6/25/24 Update: I wrote this article two weeks back and it sat in draft mode due to outside circumstances. Initially there was a flood of daily ratings as mentioned below, but it calmed this last week. The Art Nouveau Coloring Book just hit the 60 rating mark as of this morning.
Something curious has happened: The Art Nouveau Coloring Book: Hats, Cats, & Vintage Romance is suddenly receiving an influx of reviews on Amazon. I’m not entirely sure why, but I have several theories. I’ll lay out everything below so readers can draw their own conclusions. This discussion might also help other authors and illustrators with their own titles.
When I first started with all four coloring books, there was an initial surge of new reviews, followed by an abrupt slowdown. At first, family and friends were excited to pick up my titles and kind enough to leave a few honest reviews. With each subsequent release, the momentum and review count slowed, and it became a real struggle to receive any feedback directly on Amazon.
On social media, customers and followers made positive comments, yet my review/rating count on Amazon lingered between 13 and 21. Despite selling 10 to 30 books a day, few people took the time to leave reviews. Asking for anything, including reviews, is uncomfortable for me. I always ask for complete honesty to avoid improper reviews.
More recently, Amazon has been using AI to weed out initial reviews from both verified and non-verified purchasers. Many people told me they left a review, but their reviews sometimes didn’t show up for a week or longer, likely due to a manual review process. After months of asking and selling hundreds of books, I only managed to push the review count to around 21. Another author on Reddit mentioned a similar experience, selling hundreds of books but receiving only a handful of reviews.
I created this website with a message at the bottom of the homepage asking readers to leave a review. I can’t tell if anyone is reading this message or if it’s affecting sales, as Amazon KDP doesn’t provide detailed consumer statistics.
Recently, I’ve been receiving almost daily reviews. The book title was moved to a different category temporarily, causing it to lose the #1 Best Seller status, which had boosted sales. I reduced the ads and increased the price slightly to break even and recover advertising expenses. Although overall sales dipped, the unsustainable advertising expenses were reduced.
Initially, I believed that reaching 30 reviews would signal to potential buyers that the coloring book was high quality. Once The Art Nouveau Coloring Book crossed the 30-rating mark, ratings began to pick up. As to “why” I had settled on that magic number, I can’t be certain to be honest but I think it stems from my own subconscious actions of buying products. The book received two ratings yesterday alone, increasing the count from 45 to 48 in one day.
I often wonder if increased ratings attract more serious buyers. As the rating count increases, perhaps it draws a different crowd—those already looking for an item to buy who are already shopping on Amazon rather than a potential buyer from an outside advertisement.
Curiously, Amazon Ads have become more affordable and effective. As to why, I can’t really say but I suspect there might have been an algorithmic shift to this particular category (coloring book-related) from the programmers. The ads have gone from a ridiculous 60 cents per click or higher down to around 18 to 30 cents per click. Keep in mind, I had spoken with an Amazon Ads rep at one point and even she was shocked when she saw these prices—she stated that most other non-book categories were around 10 cents per click. The ads are still very expensive, but I think it paying for Amazon ads once you cross a certain threshold of ratings becomes more effective in creating what advertisers call “a conversion.” After The Art Nouveau Coloring Book reached 40 reviews, the advertising expense to income ratio started to balance out. Perhaps if the rating count reaches 100, the title secures an ever better position within Amazon and this could lead to even more sales and ratings.
It’s also worth mentioning that not all the reviews seem genuine. Some competitors may leave harmful reviews, and I find the reviews lacking the “verified purchase” badge suspicious. These reviews are often unusually critical and accuse creators of using AI which appears to be a more recent telltale sign. Amazon is completely unwilling to remove these unverified and at times verified and irrelevant reviews, which can damage a title and author’s reputation. Other reviews may criticize the quality of the print itself (ie. printer streaks,) which is something (quality control) that is out of my purview and should be taken up with Amazon directly. As a result of being on the receiving end of comments and reviews, I sympathize with new authors who face illegitimate negative reviews as that could greatly harm their reputation moving forward.
I’m at a major crossroad now. I’ve reduced advertisements, lost the best seller status due to a category shift, and increased the price slightly in order to reach net zero with the hopes of eventually advancing. Despite these changes, The Art Nouveau Coloring Book continues to rank well. I’m uncertain about the future—whether the book’s ranking will improve or fade away. If you’ve experienced a sudden increase in reviews and ratings once hitting certain or apparent plateaus, please share your story; I’d love to hear from you.
