# Book Review Broker - An ethical Amazon review acquisition tool



## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Hi KBers,

Some of you may already be aware that I've been working on and testing a new tool designed to make it easier for authors to secure targeted reviews from top reviewers on Amazon?

It's been mentioned in a couple of threads on here already... Here: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,146551.0.html & Here: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,146801

I'm basically making it live now. I'm sure there will be a few little things to iron out, though.

I know some of you thought it was a great idea and some of you were less enthusiastic about it (some of you KBers can be a critical bunch!) 

Anyway, thanks to those of you on here who ran the trials with me. It really helped me work out what the average response rates were etc.

I'm quite pleased with the way it looks and feels and I hope it can be a useful tool for indies trying to ethically secure more quality reviews.

Here it is http://www.BookReviewBroker.com

Thanks,
J


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## brendajcarlton (Sep 29, 2012)

Hi J,

I've just read through your site and I would love to use your service, but alas, none of the fiction genre apply to my book.  Will you perchance be adding more?  Specifically the book I would like to have reviewed is listed as American Drama and Family Life Drama on Amazon.  I discovered the hard way that general contemporary fiction is a very bad way to list it, but for your service that would work too.  Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Brenda


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

brendajcarlton said:


> Hi J,
> 
> I've just read through your site and I would love to use your service, but alas, none of the fiction genre apply to my book. Will you perchance be adding more? Specifically the book I would like to have reviewed is listed as American Drama and Family Life Drama on Amazon. I discovered the hard way that general contemporary fiction is a very bad way to list it, but for your service that would work too. Thanks in advance for any assistance.
> 
> Brenda


Thank you for your interest, Brenda. I appreciate such a positive response coming through so quickly!

There were originally many more sub-genres built into the tool, but because their reach was so small the likelihood of generating a response and reviews from them was slim. They fell below my average response rate so it seemed pointless to keep them in. I actually want my users to get something out of it for their money. I am considering making some giant general categories - one for general fiction and one for general non-fiction. Perhaps you could try one of these when they're ready? They should receive a huge response rate....

Thanks,
James


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## ElisaBlaisdell (Jun 3, 2012)

What does the '+' mean in the pricing? '15+' is 15 to what? And what makes the difference?


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## jackz4000 (May 15, 2011)

I don't understand your pricing either? Is it 15 for a list of the reviewers? Or?


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## David J Normoyle (Jun 22, 2012)

What if you aren't willing to send a print copy (or don't have a print copy) and are only willing to send an ebook?


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## RuthNestvold (Jan 4, 2012)

I also don't understand the pricing at all. Is there any way to make it a bit clearer?


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

I just submitted two pitches. 

A concern:

In the confirmation emails I received, there are slashes wherever there are apostrophes or quotation marks. I did copy and paste my pitches to you. Can you clean up the slashes?

Here is one line from my pitch, showing the slashes:

you\'re my wife!\" \"Well, how about it?\" Sandy asked Jack.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

It would be great if your confirmation email included a link that let us go in and edit our pitch. That way, I could clean up all those slashes. I promise, the slashes are not present in my notepad original!


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## Vivi_Anna (Feb 12, 2011)

if you looked at one of the sliders, it looks like you are paying per book review.  So like $8 a review on average.  So it's a sliding scale I believe in price.  The $15+ looks like you are paying a min of $15


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## scottmarlowe (Apr 22, 2010)

Vivi_Anna said:


> if you looked at one of the sliders, it looks like you are paying per book review. So like $8 a review on average. So it's a sliding scale I believe in price. The $15+ looks like you are paying a min of $15


That seems like a lot for a review (to me, anyway).

I'm interested, but ditto on the pricing clarification request.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

The prices are in the drop down menu inside the pitch template, at the very bottom of the page.

Those 14+ and 15+ things you see up the page are the number of reviewers or categories or something else, not prices.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

Also, you are not paying for reviews.

You are paying by category for your pitch to be delivered to a curated list of top Amazon reviewers who are willing to receive pitches.


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## Soothesayer (Oct 19, 2012)

Sounds like a spam tool to be honest.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Soothesayer said:


> Sounds like a spam tool to be honest.


It really isn't a spam tool to be honest, Soothesayer. If you read the dialogues in the other threads about this tool, from when I was testing it, I have made every effort to make sure that every recipient is open to solicitation. Of all the testers I ran the tool on NOT ONE respondent complained. There were many reviews agreed on and a few polite 'no thanks'. A spam tool wouldn't have had those kind of results!


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

ElisaBlaisdell said:


> What does the '+' mean in the pricing? '15+' is 15 to what? And what makes the difference?


That means "$15 and up". I might make that clearer on the site.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

David J Normoyle said:


> What if you aren't willing to send a print copy (or don't have a print copy) and are only willing to send an ebook?


You can send either a print or a digital copy. It's over to you how you want to arrange it once the reviewers get back to you.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Cherise Kelley said:


> I just submitted two pitches.
> 
> A concern:
> 
> ...


That's something weird in the way the text is parsed in my submission form. The copy will never look like that when it's submitted to reviewers, don't worry. The pitches can be adjusted when it comes to invoicing the job. The pitch won't go out until the pitch is agreed on and invoice is paid.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Got off to a great start.  Nine campaigns booked in the first 24 hours since launch. So thanks to those of you who have booked!

Now scheduling them all for distribution.  Can't wait to start running them!


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## BJ Whittington (Aug 30, 2011)

OK so the $15+ translates to $110.00 for Fantasy.

My question is how many Book reviewers see my 'pitch' for that amount of money?

That is the only really way to know if it is of value to me, before making the purchase.


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## wilsonharp (Jun 5, 2012)

BJ Whittington said:


> OK so the $15+ translates to $110.00 for Fantasy.
> 
> My question is how many Book reviewers see my 'pitch' for that amount of money?
> 
> That is the only really way to know if it is of value to me, before making the purchase.


I looked at what he has on his site a bit closer and it looks like 220 reviewers will get the e-mail blurb requesting the opportunity to read your book. 20 will likely say yes, and you will get 13 estimated reviews.

The prices look to break down like this: $.50 for each reviewer on his list by genre. And estimation of 1 out of each 11 reviewers (9%) will actually respond. Of those, an estimated 65% will provide a review.

As these are all estimates, you can't be sure that you will actually get 13 reviews, but if you do, the process will have resulted in paying $8.33 for each review.

Can't say I like the idea of paying for reviews, but at the same time I have spent hundreds of dollars in advertising with very few reviews to show for that money.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

wilsonharp said:


> I looked at what he has on his site a bit closer and it looks like 220 reviewers will get the e-mail blurb requesting the opportunity to read your book. 20 will likely say yes, and you will get 13 estimated reviews.
> 
> The prices look to break down like this: $.50 for each reviewer on his list by genre. And estimation of 1 out of each 11 reviewers (9%) will actually respond. Of those, an estimated 65% will provide a review.
> 
> ...


Hi Wilsonharp, thanks for checking out the site. I want to stress that you are *not* paying for reviews. Paying directly for reviews would be unethical and totally against what this tool aims to achieve. What you pay for is guaranteed delivery to a list of the most influential and receptive reviewers. It's their call as to whether or not they choose to review your book after gifting it to them. On average around 6% of the recipients will agree to review a book, which is how I can place an estimate on the cost per review.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Woo!  just hit 100th order for Book Review Broker.  Thanks to you KB members who were early adopters!


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## Ryan Sullivan (Jul 9, 2011)

Those who are comparing this to paying for reviews -- *it's not.*

You're paying them to send out your pitch to a great number of reviewers who have agreed to receive said pitches. Then you send those reviewers a free copy of the book. You're paying for Book Review Broker to take away the effort and time *you * would have to put in. I used them and I wouldn't have the review on Amazon US without them. I have more on the way, but I'm on a waiting list. I'm in contact with a reviewer who requested a signed copy. So I've ordered myself a copy, and I'm going to sign and send it this week. I believe I had five expressions of interest overall.

J: I encountered a few reviewers who said they *weren't* interested in my genre, or something along those lines. I'd like to give you their names so you can cross them off the list. Shall I send you a PM?


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Ryan Sullivan said:


> Those who are comparing this to paying for reviews -- *it's not.*
> 
> You're paying them to send out your pitch to a great number of reviewers who have agreed to receive said pitches. Then you send those reviewers a free copy of the book. You're paying for Book Review Broker to take away the effort and time *you * would have to put in. I used them and I wouldn't have the review on Amazon US without them. I have more on the way, but I'm on a waiting list. I'm in contact with a reviewer who requested a signed copy. So I've ordered myself a copy, and I'm going to sign and send it this week. I believe I had five expressions of interest overall.
> 
> J: I encountered a few reviewers who said they *weren't* interested in my genre, or something along those lines. I'd like to give you their names so you can cross them off the list. Shall I send you a PM?


Thanks for your positive and clarifying feedback, Ryan.

By all means, please PM me the names. The lists need tweaking from time to time. Ultimately, these little edits add up to a more streamlined and effective service.

Thanks again,
J


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## RuthNestvold (Jan 4, 2012)

I would be curious what kinds of results folks have had with this service.


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## Alan Petersen (May 20, 2011)

RuthNestvold said:


> I would be curious what kinds of results folks have had with this service.


I was very happy with the service. I went with the "action spy military" service, I can't recall the exact name, but I recall James saying it was the smallest list. I had around 10 reviewers email me back, two said no thanks, I have too much stuff to read. I ended up mailing two print copies and emailing two mobi files, and last I checked three of the four had followed up with a review.

So I was happy with the service. Even the folks who emailed me back to say no thanks, they were very nice, and thanked me for the offer. That was my main concern about using this service, was I going to get a bunch of ticked off people accusing me of bugging/spamming them, but James has done a great job of scrubbing this list so only people who are open and willing to be contacted for reviews, are contacted.

I have a second book coming out and I'll be using this service again. In addition to the spy/action list, I'm also planning to buy the thriller genre service since it's much bigger. I don't even want to think how many man hours it would have taken me to come up with my own spreadsheet. I was also going to place a job on oDesk for someone to do this for me. It would have cost more and I would have been a little apprehensive, you can give a person instructions, but what if they're lazy and they include people who do not want to be contacted? This way is much better.


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## RuthNestvold (Jan 4, 2012)

That's great info, Alan, thanks!


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## Quiss (Aug 21, 2012)

I just signed up to fish for reviews for the new title.
Stay tuned - I'll report back to the group.

C.


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## James Bruno (Mar 15, 2011)

I'm one of those writers who researches and finds prospective reviewers in a very discrete and methodical fashion. While I have my boilerplate, I nonetheless, modify it according to each reviewer's particular background. I also address them by name. Is this time consuming? You bet. But I place myself in the shoes of the reviewers. If I get a very generic message addressed, "Hi there!" I'm very inclined to hit delete. In fact, I do receive such messages from aspiring writers and author services providers. If they're cookie cutter, bordering on spam, I just don't pay attention. 

For my latest book, I've thus far hit up 50 Amazon Top Reviewers and some 90 book bloggers. Positive responses, so far, run around 10%, but I've found from past experience that some non-responders ultimately follow through with reviews. The other thing I'm careful about is weeding out those reviewers whose reviews either I don't like, or who are hard graders, even though they review in my genre. I actually keep a black ball list of such reviewers I've been burned by in the past, or whose reviews on others have struck me as exceptionally harsh. I simply don't want their reviews. Finally, while I'm glad to forward mobi, epub and pdf editions of my books, I'm highly selective as to whom I'll send print copies because of the expense and trouble. I use NetGalley to make getting digital editions easier.

That said, I'm open-minded by Book Review Brokers' services. It's very valuable for KBers to share their experiences with the rest of us.


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## Alan Petersen (May 20, 2011)

James Bruno said:


> I'm one of those writers who researches and finds prospective reviewers in a very discrete and methodical fashion. While I have my boilerplate, I nonetheless, modify it according to each reviewer's particular background. I also address them by name. Is this time consuming? You bet. But I place myself in the shoes of the reviewers. If I get a very generic message addressed, "Hi there!" I'm very inclined to hit delete. In fact, I do receive such messages from aspiring writers and author services providers. If they're cookie cutter, bordering on spam, I just don't pay attention.
> 
> For my latest book, I've thus far hit up 50 Amazon Top Reviewers and some 90 book bloggers. Positive responses, so far, run around 10%, but I've found from past experience that some non-responders ultimately follow through with reviews. The other thing I'm careful about is weeding out those reviewers whose reviews either I don't like, or who are hard graders, even though they review in my genre. I actually keep a black ball list of such reviewers I've been burned by in the past, or whose reviews on others have struck me as exceptionally harsh. I simply don't want their reviews. Finally, while I'm glad to forward mobi, epub and pdf editions of my books, I'm highly selective as to whom I'll send print copies because of the expense and trouble. I use NetGalley to make getting digital editions easier.
> 
> That said, I'm open-minded by Book Review Brokers' services. It's very valuable for KBers to share their experiences with the rest of us.


With this service we're encouraged to write our own email message to avoid template type form messages like you described. That's what I did. And the reviewers contacted are top Amazon reviewers, so that's already been vetted by James, so you bet I'll be happy to send a print copy or digital copy of my book. The vetting process also ensures that I'm not asking a romance reader to read my spy thriller.

You already have your list, so you're set, but if someone hasn't gone through the process and prefers to spend their time writing and marketing then this a cool option.

I don't believe this includes book bloggers, it's only Amazon reviewers.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Alan Petersen said:


> With this service we're encouraged to write our own email message to avoid template type form messages like you described. That's what I did. And the reviewers contacted are top Amazon reviewers, so that's already been vetted by James, so you bet I'll be happy to send a print copy or digital copy of my book. The vetting process also ensures that I'm not asking a romance reader to read my spy thriller.
> 
> You already have your list, so you're set, but if someone hasn't gone through the process and prefers to spend their time writing and marketing then this a cool option.
> 
> I don't believe this includes book bloggers, it's only Amazon reviewers.


Thanks for the feedback and clarification, Alan. BTW the blog targeting function is something that I'll be looking to implement soon. It's long overdue, but it is something that I've been finalising recently.


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## Marti talbott (Apr 19, 2011)

I'm in. I think this is a great idea.


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## Quiss (Aug 21, 2012)

I'm still on the fence with this.
I signed up for sci-fi.  Ended up sending five copies to interested persons but so far none of them have posted. Only been ten days, though.
If those five post, it will be an expensive marketing activity. Would I have found them on my own? Not sure. 

One said he never reviews self-published books and then spent some time telling me about his brilliance (which includes self-publishing)
Five or six replied to say thanks, but they have a long reading list waiting.
One gave me a lecture about how to send queries and directed me to her blog (as far as I could tell the letter I wrote follow her recommendations)


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## Linda Barlow (Jul 5, 2013)

I tried this, too, about a month ago, but so far haven't had any luck with it. My genre was romance. I heard from 10 or 12 reviewers. Several were too busy with their own writing to review anybody else's books. One was only interested in gay romance. Two wouldn't take ebooks, which were all I had available at the time. I sent out about 5 ebooks in various formats, and have received no reviews yet.


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Linda Barlow said:


> I tried this, too, about a month ago, but so far haven't had any luck with it. My genre was romance. I heard from 10 or 12 reviewers. Several were too busy with their own writing to review anybody else's books. One was only interested in gay romance. Two wouldn't take ebooks, which were all I had available at the time. I sent out about 5 ebooks in various formats, and have received no reviews yet.


Hi Linda, thanks again for trying out the service. I am pretty confident the reviews will come. They are top Amazon reviewers and if they say they are going to review something they will. They have a lot on their plate so you have to be patient.


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## baconpressbooks (Feb 1, 2013)

I signed one of our books up for this at the end of August, immediately received three requests for paperback copies. So far two of the reviewers have posted really thoughtful, excellent reviews. Much more in-depth than the regular reviews that just say something like "loved the book." I received another request about a month after I'd posted and I'm waiting to see if he follows through with a review.

I would definitely use this service again. Unfortunately, our next two titles are literary fiction and it seems those categories are too small to be part of this.

BTW, I'm very much against paying for reviews. This wasn't in any way like that. It's very common and accepted to send a reviewer a free copy, which is exactly what this service asks you to do. The good part is that my request reached many more people than I could have on my own.

Michele Orwin
http://www.baconpressbooks.com/index.html


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## James Fraser (Mar 15, 2013)

Thanks for the honest review Michele!


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

Almost makes me what to put the time in to be a top reviewer so I can be on your list  


Question... are the reviews getting the money, or is that your cost for your work?


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

VydorScope said:


> Almost makes me what to put the time in to be a top reviewer so I can be on your list
> 
> Question... are the reviews getting the money, or is that your cost for your work?


It's his fee for building the bot that finds the top reviewers and emails them. The reviewers don't even know he's doing it. They assume you tracked them down yourself. They haven't even heard of him.


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

Well my top reviewer ranking is 26,320   I might have a ways to go LOL!


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## jmhallock (Dec 6, 2013)

J, 

Although I didn't have the time to read through the entire thing, which I plan to at some point this weekend, the design looks wonderful! Best of luck with it.

J.M.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

Anyone else have current info on this?

From the sounds of it, it's over $100 and the average amount of resulting reviews sounds like less than ten. Which really doesn't sound worth it to me. I also find the website frustrating, as there's just tons and tons of pitch for the service, but no real clear list of prices or anything. 

Too bad. I had this bookmarked as a tool I might use, but unless someone pops in here and tells me it's worth it, I'm not going to bother with it.


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## JRTomlin (Jan 18, 2011)

I tried out the service and was quite happy with the results. I received about a dozen responses. All of them were very nice, even the refusals. Only two said they couldn't because they were swamped. One asked for a print copy and the others were good with ebooks. One said she couldn't review but asked if she could recommend another reviewer who is doing a review. Several have already posted reviews but the rest said it would take a couple of months to get to them in their reading queue which was fine with me. 

Whether this is worth the price is, of course, a matter of opinion, but I thought it was a reasonable response. Considering the importance of reviews to us in booking promotions, I think it will be helpful in being able to buy those early (comparatively) promotions.

ETA: I think the cost may vary according to genre. He really does need to clarify pricing. Going by memory, I believe I paid $50 for the HF mailing he did. For that, I am quite satisfied with the results.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

JRTomlin said:


> I tried out the service and was quite happy with the results. I received about a dozen responses. All of them were very nice, even the refusals. Only two said they couldn't because they were swamped. One asked for a print copy and the others were good with ebooks. One said she couldn't review but asked if she could recommend another reviewer who is doing a review. Several have already posted reviews but the rest said it would take a couple of months to get to them in their reading queue which was fine with me.
> 
> Whether this is worth the price is, of course, a matter of opinion, but I thought it was a reasonable response. Considering the importance of reviews to us in booking promotions, I think it will be helpful in being able to buy those early (comparatively) promotions.
> 
> ETA: I think the cost may vary according to genre. He really does need to clarify pricing. Going by memory, I believe I paid $50 for the HF mailing he did. For that, I am quite satisfied with the results.


Thanks, J.R.!


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## MQ (Jan 5, 2011)

Has anyone used the _Mystery, Detective & Sleuth_ or even the _Thrillers & Suspense_ category for reviews? I'm interested to see what the results were.


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## 39416 (Mar 18, 2011)

This thread is from 2013/14. Does anybody have any new info/experience on Book Review Broker? Thank you.


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