Editorial Reviews vs General Reviews (The Pros and Cons)

Getting reviews is a big part of getting your book attention and gaining a wider audience that you would not be able to reach otherwise.

There are two main kinds of reviews that you can get for your book and each one has its own advantages and disadvantages. Editorial reviews are from established review sites, magazines, or newspapers. These can be hard to come by for indie authors because they focus on bigger name authors with bigger backing. General reviews are from general readers posted to sites that have open review areas. These can be asked for by friends and family or readers that you have connected with.

Editorial Reviews Pros

* They carry a lot of weight

* You can often times decide if it will be posted and published or not

* They can be great marketing tools to gain buyers and readers

* They can open doors for event invitations

Editorial Reviews Cons

* They can cost a lot of money and are not guaranteed to be positive

* They don’t always mean more book sales to make up for the money spent

* A lot of readers may not be familiar with the sites that post it unlike book buyers

General Reviews Pros

* You don’t have to pay for them

* They are also great marketing tools for getting people to buy your book

* They create a connection with your audience

General Reviews Cons

* They can be very time consuming. You are responsible for asking people to write them an post them.

* You can’t control when and where they are posted so there is no stopping a negative review from being seen

Reviews on you book are a key point in the marketing of your book, but it takes time and consideration so make sure you set aside the time in your schedule to work on getting reviews to boost your book. Giving reviews little time and thought can lead to slow sales and more effort later on to try and get reviews after the book has been out for a while. Having strong reviews from the start can help to keep the book on the up and up.