How to Get Reviews to Show First on Goodreads

Goodreads is the earth'south largest site for readers and book recommendations, and an bonny spot for authors to promote their books to readers to become reviews. Authors sometimes wonder how to finer accomplish and engage with reviewers on Goodreads, specially when they can meet how much Goodreads reviews can impact the success of a book.

At that place are two dissimilar approaches for authors when it comes to promoting books on Goodreads that authors should leverage together. There's the "pure marketing" arroyo, for which Goodreads provides suite of advertising products for authors to utilise to build awareness around their books. The other approach involves investing in edifice long term relationships with readers that can pay off over fourth dimension.

If you have the time and are willing to invest it, here are some ways to appoint with reviewers on Goodreads:

Share your passion for books. The number 1 activity readers desire to see from authors on Goodreads is the books they read and recommend. People go to Goodreads to talk about books, and authors who embrace this unlock the power to finer integrate Goodreads into their overall online presence.

Successful authors like Celeste Ng and Roxane Gay spent years curating their shelves on Goodreads while concurrently writing their books. The authors accept more than than 500 books marked as 'read' and Ng even created custom shelves to give a better sense of what she's reading.

Adding a few books to your WTR shelf one time a week or updating the status of the book you just finished is all it takes to stay engaged with the Goodreads customs. You might choose to take a more strategic approach: review books that are in the same genre as the volume y'all have written, create shelves of books you used for inspiration, or mark books that you loved in high school.

Build genuine relationships. When browsing the reviews of the books you love, y'all'll observe readers who share your preferences. It might exist tempting to shoot them a quick message to introduce yourself and your volume, but at that place's the risk that the message might be perceived as spam. Instead, follow the reviewer and run into what books you both enjoyed, see their reviews and updates in your newsfeed, and then engage with them in the comment department of those reviews and updates. Appoint with the reviewer over a shared passion for reading. Remember: relationships take fourth dimension to cultivate so don't give upward if you don't see immediate results.

Know when to mention your book. There are many areas where authors tin talk virtually their own book, and guess what? Your book page is ane of them. Reviewing your own book is allowed as long as it's clear that the work y'all're reviewing is your ain. Approach the review space of your own volume like you would writing a foreword, adding additional insights that didn't make it into the blurb (run across an case here) and sharing occasional updates.

While you're on the book page, avoid responding to reviews about your ain book. Fifty-fifty if yous similar a specially positive review of your own volume, resist the urge to hit 'like' on Goodreads. Instead, follow the reviewer to see what else the person might be reading (hey - if they liked your book, you already know they have not bad taste!) and commencement engaging with them nearly books you both enjoyed.

Let reviewers contact you. Ask the Writer allows authors to take questions from readers anywhere in the world, at whatsoever time. The questions aren't public until the writer chooses to answer them, and it's perfectly fine to skip questions. Check your Author Dashboard for new questions regularly and tell readers to inquire you questions using Ask the Author past sharing the link to your Goodreads contour on your website, newsletter, web log, or social media account.

You can talk about your book through Ask the Author – in fact, nosotros encourage it past asking "Where did yous become your idea for your most contempo book?" – but you can employ it in many other artistic ways as well: share some original writing or personal insights on yourself. Have a friend inquire you a question that you can respond to, or even ask yourself a question!

Readers might occasionally transport you a message telling you how much they loved your book, and if you feel comfortable engaging with readers that mode, go for information technology. If they request for a costless re-create of your volume, feel complimentary to transport them a copy, but don't feel obligated to accommodate that if your budget doesn't allow for it. A friendly turn down "I'm out of review copies at the moment, only yous tin can follow me for updates on when I get more than" can piece of work.

When authors take this long-term approach and invest in building a community on Goodreads, they detect their time spent on Goodreads becomes much richer.

How do you engage with readers? Tell us in the comments below!

Next: The Business concern of Being a Author: Turning Attention Into Sales

Y'all might also like: Five Things Writers Demand to Know Earlier Publishing Their First Book

Goodreads Authors tin can subscribe to the Monthly Author Newsletter by editing their business relationship settings. Not a Goodreads Author yet? Learn well-nigh the Goodreads Author Program here.

foresterbrounally43.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/1234-how-authors-can-engage-with-readers-and-reviewers-on-goodreads