What I Do and What I Don't Do
My book spotlight has brought in consistent work since I posted it. It's not a life-changing amount of work, but I'm glad I have it. The problem I'm having is that so many people think that it's a book review. It's not. It is a marketing tool used to help promote a book. I do not read the book. I do not need a copy of the book to write up the blog post. It's simply an affordable way for writers to reach a wider audience. It's not a book review. And that's because...I Won't Risk My Livelihood for You
No. I won't do it. Fiverr, Amazon (and by extension Goodreads) have all banned paid book reviews. BANNED. A big no-no. I'm sure other platforms have similar rules and regulations. What does this really mean? That means if I'm found to have taken money for a book review, the least they could do is pull down that review. The most they could do is ban me from one or all of these platforms. That wouldn't just take away my Fiverr gigs--that would also take away my ability to publish my own work and market that work in the future. I would also like to point out that while clients think they are paying me at least $5 per gig, I'm only taking in $3.92 per $5 gig because I'm hit with multiple fees each time I complete work. Would you risk your job and your entire livelihood to earn $3.92 from me? Didn't think so.I get that there are a few loopholes to these restrictions, some of which I take advantage of--like being able to get free books in exchange for reviews. And yes, while getting a hardcover with a MSRP of $26.00 or more does seem like being paid, it's still allowed on Amazon and Goodreads with proper disclosure. But this cannot happen through my gig. I would love to be able to take a position with a respected publication to do book reviews and get paid for it. These jobs are few and far between, plus you have to have a wide publishing/journalism/writing network to even hear about them before they are snatched up. I'm still working on that whole networking thing.
I Don't Want to Be One of Those People...
Introverts don't want to be the center of attention. They don't really want to be noticed by too many people. This feeling can carry over into online communication very easily. The quickest way to communicate that a book spotlight isn't a book review is to put it out there in big, bold online yelling: I DO NOT WRITE PAID BOOK REVIEWS. I feel this is too in-your-face, and on the rare occasion I'm on the other side of this needing to work with someone, this immediately signals to me that they are already defensive and would be difficult to work with. So I don't do that. I'd rather be the person in the room that has all the answers but no one listens to than the loudest and most obnoxious.Then again, maybe I should because a lot of people just aren't listening. This doesn't just waste my time--it impacts my Fiverr ratings and my potential to be promoted. I had a cancelled order a few months ago because someone bought a book spotlight gig and told me to write a five-star review (yes, they specifically requested five stars) for a cab company in Arizona--clearly not the parameters of a gig that promotes books and writing contests. Cancelled orders are bad for sellers, so thanks for that.
Also, once Fiverr switched to rating sellers on a monthly basis, I've conveniently gotten just enough spam messages to ruin my response rate (by the way, Fiverr sellers out there: IMMEDIATELY report and delete spam otherwise you'll wind up like me, which I didn't know until I dug into all the terms of service). This demoted me as a level one seller and now I have to meet the new requirements to get it back, including $400 in lifetime earnings instead of the old $50 in lifetime earnings. This is going to take awhile.
From now on, accurate communication is my top priority. If I have to spend hours rewriting my gig description so that everyone gets the gist, I will. I have all the marketing skills I need. Now I just need to activate those superpowers and save the world--or at least save my sanity.
No comments:
Post a Comment