Today, Renee Rocco, owner of Lyrical Press is here to talk about what publishers want to see when visiting blogger websites. I think this is useful information if you are interested in authors and publishers contacting you with a review request.
When Mandi was kind enough to open the blog to me, one of the things she told me she’d love a post on was what publishers (and authors) would love to see on review sites. I thought that was an awesome idea myself, because I do a lot of legwork for marketing Lyrical’s books – and one of the things we do is send our books out for review.
Reviews generate a ton of buzz, so I love establishing relationships with reviewers (and no, this doesn’t mean I expect only positive reviews! *smile*). In my never-ending quest to link up with reviewers, I visit too many sites to count. Many of these sites are blogs. With so many amazing blogs to visit, there are some things I’m noticing are very difficult to locate and force me to walk away even though I’d love to offer the reviewer Lyrical books.
Review Policy:
Since I visit so many sites, it would be great if your review policy was right up front, in my face where I can’t miss it. Just as I love when authors honor our submission guidelines, I want to return that respect to reviewers. I’d hate to miss the chance to establish a relationship with a reviewer because I couldn’t find a review policy. I’ll never blindly send a book for review because I feel that’s rude. I’d hate to inadvertently send an edgy erotic paranormal romance to someone who only reviews urban fantasy. So, make sure your review policy has it’s own page, and isn’t buried somewhere visitor’s can’t readily find it.
Contact Information:
You would truly be surprised by how many review sites lack even the most basic contact information. If a reviewer doesn’t wish to be contacted, that’s fine, but it would help us if that was listed somewhere in lieu of an email address. I’ve spent an obscene amount of time hunting down contact information only to regretfully give up on some sites. And please don’t bury this valuable information on an About page. Contact information is vital and should either have its own page, or be right there on the home page…even if the contact information is that you’d rather not be contacted directly.
About:
Just as publishers should have an About page, so should reviewers. Listing who you are is as vital as your review policy. When I write to reviewers I’d like to be able to list an actual name and not some generic greeting. I also like to know a little bit about whom it is I’m trying to establish a relationship with. Are you a fan of someone I’ve read? Do you like some of the same types of books we publish? That’s helps me know which books to offer to you in that first contact email.
Advertising:
If you offer advertising on your site, it would help if that information had its own page as well. Listing your availability and rates is vital. This allows interested parties to see, at a glace, when advertising is available and how much it would cost for your site. Site stats are also valuable tools in helping us determine if advertising on your site is a good investment of our promotional dollars. Keep in mind rates should reflect the popularity of your site without being a budget blower. This way, even newer authors (and publishers!) have a chance of advertising with you.
Social Media:
Are you on Twitter? Facebook? Goodreads? Let us know but having those links readily available for those of us who want to follow/friend you!
Professionalism:
A sloppy site is a turnoff. Just as you wouldn’t want to buy a book from a publisher who doesn’t take the time and care to keep a professional and tidy appearance, many publishers and authors will think twice about entrusting books to a reviewer who have a messy and unprofessional site.
Renee Rocco started in publishing in 2006. Along with being the publisher and owner of Lyrical Press, she’s also a multi-published author and acclaimed cover artist. She loves a killer cappuccino and has a serious thing for Renaissance Faires. Renee loves to talk shop with anyone who will listen and can be reached at publisher@lyricalpress.com
Any other suggestions? Many authors submit their own review requests – do you have anything to add to the list?
Great post!
Most of the things you list seem like common sense but I remember how clueless I was when I started my blog (not that things have changed that much) and how helpful posts like this were to me.
Also, as a reader, these are things I like to know about the blogs I visit. I like to see if we have similar tastes, or if they only write positive reviews, it they are on Twitter, stuff like that help me decide if that’s a blog I’d like to read. I’d add a review archive where I can see all the books that have been reviewed before, when I visit a new blog I usually like to compare reviews just to see if we agree or not. And if having an archive is too much work (believe me, I know) then at least have clear labels and tags so I can click and read all the 5-stars reviews and all that.
I agree with everything mentioned above.
Just like publishing, book blogs are an ongoing work in progress. Bloggers always need to keep their site updated!
Insightful post, thanks for sharing. I have also been on sites that I wasted time trying to find where the contact information was and gave up, frustrating!
You know, thank you for this. These were things I didn’t even think about since I just assume that everyone follows my Twitter. Common sense doesn’t always hit obvious land with me. As I just found out the last night. I did at last put my Twitter up on top since it’s the fastest way to contact me nowadays, not that anyone would know. (Circle, circle, circle.)
Good post. Though I have all of those elements on my site now (except for advertising) it’s taken me a couple of years to get it together because of both time restraints and just not knowing what to write. And I say this as a web designer who knows about navigation. It’s wonderful to know that you look for the blogger’s name when emailing them.
Have you ever thought about including more than just your content? I suggest, what an individual say is very important and anything. However think of if a person added some good images or videos to offer your blogposts more, pop! Your content is excellent but along with images and movies, this website could certainly be probably the most beneficial in its market. Awesome weblog!