Best Practices for Using Booksprout

Booksprout is my go-to tool for building reviews. It makes it easy to share copies of my books with readers who are eager to leave feedback, and it gives me the ability to manage campaigns and communicate with reviewers all in one place. Plus, it works just as well for backlist titles as for book launches!

Like any platform, it helps to know a few best practices to get the most out of your campaigns. Here are some strategies I’ve developed through my own use of Booksprout, along with official guidance from the Booksprout team.

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Create New Campaigns Regularly

On Booksprout, new campaigns are shown first, so it doesn’t work to just set up a campaign and let it run. If your campaign drifts too far down the list, readers are less likely to find it.

My approach: I put up new campaigns about twice a week, even if they’re for the same book, and retire the old ones. This keeps my books near the top where readers can see them.

Communicate with Reviewers

One of the most effective aspects of Booksprout is the ability to message reviewers. I always make use of this feature:

  • Positive reviews: I send an effusive thank-you.

  • Neutral reviews: I thank them for taking the time to leave a review.

  • Negative reviews: I have never received a really negative review on Booksprout. I find that reviewers usually just withdraw from a campaign if they don’t like the book rather than posting a negative review. This makes it an especially author-friendly environment for collecting feedback and building up positive reviews. If I ever did received a really negative review, I would simply not engage.

Use Review Teams

Booksprout also allows authors to build Review Teams—groups of readers who sign up to review multiple books from you over time. This can be a great way to grow a consistent base of reviewers who are genuinely interested in your work.

For Booksprout’s own guidance on setting up and managing Review Teams, see:
https://booksprout.co/blog/how-to-build-an-arc-team/
https://booksprout.co/blog/booksprout-review-teams/