So I’ve used these systems and now have an impression to share from a week later. Your mileage may vary, but this is what has happened in my own use.
BookFunnel
First off, I had a hard time trying to figure out where I export the CSV file that has any user emails. I think that made it difficult to determine if this service was working or not. I paid $10/mo for this service, so out of all the ones listed, it’s the most vital to work. I ended up going to the book, then following it to the page in order to get the email list. I am scheduled for three promotions, the first one being kicked off yesterday. At the moment, I have 47 email addresses, which puts the cost per address at around 0.21c. It’s hard to say if that’s a bargain or not, as it all depends on how these users interact with my future newsletters. This is also the first day of things, and the promotions still have a long ways to go. The best users I’ve found (via Noisetrade) cost around 0.56c each. I am judging these users not by click rate or open rate, but by completion rates. If I am offering a free book, how many of them open, click, then take me up on the offer. The lower end users (Giveaway blog hops) cost around 0.09c each, but are only 1/10 as willing to interact as my best users. So, again, it all depends on how willing they are to engage with the content. I will probably put out a feeler email after these are all gathered up and see how well they interact. At that point I will truncate the best users off to my main list. The goal being a two part dance; first contact is through the massive acquire list. Once they prove they are willing to interact, move them to the main list. The reason behind making these two lists is to build a system of trial/error. Try stuff on the acquire list, but only use working methods on the main list.
StoryOrigin
This is a tale of “whoopsy”. So I setup my book as a universal link. That universal link goes to Amazon. I’ve been on one mailing list exchange, and I have another one setup, along with three group promotions. However, I used my universal link on these. I should have been using my giveaway link, as this is the one that collects all the email addresses. It’s not a big deal right now, but I’ll need to apply to a few more group giveaways with the correct link to see how well this service really works.
BookSprout
I am not really sure how to fully use this one. I don’t know how or why the ARCs are requested. Still, I’ve gotten 3 people to grab the book, which means 1-2 reviews hopefully. Seeing as this didn’t cost anything, I think it’s well worth it. However, without a means to maximize this, it's just a "nice to have" instead of an essential step.
Side Note: Audiobook Reviews
I’ve been doing some other efforts trying to get people to review my books: Audio Book Boom and my own mailing list. I haven’t really seen a lot of traction on building reviews via these methods. Perhaps I need to send out reminders and see how well that works. In the past, these worked a lot better for reviews.
I am going to continue on with these promotion efforts because they will help show me new ways to build my mailing list. The goal is to slowly build an awesome list that can generate feedback. That way, when I send out my main efforts next year, I have a wonderful list to help boost any additional efforts.
