How Important Are Online Book Reviews?

Reviews are a big deal for all authors. Whether they’re publishing with Simon & Schuster or self-publishing a few thousand copies, early reviews can make or break a book’s long-term success.

There are exceptions, of course. Novels like For Whom The Bell Tolls, To Kill a Mockingbird, or The Handmaid’s Tale all had bad reviews but went on to be classics. Yet for the overwhelming majority of books, reviews are the key to notoriety and sales.

The online review has also grown in importance since most people now read content online. These reviews are shareable and in some cases even influence your book’s exposure.

The Amazon Ranking System

Over the years I’ve had a lot of conversations with other writers about the ranking system on Amazon. Some had books ranked in the hundreds of thousands, while others posted on social media about their books being in the top 100. Many writers get into the addictive habit of checking their rankings daily.

Does a lower Amazon ranking make one book better than another? That’s one philosophical question we won’t be able to answer in this blog. What a good Amazon ranking does indicate is smart marketing.

In basic terms, books are split into different categories and subcategories on Amazon based on their subject matter. Some categories are more competitive than others (biographies vs. dog training handbooks, for example).

The more books you sell, the lower your ranking is within that category. But, that’s the point to remember. Being No. 1 in an obscure subcategory is probably not the same as a highly competitive one like mysteries/thrillers.

As a result, rankings change constantly from day to day, sometimes by thousands of spots. Getting verified reviews (from people who actually bought your book) is believed to help with ranking under Amazon’s algorithm. More reviews are also a good way to convince a shopper to purchase your book.

So what should you do? Get as many people as you can to buy your book on Amazon and leave a review. But don’t stress out too much about it. Remember, people also purchase books at Barnes & Noble, Target, Bookshop, Wal-Mart, bookstores with online stores, and even direct from a publisher. You can’t let yourself get too caught up on Amazon.

Open a Goodreads Account

Online stores like Amazon or Barnes & Noble are good places to collect reviews, but all writers and readers should have a Goodreads account. This social media app is a great place to discover new books, rate books you love, and eventually promote your own book.

You can create an account for free. Once it’s open, you can add new books to your “Want to Read” or “Read” collection. The app offers a ton of recommendations and reading challenges to keep you busy.

From a book marketing perspective, you can add your book to Goodreads so friends, family, or fans can add it. They can give your book between one to five stars, and leave a more in-depth review if they want. Books with many reviews get added to other promotional materials like e-newsletters.

Writers can send advance copies of their books to people they know on Goodreads for a review and even host giveaways to help build a buzz (these do cost a few dollars to host). Goodreads also helps authors build their platforms.

People who are serious about books are on Goodreads.

Focus on Getting Online Reviews

Whether you’re a published author or about to release your first book, you should focus on getting more online reviews. Most people are now browsing titles and shopping online, so having a broad range of reviews will help with your book sales.

Major reviews from trade publications are fantastic but they’re not something authors can control. Instead, use reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, or other book sites to attract more readers. Getting more reviews could be as simple as asking people who’ve read your book to leave a quick review on your Facebook author page.

The point is to get started on building up those online reviews to convince other readers that they should spend money and time on your work.