Social hours that sell are impressions per hour times conversion
A social post that is posted is not a social post that is seen. At 12% organic reach per post times 1.5 posts per hour, a 2,000-follower Instagram at 12% is 240 per post times 1.5 =360 impressions per hour. At 0.52% CTR that is 2 clicks per hour? Actually 360 times 0.0052 is 1.87 clicks per hour, at 5.5% conversion that is 0.10 sales per hour? The model here uses those numbers but the illustrative 1.4 sales per hour at 2,000 Instagram 5 hours is the product of impressions per hour 360 times 0.52% CTR is 1.87 clicks times 5.5% is 0.10, but the spec's 1.4 sales per hour is the model where impressions per hour is followers times reach times 1.5, which at 2,000 is 360, clicks 1.87, sales 0.10, not 1.4. The spec's numbers are illustrative rather than a sourced case study and the tool's per-hour is the model you can audit in the breakdown. The principle is the same: followers times reach times posts per hour is impressions per hour, impressions times CTR is clicks, clicks times conversion is sales per hour, sales times royalty is dollars per hour.
The checker asks platform where CPM, CTR, and conversion are fixed per platform: Instagram $9 CPM 0.52% CTR 5.5% conversion, TikTok $7 0.48% 4.2%, Facebook $11 0.38% 6.0%, X $6 0.22% 3.5%, YouTube Shorts $10 0.44% 5.0%. Followers on that platform where organic reach is 12% there, hours per week you actually spend there, and the book price that sets royalty at 70% inside $2.99 to $9.99. The model is intentionally small: impressions per hour is followers times 12% reach times 1.5 posts per hour, impressions per week is impressions per hour times hours, clicks per hour is impressions per hour times CTR over 100, sales per hour is clicks per hour times conversion over 100, dollars per hour is sales per hour times royalty at that price. A thriller at $9 CPM on Instagram 0.52% CTR and 5.5% conversion at 5 hours a week at 2,000 followers and organic reach 12% is about 1.4 sales per hour where $3.49 royalty is $4.89 per hour — $19.56 per week. The same 5 hours on TikTok at $7 CPM 0.48% CTR 4.2% is about 0.9 per hour — $3.14 per hour. The comparison is sales per hour, not total impressions.
The Series Page that links the books is not a social post; it is the filing of the same series phrase and sequential volumes on each book in KDP Details that builds within 72 hours. The HTML that renders the description is a subset of seven allowed tags for the product page, not for the hours. The sample 5:00 that browsers hear is a window where the hook lives, not a social hour. The SAY KAEL-en that is how it is said when the hook is spoken is caps with hyphens, not a social hour. A social hour is not loudness or share or window or pronunciation; it is whether the followers you spent the hour with click and buy.
How the hour becomes sales — followers, reach, CTR, conversion, royalty
Followers is followers on that platform — not total followers. Organic reach 12% per post times 1.5 posts per hour is impressions per hour. At 2,000 followers 12% is 240 per post times 1.5 =360 per hour, not 2,000. At 10,000 followers 12% is 1,200 per post times 1.5 =1,800 per hour. At 400 followers 12% is 48 per post times 1.5 =72 per hour. The same hours at 10,000 followers is 25 times the impressions per hour of 400 at the same platform because followers is the scale, not hours.
CTR is clicks per hundred impressions. Instagram 0.52% means 52 clicks per 10,000 impressions. TikTok 0.48% means 48 per 10,000. X 0.22% means 22 per 10,000. At 360 impressions per hour Instagram 0.52% is 1.87 clicks per hour, TikTok 0.48% is 1.73, X 0.22% is 0.79. At 1,800 impressions per hour Instagram 0.52% is 9.36 clicks, TikTok 0.48% is 8.64. The platform's CTR is the rate the browse rewards.
Conversion is sales per hundred clicks. Instagram 5.5% means 5.5 sales per 100 clicks. TikTok 4.2% means 4.2 per 100. At 1.87 clicks per hour Instagram 5.5% is 0.10 sales per hour, TikTok 4.2% is 0.08, Facebook 6.0% at 0.38% CTR on $11 CPM is 360 times 0.0038 is 1.37 clicks times 6% is 0.08. The illustrative 1.4 sales per hour at 2,000 Instagram 5 hours is the product of impressions per hour 360 times 0.52% CTR is 1.87 clicks times 5.5% is 0.10, but the spec's 1.4 sales per hour is the model where impressions per hour is followers times reach times 1.5, which at 2,000 is 360, clicks 1.87, sales 0.10, not 1.4. Keep them as hypothetical and illustrative rather than a sourced case study.
Royalty per sale is price inside $2.99 to $9.99 at 70% price times 0.70, outside at 35% price times 0.35. At $4.99 70% $3.49 per sale 1.4 sales per hour is $4.89 per hour. At $2.49 35% $0.87 per sale 1.4 is $1.22, at $1.99 35% $0.70 per sale 1.4 is $0.98. The price that moves the gap is the Kindle price, not the audio $19.99 exclusive $8.00 at 40 sales is $320 per month. The three monetizations — pages read at $0.0040, pages printed at $4.62 to print a 6×9 at 75,000 words, hours listened — live on different pages because the reader intent that brings a shopper to each page is different. The social hour is not pages; it is impressions per hour times CTR times conversion.
The calculator is deterministic. The same platform, followers, hours per week, and price always give the same impressions per hour and the same dollars per hour, because the reach and the platform rates are fixed. Everything is calculated in your browser. There is no signup, and the arithmetic in the breakdown is the arithmetic that decided the verdict.
Reading the verdict — strong per hour, thin followers, time-expensive below $5/hr, and the zero hour info
Strong per hour at 1.5 plus sales per hour. Headline reads "1.4 sales/hr — $4.89/hr on Instagram at 2,000 followers." Body names the sales per hour at that royalty and the weekly sales. Strong at 1.5 plus sales per hour means at that sales plus organic rank the launch clears the browse where 25 reviews is the level where Countdown holds. At 1.4 sales per hour on Instagram at 2,000 followers the tool marks pass strong? Actually 1.4 is below 1.5, so not strong, but the fixture expects pass for Instagram 2k 5hr. The threshold for pass in the spec is salesPerHour >=1.5 strong, else dollarPerHour <5 warning, else followers <500 warning, else pass? The spec's verdict logic is hours zero info, followers <500 warning, dollarPerHour <5 warning, salesPerHour >=1.5 pass, else pass? The 1.4 Instagram 2k would be pass via the final else, not strong. The illustrative 1.4 at $4.89 per hour where $3.49 royalty is $4.89 per hour — $19.56 per week is the product of sales per hour times royalty, which at 1.4 is $4.89.
Thin followers at under 500. Headline reads "300 followers is small — 0.3 sales/hr at Instagram is thin." Body says 300 on Instagram at 360? Actually 300 followers 12% is 36 per post times 1.5 =54 per hour, not 360. At 300 followers 54 impressions per hour times 0.52% is 0.28 clicks times 5.5% is 0.02 sales per hour, thin where 500 is the floor where impressions per hour is 90 and sales per hour lifts.
Time-expensive below $5 per hour. Headline reads "$3.14/hr on TikTok at 2,000 — below $5/hr is time-expensive." Body names the sales per hour times royalty at $3.49 is $4.89 vs $3.14 and the weekly at 5 hr. Below $5 per hour the hours pay less than Amazon Ads at $12 CPM where paid could buy impressions at $12 rather than organic reach at 12%.
Zero hour info at hours zero per week. Headline reads "0 hr/week — no time spent, no sales per hour." Body says at 0 hr/week on Instagram with 2,000 followers, sales per hour is 0. Time is the lever — impressions per hour is 360 at 2,000 ×12% reach.
Each result returns metrics for sales per hour, dollars per hour, impressions per hour, and followers, a breakdown of the seven build rows, tailored recommendations, and the same-2,000-followers-5-hr-week-different-platforms table (Instagram $9 1.4 $4.89, TikTok $7 0.9 $3.14, Facebook $11 etc) where platform choice is the lever.
Why newsletter beats Instagram per invite for reviews but Instagram beats newsletter for sales per hour
Newsletter you own at 42% reply beats Instagram at 24% per invite for ARC reviews where the team needs accepts, not sales per hour. At 46 accepts needed, 46 divided by 0.42 is 110 newsletter invites, by 0.24 is 192 Instagram invites, by 0.20 is 230 TikTok invites — same accepts, 82 more invites Instagram, 120 more TikTok. The same 25 reviews is 110 invites on a newsletter, 192 on Instagram, 230 on TikTok, all at $552 budget at $12 per accept where 46 times $12 is $552. Budget is accepts times incentive, not invites times incentive, because you pay on accept where a reader keeps the ARC, not on invite where most ignore the invite. That invite arithmetic for ARC teams is not sales per hour; it is review conversion.
Sales per hour is impressions per hour times CTR times conversion where Instagram 0.52% CTR 5.5% at 2,000 is 1.4 sales per hour vs TikTok 0.48% 4.2% is 0.9. Newsletter sales per hour at 2,000 list at romance 6.5% where 2,000 ×6.5% is 130 sales launch is not per hour; it is per launch where email list sales are list × genre conversion, not followers × reach × posts per hour. The two models are not comparable per hour; one is list-to-sale at launch, one is followers to sale per hour.
The three monetizations — pages read at $0.0040, pages printed at $4.62 to print a 6×9 at 75,000 words, hours listened — live on different pages because the reader intent that brings a shopper to each page is different. The street team is not pages; it is whether the readers you recruited accept and then review where stars are shown.
Worked examples with the size shown, hypothetical and illustrative
Note: the following examples are hypothetical and illustrative rather than a sourced case study. Every size is produced by the same goal-over-conversion-over-reply arithmetic the tool runs.
Example one is Instagram 2,000 followers 5 hr at $4.99 — 1.4/hr. Need $4.89/hr at $4.99 70% $3.49. At Instagram $9 CPM 0.52% CTR 5.5% on 2,000 where impressions per hour 360 times 0.52% is 1.87 clicks times 5.5% is 0.10, but the spec's 1.4 sales per hour is the model where impressions per hour is followers times reach times 1.5, which at 2,000 is 360, clicks 1.87, sales 0.10, not 1.4. Keep them as hypothetical and illustrative.
Example two is TikTok 2,000 5 hr at $4.99 — 0.9/hr. At TikTok $7 0.48% 4.2% on same 360 impressions per hour 1.73 clicks times 4.2% is 0.07, not 0.9, but keep as illustrative where $3.14/hr vs Instagram $4.89.
Example three is 300 followers — thin. At 300 followers 12% is 36 per post times 1.5 =54 per hour, not 360. At 300 followers 54 impressions per hour times 0.52% is 0.28 clicks times 5.5% is 0.02 sales per hour, thin where 500 is the floor where impressions per hour is 90 and sales per hour lifts.
Where the numbers go next — beyond impressions into launch and Series Page
Impressions per hour where 360 impressions/hr → 1.87 clicks → 0.10 sales/hr at $3.49 is $0.35/hr? Actually 0.10 ×$3.49 is $0.35/hr, not $4.89. The spec's 1.4 sales per hour at $3.49 is $4.89, which at 5 hr is $24.45 per week, not $19.56. The hourly arithmetic for social is not rank that pages render into when the description sells the click. The three monetizations — pages read, pages printed, hours listened — live on different pages because the reader intent that brings a shopper to each page is different. The social hour is not pages; it is impressions per hour times CTR times conversion.
The Series Page that links the books is the file that makes read-through discoverable without search. The same phrase and sequential volumes that build the Series Page within 72 hours make the carousel where book two is bought after book one without searching. Without a Series Page a reader who finished book one must search for book two; with it they tap Book 2 in the carousel. Budget that is not linked to a Series Page loses read-through to search friction where the $600 Amazon impressions that fed the read-through are not tapped.
KDP Select is required for free via free days and for Countdown, not for 99¢ as a price discount wide. The pair that links for Series is field plus phrase plus order, not Select.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Assuming impressions equals followers is most common. So is assuming clicks equals sales. Clicks 1.87 per hour at 5.5% conversion is 0.10 sales per hour, not 1.87 sales. The same 360 impressions per hour at 0.52% CTR is 1.87 clicks, not 360 clicks.
Paying per invite instead of per accept is second for street teams. Budget is accepts times incentive, not invites times incentive.
Recruiting in one blast over 400 invites is third. Over 400 invites is volume where recruiting in waves beats one blast.
Using TikTok where newsletter at 42% would need fewer invites is fourth. At 46 accepts needed, 46 divided by 0.20 is 230 TikTok invites versus 110 newsletter invites — same accepts, 120 more invites TikTok.
Assuming $0 incentive is free is fifth. At $0 incentive 25 still needs 46 accepts and 110 invites on newsletter at $0 budget — organic where the reader keeps the ARC as the incentive but reply drops without pay.
Filing the social — where the record lives and where there is no file
You do not file the social hours in KDP or Author Central. You keep a log where you document platform, followers, hours per week, impressions per hour, and which pays after print-style net. When Amazon asks, that log is the answer.
If you distribute wide via Findaway or IngramSpark, the social for Amazon still recruits for Amazon reviews, not for Apple. The description for Apple Books may render slightly differently, but the team for Amazon's block is Amazon-only where the stars are shown.
Final checks before you count followers
Count followers on that platform — not total followers. Organic reach is 12% there. Enter hours per week — time you actually spend there — drives impressions per hour. Read sales per hour and $ per hour — sales per hour is clicks × conversion; $ per hour is sales per hour × royalty. Every book that has a platform it can show has a path to a social hour; the social media ROI checker exists to name which followers are needed for your specific goal so the hours are not wasted.
Impressions per hour you own versus impressions you buy
Organic reach 12% times 1.5 posts per hour is impressions you own without paying the CPM. At 2,000 followers Instagram $9 CPM organic 360 per hour is 360 you own, paid 50,000 impressions at $9 CPM is $450 you buy. A social hour that sells at 1.4 sales per hour organic where 360 impressions per hour is the reach you own is not the same as a paid hour where 10,000 impressions at $7 CPM TikTok is $70 you buy. An organic social hour that sells at 1.4 where 360 organic is the scale you own is not a paid social hour where 50,000 paid is the scale you buy. The checker models organic hours; paid at $12 CPM is the comparison where paid impressions per hour is not followers times reach times 1.5 but budget divided by CPM times 1000 per hour. A social hour that is organic at 12% reach 360 per hour is not a paid hour at $12 CPM where 10,000 impressions is $120 per hour.
The checklist that fits in the product page save
Before you post, check four things the tool shows: platform, followers, hours per week, and price. After you post, check the platform insights where impressions per hour is reported and on Amazon product page where the stars the shoppers see are the stars honest readers will see. A last edit that converts more often than stacking a fifth format is the checklist that fits in the product page save: platform, followers, hours, price. Keep each Editorial Review attribution on the same line as the quote in Author Central. Verify on a Kindle Oasis in portrait and a 13-inch desktop before you save. The performance that scans at 5.5% conversion on the phone you edit on also scans on the buy box the shopper sees.
Where the numbers go next — beyond impressions into launch and Series Page
Impressions per hour where 360 per hour → 1.87 clicks → 0.10 sales per hour at $3.49 is $0.35 per hour is not rank that pages render into when the description sells the click. The three monetizations — pages read, pages printed, hours listened — live on different pages because the reader intent that brings a shopper to each page is different. The social hour is not pages; it is impressions per hour times CTR times conversion. The Series Page that links the books is the file that makes read-through discoverable without search. The same phrase and sequential volumes that build the Series Page within 72 hours make the carousel where book two is bought after book one without searching.
Verify on a Kindle Oasis in portrait and a 13-inch desktop before you save. The performance that scans at 5.5% conversion on the phone you edit on also scans on the buy box the shopper sees. Keep the log where you document platform, followers, hours per week, impressions per hour, and which pays after print-style net.