The First Ten Focus Group Feedback for Essence of Existence: Brief story of matter and people
Because Essence of Existence was Book of the Day, some of our most trusted members have carefully looked over the cover, the description, and other aspects of this book as a part of purchase-intent focus group. We then asked each participant in the focus group if they planned to buy and read the book, and why they planned to buy and read the book or not. Their answer to that question and reasons are displayed below. We call this awesome feature The First Ten Focus Group.
Keep in mind, the responses from the members are not reviews. This is purchase-intent focus group which means the participants are people who have NOT yet bought or read your book. A purchase-intent focus group is an important and extremely useful marketing tool for any product, not just books. For other products, you might walk on the street and show people an item in a package and poll them about whether they would buy if or $X or not. These kind of focus groups are one of the ways big marketing companies find the ideal price points for products and test the effectiveness of different packaging. The focus group can help you identify your market so you how to target ads of your book, and it can (but may not) provide you new useful info about your "packaging" (e.g. your book cover, your book synopsis on Amazon, etc.). The point of the focus group comments is to give you information from people who have not bought or read your book about why they plan to buy your book which will help you in marketing the book. These are not reviews or critiques of your book because they are not from people have read the book. This is a marketing tool, not reviews. The trick of book marketing and book advertising is that you have to convince people who have not read your book yet that your book is worth buying and reading. For marketing, it doesn't matter much if people love your book after reading it if you cannot convince potential buyers before they read it that they will love it.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable. This is because we only poll about 20 or so readers, and all readers have to say "no" to almost all books. Over a million books are published each year. Even a very active reader cannot come close to even reading 1% of books out there.
This is also why publishing books is such a tough industry.
Rebecca_Rivera
Although I find science fascinating, I don't usually read books on it. For this reason I would not have picked up this book. The cover is good and matches the book, as does the book's title. The writing is well done with no noticeable errors. Although the subject is rather heavy, the author uses easy-to-understand words and writes with simplicity and a smooth flow. The OnlineBookClub review confirmed that this is not my type of book, so I will not be buying it or finishing it. I will say, though, that it is easier to read than many textbooks on the subject.
First Ten review added on August 29, 2017, at 9:36 am by Rebecca_Rivera.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Scerakor
From the cover, blurb and review of this book I likely wouldn't have read it. I don't support the idea behind the book but the subject matter is explained at a lower level than in used to. After reading the first ten pages, I didn't change my mind. I loved how the author was very forthcoming about the unknowns in the earth's origins, but it wasnt for me. I've studied full courses on the subject matter and don't want to read it at this level. I will not be buying and reading the rest of this one. It does look very well written and edited though.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 10:05 pm by Scerakor.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Momlovesbooks
I could tell from the cover that this was probably a book I wouldn't want to read. I read the description and wanted to give it a fair chance. I read the first few pages and could not get into it. Someone that enjoys detailed, historical descriptions may find it appealing. Some of my personal beliefs kept me from wanting to read this one further.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 4:54 pm by Momlovesbooks.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
DDunstock
I find the "beginning-of-the-Universe" stories quite interesting. Based on the book blurb, I would definitely read this book because the origin of the cosmos certainly piques my interest.
This book begins much as I would expect: trying to explain the big bang and the first bits that came from that significant event. The prose is informative and well written. I did not note any spelling or grammatical errors. Yes, I would for sure read this book.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 3:13 pm by DDunstock.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Kitkat3
I like the cover and the title. Sometimes I enjoy books in this genre. The blurb makes me interested in reading the book, and customer reviews are positive. I may have sampled this book without this program. It does appear to be professionally edited. The OnlineBookClub review was helpful in letting me know that this book explains the basic history of existence through science. After reading the sample, I will be reading the rest of the book.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 2:47 pm by Kitkat3.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
ReviewerDiksha
As a student of science, reading educational books is something I look forward to. This being one such in line, I was intially interested in it. The reviews also commended it as a good book and it was generally praised everywhere. However, after reading the first few pages, I have come to realise that this book, although good in its own sense, doesn't cater well to me. I liked the sample pages, but it didn't interest me enough to continue further.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 12:05 pm by ReviewerDiksha.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Yoli García
Without reading the sample pages, I found the title of this book interesting and the cover appropriate and a bit eye-catching. I got a little interested in the book because of those, and I like scientific themes. However, I will not read this book. After I read the sample pages, I did not like at all that the author says the book is not entirely based on research. As a historian, I think academic themes such as science and history should be based and corroborated by research. Even though the book seems to be professionally edited, I did not enjoy the writing style of the author. Sounds especulative.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 11:47 am by Yoli García.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Gingerbo0ks
It's hard to pin point the genre. Is it science? Is it theory? Is it philosophy? Either way, just from reading the sample, I agree with the OBC review. This is information on as complex subject presented in a simple way so as not to overwhelm the reader with too much science and jargon. The idea of our creation and space blows my mind. I'm sure this book is interesting to those into this sort of thing, and perhaps it would be good at explaining everything to those who do not agree that science is a part of our creation.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 7:00 am by Gingerbo0ks.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Alice Heritage
I would not have chosen to read or sample this book on the basis of the cover, title or description, because I already have a comprehensive knowledge of this subject. I am also not going to read the whole book for the same reason - I have watched numerous documentaries and studied museum exhibitions. Not only do I know the information well, but I also find it more meaningful when it is illustrated, preferably with video. With no errors that I saw, this appears to have been professionally edited and the author has done a great job in digesting so much material into one readable book - it's just not for me, as explained. I did see an official OnlineBookClub review.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 4:51 am by Alice Heritage.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
ananya92
This is a book in the non-fiction genre. It resembles to certain extent a science encyclopedia, but the content and writing style is pretty different. The description and review were pretty helpful in explaining what to expect from the book. The book seems to be edited properly as well. For a book which deals with the history of matter, as well as the history of human existence, the author has done a good job condensing the vast material on the subject into one book. However, the subject is still a dry one for me, hence I'll skip this one.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 1:02 am by ananya92.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
jwalker73
Upon initial glance at the front of the book, I thought this may have been a book laced with humour. The two apes pictured, one with its arm draped across the shoulder of the other, seemed amusing. The other reason I felt this was a comedy-based read was because of way ‘brief’ was spelled as ‘breif’ on the front cover. Being in such a prominent place, I was sure there must be some significance behind this spelling. I went on to read the prologue, searching for the rationale, however, the lack of reference to this made me realise the spelling must, in fact, be a typo. The book review described this writing as easy to understand. I, personally, must disagree. After reading the first ten pages, I found myself struggling to digest what I had read. This book may have easier to understand if I possessed a basic knowledge of this branch of science but, being a novice regarding this topic, the terminology and concepts used were quite foreign to me. I do not plan to purchase or read this book for that reason.
First Ten review added on August 28, 2017, at 12:07 am by jwalker73.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Donnavila Marie01
This book is a rich source of information about the cosmos, life, evolution, and man. The author did an excellent job by simplifying the supposed scientifically technical narration about his topics. This is perfect for high schools and even to college levels, and professionals who need to be reminded because knowing and understanding the history of our creation is the responsibility of every body.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 11:51 pm by Donnavila Marie01.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Snowflake
Interesting cover and interesting idea. I would likely have sampled this book without the first ten pages program. The history of existence is a lot to take on. The book seems well edited. I did not notice any obvious typos or grammar errors. It's certainly not my usual genre of fiction. While it seems very well done, I do not plan to read the rest of this book. I will keep it in mind for my curios children as they grow and ask more questions.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 10:53 pm by Snowflake.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Seraphia Bunny Sparks
After reading a sample of, Essence of Existence by Paul Roman, I will not be purchasing this book. I have seen this book before, and the subject matter does not appeal to me. I do read nonfiction novels from time to time, but I am not interested in this particular book. Before reading a sample, I quickly decided from the cover and the title that I would not be reading this book. I find some scientific explanations interesting, but I don't want to sit down and read it. Based on what I have read this book appears to be professionally edited. This book does have an official OnlineBookClub review, but it had little impact on my decision.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 5:42 pm by Seraphia Bunny Sparks.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Jeyran Main
It is always good to read a book that is educational but not boring at the same time. I look forward to reading this because of it. The first ten pages were in good shape and the work appears professionally edited. Had I not read the first ten pages I think I would have not bought the book.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 5:41 pm by Jeyran Main.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Lennycat
Had I not read the first ten pages as a part of this program, I probably would have chosen to read this book. I find this subject interesting and the review on OnlineBookClub.org said that the author wrote the book in simplistic terms in order for people to understand the complicated science. The cover is okay. The artwork is alright, but I think different font would work better. This font does not stand out enough and the curvature in the letters is rather unscientific. After reading the sample, I did not find any technical or grammatical errors. For me personally, I probably won't finish this book. Although it's interesting reading, I found it hard to get through the sample. I have a cold right now, so maybe that's the problem. It was pretty dry reading.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 5:31 pm by Lennycat.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Naval Aulakh
"Essence of Existence" is a well written medical book. It is based on human evolution. The book is divided into four parts. After reading its review on OnlineBookClub, I decided to read the sample of the book. Though the book is very good, I would not like to read the entire book because I am not fond of reading medical books.
The book is divided into sections and it is easy to read. Moreover, I did not find any grammatical errors and spelling mistakes in the sample.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 5:06 pm by Naval Aulakh.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Miche Sora
Generally speaking, I don't read philosophical books. I prefer fiction as a form of escapism. The author's forward intrigued me, in spite of knowing this book isn't fiction, because he sounds more like mortar than a brick (generalist vs specialist).
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 3:31 pm by Miche Sora.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
micoleon13
This book has a very good cover page, in keeping with the theme of book. The title is a little confusing as to whether this is a scientific or theological based book. While I find evolution and scientific exploration interesting, it's not a subject I would choose for a light hearted read. The Onlinebookclub review was complementary and made points about how easy it was to read, however, it did not change my mind. The pages which I read were well written and edited and I appreciated that there wasn't an over abundance of jargon. However, this will not be a book which I will continue with, as I prefer fiction novels. I have no ideas for improvement.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 3:19 pm by micoleon13.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Christina Rose
At first glance, I would not have picked up this book to read. The subject matter usually does not appeal to me. However, after reading the review as well as the sample, I have changed my mind. It's seems the author was able to approach such a difficult subject and make it manageable for his readers. It also seems as if the author may have managed not to exclude anyone for this book, if that makes sense. I did not encounter any errors, and I really enjoyed the author's writing style. I look forward to finishing this book at some point.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 1:44 pm by Christina Rose.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Izesicle
I don't like the cover very much - the word "brief" is mispelled, the font is tacky. The review was pretty good so i would have sampled based on that. I typically skip prologues but the prologue in this one was relevant and interesting. The sample is very easy to read despite the heavy topic. I did not notice grammar errors or typo errors. It seems to have been edited properly. Due to the sample being an easy read i will buy this book.
First Ten review added on August 27, 2017, at 1:40 pm by Izesicle.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
This book appears to have been Book of the Day more than once. Only responses from the most recent Book of the Day focus group are shown. Older responses have been hidden by default to avoid confusion. If you would like to also view the older first ten responses, you can unhide them by clicking the button below.
Total ~ 33%
Essence of Existence earned a score of 33%.
In other words, out of the top-level reviewers who read at least the first 10 pages of this book, 33% plan to read the whole book.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable.
Over a million books are published each year. Any given person could not even read .0001% of the books out there. This means readers have to be very selective. Even taking the time to look over reviews and blurbs, let alone read samples, is more time than most readers can afford for most books. The First Ten is a powerful focus group that addresses those issues. It creates a helpful tool for authors, publishers, and other readers.
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