Manage applications to your promo

Once your promo is published, authors apply to join it. This article is the host's side of that: where applications land, how to decide on them, and the few things participants can ask of you afterwards. If you have not published a promo yet, start with hosting a group promo.

Where applications arrive

The badge on the My Group Promos tab counts applications waiting for you across all your promos, and each row's Applications column counts everything that has come in. Manage opens the promo page, where a Pending Applications box in the sidebar shows how many are waiting and how many books are already in. Review Applications opens the list. You also get an email for each new application unless you switched that off in the promo's moderation settings.

Review an application

Some applications carry a Low perf badge. BookSparker adds it when the author has already taken part in enough promos to judge and their average clicks per promo fell short of the minimum you set in moderation, with a default of 50 clicks across at least 3 promos. Flagged applications always wait for you, even when auto-approve is on. Authors with too few past promos are never flagged.

View opens the application in full: the book with its cover, category and description and a link to the landing page it will use; the author's promo experience, either completed promos with average clicks or a note that they are new; and the date they applied with their message. Under a Low perf badge the message field shows the flag's explanation instead of the author's own words.

Approve or reject

Approve Application and Reject Application each ask for an optional message, which goes to the author by email and in the app. Leave it empty and the email still carries a one-line standard note. Approving confirms the author's share date on their calendar and yours; rejecting removes the pending entry. Message Applicant starts a conversation instead, if you want to ask something first.

What auto-approve does for you

Every promo starts with auto-approve on. An application that meets your requirements, from an author who is not flagged, is approved the moment it arrives, and the author gets their approval and a reminder three days before their share date. Your own books are always approved. You can keep the emails for auto-approved applications or silence them in the moderation settings; what still needs you are flagged applications, and applications from everyone once you turn auto-approve off.

Edit requests

An approved participant can ask to change their application. Before the promo starts they can change the book, its details, the share date, the mailing list and the landing page; once it has started, only the date, list, landing page and the reactivate-if-expired option. Only one request per application can be open at a time.

Withdrawals

A participant can withdraw a pending or approved application themselves. Their calendar entries are removed and their book leaves the promo. You are not notified, so a shrinking Participating Authors list is the sign.

Feature a book

In Participating Authors, the star next to an approved book pins it to the top of your promo page, and a Position box orders the featured books. Everything else appears in a random order that stays the same for each reader. Changes save on their own.

Send an update to participants

Send Update, at the top of the promo page, emails every approved participant and posts the same text in the app, from promos@booksparker.com. Messages can run to 2,000 characters. Participants find every update in the Updates section of the promo page, newest first.

Common questions

Why was an application approved without me?

Auto-approve is on and the application met your requirements. Turn it off in the promo's moderation settings to review every application yourself.

Why does the message read like a system note?

The application was flagged, and the flag's explanation replaced the author's message. The author's own note is not recoverable; use Message Applicant if you need it.

Why does an edit request show a mailing list ID rather than a name?

The review block shows the raw list identifier for that field. Compare the rest of the request, or ask the participant which list they mean.

Does the participant hear about my decision on an edit request?

Only in the app. No email goes out for edit request decisions, so mention it in an update if it matters.