Author Topic: A+ Content (Read 10638 times)

LilyBLily · « **Reply #100 on:** August 09, 2021, 11:40:47 PM »

No action by Amazon over the weekend, but one of mine was approved this morning for the US. Another that was rejected, approved, and then rejected is still pending after I did a massive overhaul on it.

The UK dashboard is not up to date on the status of content I've submitted; everything appears to be in draft only. I will wait a bit until all my submissions clear with the US store before before trying again with other markets.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #101 on:** August 11, 2021, 02:05:58 PM »

My third A+ was approved and now I have submitted all three for Amazon UK. I made some changes in the content, too.

alhawke · « **Reply #102 on:** August 11, 2021, 02:38:01 PM »

Quote from: LilyBLily on August 11, 2021, 02:05:58 PM

My third A+ was approved and now I have submitted all three for Amazon UK. I made some changes in the content, too.

Great! So far it seems once the ad is tweaked, it's easy to get approved.
I'll be working on a few new ones on other books soon, all thanks to Eric Thomson's post here.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #103 on:** August 11, 2021, 11:39:43 PM »

All three UK versions for approved in a couple of hours. On to Europe!

TimothyEllis · « **Reply #104 on:** August 12, 2021, 12:36:18 AM »

Why do the AUS and CAN stores not accept something the US and UK stores did?

They both want "product specific content in addition to any brand story content."

The image is a poster of all the book covers. Can't get more product than that.

The question is though, why are the stores using different rules?

They're using no reply email addresses too, so you can't ask them anything, or ask why they're rejecting something the US has accepted.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #105 on:** August 12, 2021, 03:43:20 AM »

Also, in doing the A+ for the next country, one has to start from the US version all over again instead of getting to choose the content one put up for any other of the Amazon stores.

Regardless, chances are it's much ado about nothing.

RPatton · « **Reply #106 on:** August 12, 2021, 04:49:02 AM »

Just a thought, but I wonder when they are going to start charging for A+? I can't imagine Amazon would give that much real estate on the book page away for free.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #107 on:** August 12, 2021, 05:05:23 AM »

Quote from: RPatton on August 12, 2021, 04:49:02 AM

Just a thought, but I wonder when they are going to start charging for A+? I can't imagine Amazon would give that much real estate on the book page away for free.

Good point. That would be like charging us for a listing. Only authors with plenty of extra cash would pay, and then there would be at least two tiers of page visuals. Possibly more. I could see high-selling indie authors throwing a chunk of cash down to make sure their pages are bigger and fancier than other people's. Sigh. Sure, strictly as a moneymaker, it gives more space to the books and authors probably selling the most and would be to Amazon's advantage. Sigh. Let's hope we retain a level playing field.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #108 on:** August 12, 2021, 11:01:12 PM »

My AU A+ content floated through, no problems. I think I sell more books in Australia than I do in all of Europe.

Simon Haynes · « **Reply #109 on:** August 13, 2021, 12:11:40 AM »

Quote from: LilyBLily on August 12, 2021, 11:01:12 PM

My AU A+ content floated through, no problems. I think I sell more books in Australia than I do in all of Europe.

Australia is (or used to be) the third largest English-language market for books after the US and UK.

From what I recall, a UK publisher would expect to sell 30% of their print run here in Aus, and 70% in the UK.

Dwarfed by the US, no doubt, but then the competition there is higher too.

Bear in mind Aus keeps going into Covid lockdowns (we're in another now, pretty much everywhere but Western Australia.) And Amazon started offering local paperback printing recently, at a rate that makes my books as cheap as trad pubbed paperbacks. (We don't do those disposable el-cheapo paperbacks here, our cheapest are A-format trade paperbacks in the $20-$25 range.)

LilyBLily · « **Reply #110 on:** August 13, 2021, 01:17:39 AM »

I grew up on cheap mass market paperbacks. They were the only formats in which most romances were available, and they were well within my budget even as a teenager with no allowance. (I had an allowance, but my mom was too broke to pay it. She always claimed she was keeping track of what she owed, and after her death I found the proof that she did. Meanwhile, though, I had only the money I'd saved from Christmas and birthday gifts. It was enough, because our local public library system was great and supplied me with all the latest in fiction. Well, except for Valley of the Dolls, which they would not carry, claiming it "wasn't a book.")

TimothyEllis · « **Reply #111 on:** August 13, 2021, 01:32:35 AM »

Quote from: LilyBLily on August 13, 2021, 01:17:39 AM

I grew up on cheap mass market paperbacks.

I did too.

I seriously don't like the new sizes.

littleauthor · « **Reply #112 on:** August 13, 2021, 02:54:44 AM »

Just had to share. My Wuthering Heights retelling has been flagged for content for use of the word 'penis.' The word I used is Penistone Crag.
Ah, and just when I thought AI was going to take over the world!
I can't stop laughing.

Eric Thomson · « **Reply #113 on:** August 13, 2021, 02:59:12 AM »

Quote from: littleauthor on August 13, 2021, 02:54:44 AM

Just had to share. My Wuthering Heights retelling has been flagged for content for use of the word 'penis.' The word I used is Penistone Crag.
Ah, and just when I thought AI was going to take over the world!
I can't stop laughing.

That's a pretty dick move on Amazon's part.

PJ Post · « **Reply #114 on:** November 10, 2021, 10:55:48 PM »

Has anyone seen improved sales?

TimothyEllis · « **Reply #115 on:** November 10, 2021, 10:57:58 PM »

Quote from: PJ Post on November 10, 2021, 10:55:48 PM

Has anyone seen improved sales?

Not as such, but just after my last release I think someone bought the entire universe in one go.

This does happen periodically, but it might be because all the covers are now visible on all books.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #116 on:** November 10, 2021, 11:52:04 PM »

No improved sales, but the page is more mine than previously. There are just as many ads for other people's books, but my A+ content is larger.

Eric Thomson · « **Reply #117 on:** November 11, 2021, 03:05:36 AM »

Quote from: PJ Post on November 10, 2021, 10:55:48 PM

Has anyone seen improved sales?

Yep. I put the A+ in shortly after my July release. Sales outside of Amazon (Apple, Kobo, Google, etc) followed the normal pattern through August, September and October, but Amazon sales didn't. They remained unusually high and stable. In other words, I had the normal tailing off everywhere but on Amazon where I kept selling at a much higher pace, enough so to carry me through to my 1st of November release. Never seen anything like it since I started 7 years ago. Since A+ is the only thing I changed in my strategy, it has to be the driver.

Anarchist · « **Reply #118 on:** November 11, 2021, 10:10:45 AM »

I've been watching from the sidelines. I'm sure A+ does more good than harm, but I've got my hands full with AMS right now.

spin52 · « **Reply #119 on:** November 26, 2021, 12:59:36 AM »

Quote from: PJ Post on November 10, 2021, 10:55:48 PM

Has anyone seen improved sales?

I didn't get mine up and running until October, but both October and November were better than average months, so ... a qualified yes.

littleauthor · « **Reply #120 on:** November 27, 2021, 11:32:51 PM »

No improvement in sales, but the page looks more polished and as a consumer, when I see A+content on product pages, I read it over and it helps me decide. I think it'll translate into sales in time.

LilyBLily · « **Reply #121 on:** November 28, 2021, 01:45:25 AM »

I've seen some fancy A+ content on other author pages, but frankly, it's not anything that would influence me as a reader. I'm probably too cynical about such things, though.

Having seen those pages, I now feel a need to revise my own and make them slicker. Which means I'll have to re-learn how to do it. A project for the back burner, as are so many others.

TimothyEllis · « **Reply #122 on:** November 28, 2021, 01:48:23 AM »

Quote from: LilyBLily on November 28, 2021, 01:45:25 AM

I've seen some fancy A+ content on other author pages, but frankly, it's not anything that would influence me as a reader.

I've seen several which acted to put me off.

In one case, it highlighted the MC change in a long series, and the fact I wasn't invested in the new MC at all, just convinced me not to buy the next book.

A case of too much information.

Post-Crisis D · « **Reply #123 on:** November 28, 2021, 04:30:23 AM »

Quote from: TimothyEllis on November 28, 2021, 01:48:23 AM

I've seen several which acted to put me off.

In one case, it highlighted the MC change in a long series, and the fact I wasn't invested in the new MC at all, just convinced me not to buy the next book.

A case of too much information.

But that might prevent bad reviews, no?

LilyBLily · « **Reply #124 on:** November 28, 2021, 05:34:33 AM »

I've never gotten bad reviews. Reviews that hated the story and thought I was sick in the head, yes, but not what I consider a bad review, since they weren't ragging on my ability to write. To me, that's a bad review. Everything else is reader reaction. Basically, free social proof.

Eric Thomson · « **Reply #125 on:** November 28, 2021, 06:31:05 AM »

Quote from: LilyBLily on November 28, 2021, 05:34:33 AM

I've never gotten bad reviews. Reviews that hated the story and thought I was sick in the head, yes, but not what I consider a bad review, since they weren't ragging on my ability to write. To me, that's a bad review. Everything else is reader reaction. Basically, free social proof.

This

TimothyEllis · « **Reply #126 on:** November 28, 2021, 12:10:16 PM »

Quote from: Post-Crisis D on November 28, 2021, 04:30:23 AM

But that might prevent bad reviews, no?

Not really. The first one got a lot of review comments about the MC not being in the picture for very long.

Those who did read on in the series would then be reviewing as they normally would. So minor review hiccup on a single book, then business as usual.

News:

Author Topic: A+ Content (Read 10638 times)