and anywhere else I can think of. My problem is that most of my readers do not spend $50 with Amazon within the time frame and therefore can’t post a customer review even if they wanted to. Goodreads is an option but I’ve also had readers who don’t want to sign up to GR just to leave a review for me as they’ve had issues with GRs.

How interesting, Vicky. They’ve told you that about their Amazon spending? Pretty hard to get around that one.

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These suggestions are very clear and I’m eager to follow them to create a link, but when I click on write a review, Amazon takes me to my sign-in page, and when I sign in, and am back at the write a review page, the only URL at the top of the page is amazon.com. The longer URL which would pertain to the particular book, does not appear. What might be the problem here?

Tom, have you tried logging in to your account before you go to your book’s page?

QUESTION: Since I have to be signed in to access the review page the link is through my account. Presumably, if they try to use that link it will look like I’m writing the review of my book. Plus, can they continue on in Amazon through my account? I’m probably missing a vital step here LOL

Thanks for any help you can offer! Debbi

Debbi, the review link you can copy when you follow the instructions is not linked to your account. It’s the same link everyone sees when they’re on your book’s “page” on Amazon.

Thank you so much for this valuable info! I am getting ready to publish my first book through KDP. Once I have this link… how do I get it into my ebook if the book is already published? Are we able to easily edit a book after the Publish button is hit? Thank you!

Yes, you can update the file and upload it again. And congratulations on your book!

My book is on pre-order and I am trying to add a link into the final manuscript before it goes off for formatting.

When I click on the ‘Write A Customer Review’ button it says ‘This item is not eligable for review’

Is this because I am the author, or because the book is not yet released?

I would like to pu the link in the manuscript ready to go for formatting. Can you advise?

Jackie, I suspect it’s because it’s not available for purchase — nobody can review it until it is. But I also can’t find a book by you that’s available for pre-order so I can give it a try, too. Could you post a link here?

If you’re self-publishing and it’s print-on-demand for print books, you can easily update the e-book and print files as soon as it goes live.

Thank you, Sandy. It’s not so easy for me to update the files myself as I have them professionally formatted by a third party. This is a universal link to my book It Never Rains But It Paws – A Road Trip Through Politics And A Pandemic; mybook.to/NeverRains

Your formatter will be able to update the files for you. And it’s definitely because the book isn’t published yet.

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hI Sandra – Most helpful (and clever) idea. Can I create and share this link with my reviewers befor the ‘go live on Amazon’ date?

That’s a great question, Michael. No, you can’t. Because readers can’t post a review until it’s live, you also can’t generate a link to share with them. But if you’ve got a review team/street team/launch team/whatever team lined up, I’d grab that link as soon as it publishes and send it out to them.

I’m unable to leave reviews myself, as I haven’t spent the required amount. When I try to access the “leave review” page I get an error message. If I were to give that link to a reader they would get the same message. How to overcome this?

Thomas, you can ask a friend to follow the instructions and get the link for you.

Hello – do your review forms (whether for fiction or NF) address distinctions in language between American and British English? Would be nice if neither set of forms had to address the matter!

Many thanks – John

They don’t, John. Why do you ask — what’s the issue with reviews?

It relates to the audience to whom I’m reaching out. Assume that a given would-be reviewer would prefer to read the review form written in a specific language, and might not otherwise complete the form. This is a thing – albeit not confirmed in this particular instance.

However your form, which presumably is written in American English, may map perfectly to British English. In which case my purchase of such would not give rise to any British English language concerns. Might I bother you to confirm that there are no mapping issues; alternatively, would you be interested in a proofreading of your form for the sake of your international audience?

It is written in American English. It won’t confuse people who speak and read British English. The form contains instructions that anyone who can read English can follow. Readers using the form to review books can write reviews in the language of their choice.

That doesn’t properly answer my question, but thank you for your bother.

It’s the best I can do.

The issue is more around whether I could use the same form for either type of audience, without potentially giving rise to some manner of English language usage offence (or *offense* if you will).

As we know, readers can be a picky AND prickly bunch…

It is not giving me a link without the person signing into Amazon.

It just gives an amazon link to sign in??

Janis, the issue here might be that anyone writing a review has to have spent at least $50 on Amazon, so logging in to your account is how you verify that. Are you logged in when you’re getting your review link?

So, if I understand correctly, I go into an already published book to create the link, then shorten it and add it to the book. Correct? But if the book is already published, does that mean I have to unpublish it, add the link to the manuscript/inside the book, and then republish it?

Joanne, it’s a simple edit to the book, and yes, that’s one option. Not a big deal. You can also simply provide the link with review copies, include it in emails, share it on social media, and so on.

Oh dear, not so easy for me. I created the link and shortened it. I tried to edit my book PDF and had to purchase Adobe Pro. So I copied the shortened link, but now how do I get it to link? Sorry, I’m a 70-year-old, and all this technology is new to me, and my head is about to explode trying to get this to work.

Joanne, I don’t provide tech support, but I hope you can get someone to help you.

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How to Create a Link on Amazon for Book Reviewers

June 30, 2016 By Shelley Hitz 2 Comments Click here for FREE training for Christian writers

All authors love to get new reviews on their books in Amazon, right? Reviews give more credibility and social proof to your book.

Therefore, in this post I decided to share with you how to create a direct link on Amazon for book reviewers to post their reviews.

Watch the Video Below:

How to create the link.

Today I have a question from Paula Moldenhouer. She recently saw me share my Amazon presentation at a conference and loved the ninja tip I shared for creating a custom review link. However, she needed a little more help setting it up and so sent me this question through my “ Ask Shelley ” page.

“I love your idea of putting the link for reviewing your book in newsletters, blogs, etc., but as I’m on Amazon I’m not sure which link that is. I’m assuming you don’t want all the extra letters that would connect stuff to my account, but at the same time, when I take them away I only get a blurb of how to write a review, it doesn’t seem to be connected to my product.”

First of all, I would like to thank Paula for asking that question. I’m sure a lot of you will benefit from it.

So here is the step by step process of how you can create a link for your book reviewers.

Before we go any further, I would like to recommend that you optimize your book on Amazon for selling more books.

There are actually two ways that you can do it.

In the “Write a Customer Review” Block

The first technique is to go to your Amazon book page and click the “Write a Customer Review” block.

Here’s how it’s done.

Step 1 : Find your book on Amazon. In this example, I used my book “Marketing Your Book On Amazon: 21 Things You Can Easily Do For Free To Get More Exposure and Sales.”

Step 2 : Scroll down and look for the “Write a Customer Review” block. You can find this before and after the comments section.

Step 3: Just click that button and copy and paste that link in there. That should work because it has the ASIN for that book.

You can have somebody else check it for you if you need, just to make sure.

Customized Link with ASIN

Amazon.com/Review/Create-Review?IE=UTF8&ASIN=

All you have to do is put your ASIN after the = mark.

Here is how you do it.

Step 1 : Copy and paste the link to your URL address box.

Step 2 : Look for the ASIN.

You will find the ASIN under the Product Details of your book. So you just have to scroll down your book page and look for Product Details. Then you will find this.

Step 3 : Copy the ASIN and add it on the link that is already in the URL address box.

Step 4: Copy the complete link and distribute it to your readers. That is now a working link for writing reviews.

You can hit the enter button first to make sure that the link is working properly.

That is how you can create your link on Amazon for your book reviewers.

This is a ninja tip and it’s inside my Amazon for Authors Course in the AuthorAudienceAcademy.com .

I also encourage you to grab my book, Marketing Your Book on Amazon. It’s just $2.99 and it will give you tons of applicable information just like this that you can apply right away.

If you have a question that you would like me to answer, just submit it at TrainingAuthors.com/Ask and you may be featured on my YouTube channel as well.

Click here to get notifications for my Facebook Live training.

Have Comments or Questions?

Share them in the comments below.

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January 7, 2024 at 9:50 am

I watched your video, thank you for that. I have a question. In your presentation, you have shown how to create the lick for your kindle book, but what if an author has three different versions of the same book, a kindle, paperback and hardcover. So will 3 separate links need to be created? If not, how can we create one common review link for any number of formats a book might have. Thank you.

January 17, 2024 at 7:37 am

You can create separate links, but I typically just create one for the print version of my book and give that to my reviewers. They can always click over to a different format if they want.

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How do I find my Amazon review's URL?

Note: The Amazon review URL can only be found after Amazon approves your review. If you have submitted your review to Amazon but they haven't approved it yet, then please wait for till they do before trying to find your Amazon review's URL. Amazon usually approves reviews within 1-2 days. If it has been longer than that, read our tips on getting your Amazon review approved .

When Amazon approves your review, they usually send you an email telling you that your review has been approved.

Search your emails with the the subject Thank you for reviewing .

Click See your full review .

This should take you to a new page.

Copy the URL in your browser's address bar. That is your Amazon review's URL.

Find the book on Amazon in your locale (ex. US, UK, AU, etc...)

Go to the Amazon listing for the book.

Scroll down to the reviews section and click See all reviews after the initial few reviews.

Sort the reviews by most recently added.

Go through the reviews until you find yours. You may need to go to page 2, 3, etc...

When you find your review, click the title. In the following example, it is Definitely a classic!

It is currently not straightforward to retrieve the Amazon review URL on a mobile phone. We recommend using one of the approaches above or simply emailing us and we'll find it for you.

Still need help? Contact Us Contact Us

The Best Way to Rack Up Book Reviews on Amazon

This post was featured on my site The Self Publisher some months ago and I want to share it with you here.

Imagine seeing an ad pop up on Facebook advertising your recently published book—an ad you didn’t pay for.

Imagine seeing your book appearing first in a line of recommended books on the product pages of similar books, and you didn’t pay for a sponsored ad.

Imagine hearing from readers that they learned about your book from an Amazon email blast that encouraged them to buy it.

Wouldn’t it be great to get all that free promotion?

You can—when you get enough authentic, approved reviews on Amazon.

Yes, Amazon Will Promote Your Book!

While Amazon’s algorithms are somewhat of a mystery, it’s a known truth that when your book accrues a certain number of reviews, or a lot of reviews in a short amount of (unspecified) time, Amazon kicks into gear multiple promotions for your book. Free promotion that would probably cost a fortune if you had to foot the bill.

The magic number to start the ball rolling in this free promotion is 50. Fifty reviews merits cross promotion and ranking your book higher than others in the same categories based on search terms. With 75 reviews, Amazon is triggered to send email blasts to customers who’ve bought similar books. Amazon utilizes customer data to provide relevant recommendations.

I get tickled when I’m reading a blog and suddenly one of my books pops up on the side—an Amazon-sponsored ad—suggesting I buy that book. No thanks, already have it. But it brings a smile to my face. Did I mention I love free promotion? I am sure you will too.

Every time your book is reviewed, the algorithms are updated, and your book’s internal ranking increases.

While Amazon isn’t the only site where writers need reviews, it’s where most customers shop for books. Reviews you get on Amazon can often be used on other platforms, but no other marketplace engages in free author promotion as extensively and generously as Amazon.

Getting numerous, honest reviews on Amazon should be at the top of your market strategy list. Having the best keywords might help your book turn up in search results, but if you don’t have a slew of reviews, your book will be overlooked or dismissed by a large number of potential readers. High numbers of reviews adds cred to your brand and your talent as a writer.

Amazon also allows authors to give away their book for free for 5 days over a 90-day period (when enrolled in KDP Select). Why is this helpful in getting book reviews? Because it gives you great exposure to potential readers who might pick up your book because it’s free.

This also increases your chances of ranking high in the Top 100 Free Books list, exposing your title to many more potential readers (readers who might very well write a review for it—but watch for my warning further down).

Amazon’s Rules on Reviews

Due to problems with dishonorable people, Amazon has developed tight rules regarding reviews. While these might seem annoying to authors, they serve to protect unscrupulous people from publishing gobs of fake or paid reviews to skew rankings and algorithms.

Here are some of the things Amazon forbids and flags (and may cause your book to be removed): paid reviews, reviews garnered through bribery (you offer something free in exchange for the review), and swapped reviews (arranging with other authors via social media sites to review each other’s books, which usually does not include actually reading said books).

Verified vs. Unverified

While it can’t be quantified, it’s likely that some potential customers look at how many reviews are “verified” purchases as opposed to unverified. A “verified” purchase means the reviewer bought your book on Amazon, whereas anyone who acquired your book via some other means (purchased elsewhere, given as a gift, a free ARC) will have their review marked “unverified.”

As a potential customer, I don’t pay attention to that. I’m more interested in what the reviewer says about the book. I know that many authors—myself included—send out files of their books to people for an honest review, pre- and post-publishing. So some of those reviews are going to be unverified. But it stands to reason, having predominately verified reviews could positively influence some potential readers. I wouldn’t stress about this.

Quantity and Quality

Getting book reviews takes work and time, and the last thing we writers want to do is waste time, spinning our wheels and getting no useful results.

However, it should go without saying that we don’t just want a lot of reviews; we want good reviews. Ones that are thoughtful, detailed, and personal. And that can take time to accumulate.

It stands to reason that having a lot of positive reviews for your book is social proof that you’ve written something worth reading.

If you want to get a lot of reviews fast, and you’re willing to pay, promo sites like Bookbub (there are many!) can help. I’ve gotten up to 50,000 free downloads in one week via a Bookbub ad offering one of my ebooks for free. And that led to a truckload of reviews (not to mention future sales of my book and other installments in my series as a bonus). However, it can also be hard to land such ads, as the competition for slots can be fierce. It’s worth repeated submission, though, for the book review payoff.

While it can take some time, researching top Amazon ( Vine ) reviewers can garner you some weighty reviews. You can peruse the list of these 1,000 reviewers and find ones who review books like yours (and if they leave a lot of negative reviews, beware). Even if you only get a handful of Vine reviewers to read and review your book, that can be super helpful and influential.

You can Google “free book review sites” and look for ones that promote honest, legal reviews, like OnlineBookClub . Reedsy has a list of 200+ book blogs, updated for 2020, that you can use to find reviewers of your type of book.

Develop Relationships

One suggestion that I never see mentioned but is one that has served me very well is to attend writers’ conferences. Not only I but many writers I know have gotten endorsement blurbs from some of the most successful blockbuster authors by attending conferences and creating genuine relationships.

Let me emphasize those last three words. If you go around conferences strong-arming famous authors [read: ingratiating yourself], begging them to spend precious hours of their life reading your book and write a glowing review, you are going to be labeled a pesky pariah.

Conferences provide opportunities to rub elbows with these authors, and engaging in sincere and considerate conversation could open the door to a generous and willing heart happy to help out. You may find only one, but that’s a great start!

This is also good advice for any effort to garner reviews—be it from friends, writing associates, or your coworkers at your job. Don’t be pushy or whiny. People who sense your humility and genuineness will be drawn to take you up on your request to read and review. Give it a try!

It’s Never Too Early to Start Building Your Mailing List

The best way to get quality reviews is to reach out to those on your mailing list, your social media contacts, and those you’ve sent advance copies to. Ask them in a friendly, non-pressuring way to leave a review, expressing gratitude for their taking the time to read and review your book.

Even if you haven’t finished writing your book, you should get a mailing list started and work on building it. These folks are going to be your most faithful fans and reviewers. Some authors set up street teams (a group of super fans) and get them enthusiastically involved in sharing news about their new release, and once the book is published, they’re usually asked to post their honest reviews right away. With a mailing list, you can share excerpts of your new release and offer an ARC to any who want to read and review. I do this often with my new releases.

Keep these tips in mind:

Don’t bribe, coerce, or cajole.
When you send a copy of your book to a potential reader, thank them and tell them: “Be sure that when you leave a review on Amazon for me, you state that you were given a free copy in exchange for writing an honest review.”
DO ask them to give you an honest review. DON’T threaten them. You’ll make more friends this way, stay out of trouble, and have a clear conscience (reread above section on developing relationships).
Be professional. Remember: there is nothing disgraceful about asking for reviews or blurbs of endorsement for your book.
Provide a choice of epub, PDF, and mobi (Kindle) files. You can save a Word doc as a PDF, and there are free sites online that can convert from one file type to another. I like to put my cover on the first page, and it’s wise to test the file (send the mobi to your Kindle and download a program that can open an epub file (I use Adobe Digital Editions )

Reviews over Time

In order to stay ranking high and keep Amazon’s algorithm attention, you’ll need to get a steady stream of reviews over time. That’s why it’s not a great idea to tell all your fans or mailing list recipients to post their review on one specific day. It’s better if they flow in as a stream and not a tsunami.

Don’t run that free KDP promotion during launch week. Offer your book for free one or two days a month, and that will draw in new readers whose reviews will come in over time.

Consider using a free, reputable book review site—maybe one each month—to attract new readers. I recently did a NetGalley promotion (yes, I did pay for that), and netted a lot of readers who downloaded (for free) my book file. NetGalley reviewers are bloggers, librarians, booksellers, educators, journalists, and members of the media. Reviewers give your book a rating and offer feedback. My next step is to contact the reviewers who haven’t yet left a review and politely ask if they would post one on Amazon.

Keep in mind that any reviews you get, you can manually enter them through your Author Central account on Amazon so the reviews will show up on your product page. So no worries about pressuring readers to head over to Amazon to post it themselves. However, these reviews appear on your page’s Editorial Reviews section, not in the usual Amazon review pages (and so won’t be ranked by 1-5 stars or counted as part of your number of reviews).

Go back to your list of book bloggers and review sites. Consider contacting blogs on a weekly basis to accrue new contacts and get more reviews. Keep a chart of who you contact when.

How to Avoid Negative Reviews

Let’s face reality here: you will get negative reviews. But you’re in good company. The most famous, successful authors have plenty of negative reviews. Not everyone will love your book.

The few negative reviews I’ve gotten over the years have mostly been from readers who picked up my book during a free promotion. Some admit in their review “I never read this genre” or “this isn’t my type of book.” Meaning, they wouldn’t have bought my book (which makes me groan and mutter, “So why did you bother reading my book?”).

This is part of the tradeoff with doing free promotions. You will probably get reviews from those who don’t like or understand your genre, and, sadly, you can’t block or forbid them from leaving a review or remove said review. Good news is they probably won’t download your next book during a freebie period.

Here are some ways to fend off negative reviews:

Have your book professionally edited and proofread.
Better yet, have a professional critique your book before editing to ensure it’s well structured.
Make sure your formatting looks good, for both ebook and paperback. It’s not hard to learn how to format an ebook. Get Mark Coker’s free style book (Smashwords founder). I download Amazon’s templates for paperback and paste all my content in. Or you can hire a designer to help you. But do it right.
Write description copy that accurately describes the genre and story—don’t mislead potential readers. Also, if your book contains “heat” (venturing into erotica) or descriptive violence, warn your reader. It’s the responsible thing to do. And, honestly, you want your target readers to be enjoying your book.
Don’t make promises you can’t keep. This applies to self-help and other types of nonfiction. You might hope your readers will get healed, rich, happy, or successful by following your five-step secret method, but if you guarantee they will get these results, you are going to have some pretty angry customers leaving scathing reviews.
Your book shouldn’t be a thinly veiled advertising platform for other books or services. It’s fine to list some of your other publications or resources at the back of your book, and it’s wise to include an excerpt of one of those other books to entice readers to buy it (and putting in a link to buy is fine). But don’t have promotions and special offers sprinkled throughout your pages. It’s spammy and off-putting.
Did I mention you must have your book professionally edited and proofread?

Encourage Readers to Leave a Review Right after They Read

While Amazon emails customers to leave reviews some days after they purchase anything on their site, a personal encouragement at the back of your book, along with a link (if an ebook), will probably persuade readers to leave that honest review.

This is what I write: “The best way to thank an author for writing a book you enjoyed is to leave an honest review! Click here to post your review of [book title]. Thank you so much for taking the time to let other readers know what you thought of my book.” I put a hyperlink in connected to the words click here (don’t show the very long URL).

If your book isn’t published yet, you will have to wait until you’ve at least got it up for presale (one good reason to use that feature) in order to get your Amazon book page URL. Once you have that, plug in the URL to your request for a review.

Once the book is published, you can use the link that directly goes to the book review page for your book. Here’s how you do it:

Go to your product page once your book is live, click on the reviews button, then scroll down to the bottom and click on “see all __ customer reviews. Click on that link.
Now, grab the URL in the search bar at the top.
Only grab to the end of the numbers and include the forward slash. It should look something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Colorado-Hope-Historical-Western-Romance-ebook/ product-reviews /B00PIAD22K/

Notice that the URL includes “product-reviews” in there. That’s the nice, clean link to your reviews page.

So what happens when the reader clicks that link?

She gets taken right to the top of your review page where there is a nice button that says “write a review.”

Getting reviews on Amazon—honest, authentic reviews—will take time and effort, but it’s worth it. As the reviews pile up, you’ll see your sales ranking rise and your book will come up higher in search results.

But don’t forget the big picture: it’s about relationships. Build a fan base of happy readers who love your books. Take the time to master your craft, write the best books you can, take pride in them, and make sure they are professionally edited, with attractive covers and description that accurately describes your content. If you focus on those things and put out the effort, you will have a lot more than just reviews. You’ll have a joyful writing career.

Featured Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash .

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Easily Create Amazon Review Links

by Theresa Garee | Jun 7, 2020 | Blog

This one’s for the ebook:

Amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=B084GRLRXK

And finally, one for the audiobook:

Amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=B07WT5M3SP

I used the same formula to create Amazon review links for You Should Be Writing :

Amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=1642502553

And this one is for the ebook:

Follow this simple formula for each of your book formats.

Create your own to post on social media, in your blog, and email newsletters.

Have fun and go get those reviews!

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How to Find a Direct Link to Your Amazon Review: A Step by Step Tutorial

As a product or book reviewer, chances are you will need to find a direct link to your review on Amazon and Goodreads at one point or another. It’s not hard to do, but it can be really frustrating if you don’t know how.

Most companies and websites that offer books or products for review ask for a direct link to your review on a retail website. Since I get asked quite frequently for instructions on how to find a direct link to an Amazon review, I put together this step-by-step tutorial, complete with screenshots.

*Because Amazon keeps changing, I’ve updated this post a few times. These directions are current as of February 11, 2021.

Want to save this post for later? Pin this image to your Pinterest board!

How to Find a Direct Link to Your Amazon Review

You are now on your account page. Scroll down until you see the “Ordering and Shopping Preferences” section. Click on “Your Amazon Profile”.

You are now on your profile page. All the product reviews you’ve written will be on the right-hand side. Scroll down until you find the review you want. Click “See full review”.

You should be on a page labeled “Customer Review”. Click on the “Permalink” link at the bottom of your review.

Highlight the URL at the top of the page. This is the direct link to your Amazon review. Copy and paste into your email or form when you’re submitting your review.

How to Find a Direct Link to Your Goodreads Review:

Log in to Goodreads and do a search for the book you reviewed. In this case, I was searching for Forbidden by Kimberley Griffiths Little. Click on the book.

You are now on the book’s main page. Scroll down until you see your review. It should be the first one. Click on “See Review”. (If you don’t see your review, you are either not logged in or you haven’t posted your review correctly.)

Now you are on a page displaying only your review. Highlight the link at the top. This is your direct link. Copy and paste this link into your email or form when you report your book review.

There you go! Now you know how to find a direct link to your reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.

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Dena McMurdie is an award-winning artist and the owner of Red Wolf Press. She has written and illustrated several books for children and lives in North Carolina with her family.

« Ten Historical Settings I Love

Beach reads for middle grade readers », you may also like, how to make a cape for toys and dolls, how to draw a teddy bear (step by step tutorial), how to draw a duck: step-by-step tutorial for kids.

Talk about a handy guide! I remember when I first started using Goodreads. It was an adventure finding the illusive link publicists requested. Thanks for the tips! Will definitely be sharing. ^-^

Dena at Batch of Books

Oh yes, it was definitely an adventure finding direct links when I started out!

Olivia Roach

A brilliant guide for anyone who could find this confusing! So clear and concise, well done 🙂

Thanks for the tutorial, just tried it out on my iPad & found I had to log into Amazon through a browser, not the app and after clicking the permalink nothing came up in the address bar, but I discovered that when I long pressed on the permalink a pop-up (well, popped up) with a few options one of them being “copy” this then obtained the link for forwarding

Thanks for sharing this!

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When asking for a review, it’s good practice to make it easy for the reviewer, and provide a link to where the review is to be posted. This tool makes it easy to find the link for an Amazon review page.

Enter an Amazon ASIN or a link to an Amazon product page and click Create link .

The generated link will redirect a user to the product’s review page on their local Amazon website, or the US site if there isn’t a local site.

Note that the link will only work properly if the book is available for sale – it won’t work if the book is only available for pre-order.

More tools for authors .

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How to add Amazon editorial reviews to your book page (and why)

Posted on October 27, 2021 at 1:00 PM by Guest Author

Want to sell more books? Including Amazon editorial reviews on your sales page can help. Learn how to get, add, and use editorial reviews to your advantage.

What is an editorial review on amazon.

Why Are Editorial Reviews Important?

How to Get Editorial Reviews

7 steps to add amazon editorial reviews, the dos and don’ts of editorial reviews, takeaway .

An editorial review on Amazon is a critique of a book written by a non-customer.

This type of evaluation can be found in the Editorial Reviews section, which appears above the Customer Reviews section of a book’s Amazon page.

Typically, such a review is provided by one of the following:

A fellow author

An expert in the field

A media outlet

Amazon editorial reviews are not the same as customer reviews, which means they have their own set of rules and guidelines.

Why Are Editorial Book Reviews Important?

Editorial book reviews on Amazon help your book’s sales page perform better.

If you’re just starting out and your fan base is relatively small, convincing readers to buy your book can be challenging.

You need to use every tool at your disposal to make your book stand out on Amazon — from writing a great description to highlighting your most complimentary reviews.

Amazon editorial reviews provide potential readers with additional social proof that your book is worth purchasing.

Because they (generally) come from authoritative sources, they can carry more weight than regular customer reviews.

Make no mistake — if the Editorial Reviews section exists on your book’s page, those considering your book will look at what was said, who said it, and why the reviewer is qualified to talk about your book.

Moreover, these reviews can be used beyond the Editorial Reviews section to promote your book.

Here are just some of the places you can include editorial book reviews:

On your book cover

In a book trailer

On social media

On your website

On print materials

When it comes down to it, you shouldn’t underestimate the value of editorial reviews in promoting your book on Amazon and beyond.

If you’re a self-published author, you may struggle with getting editorial reviews, especially in the beginning. But it’s not an impossible task.

It just requires you to put time and effort into connecting with others in the book industry — ideally, those who have clout already and whose work relates to your own.

To ensure your Editorial Reviews section has the maximum impact on potential readers, you need to start collecting written evaluations from people and organizations with authority as early on as possible.

Some ways to get Amazon editorial reviews include the following:

Talk to other authors in your genre by connecting with them online.

Submit your book to review sites that specialize in your genre.

Look for those who’ve endorsed other books like yours.

Contact people with expertise in your book’s subject matter.

Engage with popular book bloggers in your niche.

Always be polite and prepare in advance when asking for a review.

Read through the submission guidelines (if provided) so that you know exactly what’s required. And if you’re asking for feedback from an individual, create an outreach script beforehand.

Your chances of getting editorial reviews increase when you take the time to build rapport with other authors and literary influencers . So, always be on the lookout for opportunities to develop relationships.

As discussed previously, editorial reviews can (and should) be used in several ways.

But once you’ve gathered a handful of glowing recommendations, you’ll want to add them to the most obvious place first: your book’s Amazon page. The good news is it’s a straightforward process.

1. Log in to your Amazon Author Central account .

2. Once you’re at your dashboard, click on the Books tab in the top menu.

3. Select the book you want to add Amazon editorial reviews for. ( Note : If there are multiple versions of your book, you’ll need to add the reviews to each one.)

4. Choose the Editorial Reviews tab and click on the Add button.

5. Using the text box provided, add your editorial reviews according to Amazon’s guidelines.

6. Preview your entry to make sure you’re happy with the way it looks.

7. Once you’re done formatting your reviews, click Save Changes.

And that’s it. Just remember that you’ll need to repeat this process if there are multiple versions of your book.

Also, keep in mind that Amazon editorial reviews don’t display immediately. They typically show up within a day or so.

When you go to add editorial reviews to your book’s sales page, you’ll notice guidelines above the text box. It’s essential to follow these to avoid having your reviews rejected.

However, there are other best practices to apply as well. To make the most of your Amazon editorial reviews, consider the following dos and don’ts.

Credit the source of each review after the quote.

Ensure quotes from outside reviews follow “fair use” copyright guidelines.

Aim for 1-2 sentences or 600 characters per review.

Put reviews from the most noteworthy sources at the top.

Format your reviews to make them stand out. ( Tip : You can use the Kindlepreneur Book Description Generator to get the necessary code for stylizing your reviews.)

Avoid repetition in reviews (i.e., make sure the quotes you pull are different).

Include any links, promotional or otherwise.

Add any contact information.

Use time-sensitive statements.

Include price information for the book.

Allow any profanity or hateful content.

Paraphrase editorial reviews.

If you don’t already have Amazon editorial reviews on your book’s page, you’re missing out on a major opportunity to generate more sales.

Along with reader reviews, written evaluations from reputable sources can go a long way toward establishing your credibility and convincing people to get your book.

So, use the tips provided and the steps outlined to start adding editorial reviews to each book’s Amazon page today. You’ll be glad you did.

(Don’t forget — getting plenty of positive customer reviews is important for your book’s Amazon page too. To encourage more readers to download your ebook and share their thoughts, offer a giveaway and promote it in our free-ebook newsletter !)

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Book Marketing , Mini Guides

Mini Guide: How to Get Legitimate Amazon Reviews for Your Books

Most of us have been there. Acquiring reviews is the bane of the fledgling indie author’s existence. I struggled with it for years ; hell, I only cracked the code in 2016, after heading down the review rabbit hole hard.

That’s when I learned a surprising truth.

If your book isn’t selling, reviews are usually not the culprit .

That being said, if you have no reviews, or are staring at two reviews with a 3.5 Amazon rating, you likely don’t believe me. Only the ice-water of harsh experience convinced me otherwise.

But although they’re hardly the skeleton key to success, reviews are still important for a few reasons we’ll discuss below. Thus, I’ve assembled a comprehensive mini guide outlining the four primary methods that you can use to get legitimate, unbiased Amazon reviews (no black hat stuff here):

Review services which distribute review copies of your book to their readers
Asking your newsletter subscribers
Creating your own ARC (advance review copy) team
Setting your book to free and putting a review request with a direct link to the review form in your book’s back matter.

But before we get into the how-to, we first need to answer an oft-overlooked question.

Why the hell should we bother to get Amazon reviews at all?

Note: this guide was last updated in August 2020.

Why You SHOULD Bother

Let me be clear: Reviews don’t impact sales nearly as much as many authors think .

Reviews do not:

Directly generate sales . Reviews are largely a product of a book selling well; not the other way around. It’s easy to get this causality reversed, which leads to some trying to hoard reviews like Gollum hoards the precious. This obsession is not productive.
Trigger Amazon’s famed algorithms . While the official documentation for Amazon’s A9 algorithm suggests that verified reviews might be a factor, in reality, this impact is minor or nonexistent. There’s also an old myth still making the rounds that Amazon will only promote books with 50+ reviews. This is 100% false. Your book does not need to cross a minimum review threshold for Amazon to start recommending it via also boughts, emails, and other automated mechanisms. A book with 10 reviews (or zero) can easily outsell one with 70, or even 700.
Have any other career-making mythical effect you may have heard about.

Why bother getting reviews at all, then?

Two marketing reasons:

Qualifying for promo sites . This is the main reason—many advertisers require either 5 – 10 reviews (with a 3.5 – 4-star average).
Social proof is important . All other elements being equal—blurb, cover, writing quality—a book with 15 reviews will be purchased over a title with none. Despite this tendency, reviews are far less important for books than, say, socks or a new television. That’s because fiction quality is subjective and all other elements are never equal. A book with twenty reviews and a genre-relevant cover will likely trounce one with a terrible, off-genre cover and a hundred glowing reviews.

I want to be clear: There aren’t many good reasons to acquire reviews besides the those outlined above. A la Facebook likes, Amazon reviews quickly become a vanity metric. After you get past 50 for a given title, there are diminishing returns. That being said, is having 250 or 500 reviews better than 50? Of course — but remember, when a book has hundreds of reviews, it’s almost always a byproduct of it selling well. Spending hundreds of hours or thousands of dollars accumulating this many reviews is a poor use of resources.

50 is an arbitrary threshold, but chosen for the following reasons:

Criticisms tend to repeat themselves at this point. You’re generally not learning new things about your craft from review #156 that you didn’t learn at #45.
You qualify for all promo sites . Yes, that includes the mighty BookBub (which contrary to myth, does not have a minimum review requirement).

And about that criticism: a good critical review can improve your craft.

This point is important enough to warrant its own section.

Qualitative Feedback: Using Reviews to Improve Your Craft

Feedback is at a premium when you’re a writer. Most of your day is spent alone, at a keyboard, typing into what is essentially a void. It is not until someone else reads your work that you receive feedback — often weeks or months after a passage has been written.

This can make it difficult to improve, since feedback is key to building skill in any discipline.

Reviews can be a critical source of quality feedback.

You’ll no doubt get lots of unhelpful, vague reviews (“terrible” or “deleted it from my kindle”) if you pursue writing as a full-time career. But don’t ignore genuinely helpful feedback because of this. I’ve learned a number of things (both positive and negative) from a small handful of reviews—points like my overuse of expletives, poor endings, confusing tendency to mash-up disparate genres/tones, and (on the plus side) that readers found my work funny . This unbiased feedback is invaluable, as it is what paying customers (re: not your mom, writing group or dog) genuinely think about your work. I wasn’t aware of these problems (or positives) until I read my Amazon reviews.

Some authors never read their reviews and advocate ignoring them. I believe this is a borderline career killing mistake. As already mentioned, unbiased feedback is the rarest of commodities for a writer; editors, proofreaders, beta readers, and so forth are inclined to say positive things about your work since they have a financial or personal relationship with you. This is human nature.

Paying readers — who are the arbiter of your success in this game — have no such biases, and will give you the straight truth. Sometimes that’s brutal; sometimes it’s unhelpful; on rare occasions, however, it’s gold. If you feel like downing a bottle of bourbon after browsing Amazon, however, then don’t read the reviews . Personally, I would work on building a thicker skin, because criticism is inescapable in this business . But that decision is up to you.

Quantitative Feedback

I’ve already touched on how reviews can qualitatively be used to improve your work.

But they can also be used in a more quantitative fashion. Most people look at the review score to assess whether readers liked their book. This seems like a good idea; in practice, however, not all 4 star ratings are equal. That’s because the true measure of a book’s quality is whether the reader got to the end — and, after that, whether they go on to purchase the next book.

Nothing else really matters when you’re trying to make a living.

Enter expected reviews versus actual reviews.

Using these two numbers, we can compare our expected review numbers (using a rule of thumb) to the actual number of reviews our book has.

On average, you can expect 1 Amazon review for every 1,000 free downloads and 1 review for every 100 sales. This is just a very general rule of thumb; the review rate will fluctuate from book to book. However, if lots of people are picking up your book, but no one is reviewing it, this indicates they’re not reaching the end. This is a problem, since your career is built on sellthrough (that is, people finishing a book and then purchasing another one of your books).

Thus, if your review rate is dramatically below the rules of thumb stated above, there may be a craft problem lurking in the pages.

Take these numbers from actual titles:

More people are reviewing Books A and B than expected; by contrast, Book C has fewer reviews than expected. Again, this is a very rough estimate; making any decisions based on this exercise alone would be ill-advised. But a low review rate is cause for further examination.

When I looked at the sellthrough numbers (the % of people who go on to purchase Book 2): Book B’s sellthrough is the highest, while Book C’s is anemic. This suggests readers aren’t resonating with Book C.

In conjunction with the actual qualitative content of the reviews, you can use your review rate to troubleshoot craft problems. If it’s much lower than expected, dive into what people are saying to find out why.

But enough about feedback and improving craft. Let’s jump into getting reviews.

Common Practices to Avoid

We only want legitimate reviews. To that end, you should avoid anything that might get you into hot water with Amazon. In recent years, Amazon has cracked down on many review gathering techniques—from the obvious black hat ones to grayer areas. To keep on the right side of their TOS, it’s vital to abide by a few rules:

Do not ask friends, family and other acquaintances for reviews. This is not allowed under the TOS. Some of these folks will leave reviews anyway, without asking. Don’t be concerned about this (Amazon won’t punish you)—just know that these reviews can disappear.
Do not offer to exchange reviews with other authors (known as a review swap) — e.g. you review their book and they review yours in return.
You can’t compensate reviewers in any way, beyond the actual product (the book, in this case). This means entering contests, paying them, swapping reviews and other tactics aren’t allowed.

On a semi-related note, if you interact with someone on social media, Amazon’s bots might pick this up and remove reviews of your work by this person. This is largely unavoidable and not something to be worried about; if the review count on a book suddenly drops by one or two, however, this might be the culprit.

Method #1: Use a Review Service

In theory, if funds were unlimited, you could book all of the sites below. Getting loads of reviews, however, is not the best use of marketing funds. Instead, focus on getting 10 reviews , as this is the threshold where most paid promo sites allow you to advertise. Then invest the leftover money into paid advertising.

If you’ve been struggling with reviews for a long time, rest assured that you can use all of these services & options for any book, old or new. I’ve used them for brand new releases (e.g. during launch week) and for books over a year and a half old. Anecdotally, I haven’t seen any difference in reader demand for new titles as opposed to old titles; even pre-order books (e.g. where the reader is receiving a true advance review copy) don’t seem to generate more interest. Demand is mostly dictated by your genre, cover, and blurb.

Important: You aren’t purchasing reviews via these services. Instead, these sites play matchmaker between authors and prospective reviewers—matching your book with interested, unbiased reviewers who request a review copy of your title based on its cover, blurb, and genre. These reviewers are not compensated, beyond the free copy of the book. If a site claims to compensate reviewers—either via monetary payment, contest entries or other incentives—run the other way immediately . Due diligence is a must .

I’ve used the sites below without issue, but the song does not remain the same—so look into their current policies and make sure they’re on the up and up.

The Best Option

# expected reviews: 20+ (50+ in some genres)
Setup time: 5 minutes
About: The most effective review service in the business by a large margin (think of them as the Bookbub of review services). Not only do they generate a ton of quality reviews — the reviewers clearly have read the books, and often post multiple paragraph reviews — they even send you a follow-up email with selected additional comments from their ARC list. The only knock against Hidden Gems is the booking time, which extends out half a year or longer for most genres.

Personally Untested, But Good For Others

I don’t generally include things that I haven’t personally used, especially not this high. But in this case, I’ve worked with a client who has used BookSprout to generate a considerable number of reviews, which gels with the general overall author consensus.

BookSprout (free trial, $10 – $20/mo)
About: BookSprout is a subscription service that offers a combination of ARC list management and discovery features that connect you with potential reviewers.

I’ve used Story Origin before for cross promos, but not specifically for reviews. I found that part of the service useful, and have seen some promising results from the review section. So this is worth testing, especially since it’s totally free.

StoryOrigin (free)

Unfortunately, much like with promo sites, where Bookbub reigns king, there’s a precipitous drop off in results from Hidden Gems to the rest of the pack. If you can’t snag a Hidden Gems spot, I’d start with these.

# expected reviews: 1 – 2
Setup time: 2 – 3 hours (have to send winners files yourself)
About: Library Thing allows you to run free eBook giveaways that help you get reviews. Set the giveaway to 100 eBooks (make sure you do eBooks and not paper copies) and you’ll usually get 30 – 50 people claiming it.

If you’re in a pinch, and need some reviews, you can look to these services. Their prices and results make them less appealing, however.

# expected reviews: 3 – 5
Setup time: 1 – 2 hours
About: this is different than the other services, in that you provide a link to your ARC (advance review copy) mailing list sign-up. Then they send out an email blast telling their list that they can join your ARC team and get a free review book. You’ll want to set up a separate form/segment for these ARC reviewers. Don’t mix them in immediately with your regular ARC reviewers, as some of them won’t review or won’t like your work.
Setup time: don’t remember
About: There are a number of co-ops that allow you to book a Net Galley slot for your title. I’ve linked to the one from Xpresso Book Tours; to be 100% clear, I’ve never used their services, but they’ve been around for a long time (the co-op I used is no longer offered). You can search for alternatives on Google or ask around in author groups. You can also book directly from Net Galley, but that’s far more expensive. Reviews from Net Galley are fair, but tend to be harsher and with lower overall scores.
About: this was good when I tried it in January 2016 (got 10 reviews), but less effective when I tried it in January 2017 (got 2 reviews). They provide you with updates via email on how many reviews your book has received from the program.
About: Process took about 7 – 10 days from submission to when it was sent out to readers. They distribute all the book files. Setup is super painless and the easiest of all the options. Book Review 22 sends an update about two months after you order with links to the reviews procured by their service. I received two Goodreads reviews and an Amazon review for an urban fantasy book when the price was $60. It has since increased to $250.
# expected reviews: 0
About: for years, Goodreads allowed you to give away paperbacks for free (although the shipping and printing costs associated with actually delivering said paperbacks were fairly pricey). This was useless, but cheap; I never traced a single direct review back to such a giveaway. The new Goodreads Giveaways, alas, are still useless but have the added bonus of being expensive. You can use them for both eBooks and paperbacks, now, although I would simply skip this option and use them for neither. I ran one, gave away 20 copies, got zero directly attributable reviews, and called it a day.

Additional Options I Haven’t Personally Tested

Blog tours (cost depends): haven’t tried a blog tour; from the research I’ve done, tours used to be much better for generating buzz and reviews (e.g. in 2012/2013) than they are now.
Contacting bloggers (free): I sent out one email to one blogger, never heard a response, and decided screw that . Other authors have gotten reviews, but I’m skeptical of the required time investment required to get said reviews. This was a popular strategy four or five years ago, before bloggers got bombed with review requests as a result.

You may see these recommended by other posts or guides; they’re mentioned here so you don’t wonder what happened to them.

Story Cartel
Contacting Amazon reviewers (free): Amazon used to publicly display the email addresses of reviewers who ticked a box to show their email on their profile. You could then email this person to offer them an ARC copy for review. Amazon no longer displays any reviewer emails publicly, so this method is no longer viable.
Book Razor : a number of review services sprung up that gathered the emails from Amazon profiles and sold them to authors. These were all shut down by the aforementioned change; Book Razor was the best known of these services.

Method #2: Ask Your List

If you have a mailing list (which you do have, right?), all that you need to do is send out a regular broadcast email to your subscribers asking for reviews. Explain the importance and include the direct link to the review form. Don’t incentivize people in any way; this is against the Amazon TOS. Just ask nicely.

Maybe you don’t want to send out a newsletter that solely ask for reviews. You could include the request as a “PS” at the bottom of one of your emails instead.

I like (and have used) the subject line “Can You Do Me a Favor?”

You can even automate this process by adding such a request to your autoresponder. The same principles apply: ask nicely and include a direct link to the review form.

Method 3: Cross Promo to Autoresponder

You can use sites like BookFunnel and StoryOrigin , or giveaways to build your list of newsletter subscribers rapidly. The idea is simple with cross promotions: you join forces with multiple other authors, share the cross promo to your list, and essentially share your subscribers with one another. You need a book that you can offer as bait for people to sign up, which is usually a free novella, story, or novel.

While this is a good way to start building your list, what you’ll often find is that the volume of subscribers is high…but engagement (and buy rates) are low. That does not, however, mean that these subscribers are necessarily useless, or that they’re not interested in reading your stuff.

Instead, these people might be interested in becoming ARC Readers (method outlined below) or to review your book.

How to set this up:

Join a cross promo on BookFunnel or StoryOrigin. Or join an author giveaway.
Make sure these subscribers are on a separate list or have a specific tag so you can clearly identify their source.
Set up an autoresponder that all new subscribers from these sources receive. An autoresponder (also referred to as an “automation sequence” or “drip sequence”) automatically sends emails to these new subscribers on a set schedule. You write the emails in advance, set things up, and then it runs in the background forever (or until you turn it off).
Within this autoresponder, have an email that requests a review for one of your books. It can be the one you gave away for free when they joined the list (especially if that’s a novel available for sale on Amazon) or it can be the book related to what they got free for joining the list (i.e., the full-length novel related to the free prequel novella). Link them directly to the Amazon review form.
Or, you can ask if they want to join your ARC Team, which we’ll outline below.

By the way, this autoresponder process works with your organic subscribers (those coming from the front/back matter of your book) as well. The reason I highlight cross promotions and giveaways specifically? If you’re struggling to get reviews, your current organic list is likely small. This is a quick way to dramatically increase the number of people you can either add to your ARC team or ask for reviews from.

Method #4: Create Your Own ARC Team

Why keep paying for review services with each book — essentially shotgunning your book out to readers who may or may not like it — when you can instead build a team of mega fans who will review your latest release on launch day? Like the previous two methods, this technique requires a mailing list — but after you finish setting up your mailing list, one of the next steps should be to start building your ARC (advance review copy) team.

Luckily, building an ARC team is super-easy. And it works with organic and non-organic subscribers.

Way #1 : create an automated email inviting subscribers to join your ARC team as part of your autoresponder.

Aside from a welcome email that delivers your reader magnet (the free novella, story, or novel mentioned in the previous section) and says what’s up to your new peeps, you can also have an email—further down the line—that invites subscribers to join your ARC team. A simple message—like hey, if you want free review copies of my books before they come out, reply and I’ll add you to the list —is really all you need.

Way #2 : if you don’t know a drip sequence from a dripping faucet—or haven’t set up your autoresponder—then simply sending a regular message to your existing list works fine. Same format as above: hey, I have cool pre-release copies of my latest book—you want in? Reply if you do.

That’s it. You can do this for a specific release (e.g. respond if you want an ARC copy of my new book Magic, Vamps & Potions), or just as a general invitation to receive all future books. Add the people who respond to your ARC list (or segment/tag them, depending on how fancy you wanna get).

It is extremely important to follow up with your ARC reviewers. Here’s a basic schedule:

10 – 14 DAYS BEFORE LAUNCH : Send out the ARC copies. Deliver these via BookFunnel to increase the # of people who actually download the ARC. If you do the special trick outlined in the section below, you can include the review link to the paperback.
LAUNCH DAY : Send out a link to the Amazon review form on launch day reminding people to review. Including the link is important — it makes things easier for reviewers, and will increase the number of reviews.
7 – 10 DAYS AFTER LAUNCH : Send a final message thanking all those who have left a review while reminding anyone who didn’t to review the book. Explain that reviews are critical to the book’s success. Most people are happy to do you a favor, particularly when you’ve already done them one by giving ’em a free ARC copy.

On a closing note, never request positive reviews; I always emphasize that reviewers should leave honest reviews. If someone signed up to your ARC team, they are almost always a big fan of your work, which makes them extremely unlikely to leave a review lower than four stars, anyway. On a related note, I do not remove non-reviewers or people who leave me low ratings; this demands a lot of time that can be better spent elsewhere. And finally, always remind ARC team members to disclose that they received a free book with language a la “I received a free review copy of this book from the author.”

Method #5: Ask in the Back Matter and Then Set Your Book to Free

I don’t do this any more, but I’ll explain the technique first, then explain my reasoning for no longer employing it.

In the back matter, right after “THE END” or “END OF BOOK 1,” on the same page , I used to have three things: a link to my mailing list; a link to book #2 with a brief, one-sentence description; and a request that goes a little something like this: If you enjoyed this book, please leave a brief review on Amazon by tapping here. Thanks.

This will increase the number of reviews you’ll receive. Make sure “please leave a brief review on Amazon by tapping here” links directly to the book’s review form. This increases the number of reviews you’ll receive.

A note: if you’re wide, use “please leave a brief review on your online bookseller of choice” and omit the direct link. Other retailers take umbrage to directly linking to competitors. It’s not worth generating a different EPUB for each retailer, in my opinion, hence the more general language. If you’re Amazon exclusive, just say Amazon (or Amazon/Goodreads, since Goodreads is owned by ‘zon).

Finally, an important note: the more cluttered your back matter, the less likely a buyer will take any action at all. If you have a million requests back there—follow me on Twitter! Here’s this thing I’m doing on Wattpadd! Oh yeah, I do dope Kabuki theater with this awesome troupe!—readers will take no action at all .

This is the reason I no longer include a review request in my back matter. While such a request increases the number of reviews you get, it decreases sellthrough. Instead of purchasing the next book in the series, readers leave a review. This gives them additional time to be distracted by a different book, and purchase it instead. Additionally, an automatic pop-up now appears at the end of books read on Kindle devices asking you to leave a review. This makes the review request semi-redundant. Here are the comparative stats for the back matter (back matter with the review ask on the left):

Ultimately, the goal is to sell more books and make more money — not collect dozens of reviews.

These days, I limit the number of CTAs (call-to-action) to one or two: a brief teaser with a link to the next book, and – depending on the series – a link to join my mailing list. Each additional link or request you add decreases the chance of the reader taking the desired action. That will almost always be purchasing the next book, so we want to make that link/teaser the focus.

However, if you are struggling to get reviews, you can use the review CTA + a free run on your book to generate some. I’d only do this if you have less than ten reviews. Otherwise, as outlined above, the review request will cut into your sellthrough too much to be worthwhile.

The technique: Give your book away free for 5 days and have a review request in the back matter . Book some paid promo so that you generate at least 3,000 – 5,000 downloads during your run. As mentioned earlier, you can generally expect one review for every 1,000 books you give away. For paid copies, you can expect around one review for every 100 books sold. However, those numbers can be much higher if your book has high sellthrough (e.g. people are finishing the book).

Understand that review averages for free books generally skew anywhere from a half-star to a full star lower than reviews for paid books. People tend to judge free products harshly. You’ll also get people trying your book who don’t like the genre and wouldn’t normally pick it up. This is normal.

Special Trick: Get Pre-Release Reviews

Unlike trad-pub authors, indie authors can’t receive reviews for their pre-order titles. There’s a clever way around this, though: setting up your KDP Print paperback ahead of time and “releasing it,” then directing your reviewers to the review link for the print copy listing.

Here’s how:

Make sure your eBook is available for pre-order and that you have the final draft of your manuscript available . This is critical because by publishing the paperback you will be making the actual book available for sale (at least for a couple hours), and thus you don’t want readers accidentally purchasing a placeholder full of blank pages.
Publish your paperback via KDP Print.
Once it’s live, request for KDP support to link the paperback and pre-order eBook editions together, if they aren’t already.
Send your reviewers the review link from the paperback edition’s Amazon page.
Once the two editions are linked, unpublish the paperback (if you want – or just leave it as is). If you do this, the review link will remain, but the paperback will no longer be available for purchase. You can “re-release” the print edition on the actual launch day by simply going into KDP Print and making it available again.

Wrapping Up

Using this guide, you should be able to get ten Amazon reviews over the next month without much trouble.

The ultimate goal, however, should be building your own team of ARC reviewers . This is a slow process, but one worth starting now. That way, you don’t have to pay for any services or hope that readers will leave reviews. Better still, fans of your work tend to write in-depth, quality reviews (and, as a bonus, their ratings skew higher, too). And if you get something egregiously wrong in your latest release, they’ll likely email you in private instead of publicly eviscerating your book—possibly in time for you to fix your error, as well.

That’s it. Go and get some reviews. And remember, always be building your author career; not just a shiny stable of gold stars on a platform (Amazon) that you don’t own.

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How to Include a Link to a Kindle Review Page Before Pub Date

Sep 10, 2017

How to Include a Link to a Kindle eBook Review Page Before Publication Date

eBooks have one built-in advantage over paper-based books, and that’s the ability for the author and publisher to include hyperlinks to resources and websites. It’s an especially important benefit for publishers of Kindle eBooks because you can send the reader directly to the page where they can rate and review your book.

Depending on your timeline, and production process, this might be a little tricky for some people but there is a way. It centers around getting Amazon to assign an ASIN to your Kindle edition—an Amazon Standard Identification Number—before your book is released.

Here it is in 5 simple steps:

Step 1: List your eBook for Kindle Pre-order. You do not need the final edition; a copy of Word will do and you can replace it with the final file at least 3 days before your book’s release date. In about 24 hours your Kindle should be live in the store.

Step 2: Find your ASIN. Scroll down the book’s listing and look for Product Details. It will look like this; copy the ASIN.

Step 3: Add it to the end of this link:

http://www.Amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/write-a-review.html?asin=

http://www.Amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/write-a-review.html?asin=B009VPQOAA

Step 4: Now paste this entire link at the end of your book along with some text to encourage your reader to click and leave a review (copy this for your swipe file):

Thank you for reading my book, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Won’t you please consider leaving a review? Even just a few works would help others decide if the book is right for them. I’ve made it super simple: just click this link and you’ll travel to the Amazon review page for this book where you can leave your review. Best regards and thank you in advance: http://www.Amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/write-a-review.html?asin=B077FYH28Y

Step 5: When ready, upload your final file to KDP at least 3 days before the release date. The final version of your Kindle eBook will have your message and link directly to a live review page for your reader to leave feedback.

A word of caution

If you are creating eBook files for other retailers you’ll want to remove the link to the Amazon review page. Apple for one won’t allow EPUB files to include links to Amazon, and neither will some aggregators such as Pronoun.

But no worries, chances are someone who buys a book from the iBookstore wouldn’t care to leave a review on Amazon anyway.

PS. Amazon will automatically encourage readers to leave a review when they finish reading the book. By placing this message in another location (near the beginning, or right before your book’s back matter), you can greatly increase the chances of a review.

Thanks for making this so easy! Finding the right navigation for my readers to click has been a nightmare – no more!

Dear BookReview YellowPages

Your tell us a GOOG idea to add way for a reader or our Kindle book, to link to Amazon, so they can submit their Reader Review: ***************

But I reach an impasse, which I BELOW sent to KDP, with no reply. Can you help? Please send a reply to my email. Thanks: ************************************************************** Concerning my book “WOMAN OF QUALITY: Sarah Vinke, The Divine Sarah …. ” I have filled our the following KDP Publish your book pages => Kindle eBook Detales (Sez “completed:} Kindle eBook Content (Sez “completed:}

ALSO checked “Pre-Order” and it gave gave dates: for 16 Nov 2018

BUT there is no evidence of the Pre-Order has been made effective …

AND on the “Book Shelf”, the following error message shows

“Submit for Pre-order” button has not been selected. If you have made updates to a title, but have not yet submitted for pre-order, click here to submit updates.

I can not find this “BUTTON”

Thus I ask you to Please DO IT FOR ME

Signed Henry Gurr [email protected]

************** Email of my secondary account => [email protected]

Unfortunately we can’t help since you are the account holder. Good luck.

Could you explain how I send my book link to customers who wish to Purchase my book

Visit the store where you sell your book and copy the link from your browser to your email. I also have an article here: https://www.authorimprints.com/how-create-short-url-links-ebook-amazon-apple-barnes-noble/

Hi, For a published book how can I get more reviews, please? Thank you for your answer!

My new book on getting and using reviews will be available October 24, 2019. The Book Review Companion: An Author’s Guide to Getting and Using Book Reviews

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How to Get Book Reviews on Amazon the Quickest and Easiest Way

Book reviews and sushi restaurants have a lot more in common than you might think. Discover the secrets to getting book reviews on Amazon!

Would you risk getting sushi from a restaurant with a 1-star average and a dozen bad reviews talking about getting food poisoning? Didn't think so.

The thing is, Amazon reviews function the same way. They warn readers about books that might not be worth their hard-earned money or precious time. So, how do you convince someone you've never met that your book is worth taking the chance?

In this blog post, we'll walk you through a ton of budget-friendly and compliant ways for how to get book reviews on Amazon, and skyrocket your sales (and royalties).

Are you tapping into all of Amazon's potential? Check out our free webinar that shows you exactly how one publishing method has already generated a collective $50 million in revenue for thousands of students of all ages all over the world with no publishing or tech experience required.

Why Do Amazon Book Reviews Matter?

A dozen 5-star reviews can usually offset a single bad review, but a single 5-star review won't always offset a dozen negative reviews. It's just the nature of the game and human psychology. We tend to gravitate toward what's safe and comfortable.

Here are some more reasons that a book's review matters:

Credibility and Social Proof

Let's knock the obvious one out of the way. When potential readers are browsing Amazon for a new book to read, they are more likely to choose a book that already has previous other readers. Positive reviews act as social proof and give credibility to your book. They show that others have enjoyed your book and that it’s worth reading.

Sales and Ranking

Amazon book reviews can also impact your book's sales and ranking. Books with a higher number of positive reviews tend to sell more copies. Additionally, Amazon's search algorithm takes into account the number and quality of reviews when ranking books in search results.

Momentum and Feedback

Positive reviews just feel good. They're a good boost to your confidence and can motivate you to keep publishing. Even a negative review can help you improve your work by providing constructive feedback to implement in your future work.

A Breakdown of Amazon's Review Policy and Algorithm

Amazon's review policy is designed to ensure that reviews are genuine and unbiased.

That means they prohibit the following:

Reviews that are fake
Reviews that are incentivized or come from a bribe
Reviews that are written by the author or publisher of a book or their family and friends
Reviews that include profanity, hate speech, and personal information

Note: Violating these policies can result in the removal of reviews and even account suspension.

Amazon's algorithm uses various factors to determine the authenticity and relevance of book reviews. The algorithm considers the number of reviews, the rating, and the recency of reviews as well as the location that the reviews came from. They can typically tell when friends and family are leaving reviews by checking whether you've ever sent each other gifts through Amazon or shared an address.

Most people can get away with one or two close friends leaving a positive or leaving a review too, but is it worth it? For one, it’s unethical. And secondly, it throws off the algorithm. If you wrote a book about bulldogs and none of your friends even have dogs, then they wouldn't be your target audience anyway. Their data would then affect the types of readers Amazon suggests your book to, and this can skew your marketing plans. Just something to keep in mind!

How Many Reviews Is Enough?

When it comes to the number of reviews you need on Amazon, there's no magic number that will instantly turn your book into a bestseller. Good reviews can essentially sell the book for you, so the more positive reviews you have, the better.

A good goal to aim for (and what we teach our Publishing.com students ) is at least 50 reviews for every new book that you publish. This may seem like a lot, but we've found this to be the sweet spot for gaining traction, and this blog post is full of ideas to help you get started.

Another pro tip? The timing of your reviews can have an impact on your book's success. Ideally, you want to have as many reviews as possible around the time of your book's initial launch to help it get more visibility.

Identifying Your Ideal Readers

There's no use reaching out to people who won't get any value out of reading your book. Sure, they may leave you an honest review, but it might not be a good one. Here's what to consider when trying to connect with the readers who are most likely to leave you a positive review:

What genre does your book fall into? You can use Amazon's categories and subcategories to help you identify your genre. Maybe you want to target fans of romance or hobby books, or you want to tap into the children’s book market. These categories will help you when you're looking for various social media groups to connect with reviewers (more on that later).

Keywords are the words or phrases that readers use to search for books on Amazon. By including relevant keywords in your book's title, subtitle, and description, you can make it easier for potential readers to find your book. You can use tools like Google Keyword Planner or Amazon's keyword tool to find relevant keywords.

Demographics

Think about who your book is intended for. Is it for young adults or older readers? Is it for men or women? Is it for people who enjoy a certain type of hobby or interest? If you're publishing children's books, you'll need to remember that the parents are the ones who will be purchasing your book and deciding whether to leave reviews.

How to Ask a Reader to Leave an Honest Review on Amazon

There are plenty of ways to get free book reviews, which we'll talk about here. The best strategy to find reviewers usually comes from a combination of these tactics. So, don't be afraid to experiment and see what method works best for you!

Let's dive right in:

Leverage Your Mailing List

One of the quickest and easiest ways to get reviews is by leveraging your mailing list. That is...if you already have one. Many authors and publishers take the time to create their own websites and collect readers' emails to keep them up to date with their latest book launches.

If you don't have a mailing list yet, you can start building one by offering a free sample chapter or some kind of bonus content in exchange for someone's email address. You can then follow up with emails that have the link to purchase and review your book.

Pro Tip: The more steps something takes, the less likely people are to follow through, so you want to make it as easy as possible for them. Always include direct links so they don’t have to go searching for them!

Email Template to Ask for a Book Review

Need some book marketing inspo? We've got you covered.

Here's a handy email template you can tweak to your style and voice for launch day!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Email Subject Line: 🌟 It’s Finally Here! Want to Help Other Readers? 📖

Hey [Reader's Name],

Big news: “[Book Title]” is out today! 🎉 I’m super excited (and a bit nervous) to share this story with you. It’s been quite the adventure bringing it to life.

If you enjoy the read, I’d be over the moon if you could take some time to drop a quick review on Amazon. Your honest thoughts really help—both me and other book lovers.

Here’s how:

Pop over to [Insert Link].
Scroll to "Customer Reviews" and hit "Write a Customer Review."
Share what you think about the book—there's no right or wrong answer!

That’s it! Short and sweet does the trick. 🌟

Thanks a million for your support. It means the world to me, and I can’t wait to hear what you think of “[Book Title].”

Happy reading and happy reviewing!

Cheers, [Your Name]

Connect with Book Bloggers and Top Reviewers

Book bloggers and full-time reviewers can help you get the word out about your book by engaging their audiences.

Here are some tips on how to connect with them:

1. Do Your Research

Not all bloggers and reviewers are the same. You want to target those who are interested in your genre and have a following. Look for bloggers and reviewers who have already reviewed books similar to yours.

2. Personalize Your Pitch

When reaching out to bloggers and reviewers, make sure to personalize your pitch. Address them by name and mention why you think they would be interested in your book.

3. Follow Up

After you've sent your pitch, follow up with the blogger or reviewer. Politely ask if they've had a chance to read your book yet and if they have any feedback. Following up shows that you're interested in their opinion and can help build a relationship for future reviews.

Just be careful not to cross into begging territory. If someone doesn't want to read your book, there are millions of other potential readers out there who might!

4. Be Genuine

When engaging with bloggers and reviewers, be genuine. Focus on their experience rather than the review itself. Be open to their feedback, even if it's not what you were expecting. It can help you grow and connect with future readers.

Pro Tip: The only real failure in the publishing world is giving up!

Create a Call-to-Action Inside Your Book

A Call-to-Action (CTA) is simply a marketing term that means giving your intended audience a very specific action to take. You've probably seen a ton without realizing it, like "click here," "sign up now," or "order now!"

Another simple way to increase reviews for your book on Amazon is to create a call-to-action (CTA) inside your book. This is a message that encourages readers to leave a review immediately on Amazon. By doing this, you're taking advantage of the fact that readers are more likely to leave a review while the experience is still fresh in their minds.

Here are some common locations for CTAs:

Your author bio
In the middle of your book, at a natural stopping point between two chapters
The end of your book

Many authors and publishers include a QR code that takes the readers to a website. This website can be a simple landing page that thanks the reader for their support and encourages them to leave a review on Amazon. Make sure to emphasize the importance of honest reviews and how they help other readers make informed decisions about whether or not to buy your book.

Other CTA tips:

Be clear and concise
Focus on only ONE action you want the readers to take
Use strong action verbs
Offer up your gratitude even if they choose not to take the next step but still took the time to read your work

Create an ARC Team

An ARC Team stands for an Advance Reader Copies Team or Advance Review Copies Team. The idea is simple: You build a dedicated team of people who are ready to give all your new books an honest customer review.

To build an effective Advance Reader Team, start by reaching out to your email list, social media followers, and other fans of your work. Let them know you are looking for readers who are willing to read and review your book before your book is live. Be clear about what you expect from them, including the timeline for reading and reviewing the book.

Once you have built your Advance Reader Team, provide them with a full copy of the book of your book in a format that is easy for them to read, such as a PDF or Kindle file. Follow up with them to make sure they have received the book and are on track to finish reading it by the agreed-upon deadline.

Note: Participating in ARC review methods isn't against Amazon KDP's terms; however, posting your full manuscript online would be if you were planning on making your book available through Kindle Unlimited.

Take Advantage of Social Media

One effective way to use social media is to create a Facebook page for your book. This page can be used to share updates about your book, interact with readers, run ads, and, most importantly, request book reviews. You can also join Facebook groups that are specifically designed for authors and reviewers.

Goodreads is another social media platform that can be used to request book reviews. Goodreads has a large community of readers and reviewers, making it an ideal platform to promote your book and request reviews.

Pro Tip: No one likes spam, so stick to the golden rule. Treat readers how you would want to be treated.

Leverage Free or Low-Cost Book Review Sites

Some popular free or low-cost book review sites include Goodreads, Pubby, and Online Book Club. These sites have large communities of readers who are eager to discover new books and provide feedback.

When submitting your book for review on these sites, be sure to follow the submission guidelines carefully. Some sites may have specific requirements for the format of your book or the information you need to include in your submission.

Remember : Amazon doesn't allow incentivized reviews.

Here's how these platforms tackle compliance:

Pubby operates on a book review exchange model. Authors who join Pubby agree to review other authors' books in exchange for reviews of their own books. This peer-to-peer system is designed to increase the number of reviews without direct financial incentives or specific demands for positive reviews.

This differs from review swaps, where both parties leave a "5-star" review regardless of their true opinions about the work.

Goodreads is a community platform for book lovers. It allows users to leave reviews, rate books, and engage in discussions about books. Reviews on Goodreads are user-generated and are not part of a paid or incentivized system.

Although Goodreads is owned by Amazon, the review system on Goodreads operates independently of Amazon’s review system. Reviews on Goodreads are generally not subject to the same strict guidelines as Amazon's product reviews, but there are still ways to go about asking for reviews ethically and unethically.

Consider Ethical Paid Services to Get Reviews

While it's always best to get book reviews on Amazon organically, sometimes it's necessary to use paid services to get your book reviewed with the attention it deserves and to scale your publishing business more quickly. Ethical services offer legitimate ways to connect with reviewers and get more reviews on Amazon without violating any rules.

A quick word of caution: Some UNethical services may violate Amazon's terms of service by offering to buy reviews directly, so always be sure to do your own research!

Authentic reviews for their services
A proven track record with the genre you're publishing in
Transparent pricing and policies
Access to support (whether through email, chat, or phone) in case you ever need it

Some legitimate services offer a variety of a la carte options, such as running a review campaign or connecting authors with reviewers who are interested in reading their books. Some services may also offer to promote your book to their audience, which can help increase visibility and generate more sales.

Overall, using ethical paid services to get reviews can be a great way to boost your book's visibility on Amazon and get more readers interested in your work. Just be sure to choose a reputable service and always follow Amazon's publishing guidelines to ensure that your book stays in good standing on the platform.

What Are Editorial Reviews on Amazon?

Editorial reviews are essentially "bonus" quotes and reviews housed on your Amazon book page through your Author Central Account . They may be written by professional reviewers, such as book critics and editors, or they may simply be quotes you want to highlight about your books from others.

To get editorial reviews for your book, you can submit your book to publications and websites that review books, or you can hire a professional reviewer to write a review for you. Once you have an editorial review, you can then submit it to Amazon to be published on your book review page.

Editorial reviews can be a great way to get exposure for your book and build credibility with potential readers, but customer reviews are just as important for building out your review page.

Avoiding Fake Reviews and Ensuring Genuine Feedback

Your reviews set the stage for your reputation as a self-publisher.

Here are some tips to avoid fake reviews and ensure genuine feedback:

Seek Verified Purchase Reviews

Amazon marks reviews from customers who have purchased your book on their platform with a “Verified Purchase” label. These reviews carry more weight as they are more likely to be authentic. You can encourage your readers to leave such reviews by reminding them to buy the book directly from Amazon.

Aim for Balanced Reviews

Genuine reviews often provide a well-rounded perspective of your own book. They don’t just heap praises or pile on criticism; instead, they offer a nuanced view, discussing various aspects like plot, characters, writing style, formatting, and pacing. Be on the lookout for reviews that offer specific, balanced insights into your work.

Stay Alert to Fake Reviews

Be cautious of reviews that may not be legitimate. These can be overly effusive or excessively negative, exhibit repetitive language or phrasing, or appear in an unnaturally large number within a short span. Amazon allows you to report suspicious reviews by using the “Report Abuse” option.

Sabotage is rare, but it does happen. If you suspect that a competitor has given you a false review, flag it and keep moving forward. You can rest easy knowing that you’ve put in the work and you’re running your publishing business from a place of integrity.

Foster Authentic Engagement

Encourage genuine feedback by interacting with your readers. Express gratitude for their reviews and engage with their comments. Addressing their thoughts and concerns not only shows your appreciation but also demonstrates your commitment to putting out quality content.

Although you cannot respond directly to Amazon comments, you can interact with your mailing list and social media following.

Optimize Your Book Launch for Reviews

Getting book reviews on Amazon is crucial for book sales, traction, and visibility.

Here are some tips to help you get the most reviews from your book launch.

1. Set a Launch Date

Setting a specific launch date helps you plan your book launch, coordinate your promotion plan with your publishing team (if you have one), and start your PR campaign two to three months before the launch date. It also enables you to coordinate book signing events with local bookstores three to four months before the launch or publication date.

Pro Tip: Some niches are more profitable during particular times of the year. See what your competitors are doing to get a better idea of what works and what doesn't.

2. Create a Pre-Launch Checklist

Creating a pre-launch checklist helps you explore your book launch to-do's at a glance. It might even include a marketing and PR plan tailored to each social media platform.

3. Stay Up to Date with Amazon's Review Guidelines

It doesn't hurt to check Amazon's guidelines every quarter or so to make sure there aren't any updates that might impact your plans. The truth is this industry is constantly changing—especially as AI becomes more and more common!

4. Don't Be Shy Asking for Reviews

Asking for reviews can be uncomfortable at first, but this is just another one of those skills that take time and practice, like strength training and weightlifting.

5. Think Outside of the Box

You're in charge when it comes to marketing your Amazon book , and within reason, the sky is the limit. Virtual events like Q&As can help your audience get to know you, but there are thousands of other ideas out there to help your book stand out in a crowded market.

Here are just a few:

Collaborative Storytelling Event : Host an online event where readers contribute to a live, interactive storytelling session based on your book's universe.
Interactive Web Series : Produce a short web series or interactive videos that explore your book's characters or setting, inviting audience participation.
Flash Fiction Contest : Organize a writing contest where participants create short stories inspired by your book, with the best entries featured on your website.
Podcast Series : Launch a podcast discussing themes, background stories, or characters from your book, possibly including guest speakers or experts.
Themed Cook-along or Craft Workshop : If your book involves unique cuisines or crafts, host a live cook-along or crafting session teaching these skills.
Charity Event Partnership : Tie your launch to a charity event, where aspects of your book's theme help raise awareness or funds for a relevant cause.
Book Playlist Release Party : Curate a playlist of songs that captures the mood of your book, hosting a listening party with discussions about how each song relates to the story.

Publishing.com's Student Reviews

Which of the following types of people have found success with publishing?

A) Grandmas and grandpas who weren't necessarily tech-savvy but wanted to find a way to supplement their retirement

B) Stay-at-home moms and dads who wanted to find a way to make money without missing out on any of their children's milestones

C) College students who wanted to find a way to stop drowning in student loan debt

D) All of the above

The Publishing.com team has earned a verified review average of 4.8 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot , and the answer is D! All of the above!

Here's what some students had to say:

If you're looking for a sign to take that first step, it's this!

Just head over to our free beginner-friendly webinar to see the exact formula that can completely transform your schedule and income and bring you the freedom you crave!

Happy publishing!

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Tips for Self-Publishing on Amazon: 19 Ways to Reach More Readers

Promote Your Book With Links You Might Not Know About

You can promote your book with links that are not only to your Amazon book page.

When promoting your Kindle book or paperback, you promote your book with links on your website, blog, Facebook, Twitter, and many more sites.

Like all published authors, you likely post at least a few links to your book for potential readers every day.

But if you keep using a direct link to your book on Amazon or your free Kindle ebooks, people will not react well to repeatedly seeing the same Amazon link.

Article Contents

Promote your book with links

Good book promotion linking is all about including lots of variety.

When you can give readers alternative ways to discover your book, you have a better chance of attracting their attention.

Using links can be a great strategy.

It means using hyperlinks to direct potential readers to your book’s sales page or other online platforms where they can buy your book.

Most authors use this technique to increase visibility and generate sales.

There are many different ways you can promote your book.

But I will concentrate on the most popular sites where you can find and use links for your book to add more diversity to your online book promotion.

You can use these links on your blog, in articles you write, or on social media.

Another use is to use links in your email marketing .

However, some of these links are not easy or obvious to find. So I’ll show you where they are hiding.

Amazon Book Promotion Links

Perfect book covers for sharing.

Amazon gives you a lot of promotional links, but you need to know where to find them.

Let’s start with a simple but extremely practical link.

Go to your book cover on your Amazon page, right-click, and save your cover image .

Why would you want to do this?

Because you probably have your cover in a large format.

Huge images are unsuitable for sharing or adding to a website or blog.

When you download your cover from Amazon, it is sized at 333 x 500 px.

This size is perfect for use on social media, in a blog post, or on websites.

It has also been losslessly reduced.

This means it has been optimized to be as small a file as possible and is perfect for online use.

You don’t even need to save it because you can grab your optimized cover anytime from Amazon.

You can also add a link to your book cover image to direct readers to your book on Amazon or any other location.

Share your fantastic book review link

When you get an excellent review, wouldn’t it be great if you could share it without all the other reviews, which may not be so glowing?

Well, you can. It’s easy to learn how to link to an Amazon book review.

Go to your book page on Amazon and select a review you want to use.

Then click on the review’s title. This will open as a single review.

Once you are there, click the permalink button, and the URL will appear in your browser’s address bar.

You can copy it to promote your fantastic review on your Facebook page or the author or book pages of your blog.

Here’s the link URL to the review in the browser address bar.

Add the Kindle Instant Preview widget to your blog or website

Would you like to add a preview read of your book on your website or blog with a buy this book button?

You can do it with a bit of Amazon code. But it’s not easy to find, and Amazon has moved this link many times.

But here is where you can find it now to add the Kindle Instant Preview to your site or blog.

Click on the share icon on the right of the book title. Then click the Embed link.

Now you can get the code to copy into your blog or website.

Once you add it, readers will see your book cover, the preview read, and the buy and share buttons.

You can choose a URL link or HTML code for your site.

An Amazon book bonus link

This link has two benefits.

It’s faster, and you might earn a little bit of extra money from your book sales.

You first need to apply to become a member of Amazon Associates .

It is Amazon’s affiliate marketing program. But you don’t need to do anything except enroll for free and then set your Associates Stripe to show when you visit Amazon.

More particularly, you will use it to promote your books on Amazon.

Once you set it up, you will see three different types of links you can use for your book promotion.

And money? You will earn a small percentage of sales made from your link.

Not only for your books but also for what people buy when they use your link to go to Amazon. It’s pocket money, but why not make what you can?

amazon associates for book promotion links

Facebook Promotion Links

Individual facebook post url.

Did you know that you can use links to your posts on Facebook?

You can add or embed your Facebook posts into your sites or on social media posts.

But the link is hidden from you. It’s the date or time that is your link!

Click on the date to get your post URL and copy it from your browser’s address bar.

promote your book with links on Facebook

Now copy the URL in the address bar to share your post.

Embed a Facebook post on your site

To embed your Facebook post on your site or blog, click on the three dots at the top of your post and select embed .

You will then get the code to use on your website.

Twitter (X) Links

Finding the hidden twitter (x) links..

You can get links and embed codes from Twitter in a similar fashion to Facebook.

They are also a little less than obvious. With Twitter, you need to click on the date or time to get your URL link.

Now copy your link from your browser’s address bar.

Embed a Twitter post.

Similar to Facebook again.

Click on the three small dots at the top of your Twitter post and select Embed Tweet.

You will get a pop-up with the code to add to your site.

Book Promotion Links Summary

On almost every social media platform, ebook retailer, or aggregator, there are free links that you can use for your book promotion, so do some digging.

The more ways you can find to share your book, the better your book promotion will be because it won’t be so one-dimensional.

You need to keep your book buzz going, so finding various ways to do this is key to a successful book promotion strategy.

Did you know that you can also add links to an ebook? Find out how to create links in ebooks .

Your book promotion campaigns need to have variety. So always be on the lookout for places to submit your books, both free and paid.

You can’t always get the reach you need by constantly trying to promote your book for free.

But you can try submitting your book to your choice of book promotion sites .

But be selective and choose a promotion service that will extend your book marketing well beyond your current reach.

Related Reading: Sell Books On Amazon Without A Website Or Social Media

About The Author

Derek Haines

Sell Books On Amazon Without A Website Or Social Media

Amazon Keywords Character Limit Can Help Improve Sales

How To Automate Social Media Posts For Book Promotion

16 thoughts on “promote your book with links you might not know about”.

Thank you so much for this really helpful information, which I’m going to start to put into practice right away!

I don’t often comment anywhere online but I wanted to take the time to say thanks for this post. It took a while to find decent content that described how to do what I was looking for and I appreciate your blog here putting this together.

Wow, you have been a tremendous help. I never would have monetised my site like this until I saw your post and I only came on it to see how I could better promote my book. Huge thanks.

The Amazon embed link doesn’t appear, even when I try other browsers. Help!

What blogging platform are you using? Some free platforms don’t accept iFrame HTML.

Pardon me, I wasn’t clear. What I mean is the button to generate the embed code is nowhere to be found on the Amazon page for my books. It’s also curious that the other sharing links are located above the purchasing box.

Okay. The embed link is only available if you have a Kindle version of your book. I will have to check if Amazon has changed this recently, or if I hadn’t noticed this before.

None of my Kindle books have the link. Did I do something wrong?

‘https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084WY1FVB/’

‘https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0864TGPJ6’

Every book I published is missing that embed link

I can see your problem. You should contact KDP support to ask to check your ebooks.

I love your post! So informative and easy to follow. You’re a wealth of information I desperately needed! Thank you! M. J. Umland

Happy to hear that you find out site of value, Michelle.

Derek – you’ve done it again. Amazing post. Thanks. Brad

Thank you for the compliment, Brad!

Wow, terrific and helpful blog post. I am not a techie by nature and this stuff comes with some difficulty. Thanks for breaking it all down and sharing your knowledge, Derek. It’s much appreciated.

Glad to hear this post was helpful, P.J.

Thanks so much for this most helpful post! Sharing on Twitter & Pinterest

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Ged & Book Marketing

Ged Cusack - Freedom Books and Book Marketing Services

How to Get More Amazon Book Reviews with Review Links

February 4, 2018 By Ged

The first thing to note is that your book is a product, and Amazon has designed their algorithm to put products in front of their customers, that they are most likely to want to buy.

Product reviews are a factor in the algorithms calculation but also a psychological factor in customer purchasing.

A majority of humans prefer not to be the first to try something, if they see that a product has no reviews, they perceive that they are one of the first customers and so they are less likely to buy it.

It’s a Numbers Game

Whatever process or strategy you adopt, to get more reviews for your book, it is a numbers game.

Results will vary but from my own experience and those of fellow authors (I communicate with), the average number of book buyers that leave a review, is somewhere between 0.5% to 2.5%

Personally, I’d say that the 2.5% may be a bit on the high side, so whatever you can do to increase the conversion rate from reader to reviewer should be considered.

Why wouldn’t you want to improve the odds of readers leaving you a review?

Make it Easy to Post Reviews

As an indie author myself, I know the importance of reviews but even I don’t review every book I read.

With our ever-diminishing attention span, statistics show that where someone has to click twice to make a purchase or navigate elsewhere online (that second click is enough that), they are more likely to abandon the journey.

Basically, humans are getting lazier!

One of the benefits that a Kindle book has over a physical product, is that you can actually ask nicely for a review within the book (product) and create a link directly to your books review page.

Remember that the purpose of this link is to make it easier for readers to leave a review.

Getting readers to login to Amazon and find their order and then place a review can seem like too much trouble, for even the most ardent fan. Doesn’t it make sense to have a link that they can click on, while they’re reading your book, taking them straight to that books review page?

Here’s an example Link for one of my books “Gratitude For Happiness” – Gratitude review link

Your Link Needs to Be Universal

Your Kindle book is sold on multiple Amazon sites such as Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.co.au, as well as Amazon.com. You need to ensure that the link in your Kindle book, takes the reader to the Amazon platform where they purchased it.

Lots of Authors create international links to direct buyers to the book on their local Amazon site. Free tools, on sites such as booklinker.net make it simple for even technologically challenged authors. There are other free tools out there that will allow you to create a universal link to your books actual review page.

There are various tools out there to create a link, but one of the easiest ways is to copy and paste your books ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number) into a Free tool provided on Russel Phillips UK Site Click Here

Create Your Listing then Upload an Updated Manuscript

You need your book to be live on Amazon before you can create your link, which means that once the book has passed through the review process, you will have to upload an updated version of your manuscript with the link included.

Rather than have to worry about lots of reformatting of your book content, I’ve found the easiest way to add your link is by already having the text in the initial upload.

Basically, include the words “Please Click Here to Review this book” (or something similar and once you have created the review link you can turn the same text into a hyperlink.

For Pre-orders, your book listing will be live but the review page won’t be active until the book is live. Remember to upload the updated manuscript ASAP after it’s live.

Don’t Break Amazons Terms of Service

With all the stories out authors having reviews stripped from their book listing and worries about Amazon stopping your book listing, authors can become paranoid about asking for reviews.

It can be quite confusing trying not to break the rules, rather than try to list all of the terms here, here’s a link to a video (provided by Dave Chesson) which provides some important guidance. Amazons Terms of Service Link

The Key Points

Once your book is live, create a link to its Amazon Review Page.
Ensure the link is universal and add it to the text in your manuscript as a hyperlink.
Upload your updated manuscript as soon as possible.

Find more solutions

Submit a Review

Share your thoughts with other customers by submitting a customer review. You can submit product feedback by selecting a star rating. You can add text, photos, or videos to your review at any time.

Go to the product detail page for the item. If you've placed an order for the item, you can also go to Your Orders .
Select Write a product review in the Customer Reviews section.
Select a Star Rating. A green check mark shows for successfully submitted ratings.
Optionally, add text, photos, or videos and select Submit .

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Amazon Book Reviews: How to Get Book Reviews on Amazon for Free

When it comes to Amazon book reviews, they are necessary to proactively market your book.

There’s almost nothing as important as Amazon book reviews when it comes to generating consistent book sales month after month and creating an effective book marketing strategy.

It’s not enough to publish your book and hope reviewers will find you. They almost certainly won’t. You need to work hard to find them and convince them to review your book.

But even that isn’t enough!

If you go about getting Amazon book reviews the wrong way, you risk incurring the wrath of Amazon. Your book will sink before it ever stood a chance of succeeding.

Related: Amazon Self-Publishing

So how can you get the Amazon book reviews you need in an ethical and effective way?

We’ve gathered together everything you need to know.

This guide to Amazon book reviews covers:

Why are amazon book reviews important, how many book reviews do i need on amazon.

How to get your book reviewed on Amazon

Can I review my own book on Amazon?

Book review services , can i contact the top reviewers on amazon.

Does Amazon support editorial reviews

Guidelines for Amazon reviews

Why does amazon remove book reviews.

If you’re new to the world of self-publishing , it might be unclear why there is so much importance placed on getting Amazon book reviews.

After all, if you create a good book, produce an attractive cover, and write a catchy description, shouldn’t that be enough?

As much as we might see our book as special, Amazon won’t.

At least, not at first. And neither will the vast majority of book browsers.

While the benefits of self-publishing are well-known, there are also some challenges you need to overcome in order to experience success.

One such challenge is the abundance of books released on Amazon.

The vast majority of books are lost amidst the noise. New titles are added to Amazon every few minutes, and there are endless titles already available.

What does this mean for you?

If you want to see your book reach the right readers, you need to do everything in your power to get it in front of them.

One of the most powerful ways to do that is by ensuring your book has reviews.

A lack of Amazon book reviews harms your book’s prospects in two ways.

First, a book without reviews is unlikely to even get noticed by the vast majority of book browsers.

Second, even if people do somehow stumble across your book, they are unlikely to borrow or buy it without a credible number of Amazon book reviews.

Here are the benefits to make your reviews worth it:

Trust. Book reviews are especially important when you’re just starting out as an author on Amazon . Put yourself in the shoes of a customer. Why should they trust your book? They almost certainly haven’t heard of you. Reviews overcome this problem. When people see that others have been helped or entertained by a book, it gives them the confidence they will experience the same result.
Algorithm. Amazon is famous for having one of the most powerful and effective algorithms out there. The company explores and experiments with every possible way to get customers to spend more. Reviews are a huge signal to Amazon that your book is worth promoting. Without a respectable number of Amazon book reviews close to the time of launch, your book will miss out on the immense power of Amazon’s promotional machinery.
External promotion. There are plenty of promotional services out there willing to help introduce your book to readers who are likely to benefit from it. However, most of them require you to have a certain number of positive reviews before they will even consider your book. You can also promote this on your author platform .
Feedback. Reviews are also a valuable source of feedback on your work. Yes, even the negative ones! You can get a sense of what readers did and did not like about your book and take this feedback on board for your future releases.

When it comes to success on Amazon, it’s almost impossible to overstate just how important reviews are.

Now that you know the benefits of reviews for your book, let’s take a closer look at exactly how to get them.

Getting people to take the time to review your book isn’t always easy, especially when you’re new to the self-publishing scene.

Given the difficulty of getting reviews, it’s natural to wonder just how many you need.

No matter what people might say, there is no magic number that you need. It varies from book to book.

However, there are some proven principles and guidelines you can use to inform the number of reviews you aim to get.

Check competing books. Take the time to check out other books that your ideal reader might be interested in. For example, which books rank for your keywords? Which books are selling well in your intended categories ? Try and look for books of similar stature to your own. How many reviews do they have? How many would you need to seem respectable in the eyes of a buyer choosing between your book and a competing title?
Aim for 10 minimum. 10 reviews seems to be the number that starts to move the needle for a lot of authors. When you’re putting together your initial strategy, make 10 book reviews the minimum number you aim for.
20 is ideal. If you’re capable of proactively getting 10 people to leave an Amazon review of your book, you’re more than capable of getting 20! Just double down on what you’re doing. We’ll explore exactly how shortly.
Don’t go overboard. After a certain number of Amazon book reviews, you’re unlikely to experience much extra benefit. The effort needed to seek out reviews is not commensurate to the benefits you will experience. Also, after getting a large number of reviews, buyers are likely to review your book of their own accord. You won’t need to seek them out. 30-50 reviews is a good guideline here, but a lower number may suffice depending on the books you are competing against.
Your promo strategy. Many authors make book promotion sites or services an integral part of their Amazon book marketing strategy. If you have a particular promotional site you want to be featured on, you’re probably going to need a certain number of Amazon book reviews to be eligible.

Even though there isn’t a particular number of Amazon book reviews that’s right for every book, there’s definitely a number that’s right for yours.

Use the above ideas to find it and make this a target you strive to hit.

Sadly, no. Some authors might think it’s a good idea to review their own book to get some initial momentum going for their Amazon book reviews, but that’s against the rules specified in Amazon’s Guidelines .

How to get Amazon book reviews

So how should you go about getting the reviews you need for your book to succeed?

Seeking out Amazon book reviews in the right way isn’t just a matter of doing what’s likely to get results.

It’s also a matter of respecting Amazon’s rules and regulations. If you fail to do so, you run the risk of having your reviews removed.

If you’re unsure of how to get the reviews your book needs, here are some effective techniques.

Set up a review plan prior to launch. A lot of authors learn the hard way that you can’t leave Amazon book reviews to chance. You need to have a clear plan in place way ahead of your book launch . This should involve a clear approach to hit your review target number as close to the time of your book going live as possible.
Reach out to existing readers. Do you have an email list of readers? Have you written anything in the past? Even if you don’t have books out, do you have a blog with readers? Could you leverage your author network to promote your book to another writer’s fans? Existing readers, either your own or another author’s, are a great potential source of Amazon book reviews.
Use social media. While social media is a valuable source of potential reviewers of your work, you should approach it with caution. If Amazon’s algorithm deems you to have a close connection with people on social media, their reviews of your book may be removed. In spite of that, it’s still worth utilizing options such as Facebook reading groups, relevant hashtags on Twitter or Instagram, visual platforms like Pinterest , and even Tik Tok if you have a younger audience, to seek out people who might be interested in your book.
Consider offline readers. Most authors will focus their review approach on the online world. By seeking out book clubs, library groups, and other interested communities offline, you open the door to a rich source of potential reviewers that many other authors aren’t aware of.
Create a launch team . One of the easiest ways to get reviews at launch is to have a big launch group on your side before your book ever drops on Amazon KDP. I recommend having a team of around 100 people who will reach an advanced reader copy in exchange for their authentic review. That way, when your book launches, you can have tons of Amazon book reviews straight away. If you aren’t sure how to build a launch group, there are companies that will help you put one together. At selfpublishing.com, our Elite Package guarantees your first 100 authentic Amazon book reviews.
CTA in your book. There’s no harm of asking for Amazon book reviews within your book itself. You can also include a link in the ebook version to make it as straightforward as possible.

Be aware that by asking for Amazon book reviews in any of the ways mentioned, you are seeking something of value from them. To make them want to take the time to help you, you need to frame your request in the right way.

Related: Amazon Book Description HTML: Making Words Look Better

Instead of coming across as self-serving or even desperate, why not base your review request around:

Feedback. If people respect your work they are likely to want to help you out as an author. If you make them feel like their feedback is valued, you are more likely to get a review.
Helping other readers. Another angle to take is appealing to a sense of community among readers. Rather than making your request for Amazon book reviews about yourself, make it about informing fellow readers about a book that might benefit or entertain them.
A promotional price point. It’s human nature to love a good deal. By emphasizing your book being offered at a low price point for a limited time, you tap into the psychological appeal of both value and scarcity, making it more likely that people will see it as worthwhile to review your book.

Combining the right sources of potential Amazon book reviews with the right type of request is the best way to get your book the review score it needs.

As well as seeking out relevant readers by yourself, a range of professional book review services exist.

While this can form a valuable part of your overall approach to Amazon book reviews, you need to be careful.

Amazon is known for being incredibly strict about people selling reviews. Many people on Fiverr have experienced this firsthand!

The Amazon review guidelines are elaborated on a little later in this guide, but as a general principle, always avoid paying for a review directly. That includes offering a gift of some type.

Instead of paying for a review on Fiverr, consider using one of these services:

Goodreads book giveaways
Rainbow Book Reviews

If you’re considering paying for a review service, make sure to check both of these two things before investing your money:

Compliance. Ensure any review service you’re considering is compliant with Amazon’s rules and regulations. Otherwise, you risk losing your money, having the review removed, and possibly even worse consequences if Amazon feels you’re being particularly underhanded.
Results. Check out what kind of results a review service promises, and what kind of success they’ve had in the past. Have they produced good results for books similar to yours? What kind of ROI can you expect?

Book review services can be a valuable way to help your book get the momentum it needs. Just make sure you’re dealing with a reputable and effective service provider.

No, the top Amazon reviewers are no longer available.

In the past, a popular way of seeking Amazon book reviews involved trying to find and contact the top reviewers on Amazon.

This may have worked well back in the day, but it’s not really something to pursue in the here and now.

The top Amazon reviewers no longer have emails available to reach out to. Even when they did, the odds of having a top reviewer take the time to check out your work was pretty slim.

Does Amazon support editorial reviews?

What exactly is an editorial review, and why does it matter for your book?

So far, we’ve talked about customer Amazon book reviews, which are exactly what they sound like. A customer reads your book and leaves their opinion. If they purchased it from Amazon, this would count as a verified review.

The other type of review to utilize is the editorial review. This involves a trusted source such as a magazine or publication giving their take on your book.

While editorial reviews aren’t included in your book’s review score and don’t show up with the customer reviews, this is actually a good thing.

Some of the main benefits of editorial reviews are:

They won’t get lost in the middle of the (hopefully) large number of customer reviews your book has
You can add them to your Amazon Author Central page
You are allowed to leverage your connections as Amazon can’t remove these in the way that they can remove customer reviews
A reputable publication or individual may carry more weight in the mind of a potential book buyer than an unknown customer reviewer

There’s no denying the value of editorial reviews, but think of them as icing on the cake.

Make customer reviews your priority, at least initially, as they will move the needle in terms of the Amazon algorithm.

Spend some time around the indie author community and you’ll come across some fairly angry writers.

A common source of frustration is the seemingly ever-changing Amazon review rules.

In reality, the Amazon review guidelines aren’t as bad as you might have heard.

You can check out the full picture here , but some basic principles include:

You can’t pay for Amazon book reviews. It’s absolutely prohibited to exchange money for a review of your book.]
You can’t ask for conditional reviews. Although it’s completely fine to ask for someone to review your book, you cannot request they review it in a certain way. Asking for an honest review is the best approach.
You can’t review a rival book. If Amazon feels someone is negatively reviewing a rival product of any type, they will remove that review.
You can’t rely on friends and family. Amazon states that reviews from close personal connections are not allowed. This can involve being friends with people and interacting on social media.
You can’t offer gifts. It’s not permissible to over an Amazon gift card or anything else whatsoever in exchange for a review. You can offer an ARC of your book but that’s all.

While it’s definitely worth respecting the Amazon review guidelines, try not to worry too much. As long as you’re operating from a place of good faith, the worst that will happen in the majority of cases is Amazon will remove some of your reviews.

Amazon Book Reviews: Tactics For The Amazon Algorithm Infographics

Amazon can remove reviews for violations of any of the guidelines mentioned above.

However, some of the most common reasons for a review to be removed are:

You have reviewed your own book
Someone with the same address as you has reviewed your book
A reviewer has attempted to leave multiple reviews of your work
The review is obscene, defamatory, or otherwise unacceptable
The reviewer is a customer who has spent less than $50 on Amazon
The reviewer appears to be a spammer who leaves too many reviews in a short space of time
You have reported the review to [email protected] and Amazon agrees it is unacceptable

Having some Amazon book reviews removed is a fact of life for most authors. Although it might seem frustrating, try and see the system as being in place to preserve the integrity of the entire process.

We hope you’ve found this guide to the dos and don’ts of Amazon book reviews useful.

If you have any tips on getting Amazon book reviews ethically, or warnings about Amazon’s rules and regulations, feel free to leave a comment and help your fellow authors out.

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Home / Book Marketing / How to Get Free Book Reviews with No Blog, No List, and No Begging

How to Get Free Book Reviews with No Blog, No List, and No Begging

You probably don’t have to be convinced of the importance of getting free book reviews as well as Kindle reviews.

However, how does a new author get those crucial Kindle book reviews or editorial reviews that will help to drive up sales ?

Most resources rely on tactics that require already existing fan base, elaborate platforms, and major connections.

That’s all fine and dandy…if you have those resources at your disposal or are willing to trade in your friendship for a favor.

But what about the rest of us?

The ones who don’t have raving fans ready to drop reviews on request. Or those of us without a giant email list, social media following , and oodles of friends that we ‘want’ to send our books to?

Despair not my friends, because in this guide on how to get book reviews, I’ll show you how you can legally, and legitimately get those reviews, even if you’re a brand new author.

In This Article I Will Show You:

A proven step-by-step method on how to get your book reviewed for free
Tactics to getting high conversions and good grades on book reviews
A time-saving method to expedite your book review process
Amazon’s rules regarding book reviews – the REAL rules

And yes, as you’ll see at the end of this article, each step is fully compliant with the up-to-date Amazon rules for getting book reviews.

1. Create Special Links to Go Straight to Your Review
2. Design a Book Review Ask in Your Book
3. Free Book Review Sites
How to Build a Giveaway

5. Using Launch Teams & ARCs Effectively

6. Reminder in Your Auto Responder System
7. Relaunch Your Book
Editorial Reviews vs Amazon Reviews
Amazon’s Rules on Book Reviews
Some Legit Paid Ways to Speed Up The Process

Also, while I’m writing this with the new author in mind, it’s totally applicable to all authors…even the pros. Finally, please be aware that I did use some affiliate links in this article. Those links did not sway my thoughts on the article, nor does it affect your pricing. It's just a little something that goes towards my coffee fund to keep me writing.

One mistake many authors make is when they request for someone to give their book a review, they just send the person a link to their book, making the person click around till they finally get to the review page where they can write the review…yeesh, that’s a lot of steps!

Because of this, readers will more than likely not follow through. I know I haven’t in the past.

However, what if there was one special link you could send them that would take them straight to the review of your book? All they’d have to do is click, and they start writing the review.

Well, you can and here’s how:

Step 1. Depending on the format you want the review to be directed to, either find your ASIN for the eBook, or the ISBN -10 for the book (NOT ISBN-13), or the ASIN for the Audiobook.

Step 2. Take the following link, and add your number from step 1: http://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin= + (ASIN or ISBN 10)

Step 3 . The above link is only to the US market. If you want a different market, you need to just change out the “.com” to the appropriate one like “.de” for german, or “.co.uk”, and so on. However, be sure to check that country's ASIN or ISBN-10 for that same book…because sometimes it will be different – although this is mainly for published books and usually isn't the case for self-published books. But just check – you don't want your links to not work.

Example of What The Result Should Look Like : US: http://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=B0041JKFJW UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/create-review?&asin=B004H4XAXO DE: https://www.amazon.de/review/create-review?&asin=0765365278 etc…

As you can see, that will take you directly to The Way of Kings Audiobook review, since I used the ASIN for the audiobook. (PS: I'm a big fan of Brandon Sanderson, and will be meeting him in a couple of months to discuss book marketing …fan boy scream).

Now, any time you request a review in an email, message, or whatever, send them that special link to your book. That way, all they have to do is click the link and type the review. You’ll have a much higher chance that they’ll follow through and leave the review.

Caution: Your Link Not Working? First, if your link isn't working, just remember that Amazon won't allow you to leave a review for your own book. So, have someone else try your link. Also remember that in order to leave a review, someone needs to have made $50 purchase on Amazon that year.

Also, for the rest of the steps below, make sure you use this link when necessary. That’s why it is the first point in this list.

This may sound crazy but when you ask for a review after your book is done, you’ll not only increase the number of reviews, but also improve your review grade.

When I did this one simple addition to one of my books, I saw the conversion rate of book purchases to reviews left increase by 3x and has stayed that way since.

You see, we authors know how important a review is. But we forget that readers don’t always understand this and need more coaxing to take the little bit of extra effort to write a book review. Therefore, just by asking, you’ll see much higher conversions.

But that’s not all. There are actually some tactics to this section that can and will improve the number of book reviews you get, as well as the review grade.

When creating the ask, it is best to do the following:

Humanize Yourself : Find ways to remind the reader that you are actually a human with emotions and feelings. Remind them of how hard it was to put this book together. By doing this, they’ll be more likely to leave ‘you’ a review. Extra bonus tip: I sometimes like to post a candid non professional or staged picture of me with my family in this section because it really goes a long way to getting to know me, and feel more personal.

Impress Upon Them the Importance of the Review : Like I mentioned above, readers don’t fully understand the importance of a review. Therefore, remind them how they help you as an author and your book.

Tell Them You’ll Read the Book Review : When readers think that you’ll read and take to heart their review, two things will happen: they’ll feel more obligated to leave one since you’re depending on them, and their review grade will probably improve since they’ll know you, the human, will actually read it. We’ve all been there where we have a bunch of gusto against sometime, but the moment they’re there, we soften our tone. Same thing with reviews. I assure you, most criticism will become more constructive in nature when they know you’ll be there to read it.

Below is an example that Ken Lozito did with his absolutely incredible book series “ First Colony .”

I can’t show it all, but ultimately Ken told the story of the sacrifice he made to become an author and some inside information about his life, and struggles to get that series out.

He did all three of the things listed above without sounding cheesy or coming across as begging. It’s a fine art!

Needless to say, I had listened to 7 of the books in that series, but on the 7th one where he put this in his audiobook, it legitimately made me not only give the 5 stars at the end, but take the time to write a well-thought-out review. I felt like it was the least I could do.

So, as you can see, there needs to be a fine balance of asking without overstepping. But when done right, you’ll see more reviews come through with better grades for every reader you get.

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There are websites out there where some fans of a genre or subject loves to read books and leave reviews. Many of them have different reasons for this, but overall, they can be beneficial.

Be advised though, most of the review sites out there will read your book and make a review on their website, but that it won’t be an Amazon review (see below to read more about Amazon reviews vs Editorial Reviews). Even without the Amazon review, a book review site’s review can still be a powerful editorial review. Imagine being able to put in your editorial review for your scifi book, a glowing acknowledgment from TopSciFiBooks.com . Just the domain alone will carry anyone to better belief in your book, then some person or author name they've never heard of.

Here are some of my favorites free book review sites:

Love Books Group : Reviews books on their site is a easy process to submit. Affaire de Coeur : A bi-monthly magazine that publishes reviews in historical, contemporary, paranormal, erotica, YA, and nonfiction primarily. Book Page : Must send an ARC 3 months prior to publication date The Kindle Book Review : Offers a list of reviews to contact individually based on preferred genres. Compulsive Reader : Mainly focuses on literary fiction and poetry, they also review music CDs and other interesting things. Crime Fiction Lover : Recommends sending a Press Release (***) and a bit hard to get into. Book Smugglers : a highly read book blog that likes to focus on Horror, Urban Fantasy, SciFi, and YA. Crime Scene Reviews : Reviews Crime and Mystery novels SF Book : Started in 1996, SF books offers a list of Scifi Book reviewers you can contact individually Fantasy Book Critics : Lists a bunch of legit book review sites, as well as offers their own in the Fantasy realm Top Sci Fi Books : This website lists the best scifi and fantasy books based on certain subgenres. They have a sweet spot though for self published authors. Barnes & Noble Review : An incredible name for a Editorial Review, however, they require you to physically mail a copy and a cover letter in for consideration.

If you’d like to see more niche-specific examples, Reedsy has done an AMAZING job of curating a list of book review websites , their requirements and even how much traffic each site potentially gets. However, do note, many sites on that list aren’t always free.

You can check out that list here: https://blog.reedsy.com/book-review-blogs/

I also wanted to mention StoryOrigin . When you use StoryOrigin, not only do you join a community of other authors, you basically have all the not-so-fun back end of things taken care of by using them. They help you build your email list, find reviewers, deliver lead magnets and more. Be sure to check them out!

4. A Giveaway Contest that is Legal!!!

In truth, I almost didn’t include this one. Not because it breaks any rules, but because you need to ABSOLUTELY follow my steps in order to stay compliant with Amazon.

But when done right, this tactic is extremely killer!

What you do is create a giveaway contest. In this contest, if they click the link that points to your book’s review page (see special link discussed above), they are automatically entered into the contest. That's it.

This works because, when they click the link, many readers will decide to leave a review since they are already there. This is compliant in Amazon’s eyes because they are entered in the contest by just clicking the link, not by submitting a review. Therefore, the review is not incentivized. You can see an example below on how to word this for best optimization as well as staying compliant.

Step 1 : Build a giveaway Step 2 : Make it clear that to enter the giveaway, they just need to click the link that points to your book’s review page (see #1 above) Step 3 : And that’s it.

There are two ways to build a giveaway:

1. Use Your Email System : You can send out an email blast to your readers with the instructions on how to do this. With most email systems like ConvertKit , you can mark which subscribers clicked on the link in the email. Then when the time is up, you can select from there.

2. Use KingSumo : This is a paid app that is around $49 for life, but it makes creating contests SUPER simple. Furthermore, it handles the legality issues on contests, and you can post links to the contest on Social Media, email, or even embed it on your website. You can check it out here .

Using a launch team or Beta Readers and sending Advanced Review Copies (ARCs) is an important tactic that help with your book’s overall launch by ensuring you have good reviews on day-one of the launch. If you’re unfamiliar with that, then check out this article here .

But the short and simple to this tactic is that prior to launching your book, you send ARCs to people who will hopefully read the book, and or be prepared to leave a review upon your book's launch.

However, working with lots of authors, it’s become apparent that most DO NOT do ARC reviews as effectively or efficiently as they should, creating a super low conversion rate of beta readers who leave a review. Most times, this tactic sounds promising but is actually a complete let down.

Well, not if you do the following extra saucy tips, which will ENSURE you get more reviews out of it:

1. Stop sending mass emails to all Beta Readers : If you really want people to take action, ensure you talk to them personally. Send each beta reader a personal email asking him or her to take certain actions. They’ll feel more obligated to act when you are specifically emailing them and counting on their review. Whereas when it's obviously a mass email, many will inherently think that it's fine and you won't notice if they don't.

2. Track Your Readers : I actually develop a spreadsheet listing each beta reader or launch team member, when I last talked with them last, if they've left a review and any other notes. It’s important to keep track of them and that way no one slips through the cracks. You can also use a plugin like ReaderScout to know exactly when someone has left a review.

3. Have Them Notify You When It’s Dropped : Tell your beta readers or launch team members that once they’ve dropped the review, to let you know so you can read it. It isn’t just the expectation that you’re specifically waiting for their review, but also that you really want to know what they thought. Make it clear that it would mean the world to you. With this, they’ll feel as though you truly care and are waiting on them.

4. Remind them They Don’t have to Read All Of It : The biggest hang-up I get from Beta Readers is that they couldn’t finish the book in time and will leave one “later” (which they never do). However, remind them that they do not have to finish the book in order to leave a review, and that they can always change the review once they’ve finished it if they’d like. They can instead talk about what they’ve read so far, or even your legitimacy on the subject or genre. This way, there is not excuse to not leaving a review.

If you employ these four tactics to beta readers or launch teams, you’ll absolutely double your conversion rates of reviews left.

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If you have an email list, then make sure to use your auto responder to help with your reviews.

Think about it…

If they signed up for your email list, then it means that they read your book and liked it. However, it definitely does not mean they left a review.

Therefore, set in your auto responder an email that specifically uses the tactics of 1 and 2 above to convince them to leave a review. This will help increase your book’s review frequency, its grade, and even help with your email system. Furthermore, employing #2 above, in the email, you'll build a stronger author brand and connection with your readers.

There are a couple of different ways to relaunch your book, and things to think about when doing so. However, let's discuss why this really helps with your book reviews and should be considered.

Amazon loves new books: I call this the Amazon honeymoon period. I don't have any empirical data to prove this, but through years of working with books, when a book is launched, Amazon gives preferential treatment to new books.
Use a new launch team: Perhaps you didn't effectively use your launch team or beta readers as well as we discussed in step 5. Well, by relaunching, you can. So, employ those steps and see real good come from it.
Update some information: Look at your book as it is, and ask if there is something you can do to improve it. Perhaps you've seen some comments brought up in the reviews? Or you know there is a section you should add? These changes will help improve your book's review grades.

We all know what Amazon reviews are. But do you fully understand what a Amazon Editorial Review is?

On Amazon, there is a section on your book's sales page where you can enter “Editorial Reviews” through you Author Central Account (here is how to setup one if you haven't already). In the editorial review, you can put just about anything here.

It could be from what a website said about your book, a news paper, a verbal recommendation, etc. The point is, you can use what people say outside of Amazon, here. As we showed from a heat map study, readers pay attention to the section. So, therefore, use the tactics listed above in order build a persuasive Editorial Review section for your book.

However, these are NOT Amazon reviews. Amazon reviews are where someone went to Amazon and left a review for your book itself.

There is a little bit of confusion when it comes to giving a free book and asking for reviews. In truth, Amazon was a little confusing about how they look at this.

However, I went through all of Amazon's user agreements, FAQ's and even their own memo's so as to give you a definitive answer of:

YES, you can give a free copy of your book in advance for a review.

But there are some caveats and nuisances to this statement. So, check out the video below and learn all about Amazon's Book Review policy and ensure you are continually operating in Amazon's good graces.

So, here is a list what you can’t do:

1. Pay or Incentive Someone to Leave a Review in any way: This is different from the giveaway because they entered the giveaway by clicking the link and not by leaving a review

2. Offering a free gift if they review

3. Offering to refund the author their money for the review

You can give the book for free to them as an ARC. But you can't cover their costs. While they are both essentially “free,” the second one requires a review in order to make it free, thus incentivizing the review.

The same can be said about offering to send a Amazon gift card to cover the book

4. Swapping reviews with another author

I repeat, you cannot pay or incentive someone in any way to leave a review. But you can pay to promote your book to readers who are likely to leave reviews .

Self-Publishing Review is one example of a service that sells email list promotions designed to result in more sales and more unbiased reviews. If you're looking for opportunities, that could be worth looking into. Use the code KINDLEPRENEUR5 to save 5% on anything from their site.

ReaderScout is another tool I highly recommend for authors who want to track all of the reviews that come in. This makes it much easier for you to know when your ARC readers, for example, have actually left their review. ReaderScout is a completely FREE Chrome plugin and reviews aren't the only thing it tracks. Check it out here.

Now, Let's Go Get Those Book Reviews

No matter which route you’ll go, there’s no easier way to get the initial reviews, especially if you’re an unknown author. An additional benefit of this approach is that you’ll get to speak with your readers directly, thus getting valuable feedback and building new relationships.

I hope you enjoyed this guide on how to get free book reviews. It seems pretty straightforward, but can be a little time-consuming…but as most authors will tell you, getting your book reviewed can be a powerful metric that should have a positive effect on your Kindle sales.

Dave Chesson

When I’m not sipping tea with princesses or lightsaber dueling with little Jedi, I’m a book marketing nut. Having consulted multiple publishing companies and NYT best-selling authors, I created Kindlepreneur to help authors sell more books. I’ve even been called “The Kindlepreneur” by Amazon publicly, and I’m here to help you with your author journey.

5. Using Launch Teams & ARCs Effectively

How to write a book description that captivates readers (and sell books), how to change your kindle keywords and why you should, how to become an organized author, sell more books on amazon, amazon kindle rankings e-book.

Learn how to rank your Kindle book #1 on Amazon with our collection of time-tested tips and tricks.

208 thoughts on “ How to Get Free Book Reviews with No Blog, No List, and No Begging ”

Hi Dave, Am I missing a step or is adding the review link to your e-book something you can only do after book release? In order to use the link you need an ASIN. My plan was to hit publish for my paperback and hope after doing so I would see the ASIN to add the completed book review link – so that I could then hit the publish button on my e-book. Is this even possible or should I be patient and add the link at a later date? Thanks in advance!

For this, if you do a pre-order, you can get it preemptively.

I was wondering if you have any suggestions for getting reviews on low or no content books as they are not generally available on Kindle.

Well, that’s one reason why making a ebook version can be helpful for those books (if you get the formatting down). If not though, then I guess that is a bit of a game changer on what one can do. Limitations being physical books and all.

Hi, Dave, Thanks so much for all of these tips. Some excellent ideas!

Per the giveaway, do you find that people leave reviews if they haven’t yet read the book? And if they decide to do a quick star rating rather than a written review, does that still carry any weight with potential readers?

Thanks for your response.

I’ve seen some come in where it looked as though they hadn’t read it. So it definitely happens.

Hi Dave, thank you for the valuable information’s, just a question please

In the way the person has to write a review for entering in contest giveaway, how’s can be the next step to send to the winner his copy paperback as promise ?

Using a program like the one discussed in the article, it will handle selecting the winner. Then contact them, get their mailing address and send them the prize.

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Amazon: How to link directly to a product review

If you are sending out emails requesting people to review your product on Amazon, there is a way to structure the link that will take them directly to the review section instead of to the product page.

The URL in your link should look like this: https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review?asin=B015EDLTWU

Where the ASIN is correct for the product you want people to review. So this link should take you to a page to review the Burley Bee Child Carrier.

Oddly, this seems to work even if the person hasn’t purchased the product!

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COMMENTS

How to give readers a direct Amazon review link
Click on that. Copy that URL and shorten it. Share the link with readers. In particular, include it when you give them the Build Book Buzz Reader Book Review Form. Add it to the end of your book so readers can click on it in the e-version or type it into a browser for the print version.
Amazon Book Review
Best mysteries and thrillers of August 2024, as chosen by the Amazon Editors. by Vannessa Cronin | August 06, 2024. EDITORS' PICKS.
How to Create a Link on Amazon for Book Reviewers
All you have to do is put your ASIN after the = mark. Here is how you do it. Step 1: Copy and paste the link to your URL address box. Step 2: Look for the ASIN. You will find the ASIN under the Product Details of your book. So you just have to scroll down your book page and look for Product Details.
Linking from Your Website
Linking from Your Website. To create a direct link to your book's detail page from other websites, add your 10-character Amazon Standard Identification Number to the end of the URLs below, in place of the letters ASIN. You can find your ASIN under the book's title in your KDP Bookshelf or on the book's detail page under "Product Details."
How do I find my Amazon review's URL?
Via Email. When Amazon approves your review, they usually send you an email telling you that your review has been approved. Search your emails with the the subject Thank you for reviewing. Click See your full review. This should take you to a new page. Copy the URL in your browser's address bar. That is your Amazon review's URL.
The Best Way to Rack Up Book Reviews on Amazon
Go to your product page once your book is live, click on the reviews button, then scroll down to the bottom and click on "see all __ customer reviews. Click on that link. Now, grab the URL in the search bar at the top. Only grab to the end of the numbers and include the forward slash.
Easily Create Amazon Review Links
Here's the trick. In just a few simple steps, you can easily create Amazon review links that open directly to the Amazon review page of your book. With one click, the reader is at the review page. is 1642500135, the ebook ASIN is 1642500135, and the audiobook ASIN is B07WT5M3SP. Follow this simple formula for each of your book formats.
How to Find a Direct Link to Your Amazon Review: A Step by Step
Click on "See Review". (If you don't see your review, you are either not logged in or you haven't posted your review correctly.) Step 3: Now you are on a page displaying only your review. Highlight the link at the top. This is your direct link. Copy and paste this link into your email or form when you report your book review. There you go!
Amazon Review Link
Enter an Amazon ASIN or a link to an Amazon product page and click Create link. The generated link will redirect a user to the product's review page on their local Amazon website, or the US site if there isn't a local site. Note that the link will only work properly if the book is available for sale - it won't work if the book is only ...
How to add Amazon editorial reviews to your book page (and why)
2. Once you're at your dashboard, click on the Books tab in the top menu. 3. Select the book you want to add Amazon editorial reviews for. ( Note: If there are multiple versions of your book, you'll need to add the reviews to each one.) 4. Choose the Editorial Reviews tab and click on the Add button. 5.
Mini Guide: How to Get Legitimate Amazon Reviews for Your Books
Setting your book to free and putting a review request with a direct link to the review form in your book's back matter. But before we get into the how-to, we first need to answer an oft-overlooked question. ... I received two Goodreads reviews and an Amazon review for an urban fantasy book when the price was $60. It has since increased to $250.
How to Include a Link to a Kindle Review Page Before Pub Date
Here it is in 5 simple steps: Step 1: List your eBook for Kindle Pre-order. You do not need the final edition; a copy of Word will do and you can replace it with the final file at least 3 days before your book's release date. In about 24 hours your Kindle should be live in the store. Step 2: Find your ASIN.
How to Make a Special Amazon Book Review Link [Fast and Easy Method]
Getting more book reviews can be hard for some authors. However, with this special link that we were able to create over at Kindlpreneur you can now get tons...
Amazon Verified Reviews for Books: Everything You Need to Know
To be safe, we recommend keeping your book priced at $2.99 or higher. While I have seen verified reviews with $0.99 books, is not a guarantee. And free books are unlikely to lead to verified reviews. Amazon then lists verified views with a "Verified Purchase" badge within the review.
How to Get Book Reviews on Amazon the Quickest and Easiest Way
Here are some tips to help you get the most reviews from your book launch. 1. Set a Launch Date. Setting a specific launch date helps you plan your book launch, coordinate your promotion plan with your publishing team (if you have one), and start your PR campaign two to three months before the launch date.
Promote Your Book With Links You Might Not Know About
Click on the share icon on the right of the book title. Then click the Embed link. Now you can get the code to copy into your blog or website. Once you add it, readers will see your book cover, the preview read, and the buy and share buttons. You can choose a URL link or HTML code for your site.
How to Get More Amazon Book Reviews with Review Links
Basically, include the words "Please Click Here to Review this book" (or something similar and once you have created the review link you can turn the same text into a hyperlink. For Pre-orders, your book listing will be live but the review page won't be active until the book is live. Remember to upload the updated manuscript ASAP after it ...
Submit a Review
Your submission must follow our Community Guidelines or we won't post the review. Go to the product detail page for the item. If you've placed an order for the item, you can also go to Your Orders. Select Write a product review in the Customer Reviews section. Select a Star Rating. A green check mark shows for successfully submitted ratings.
Amazon Book Reviews: How to Get Book Reviews on Amazon for Free
Create a launch team. One of the easiest ways to get reviews at launch is to have a big launch group on your side before your book ever drops on Amazon KDP. I recommend having a team of around 100 people who will reach an advanced reader copy in exchange for their authentic review.
How to Get Free Book Reviews without having a blog ...
First, if your link isn't working, just remember that Amazon won't allow you to leave a review for your own book. So, have someone else try your link. Also remember that in order to leave a review, someone needs to have made $50 purchase on Amazon that year.
Amazon Reviews: How to Get Free Book Reviews on Amazon
Amazon Reviews: How to Get Free Book Reviews on Amazon. In this post, I am going to take you through the step-by-step process for getting loads of Amazon reviews on your next book launch.
Amazon: How to link directly to a product review
If you are selling products on Amazon and need to create a link directly to the review page for a specific product, this is how. If you are sending out emails requesting people to review your product on Amazon, there is a way to structure the link that will take them directly to the review section instead of to the product page.
How to review a book on Amazon, and get approved
How to review a book on Amazon. Plus how to set up an Amazon account.Authors can share this tutorial with your readers.The Online Shift book:Canada: https://...
Strategies To Get More Reviews on Amazon in 2024
MetricsCart's Amazon Review Monitoring tool is an essential asset in managing and optimizing your review strategy. Advanced algorithms allow sellers to track all incoming reviews in real-time, providing valuable insights into customer sentiment and identifying themes that can inform product improvements or marketing strategies.

How to give readers a direct Amazon review link

Finding your direct Amazon review link

Abbreviated transcript/instructions:

Why this is important

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How to Create a Link on Amazon for Book Reviewers

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In the “Write a Customer Review” Block

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Amazon Review Link

How to add Amazon editorial reviews to your book page (and why)

Table of Contents

How to Get Editorial Reviews

Why Are Editorial Book Reviews Important?

Mini Guide: How to Get Legitimate Amazon Reviews for Your Books

Why You SHOULD Bother

Qualitative Feedback: Using Reviews to Improve Your Craft

Quantitative Feedback

Common Practices to Avoid

Method #1: Use a Review Service

The Best Option

Personally Untested, But Good For Others

Additional Options I Haven’t Personally Tested

Method #2: Ask Your List

Method 3: Cross Promo to Autoresponder

Method #4: Create Your Own ARC Team

Method #5: Ask in the Back Matter and Then Set Your Book to Free

Special Trick: Get Pre-Release Reviews

Wrapping Up

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Here it is in 5 simple steps:

A word of caution

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