which come first - reviews or sales

[bxs122]

I am sure this topic has been discussed - which comes first, reviews or sales??

[Wren Emerson]

I gave away a couple of hundred copies of my novel when I published it, no strings. It was strictly about creating a buzz to hopefully boost my sales. I also pointed people towards this list I wrote that gave a lists of actions readers could do to help an indie out. I believe that people will generally be helpful if they are given an indication of ways that they can make that happen. My faith was rewarded and I started out with 20+ 4 & 5 star reviews on Amazon and more on GoodReads.

My advice is to gently encourage people to leave reviews. Maybe run a short promotion where you give out copies of your book in exchange for reviews. You could write your own list or link to the one I wrote. Basically just put the word out that you'd love it if people would take a few minutes to leave you a short review.

http://listography.com/wrenemerson/books/ways_to_show_you_love_my_book

[foreverjuly]

If you don't have the reviews, the sales will suffer, but if a book takes off like a rocket out of the gate then both will come pretty much at the same time.

[Millard]

If you've not had many of either, that's a real chicken and egg question. At the level I'm at of both, I really have no idea, but too low of either is bad news for both.

[Jeroen Steenbeeke]

If you've not had many of either, that's a real chicken and egg question. At the level I'm at of both, I really have no idea, but too low of either is bad news for both.

Which is exactly the problem I currently have. I just had a "get this novel free" day on Amazon so perhaps some of the people who downloaded it will leave reviews, but right now I have zero reviews and not a lot of sales.

[Millard]

One thing I do know is that the most reviewed of all four of my books, with seven reviews on Amazon.co.uk and three on .com, is by far the lowest selling.

Of course, there could be other factors - second in a series, highest priced - but at the level I'm at, the reviews don't seem to be a driving force.

[D a l y a]

Free giveaways don't lead to many reviews, not in my experience.  I mean, you have to give away a LOT to get one review.

People generally review if they LOVE a book or HATE it.  Most people who are satisfied with the book and feel it lives up to the current average rating don't post, because they don't feel a need to "fix" the score.  I hate getting a lower-star review, but in a way, it actually encourages people who liked or loved the book to post a review and help balance the reviews.

The best way to get reviews is through book bloggers.  Their reviews often get upvoted as helpful, too, because they're usually quite thorough.

[Millard]

People generally review if they LOVE a book or HATE it.  Most people who are satisfied with the book and feel it lives up to the current average rating don't post, because they don't feel a need to "fix" the score.  I hate getting a lower-star review, but in a way, it actually encourages people who liked or loved the book to post a review and help balance the reviews.

To repeat a point I made the other day in another thread, although as writers we're all "X people have bought my book, so why have none of them reviewed it?", we should ask ourselves how many reviews we've left, just because we had the urge. I've bought hundreds of items from Amazon over the last 13 years, and I've not once felt the need to leave a review, other than one time, when it was part of an effort from the creator of a cancelled TV show to prove to the BBC there was a demand for a DVD release. And that's kinda the same boat we're in. We don't have the weight of publishers, or advertising campaigns, so we're relying a little on readers - who, yes, we may know on some level, even if that's just occasional exchanges over Twitter - to pitch up and help out. As such, it's really not that shameful to do the occasional prod in a tweet or status update to call on readers who'd like to leave a short review to do so, because the regular ratio of buys:reviews isn't going to bear a lot of fruit very quickly.

[George Berger]

I am sure this topic has been discussed - which comes first, reviews or sales??

Sales.

I remain unconvinced that reviews have a positive effect on sales, and I'm increasingly coming to question whether they have any effect at all.

[S.A. Mulraney]

Sales.

I remain unconvinced that reviews have a positive effect on sales, and I'm increasingly coming to question whether they have any effect at all.

Though you might argue that reviews might not have a positive effect, I'm sure a book with consistently low reviews (1 and 2 stars) might have more of a struggle than one with good to high reviews (3+ stars). But, price point might also play into that ("I'll pay $0.99 for an X-star rated book, but I wouldnt pay $2.99").

The problem with the "reviews or sales" question is that it suggests it's an either/or situation, which it isn't. There are clearly many variables involved.

[Andrew Warwick]

A real egg-chicken question.  Rather too philosophical for my tastes.

I'm not sure anyone knows exactly, and everyone has their own views.  So I'll answer 'fish.'

The biggest mover of books seems to be word of mouth rather than reviews - and rating.  Being way up the top of the lists helps move more copies, which keep it there.