Want More Book Reviews? Build a Launch Team That Works—Here's How

I remember the day my first children’s book launched like it was yesterday. I had poured my heart into writing it, obsessively reviewed every illustration, and clicked that “Publish” button with all the hope in the world. I was proud. I was excited. And if I’m being honest? I was a little naive.

I thought I could just put my book out into the world and the readers would come flocking. I told myself, “I’ll release it now and figure out the marketing later.”

Spoiler alert: Later is a terrible time to start thinking about marketing.

What followed was a wake-up call I didn’t see coming. Crickets. No reviews. A trickle of sales. That moment of excitement quickly turned into confusion and frustration. I knew my book had potential—but no one else knew it even existed.

So I made a decision right then and there: If I wanted the kind of success that traditionally published authors seemed to have—the kind that lands books in readers’ hands and earns glowing reviews—I’d have to work like a traditionally published author. And that meant learning how to market like one.

I dove headfirst into researching everything I could about book launches. I read blogs, took courses, listened to podcasts—you name it. And over and over, one strategy kept popping up: Build a launch team.

At first, I wasn’t sure what that even meant. But once I understood the power behind it—and saw firsthand what it did for my book—I became a true believer.

So in this post, I want to teach you:

✅ What a launch team is and why it matters

✅ How to find the right people (not just your mom and friends)

✅ The 5 do’s and don’ts that will make or break your launch

✅ The exact steps I used to build a launch team of 800 people and hit bestseller status

What Is a Book Launch Team?

A book launch team is a group of supportive readers who help you share your book with the world. Think of them as your early fans — people who are excited about your story and want to help you succeed.

Before your book officially comes out, you send them a free digital copy of your story. This is called an ARC, or Advanced Reader Copy. In return, they read it and leave an honest review during launch week. They might also tell their friends about it, post about it on social media, or share it in groups they’re part of — especially if they’re parents, teachers, or fellow book lovers.

It’s a simple but powerful way to get your book in front of more people. Since your launch team is usually made up of people who are already interested in your book’s topic or genre, it’s also a great way to grow your email list with the right kind of readers.

Snag my launch team roadmap inside my coaching program 🙌

And here’s the best part: if they love your book, many will buy a physical copy when it comes out — sometimes even as gifts for their kids, classrooms, or friends.

The more traffic your book draws around the release, the higher up it ranks. The higher it ranks, the more Amazon increases your book's visibility to potential buyers. This leads to more sales, which then leads to more visibility… It's a domino effect!

Why would someone want to join my launch team?

I get asked this question a lot, and the answer is quite simple: people love free things. If you can find children's book lovers and your story resonates with them, they’ll be more than happy to help you out.

So... reviews, traffic, momentum, email leads—it all sounds great, but where do you find these people?

Most authors find their book launch team members through social media—by posting on their author accounts and sharing to relevant Facebook groups. To find people willing to support your launch, all you have to do... is ask!

The Do’s and Don’ts of Building a Launch Team

✅ DO: Post in Facebook Groups

New authors love to make launch team posts in author groups on Facebook. But what they're forgetting is that a huge perk of your book launch team is building your email list. Because of that, you want 90-95% (or more!) of that list to be potential customers, rather than fellow authors, friends, or family.

Therefore, find the groups your target audience members are in, such as groups geared towards educators, parents, readers, and any other children's book lovers!

When it comes to posting in groups, the more active you are before you post, the more people will see your request. If you join a group and immediately make a post, the Facebook algorithm will show you to a much smaller pool of people than if you were to like and comment on other posts first. So if you’re planning on posting your book launch team request on Friday, for example, you should be as active as possible Monday through Thursday.

This isn’t just for the algorithm, either—people take notice, too. If your only interaction in a group is to say “Join my launch team!” or “Buy my book!” you’re going to come across as a spammer.

You’ll get the best response by making connections with your audience. In your post, add what inspired the book. Why is it needed? What will your readers get out of it? What impact does your story have on others? Don’t just pitch your book, pitch your story.

❌ DON'T: Add Friends and Family

When I talk about building launch teams, I often hear, “My mom tried leaving me a review but it’s not showing up!” Here's why: Having friends and family review your book is against Amazon’s review policy.

If your close friends and family try to leave a review, Amazon will either not post it, remove it, or even flag your account if it happens too frequently. While some people think it’s unfair, the fact is that friends and family give biased reviews. You can ask friends and family to support your launch in other ways, but keep in mind that their support isn’t what will get you success in the publishing industry. If it was, you’d already be there!

✅ DO: Collect Contact Info for Future Correspondence

When you advertise your search for a book launch team, include a Google form to easily collect names, emails, and consent to contact. You’ll find that this is much faster than having individuals contact you--especially if the interest goes viral.

Then, you’ll use an email service like MailChimp, MailerLite, or Wix Ascend to send out professional emails to the team all at once. If you do it well, they’ll want to be part of your future launches!

❌ DON'T: Stress about Verified vs. Unverified Reviews

Many authors who sell their books on Amazon worry about reviews being "verified" or "unverified." A verified review means that the person leaving the review has purchased the book, while an unverified review indicates that the reviewer has not purchased it.

You may assume that verified is better than unverified...but when you want to make a purchase on Amazon, do you go through the product's reviews and count how many are verified or unverified? Personally, I never notice. As long as you have a mix of both, you have nothing to worry about.

That said, ARC copies don’t count as purchases, so if you’re concerned about the balance from your launch team, use KDP Select to set your ebook for free and email them. You could say, “Thanks for being a part of my launch team! As an extra thank you, I’ve made my Amazon ebook free until [insert date here]" with the download link attached.

✅ DO: Send Clean Links

When you visit an Amazon page, you may notice a series of letters and numbers following the ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number). This means you clicked a dirty link, which allows Amazon to track where people are coming from when they click it.

Why is this an issue?

Well, it’s often the reason why reviews get denied—Amazon will flag them as "suspicious" since they all came from the same place. To prevent this, all you have to do is use a clean link, rather than the dirty one. To clean up that dirty link, simply remove everything after the ASIN before sharing it with your review team. It won't change what happens when someone clicks the link; it will just keep Amazon from tracking your reviewers.

Here’s a picture of what that looks like:

Go get those book reviews!

Even just one of these tips can make a difference — but when you put them all together, they can truly transform your launch. That’s exactly what happened with my very first book: over 800 amazing readers joined my launch team, and their support helped me hit bestseller status within weeks. I had hundreds of reviews pouring in that first week, and it set the stage for every successful launch I’ve had since.

You don’t have to do this alone. If you’re ready to build your own dream team — and launch your book with confidence — I’d love to help.

🎉 Start your free 7-day trial of my coaching program today and get the step-by-step support you need to plan, build, and grow your launch team the right way. Whether you're just starting or already working on your book, you're welcome here.

Let’s make your launch something to celebrate!

Always cheering you on,

Vicky Weber

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