With all the affiliate programs available, which one is best to start with? There are so many to choose from and I am not sure where to begin.
Does this sound like you? This was one of the many questions that I had when I was first starting out. When you are new, your options may be limited as to which affiliate programs you may be able to get into.
Some affiliate programs may require your site to have some content and traffic before you can sign up with them. This is not a bad idea.
I would recommend having five or ten articles on your site before signing up with any affiliate programs. Why? This helps to show that you are serious about your online business and it gives you a chance to learn about website basics.
This also gives you the opportunity to learn a little more about your niche and may guide you to the products that you want to promote.
What is the Amazon Affiliate Program
The Amazon Affiliate program is called “Amazon Associates”. This gives you access to tens of thousands of products that Amazon sells. Once you join, just search for products in your niche, promote them on your website, and collect a commission when someone purchases anything from clicking on your affiliate links.
There is a little more to it than just that and we will talk about some of the different steps as we go.
Why should I promote Amazon Products
There are many reasons to promote Amazon. Here are just a few of them:
- Amazon offers a large variety of products and can ship almost anywhere.
- There is a large range of prices depending on the products. Some low-end up to very high-end products and you can promote and make a commission on any of them.
- You don’t need to worry about having an inventory and storing products to sell.
- You do not ship anything!
- You do not need to be a salesperson, just refer your site’s visitors to Amazon and let them do all the selling and recommending other products. Remember, you still get a commission on any purchase they make when they click your affiliate link for a 24-hour period. There are exceptions and you can read about those in the Amazon agreement.
How to Join Amazon Associates
You can join Amazon Associates fairly quickly once you set up your site. I would caution you to build your site up with some content first before applying to Amazon. Write some articles and start getting traffic in, this will make it easier to get approved by Amazon.
Make sure you review Amazon’s policies and Associate’s agreement. This will cover everything that you are allowed to do and things not to do.
What Products Should I Promote
This will depend on your niche. I would recommend products that directly relate to your site’s main theme, you can always branch out later.
For example, if you are promoting baby clothes, there is nothing wrong with adding related items like baby toys, diapers, etc… Just focus on the clothes at first and as you build out your site, add the others in.
How do I promote Amazon Products
Once you have been approved by Amazon, there are a couple of ways to promote their products.
You are able to place ads and banners on your site using widgets or plugins. If you are using a WordPress site like I am, this is easy to do. (to learn more about WordPress, click here)
One of the best ways that I have found to promote products is by either writing a product review or creating a video review of the products.
The written review can be placed directly on your website for your visitors. The video review can be placed on your YouTube channel where you can direct your viewers back to your website or directly to Amazon.
Videos are a great way to give a lot of information in a short amount of time. These work great for products that are very visual.
Do you want to read about how a blender works or do you want to see it working?
When you create a video, you can link to it from your website’s written review, which adds extra value to your visitors.
How Much Can I Make Promoting Amazon Products
Depending on what you are promoting, will depend on how much commission you can make. This table will explain the standard commissions. Sometimes Amazon will run special promotions, which will vary in additional commissions for you.
Don’t Try to Sell Every Product
When you do your product reviews or videos, be completely honest with people.
- Have you used the product? – It may be easy to see you using the product in a video, but in a written review, your reader will not know. Let them know if you haven’t or if you are going off someone’s recommendation.
- What were your results if you used the product? – If you had a bad experience with a product and thought it was the worse thing ever made, give it a failing review. You may want to direct them to another product that they can use, if not just let them know why you failed the product. Your reader will appreciate your honesty.
- Let your reader know where to get the best price. I have let my readers know that Amazon’s price is better than other sites, even when I can make a bigger commission from the other site. If you are only chasing the money, your readers will know. Go the extra step for your readers in everything you do.
Final Thoughts
Amazon can be a great source of products for you to promote. Before you sign up with Amazon, make sure you take time to read their policies and agreement. This will keep you out of trouble with them. It’s a good program, so the last thing you want is a message from Amazon saying that you have been terminated.
This should help you decide if you want to promote Amazon products or not. Signing up is easy once your site is going, pick your products, promote them, follow the rules, and collect your commissions.
Please see my other articles on getting started if you have not chosen your niche, performed any keyword research, or need to learn to build a website.
Check out How To Pick The Perfect Affiliate Marketing Network
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Thanks for this post Jim. There are many ways to earn from Amazon products it looks like. I like your suggestion about videos. I read that there are more youtube viewers than other forms of social media. Will have to incorporate these ideas into my own website. Thanks again!
Hi Maria,
Videos are a great way to get messages across quickly and have much more impact to the viewer than a simple written review. If you need to learn how to setup a website or any other area of running an online business, check out my review on Wealthy Affiliate.
Thank you for commenting,
Jim
This seems very similar to Shareasale, is there one that you prefer over the other? It seems like Amazon might have more products, but probably not any services if that would relate more closely to your niche.
The nice thing with Amazon’s Associate program is when someone clicks on your link and purchases something, you make a commission on just about everything. The commissions are small, but if you sell enough, they can add up.
Shareasale pays a higher commission rate, but does not have all the products that Amazon has. However, Shareasale does have some specialized products that may not be found on Amazon. I read that some sellers do not like to deal with Amazon and prefer other ways to sell their products.
You do want to get involved in multiple sources for products and ways to make money, but you don’t want to spread yourself to thin in the beginning. Most affiliate programs have sale requirements and minimums before you receive a check.
Thank you for your comment,
Jim