When a writer decides to pursue the online publishing route, either through self-publishing or with a publisher, they’re often faced with a very simple question; how do I promote my book? With an abundance of e-books or titles available for download online, one can easily feel like their title will get lost amongst the crowd.
That’s where Book Bongo comes in, intending to help writers promote their books to new audiences and help with an increase in readership. In this review, we will take a closer look at Book Bongo and dissect who they are, what they do & breakdown of the packages they offer writers to see if it’s a worthwhile investment.
What is Book Bongo?
Book Bongo aims to deliver the best book deals to Kindle readers as well as assist the authors and publishers they partner with, to promote their work.
The basic premise works as follows; an author is publishing their book online & wishes to maximize the reach of their writing. Book Bongo offers a tiered package system at various price points, with an increase in promotion and exposure, and the more you spend.
The financial outlay the writer pays, will then hopefully be made worthwhile by the increase in exposure and therefore increase in revenue from downloads and or sales.
Book Bongo is also owned by a parent company called Cold Peak Media which is an independent publishing house, so the expertise is there from top to bottom.
Finally, it’s worth mentioning that they are also an Amazon Associate, so they do earn from qualifying purchases.
What type of genres does Book Bongo publish?
A glance at Book Bongo’s website reveals that they are a genre-agnostic company with a section listed for almost every conceivable genre. This is including but is not limited to numerous subcategories underneath ‘fiction, numerous /subcategories underneath ‘nonfiction’, sport, travel, young adult, and short stories.
This is likely due to the fact they are a promotional company as opposed to a direct publisher and therefore feel they have more scope in the types of works they can promote as opposed to a publisher who may feel they need first-hand knowledge of the genre to publish successfully.
Which Authors Promote with Book Bongo?
As well as a diverse list of featured books which we’ll touch on in a moment, they also have a testimonials section with some quotes from writers who have used Book Bongo’s services, including;
- Mary Kipps – All In Vein
- Ruth J Burroughs – Michelangelo 2000 and Other Microstories
- Some of their featured authors and books include;
- Vanessa Garbin – Your Every Move
- Robert Peterson – Viking Mania
- Rob Plevin – Calm Happy Kids
- Nicola Clifford – River of Bodies
- E.D Robson – Monica with a K Saves the World
- Maureen Michelle – Reclaiming Life
- Susan M Boyer – Lowcountry Boil
- K.Rehburg – Death in the Dunes
- Melinda Deir-Boyette – Wake Up Sleeping Church
- Dr. Karen Snow – Infertility Lies
How much do titles offered by Book Bongo cost?
Given their nature as a promotional site, it will come as no surprise to learn that price points vary wildly.
The lowest is free! They run special promotional periods for certain books where users can download them for free. Above that, Kindle titles start at as little as $0.99 and the links to Amazon often include paperback versions which as you’d expect are more expensive and seem to go up to around the $20 mark.
Can authors submit to Book Bongo?
Yes, although Book Bongo is a promotional site they do not of course accept conventional submissions.
Instead, the way it works is through a tiered system of promotion, increasing in price points, which we will expand on fully below.
Free Bongo Boost – Free
If they like your deal, they’ll tweet about the book. If they love it, they’ll post it on their Facebook page. (By no means guaranteed – books are selected by quality and value.)
Book Bump – $9.99
Your book permanently featured in up to two genres on their website, and the front page for the duration of your promotion (for up to two weeks).
Book Blast – $19.99
Their Book Bump service above plus a feature in their weekly mailout, a post on their Facebook page and Twitter, and inclusion in their weekly mailout-based advertising campaign on Facebook.
Premium Book Bang – $29.99
All of the above plus your book featured for a week on their homepage banner and posted in up to 20 relevant Facebook groups with a bespoke advert.
Super Book Bounce – $49.99
All of the above plus your book featured on the right sidebar of every single one of their book pages – currently over 3,450 and growing – for two weeks.
Ultra Book Bonanza – $99.99
All of the above plus a 3-4 day long, paid advertising campaign on Facebook for your book, with bespoke design and audience targeting by digital marketing professionals, and a full-length post on their blog dedicated to your book.
Extreme Book Video Trailer- $199.99
A 60-second long cinematic video with a soundtrack professionally created for your book. They work with your ideas to design a bespoke, impactful trailer that will get readers’ attention. You will be able to download the video and use it freely. The process takes up to a week. The video will be tweeted, posted on their blog and their Youtube channel, and advertised to genre-targeted readers on their Facebook page. Your book will also receive all the features of the Book Blast service, details above.
What are some alternatives to Book Bongo?
The prime alternative to using a promotional site like Book Bongo would be for the writer to handle promotions themselves or to work with publishers who would likely have a marketing and promotions team. We’ll discuss all these options in our final review below.
Book Bongo review – Final Verdict
In conclusion, Book Bongo is worth a look for writers publishing their works online. However, multiple points should give authors pause for consideration.
Firstly, beyond a couple of testimonials, there are no real case studies with proof of concept or evidence that the promotional packages deliver value for money or can demonstrate previous successes. Before spending on such a package it may be worth engaging in conversation with the Book Bongo team to discuss this.
Secondly, given the temporary nature of a lot of the promotional packages, writers may feel like they could achieve similar efforts on their own, either through their work on social media or through other innovative avenues to increase awareness and readership of their book.
Lastly, however, the free option Book Bongo offers is a no-risk opportunity that would surely be worthwhile for all writers publishing online. Whilst the positive outcomes may be minimal, it’s rare to find a genuinely free opportunity to increase exposure and that deserves to be recognized.
In short, writers should grasp the free promotion with both hands but give serious consideration and pause before investing any of their own money into a concept that, as of yet, is not a proven success.