Books Go Social: What It Is and Whether It's Worth Your Time
Sunday, November 15, 2026
If you have spent any time in indie author Facebook groups, you have almost certainly seen Books Go Social mentioned, either as a recommendation or as a question mark. It is one of the longer-running names in the self-published author services space, and like most services in this niche, opinions about it are mixed. Here is a fair look at what it actually is, what people say about it, and what we think is worth your time.
What Books Go Social Actually Is
Books Go Social (BooksGoSocial.com) is an author services company and community built around helping self-published and indie authors get visibility. It has been operating for many years and has built up a genuinely large following in the indie author world, both through its website and through a very active Facebook group.
At its core, it combines two different things: a paid promotional business (book promotion packages, submissions to reviewers and bloggers, social media boosting, and paid advertising or marketing management), and a free community space where authors gather to talk about the craft and business of self-publishing.
What They Offer
The service side of Books Go Social has changed and expanded over the years, but the general offerings tend to include:
- Paid book promotion packages, often tied to a specific launch or discount window
- "Author of the Day" style features meant to put a book in front of a wider audience
- Social media sharing and boosting services, promoting a book across the company's own channels
- Submission services to book reviewers and blogger networks
- Paid advertising and marketing management options for authors who want hands-off ad management
- A large, active Facebook group where indie authors network, ask questions, and share what is working
The Case For It: What Authors Say They Like
The most consistent praise across reviews and author forums is not for the paid promotion packages. It is for the Facebook group itself. Many authors describe it as a genuinely useful, supportive place to learn the basics of self-publishing, ask questions without judgment, and connect with other indie writers going through the same struggles.
For many authors, the free community turned out to be worth more than anything they paid for.
Beyond the group, some authors do report real value from the paid features, particularly a bump in visibility around a launch, and some of the vendors and services connected to or recommended within the community have solid reputations. It is not accurate to say nobody gets anything out of the paid side. Some do.
The Case for Caution
At the same time, a fair review has to include the more skeptical feedback, and there is plenty of it. Results from the paid promotion packages are inconsistent. Some authors report spending money on a featured placement or a boosted social post and seeing little to no measurable change in sales. Others feel that as the author lists used for these promotions have grown, the effectiveness of any single feature has been diluted simply because there is more competition for the same reader attention.
Visibility is not the same thing as sales. That is true of Books Go Social, and it is true of nearly every paid book promotion service in this niche.
None of this makes Books Go Social unusual. It makes it fairly typical of the category. Book promotion services as a whole tend to have this exact split in reviews: genuine enthusiasm for the free or low-cost community elements, and much more cautious, mixed feedback on the paid packages relative to what they cost.
The Free Facebook Group
Consistently praised. Active, supportive, useful for learning and networking. Costs nothing but time.
Paid Promotion Packages
Mixed results. Some authors see a visibility bump, others see little sales impact. Requires case-by-case evaluation.
Our Verdict
Based on what authors consistently say, the free Facebook community is the most reliably valuable part of what Books Go Social offers. It costs nothing to join, and the networking and shared knowledge inside it seem to hold up well over time.
The paid promotional packages are a different question, and one you should approach the way you would approach any paid book marketing service: with reasonable expectations, a clear sense of what you are actually paying for, and a look at recent, specific reviews rather than general reputation alone. Experiences vary widely, and results are never guaranteed, no matter how established the service or how large its list has become.
This is consistent with how we look at marketing services generally at The Backlist. We are not interested in chasing shortcuts or hyping up any single tool or service as a guaranteed win. The honest approach is to do your own due diligence before spending money on promotion of any kind, book related or otherwise, and to put your energy first into the things that are genuinely free and reliably useful, like the community you can find inside a good author group.
Start With the Free Community
Check out the Books Go Social Facebook group and see if it is a fit for you before considering any paid packages.
Hi, I'm Tim Hewitt
CEO of AuthorHub.io
I won my first writing scholarship in high school by beating more than 300 other writers in a nationwide contest, and that award gave me something money couldn't buy: the belief that my words mattered. Since then I've spent decades learning what makes writing work: how to find your voice, how to keep readers turning pages, marketing that really sells books, and how to spot the small craft problems that quietly sink good stories. This blog is where I share everything I've picked up along the way.
