Check out almost any writing or self-publishing group and you’re bound to find somebody talking about BookBub. Usually, it’s because an author is trying to get a Featured Deal, celebrating that they landed one, or asking if BookBub Ads are worth testing.
There’s a reason for that. BookBub has built one of the biggest reader audiences in the book promotion space, and its Featured Deals are still some of the most sought-after promotions an author can get. A good BookBub promotion can put your book in front of a huge number of readers who already like your genre and are actively looking for books to buy.
That said, BookBub is not just Featured Deals anymore. Authors can use BookBub Ads, Preorder Alerts, New Release Alerts, New Releases for Less, and other tools to reach readers at different points in a book’s life.
Some of those tools are free. Some are paid. Some are easy to access. Some are extremely competitive. And that’s where a lot of the confusion comes in.
So in this BookBub review, we’ll look at what BookBub does for readers, how authors can use it, what kinds of promotions are available, and whether BookBub is still worth using as part of your book marketing plan.
What is BookBub and What Does It Do?
BookBub is a free service that helps readers find ebook deals, free books, new releases, and recommendations based on the genres and authors they’re interested in. Readers choose the categories they like, follow authors, save books to their wishlist, and receive personalized deal alerts by email.
But here's the kicker… BookBub doesn't actually sell any books. They not only find the choicest books for you, but where you can get them for the best deal. They’ll send you to retailers such as Amazon, Apple Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble/Nook, and others.
They also provide readers with two unique and awesome features.
Real Time Updates from the Authors You Love Most
When setting up your BookBub profile, you have the option to follow particular authors. When readers follow an author on BookBub, they can receive updates when that author has a new release. Authors with approved BookBub Author Profiles may also be able to reach followers through tools like New Release Alerts and, if eligible, Preorder Alerts. BookBub offers one of the best ways outside of the author's personal pages to keep you notified.
Get Book Recommendations from People You Trust Most
Ever get stuck trying to figure out your next read? Sometimes, all you need is a good recommendation. And while Aunt Myrtle may make a mean banana pudding, you might want to avoid her dedication to Harlequin Romance novels. BookBub also helps readers discover books through recommendations, editor-curated deals, author updates, and wishlist alerts. For readers who already buy ebooks regularly, it can be a simple way to find discounted books in the genres they already like.
If you're an avid reader, I'd highly suggest that you get involved with BookBub.
BookBub Review for Authors: What can BookBub do for me?
After seeing what BookBub can do for readers, this has got to be awesome for the authors behind their recommendations, right?
And that's absolutely true. BookBub offers several marketing tools for authors and publishers, including Featured Deals, BookBub Ads, Preorder Alerts, New Release Alerts, and New Releases for Less. As a matter of fact, USA Today best-selling author and creator of The Self-Publishing Formula Mark Dawson has this to say about BookBub:
“BookBub is the gold standard when it comes to finding new readers, and they provide some of the best author resources in the business…”
And when he says it's the gold standard, I wholeheartedly agree. Let's review the ways that BookBub goes above and beyond the call of duty when it comes to handling your book promotion–both pre-order and new release.
BookBub can drive your pre-orders higher than ever thought before.
When it comes to pre-orders, BookBub does it best and here's how.
Targeted Pre-order Alerts
Preorder Alerts are dedicated emails sent to an author’s BookBub followers when that author has a book available for preorder. Authors currently need more than 1,000 BookBub followers to schedule a Preorder Alert, and the book must meet BookBub’s preorder eligibility requirements.
BookBub's Pre-order Ads
BookBub Ads are a self-serve advertising option you can use for preorders, new releases, discounted books, or backlist titles. You can target by author interest, category, retailer preference, region, or readers who have shown interest in your books on BookBub. You also control the budget, timing, targeting, and creative, and you can bid by cost-per-click or cost-per-thousand impressions.
Launching a new release is made even easier with BookBub.
This might be where BookBub most benefits an author. Launching a new book can be terrifying. And with so many new books being released every single week, it's hard to ensure that your book doesn't drown between the waves. But BookBub can help you out with this.
New Release Alerts for Followers
New Release Alerts are free dedicated emails BookBub sends to an author’s followers when that author releases an eligible new book or novella. To qualify, the author needs an approved BookBub Author Profile, and the book must meet BookBub’s eligibility requirements.
New Releases for Less
New Releases for Less is BookBub’s weekly email featuring a curated selection of low-priced new releases. Unlike New Release Alerts, which go to an author’s existing followers and are free, New Releases for Less reaches BookBub readers subscribed to the book’s category. Authors and publishers submit books for editorial consideration, and selected features are paid placements.
BookBub Ads
This is just like the ad process for pre-orders. Customize your campaigns to ensure you can put your ads right where they need to be.
Run Featured Deals
BookBub claims that 70% of authors sell more copies of their other titles after a featured deal. And after seeing what they can do, I'm apt to believe them. A Featured Deal is BookBub’s curated promotion for a discounted or free ebook. Authors often use Featured Deals on a first-in-series or backlist book to bring in new readers, then use the back matter of that discounted book to point readers toward the next book or a new release at full price. And if your Part One story was great, Part Two has a much higher chance of selling.
Be Recommended
You can also build visibility on BookBub by growing your followers and encouraging genuine recommendations from readers or authors who know your work. I wouldn’t treat this like a quick promotional lever, but it can help strengthen your author presence over time.
How Can You Apply for a BookBub Promotion?
So now that we've covered in this BookBub review what it can do for you, how do you actually apply for one?
The first step is to create a BookBub partner account. This is super easy to do. All you need to do is provide your name, email, and a password. And that's it!
Once your account is set up, you can use the Partner Dashboard to create BookBub Ads, submit a book for a Featured Deal, submit a low-priced new release for New Releases for Less, or manage other eligible promotion tools.
BookBub Ad Campaigns
BookBub Ads work very similar to Amazon AMS. (For more info on those, check out my FREE AMS COURSE.)
You set your targeted audience, time for the ads to run, budget, and bid per click. BookBub Ads can run on either a cost-per-click or cost-per-thousand-impressions basis. With CPC bidding, you pay for clicks. With CPM bidding, you pay for impressions. Either way, BookBub uses an auction system, so your bid, targeting, and ad performance can affect how often your ad is shown.
Featured New Release Pricing
For New Releases for Less, pricing depends on the book’s category and regional availability. BookBub’s current all-region pricing table lists Historical Fiction at 1,420,000+ minimum subscribers emailed with a fee of $1,115.50, while smaller categories cost less. Because the subscriber counts and prices change, you should always check BookBub’s current New Releases for Less pricing table before planning a campaign.
So that's it? Just sign up?
BookBub seems pretty easy, right? Well here's the thing.
BookBub Featured Deals are still extremely competitive. BookBub says there are minimum requirements a deal must meet, but because Featured Deal email space is limited, only 10–20% of eligible deals are selected.
During the application process, they provide an “optional” place to put comments as to why your book would be a good fit. This optional place is not really optional. You need to be able to convince BookBub that your book is worth their time.
BookBub does have submission requirements, and its editors also look at how competitive the book is. In general, your chances are better if the book has a professional, genre-appropriate cover, a strong book description, good reader reviews, and wide availability across multiple retailers. Reviews matter, but I would not treat “50–100 Amazon reviews” as an official requirement.
But if you do happen to pass the rigorous inspection criteria, there are so many great testimonials to using BookBub.
BookBub Review: What's the Bottom Line?
BookBub can be a strong marketing tool for authors, but it helps to understand which part of BookBub you’re talking about.
A Featured Deal is the big one most authors want, and for good reason. It can move a lot of discounted copies, especially if your book has a strong cover, good reviews, a solid description, and the right pricing strategy. The downside is that Featured Deals are highly competitive, so getting rejected is normal. If that happens, you can resubmit an individual title every 30 days.
BookBub Ads are easier to access, but they require testing. You need to pay attention to your targeting, bid, ad creative, and read-through strategy, because simply turning on an ad does not guarantee profit. New Release Alerts are useful too, but they only go to your existing BookBub followers. New Releases for Less can reach a larger audience, though it is still curated and paid.
So is BookBub worth it? For many authors, yes. But it is not a magic button you press when you want sales. BookBub works best when the book is already positioned well and you know what you want the promotion to accomplish.
If your book is ready, BookBub can absolutely be worth applying for or testing. If it’s not, spend the extra time improving the cover, description, reviews, pricing, and back matter first. Those things matter no matter which promotion you use.
