Blog Tours… Yay or Nay?

Blog tours seem to be all the rage these days. When we first started blogging, they weren’t as prominent. Not only were there not as many of them then, but they’ve changed a lot, too, over the few short years that we've been blogging. Both Jen and I have similar opinions about blog tours and today we would like to discuss them and see what the general consensus is these days.






As a reader, do blog tours influence you to purchase books?

April:  Honestly no, they don’t. It’s hard to look at it from just a reader’s point of view. I think in the beginning they did, back when I first started blogging, but after participating in a few tours, my views have changed. I’m more likely to purchase a book based on a regular review vs. a blog tour review.

Jen:  Not really. I mean, if I've never heard of the book before -- which is rare in itself -- it might pique my interest in a title. But I think tour posts and reviews may be a little skewed, meaning the blogger feels more pressure to positively review and promote a book, and so I'm actually probably less likely to purchase a book strictly based on posts from a blog tour. That being said, I don't think that's always the case, and I've purchased plenty of books that have had promotional blog tours...it just wasn't as a result of the tour. I'd already been intrigued by the book itself.

As a blogger, what are some things you like and dislike about participating in blog tours?

April:  When I first started blogging, I liked the ARCs. I rarely got approved for anything, and tours were pretty much my only opportunity to score an ARC. Plus, I found a few great authors through doing tours.

What I dislike - the restrictions. I don’t like having to post on a certain date. That puts a deadline on when I need to finish a book and it’s a huge kill joy for me. These days I stick to NetGalley and Edelweiss for that purpose alone. Yes, they prefer you post your reviews around or close to release date, but it’s not mandatory.

Jen:  Honestly, I just really love sharing books I've loved with fellow bibliophiles, and in the beginning, that's what blog tours were best at. You had your post, but then you also had the author and tour host and possibly even the publicist helping to promote your post through social media. That's still pretty much the case, but I just feel like most tours these days just have a different vibe than they did when I first started out. In the beginning, I felt privileged to be invited to a tour or to be approved to be on one. That's also still true, but now it often feels like a burden, a looming deadline on top of everything else I need to get done for the blog -- and in real life -- on top of all the reading I want to do. Also, I still feel the pressure to love a book I've received for review for a tour, or to at least pretend like I do. Which is why recently I've only been signing up for tours for novels that I know I will love, beyond a shadow of a doubt. Or for books I've already read, when possible. I think that would really help my touring experience...to be given access to the title before the tour stops are assigned, so that I know whether the book is the right fit for me and our blog or not.

I also really enjoy getting creative with the interviews and guest posts. Sometimes it can be a trying experience, especially when I try to get a little too in-depth with my character interviews, but overall, I love doing them. Even so, I'd much prefer doing special posts like that outside of a tour because there's less pressure: it's just between me and the author, there's not specific deadline, and more often than not, I've already read the book, so I'm happy as pie to promote it for the author.

Charging for blog tours… this is mighty common these days… thoughts?

April:  I’m tossed on this, because I know that running a tour is a lot of hard work. I organized one cover reveal for a friend, and it took up so much of my time. So I can understand why some tour sites charge. But…

I remember back when bloggers used to organize these things just because they loved the book and they wanted to share the love. Now it seems every tour comes with a price. So tours are being organized because the Author is willing to pay, not necessarily because their book was good.

Jen:  Hmm...I think maybe I just assumed that all tour hosting sites charged for their services? I know of one off the top of my head that does their tours for free, just out of love for the authors and their books, and they've always been my favorite to host tour stops for because of that fact. Also, they have really nice tours, promote some awesome authors, and they're really, really organized, which is a definite plus in my book. Anyway, I'm kind of indifferent on this topic because like I said, I thought they all charged from the get-go.

Overall, how do you feel about blog tours?

April:  I don’t hate them, but I don’t love them. I can see how they help get a books name out there. I think that if I read a book, loved it and was asked to participate in a tour, I’d be all for it. There is always that chance though, if you sign up beforehand that you won’t like the book. Then what? You opt for a promotional post instead?

I’ve done this, and I hate it. Why would I want to promote a book I didn’t like? But I’ve signed up so therefore I’m obligated to post something. I once read an ARC I did not like at all. I tried to back out after reading it, but was talked into posting a semi-honest review keeping it at least 3 stars. I felt horrible after I posted it because I did mention things I didn’t like, but I was not completely honest with my readers or with myself. After that review, I vowed it would never happen again. At that point, I stopped signing up for them.

That is why I’m hesitant to purchase a book based off a tour review, because did you ever notice how vague tour reviews are sometimes? It’s because a tour is meant to be promotional, so I’ve always felt pressured to not focus on negatives. But the negatives are important. They could save a person from wasting money on a book they won’t like.

Jen:   I think it all comes down to the book, the author, and the tour hosting service. I've had good experiences, and I've had experiences like April, where I was provided with promotional material in lieu of posting a negative review. I don't think I've ever been told I couldn't post a negative review for a tour book, but I have been asked to hold my less than 4 star review until after the tour is over.

Seriously? I don't think of 3 stars as bad. I rate a lot of books I've enjoyed as 3 stars simply because they weren't all that impressive but I was still entertained, which is ideally what I'm asking of my books. I understand that the idea is to promote the title, and that in some eyes, negative reviews are the devil. But that old adage -- The only bad press is no press -- rings pretty true. I've read plenty of negative reviews that actually made me want to read a book, either to see if I had the same reaction or to prove to myself that the book wasn't nearly that bad.

I appreciate the attention blog tours give to books and authors, but I also feel that too many on our blog would be doing a great disservice to our readers. They should also have original content. It's kind of annoying to see the same promotional post across a hundred blogs. Same goes for cover reveals...make them special and exclusive to only a handful of blogs.

But I digress. I don't exactly have a love/hate relationship with blog tours, but like April, I've become extremely picky about which ones I accept invitations for. Rarely do I go out seeking them anymore. I actually do have a few coming up in the next couple of months, but they're for books I've already read and loved, and it is my absolute pleasure to promote them.

So, what are your feelings on blog tours and how have those feelings changed over the years? Does your opinion differ as a reader versus as a blogger? What's your favorite aspect of a blog tour: giveaways, guest posts, finding new reads, etc.? Are you sad that we don't do more blog tours, or do you prefer that we strive to bring you more original content and discussion posts?

Labels: blog tour, discussion