[Quiss]

Hi

I'm just working out some marketing plans.

I see Book Blast charges $10 for inclusion in their mailings and site (although they've included me once automatically for some reason)

Nowhere on their site does it list their reach. Does anyone know what their distribution is? Is it worth $10?
Alexa doesn't seem impressed by them.

 

[Mathew Reuther]

Alexa doesn't seem impressed by them.

No experience, but Alexa doesn't tracking mailing lists, of course.

 

[MJWare]

Nowhere on their site does it list their reach. Does anyone know what their distribution is? Is it worth $10?

If I was pressed into a guess, I would think that means it's not large. However, I imagine they'll tell you if you ask--and if they don't save your $$$.

 

[Quiss]

No experience, but Alexa doesn't tracking mailing lists, of course.

But I imagine that people have to go to their web site to sign up?

 

[ChrisWard]

Tried it back in January.  It's basically a mini version of Bookbub.  They told me at the time that they had roughly 1000 sci-fi subscribers.  They ran my book on a discount to $1.49, though perhaps I should have stopped being so tight and just gone with 99c.  I had four sales that I attribute to it (hadn't sold any in a week so it was a good guess that's where they came from).  It was worth a try but I obviously didn't make my money back.  They had only just started charging when I signed up.  If they continue to grow it'll be worth it again, maybe.

 

[J.R. Thomson]

I know of a couple authors that have had great success with Bookbub. I talked to one that was the #1 ebook in the free store a few days ago. Another I know hit #3.

If you have some extra ad moola, it's probably worth a shot.

Oops.. I thought you said BookBub. Nevermind

 

[Mathew Reuther]

But I imagine that people have to go to their web site to sign up?

Yes, Alexa looks at regular traffic. So a single signup is going to net them very little ranking.

 

[Amanda Brice]

I used them when they first began in January, right before they started charging for the service, and can't say I can attribute a single sale to the email. And on an indie email list I'm on, several other authors reported the same. Of course, their subscriber base was probably much lower back then, so it's possible the results are better now.

That being said, I've been getting their emails for over a month now and also have never bought a single book through them (whereas I buy books I find in the Bookbub emails all the time). So take from that what you will.

I do hope they'll grow to become a legitimate player. They're nowhere near that yet.

 

[Mathew Reuther]

So, I'm going to be using them as a part of my free run on Day Breaks. It's only a few thousand people, but for much less than it costs to get a BookBub promo (and a lot easier to book). You never know.

Besides, this is my last Select promo. Why not mess around a little?

And I've found Jason at BookBlast to be very responsive and helpful so far.