Author Topic: Booktastik - a new subscriber book list (Read 2638 times) Tweet

Patty Jansen · « **on:** January 16, 2014, 11:25:20 pm »

I just got sent this link: http://booktastik.com/

Looks a bit like Bookbub. At the moment, they're fairly small, but they do post subscriber numbers (which I think a service like this should do), and advertising is only $10 for most categories.

As far as I know, they're based in Australia, so their audience may be different as for some of the other lists.

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Greg Strandberg · « **Reply #1 on:** January 16, 2014, 11:36:48 pm »

Well, they have 7,059 Likes on Facebook. No review minimums, and boy, $10 might be worth it to get rid of that AU brown line. Still, don't think I'll be signing up this month.

Raquel Lyon · « **Reply #2 on:** January 17, 2014, 12:17:10 am »

I love the look of the site. It's very attractive: clean, bright, and easy to navigate. Obviously brand new, though, so bookmarking for now.

scottmarlowe · « **Reply #3 on:** January 17, 2014, 05:13:10 am »

They do have a really nice looking site. I'll sign up for their newsletter since I like to see how they execute and what they select.

Bookbub has created a new market for these types of newsletters, so it's great to see others moving in and hopefully stealing some of their thunder.

I like how you can select retailers. That's something the other guys don't provide if I'm not mistaken.

Patty Jansen · « **Reply #4 on:** March 28, 2014, 08:42:27 pm »

Anyone run an ad with them recently? I'm looking for a few small places to advertise in the weeks following a Bookbub ad.

Nick Endi Webb · « **Reply #5 on:** March 28, 2014, 09:03:57 pm »

I did one, but frankly the results were in the noise. I keep meaning to email them and ask for the analytics, but I don't think more than 5-10 sales came from it.

nobody_important · « **Reply #6 on:** March 28, 2014, 09:15:52 pm »

According to their site, they have about 500 subscribers and you get about 20 downloads (10-50 as the range) of a free book.

That's not worth paying $10 for in my opinion.

Jill James · « **Reply #7 on:** March 28, 2014, 09:51:05 pm »

I tried to sign up as a reader and it wouldn't let me, said my email was already in use.

David J Normoyle · « **Reply #8 on:** March 29, 2014, 03:52:51 am »

Quote from: NadiaLee on March 28, 2014, 09:15:52 pm

According to their site, they have about 500 subscribers and you get about 20 downloads (10-50 as the range) of a free book.

That's not worth paying $10 for in my opinion.

Wow. What a ripoff to charge that much.

jenminkman · « **Reply #9 on:** March 29, 2014, 04:01:10 am »

I ran a promo and only got 3 sales, but I only advertised on Amazon. For my next promo (which I was offered at a discount price), I am lowering the price on iTunes too, since she said that's where most people get their books (which would make sense if it's based in Australia). So let's see how that goes!

Patty Jansen · « **Reply #10 on:** March 29, 2014, 04:25:55 am »

Dionne, the site owner, has good links with Apple.

It's a "watch this space" site. I think especially the Apple connection has a good chance of developing into something useful.

Dionne ran a promo for a freebie for me. I also had a Bookbub ad in the same week, so I can't separate the results, but my book did get 5000 downloads on Apple and made it to #1 in fantasy. My results at Apple were much better than I expected, since my home is decidedly devoid of i-things.

nobody_important · « **Reply #11 on:** March 29, 2014, 04:51:51 am »

Quote from: David J Normoyle on March 29, 2014, 03:52:51 am

Wow. What a ripoff to charge that much.

Well, they can charge whatever they want. It's up to us (authors) to check things out and make sure it's worth our money.

I might have tried them if they were doing a free trial, like ebooksoda, but I don't want to throw $10 at a list that claims to move less than 10 copies of free books.

David J Normoyle · « **Reply #12 on:** March 29, 2014, 05:20:53 am »

Quote from: NadiaLee on March 29, 2014, 04:51:51 am

Well, they can charge whatever they want. It's up to us (authors) to check things out and make sure it's worth our money.

I might have tried them if they were doing a free trial, like ebooksoda, but I don't want to throw $10 at a list that claims to move less than 10 copies of free books.

I agree they can charge whatever they want. A ripoff doesn't mean a scam, it just means a bad deal for the buyer.

If they aim to be long term sustainable, it seems a bad idea for them to charge so much for so little. It's likely to attract less savvy writers, and thus supplies a poorer selection for their readers.

C. Gockel · « **Reply #13 on:** March 29, 2014, 05:47:54 am »

I agree, that for now, they seem to be overpriced. But their site is pretty, and if they can attract READERS then they'll do well. Of course, if they aren't looking for reviews (didn't someone say that above?) that seems less likely to happen.

Without doing promotions, my conversion from free downloads to purchaser is about 30%, with promos that drops considerably. Depending on the promoter, anywhere between 1% and 10%. Eh. Might make my money back. (About 90% of purchasers of part II go on to purchase part III. Maybe 80% purchase the novella? I don't have enough data yet for part IV)

C. Gockel · « **Reply #14 on:** March 29, 2014, 06:08:34 am »

Something I just noticed, one of their FB posts had over 60 likes. When evaluating an advertiser, the number of likes on a post is possibly more important than the number of people who follow a page. Especially with FB's new algorithms, a disengaged audience isn't worth particularly much at all.

Quiss · « **Reply #15 on:** March 29, 2014, 06:19:53 am »

Given the price of their ads the the results it makes sense to hold off and see how they do.

But what if everyone does that?
We are all looking for alternatives to BookBub since it's so hard to get listed with them. But if we want new places to succeed, we could try to help drive READER traffic to them. Just as the new Midlist site, waiting for them to get huge before giving them our business will be in vain if they don't succeed.
We can do our part by mentioning sites like this to our existing readers via our own Facebook pages or mail lists.

TobiasRoote · « **Reply #16 on:** March 29, 2014, 06:55:27 am »

I actually WANTED to try them, but they only accept books on offer at 30% minimum below current price. What a shame that it can only be discounted books when most of our books are already at a discounted rate to sell at all.

We ALL need more outlets, not just the FREE and 99cent books. IMO.

C. Gockel · « **Reply #17 on:** March 29, 2014, 09:26:37 am »

Quote

We are all looking for alternatives to BookBub since it's so hard to get listed with them. But if we want new places to succeed, we could try to help drive READER traffic to them.

I agree...and I will give them a try. (It is possible, depending on the engagement of the audience, that I will make my money back. See above). But I have an advertising schedule I stick to, so not this month.

C. Gockel · « **Reply #18 on:** March 29, 2014, 11:40:33 am »

Quote

I actually WANTED to try them, but they only accept books on offer at 30% minimum below current price. What a shame that it can only be discounted books when most of our books are already at a discounted rate to sell at all.

Actually, this is probably good for their longevity. The secret of BookBub's success is that it is great for READERS. And turns out, what's good for READERS is good for writers.

...I've thought about breaking down everything BookBub does and showing why it's model is so reader friendly, but I'm not sure anyone would be interested.

David J Normoyle · « **Reply #19 on:** March 29, 2014, 12:06:54 pm »

Quote from: Quiss on March 29, 2014, 06:19:53 am

Given the price of their ads the the results it makes sense to hold off and see how they do.

But what if everyone does that?
We are all looking for alternatives to BookBub since it's so hard to get listed with them. But if we want new places to succeed, we could try to help drive READER traffic to them. Just as the new Midlist site, waiting for them to get huge before giving them our business will be in vain if they don't succeed.
We can do our part by mentioning sites like this to our existing readers via our own Facebook pages or mail lists.

Why support sites that seem to want to make a quick buck? They should be giving authors free listing given the size of their readership. Like ebooksoda and Fussy Librarian did. Then, there'd be a reason for authors to support them because they are about building a business, not about fleecing authors by overcharging. What if they got as big as Bookbub and were still charging 50c for each freeload? Then they'd be charging enormous prices. Bookbub could charge much more than they do (given results), but I'm sure they prefer to charge what they do, and have their choice of authors to list, and thus give a better deal to readers.

C. Gockel · « **Reply #20 on:** March 29, 2014, 12:33:34 pm »

Quote

Why support sites that seem to want to make a quick buck?

I guess I think $10 is a moderate price, and one that I have a good chance recouping even with their currently paltry numbers. Yes, it would be great if they did like Fussy and eBookSoda are doing... on the other hand, Fussy and probably Soda probably started with higher initial investments.

There are some sites out there that are genuine rip-offs, charging $50/pop for zero downloads, and one site I tried didn't run my ad on their Facebook page as they'd promised (they used it as a lead to get people to their site, and then buried it at the bottom of the page...got zero downloads). I b*tched and got my money back, but I took those sites off my spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AkOyQ5SflEaodEM0VGlpRm5rU2ppTWpGQkFpUkxrY1E&usp=drive_web#gid=0

It might be something to ask the advertiser about, though. Maybe even comparing them to say, BookBasset, and point out that BookBasset puts you in an email, and on their FB page for $7.99 and they have more subscribers, followers, and higher site traffic.

Hmmm...I think that is what I will do. They might be willing to negotiate.

CG

Quiss · « **Reply #21 on:** March 29, 2014, 12:39:40 pm »

Quote from: David J Normoyle on March 29, 2014, 12:06:54 pm

Why support sites that seem to want to make a quick buck? They should be giving authors free listing given the size of their readership.

Quick buck, slow buck, who knows? There is no shortage of free or discounted titles for those sites to sift through and post.
Point is, we all want more venues like these, but we're quite willing to sit on our thumbs until they hit it big. Supporting them isn't via forking over 10 bucks for a limited number of downloads, but helping them increase their readership. Non-author readers. That doesn't mean ringing doorbells, but a mention here and there would probably help them get to that magic number where authors are willing to pay the money.
(I don't know Booktastic from Adam, btw. Just sayin')

David J Normoyle · « **Reply #22 on:** March 29, 2014, 01:55:14 pm »

Quote from: Quiss on March 29, 2014, 12:39:40 pm

Quick buck, slow buck, who knows? There is no shortage of free or discounted titles for those sites to sift through and post.
Point is, we all want more venues like these, but we're quite willing to sit on our thumbs until they hit it big. Supporting them isn't via forking over 10 bucks for a limited number of downloads, but helping them increase their readership. Non-author readers. That doesn't mean ringing doorbells, but a mention here and there would probably help them get to that magic number where authors are willing to pay the money.
(I don't know Booktastic from Adam, btw. Just sayin')

But perhaps as soon as they double their readership, they'll double their prices.

I just think authors should support sites that provide value for money, and not just any site that puts up a website with a signup form.

Patty Jansen · « **Reply #23 on:** March 29, 2014, 02:06:17 pm »

Quote from: David J Normoyle on March 29, 2014, 01:55:14 pm

But perhaps as soon as they double their readership, they'll double their prices.

I just think authors should support sites that provide value for money, and not just any site that puts up a website with a signup form.

But you're still talking from the point of view of an author. This is not an author site. Goodreads is not an author site. Do you know how much their ads cost and how effective they are? There are a lot of groups and pages on Facebook that consist solely of authors spamming each other "because we have to support Indies" and it's just noise. No one listens. This site is reaching out to readers.

David J Normoyle · « **Reply #24 on:** March 29, 2014, 02:45:09 pm »

Quote from: Patty Jansen on March 29, 2014, 02:06:17 pm

But you're still talking from the point of view of an author. This is not an author site. Goodreads is not an author site. Do you know how much their ads cost and how effective they are? There are a lot of groups and pages on Facebook that consist solely of authors spamming each other "because we have to support Indies" and it's just noise. No one listens. This site is reaching out to readers.

I think the pricing is bad from the point of view of readers, too. Why? Because the best books will be advertised on the sites that give good return. It's only authors who are desperate/new will pay those prices for that return.

So from a readers point of view, Bookbub is superior. Bookblastik is just an inferior copy. Which is fine: Booksends is a copy but they have lots of subscribers and charge a reasonable price.

Average downloads on bookbub is about 40 for a dollar. (Plus you'll get a boost with those numbers.) Average downloads on bookblastik are 20 for 10 dollars or 2 for a dollar. Not even close.

I agree their website looks good; if they can 10x their numbers and keep the prices the same then I'll have zero complaints with them.

I presume it doesn't cost much to get a website designer to copy Bookbub. Probably doesn't cost much more to pick up 500 subscriptions via advertising. If they can get authors to overpay to this degree, then it's a super profitable business model, taking advantage of the fact that authors are desperate for advertising opportunities.

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TobiasRoote