In this series, we take you through the anatomy of a book review.
What does it take to write a book review? What are the different types and uses of book reviews? What is a Beta review anyway, and do you need one?
This second installment looks at how to write Amazon Customer Reviews.
How To Write An Amazon Book Review
Eligibility
An Amazon Customer Review must be written by someone who has read the book and has an Amazon account. You don’t have to have bought the book from Amazon. You can only review on Amazon if:
- You have spent more than $50 on Amazon in the last twelve months and have an Amazon account
- Your account on Amazon is in good standing, i.e. you have not been banned from writing reviews on Amazon previously for any of the reasons below.
The review will only show up as a Verified Purchase if you bought the book on Amazon and you review it on the same account.
Before You Start
- You cannot write a review for another author as ‘swapsies’ as this counts as a biased review situation. Nobody is going to give a one-star review in a reciprocal situation, so Amazon does not allow this scheme.
- You cannot earn tokens or credits of any kind writing book reviews to trade for other authors to write reviews for you. There are new ‘book review services’ that claim it’s OK to do this. No, it is not. These services are acting against Amazon terms and will likely be shut down soon. Don’t get involved with any service that tells you it’s OK to earn reviews by writing reviews, nor any that sell tokens to trade for reviews.
- Writing reviews for friends or family is not allowed either.
- There was a craze where people would write that their review was ‘in exchange for a free book’, and thought that if they mentioned this exchange, it would be seen as legitimate behavior by Amazon. Na-ah. Leave out any wording about ‘exchange’ or ‘swap’ or ‘I wrote this review for…’ – It’s the easiest way to get your account blocked.
- If you review an ARC, there is no need to declare it in your review. An ARC should be exactly like the book on sale, so review it as such. However, unless you buy the book on sale, it will not be a Verified review on Amazon.
You can read the Community Guidelines for Amazon Customer Reviews here.
Why Should I Write Amazon Reviews?
- Other authors deserve your feedback, as you would deserve it if it were your book. Just make sure they didn’t ask for it in return for anything.
- Building up a critical armory when you read is essential for a writer. Reading books by your peers and seeing if you can see the cracks is a really great way of understanding story, even when it’s flawed. One way to do this is to write your thoughts in an Amazon Review.
- The Amazon community is full of readers and writers. It’s a good place to share tips and ideas with others interested in books.
Structuring Your Amazon Review
Remember you only have 5000 characters to give your opinion, with the best reviews coming in between 70 – 100 words.
- As this is an Amazon Review, the page gives the synopsis of the book, so you can launch right into your thoughts. Start with why you were interested in the book:
I bought this book as I am interested in cozy mysteries set in beach communities, like this one.
- Go on to say what you thought of it.
I found the character of Marcy very well-written. She is a protagonist anyone can cheer for, with many issues, but also a lot of strength and hope. The setting is meticulously described, and the murder case itself is exciting and emotional in equal measures.
- Add a critique (something that didn’t quite hit the mark) – this is important for an unbiased and honest review
I wish that we had learned more about why the murderer did it in the brief time we spend after the case is solved.
- Add some comparisons to be helpful to other readers, and finish on a high note:
However, this book ticks all the boxes in this genre and will please fans of Big Little Lies and Patricia Fisher.
- The photo upload is not an opportunity for you to add a photo of yourself! You should only add a photo of the book, or you holding the book. Reviews with videos and photos get the most traffic, so if you want to build your profile on Amazon, this could be a good way of doing so.
If you would like to promote to a list of readers who review on Amazon, browse our services here: https://www.selfpublishingreview.com/spr-bestseller-book-packages/
Read Part 1 of this series “How To Write An Editorial Review” here.
Get an Editorial Review | Get Amazon Sales & Reviews | Get Edited | Publish Your Book | Enter the SPR Book Awards | Other Marketing Services
What if I dislike the book? I normally don’t post a negative review, and simply resolve to never buy another book from that author again. But every now and then I come across a book with so many inconsistencies, or characters that are Too Stupid To Live, or one too many historical anachronisms, or secondary characters that exist only to be plot points, that I simply have to warn readers. I know I’ve appreciated it when other reviewers give well-written and thought-out negative reviews.
Good question. I think constructive criticism can be helpful to an author in a review. We often have authors come to us to get their book looked at after receiving reviews mentioning problems with editing or story, so we recommend honesty in your reviews!
How long should it take you to get 100 reviews, if you are traditionally published? (http://www.maryhill-wagnerauthor.com)
That really depends on what advertising and promotion efforts you are making, and how large your mailing list is. It takes quite a big push to get any reviews at all, which is why we offer the mailer promo service to help authors get exposure, where we have an extensive reader list who like to review books.