Blog Post: Bombing in the reviews

[From Our Blog]

New blog post by Jake E

Bombing in the reviews

An indie author often lives or dies based on their books’ ratings and reviews.

Okay, maybe that was a touch dramatic. Often, it’s a case of succeeding or failing rather than expiring but you get the point.

An indie writer’s career is in the hands of the readers they reach and although it is delusional to think you’ll never receive a negative review or rating; it still stings when you get one.

I got one this week.

I knew it was coming. A book for everyone is a book for no one, and as long as my target audience enjoys the work, I can somewhat ignore negative reviews/ratings.

But it did get me thinking about the point of reviews.

In my mind, reviews serve a purpose. They are functional. If a book was good or great and a review says as much, it entices others to enjoy something that you enjoyed. It helps potential customers decide whether or not they want to spend their hard-earned cash (and these days, it is especially hard-earned) on your product or not. A good review can nudge them in the direction of the checkout.

A bad review, however, is a warning.

Which is where the waters muddy. Not enjoying a book is not the same as the book being bad. I don’t like tuna, so I tend to steer clear of tuna-based products. I would never go to a restaurant and poorly review it if my meal had tuna in it. It’s not the chef’s fault I don’t like tuna (It’s not mine either) but that doesn’t mean the meal is bad because I didn’t enjoy it. There’s probably a tuna enthusiast on the next table having a mouthgasm (maybe).

That being said, I love eggs benedict. If it’s on the menu, I’m ordering it, but if it arrives with over cooked eggs, soggy bagel, and hollandaise sauce that has no flavour (has happened) I’m not going to be very happy.

I guess what I’m driving at is a self-reflection on the motives behind reviews. Did I receive a two-star rating because my product was bad, or because it wasn’t that reader’s cup of tea?

I’ll never know, they didn’t write a review.

So to finish, I urge readers to reflect on the reason for their reviews. Was the book actually bad, or was it simply not written with your tastes in mind? It is an important question, as the answer can make or break an indie author’s career.

Food for thought.

J
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[Sedayne]

I sometimes wonder if the world has gone mad with reviews. I get an email asking me to review pretty much anything I buy these days. I don't feel the need to review my groceries. Life is way to short for that nonsense.
Consequently, I don't give much time to leaving proper reviews for books, films or music either. I'll tend to click 5 stars if I love something, otherwise ignore it.
But you're absolutely right, if someone clicks a one or two star rating, the least they could so is leave an explanation. If it's only a matter of taste, you can rest easy. If there's something they think is wrong with it, it would be nice to know.
If people feel obliged to click something, it would be better if there was an opt-out box rather than leaving a low rating. I'd like to think that reviewer would have just clicked the not-my-kind-of-thing button.

 

[E G Logan]

New blog post by Jake E

Bombing in the reviews

An indie author often lives or dies based on their books’ ratings and reviews.

You have to remember also that there are some people who – search me why – have a policy of never marking above 3 (out of five), no matter what they are reviewing. I know one or two of these. (NOT me.) From someone like that, 3 is good and 2 is average-ish. Distorts your averages, though.

 

[Aethalope]

Being so dependent on people who only ever see your product is truly horrible.

I started out as a freelancer on Upwork. The platform uses stars, but the more relevant rating is the job success score. This is based on private feedback from the client, mushed through an algorithm that weights clients based on their history, and then spat out as a percentage.

Stay above 90% for a certain number of weeks and you are top rated, giving you more access to the best jobs and clients. Drop below that and you'd better hustle your butt off to raise it again.

It was recalculated every Sunday morning and for the first year or I was so anxious about it. It felt like I was one dissatisfied important client away from disaster.

Those days are thankfully done, but I know how much reviews matter for someone and their ability to feed their family. I now spend time crafting glowing reviews to my Grab food riders and Fiverr freelancers, even if all they did was satisfy my requirements.

 

[Jake E]

It's turning into something akin to a Black Mirror episode.
Good is no longer good enough. If you don't rise to excellent you may as well not have bothered. That's not to say you shouldn't aim for excellent, but that you shouldn't be punished for for attaining it. Those rating and reviews follow you everywhere. I have a self imposed rule that I haven't enacted yet, but if Prophecies ever dips below an average of 4 stars, I will remove it from sale.
and probably stop writing.