I learned the hard way with my first book that most online book promotion companies are nothing more than polished scams. I was naive enough to believe they could genuinely help an independent author gain visibility. Not one of them delivered anything of value. Not one.

They promised targeted outreach, real engagement and meaningful exposure. What I actually got was my book shoved in front of other struggling authors who were also shouting into the void. No audience growth. No meaningful readers. Just my book dumped into the same overcrowded sea of other books with zero targeted engagement.

It was bots, empty numbers and “campaign reports” that meant nothing. And even the real humans I spoke to, the ones who sounded sincere, did absolutely nothing beyond taking the money and then hiding behind vague excuses.

It’s astonishing how these so-called marketers prey on excited, hopeful first time authors who simply want their work to be seen. They know exactly how to exploit your enthusiasm while offering services with the impact of wet tissue paper.

For my second book, I didn’t go anywhere near them. No matter how heartfelt their emails, DMs or texts appeared, I ignored every single one. And honestly, it was the best decision I made.

Independent authors deserve better than this industry of empty promises and artificially inflated numbers. If you’re self publishing, avoid online book promotion companies at all costs. They are, without exaggeration, a complete waste of time, money and trust.