Amazon affiliate is the largest affiliate marketing program holding up to 43.7% shares of the global affiliate market. Being an in-demand affiliate marketing program means more competition for marketers looking to break into the space. However, understanding the processes and guidelines will help you navigate the program effectively.
So, you are in the right place if you want to learn how to start affiliate marketing on Amazon and wonder what the next steps are. This guide covers what Amazon affiliate marketing is, how to start, and the requirements and guidelines for Amazon affiliate marketers.
Key Highlights
- Amazon Affiliate program lets affiliates promote their websites on their blogs, websites, and social media while they receive commissions when a purchase is made through their unique affiliate link.
- Websites, social media, or apps are required to promote products on Amazon. Affiliates must also make sales within six months and create affiliate disclosure after joining the program.
- Affiliates can advertise only the products approved by Amazon.
- You can use AAWP for geo targeting, products updates, and comparison tables.
- You can improve your earnings on Amazon through keyword research, social media, and product comparison.
What Is the Amazon Affiliate Program?
The Amazon affiliate program is also known as Amazon Associates. An affiliate marketing program allows affiliates to advertise their products on Amazon on their websites, blogs, or social media platforms and earn a commission when customers click their links. This allows affiliates to monetize their blog, websites, or social media because they earn when they buy via the links they place on these platforms.
- Amazon associate affiliates generate consistent, passive revenue from their websites and access various products of their choice.
- Affiliates can harness easy-to-use tools and create effective customized links on the Amazon affiliate platform.
- They also have detailed reports to analyze visitors’ needs and preferences, link performances, and interact with a broad community of other website owners.
However, the Amazon affiliate marketing program comes with some downsides.
- Its commission rates are lower than most affiliate programs.
- It works for only a specific audience. So, you won’t earn a commission if you target the US audience and someone from Australia purchases the product through your unique affiliate links.
- Amazon doesn’t offer PayPal as a payment option.
How to Start Affiliate Marketing With Amazon
Starting an Amazon Affiliate marketing program is easy when you follow the right processes. Here is a step-by-step method for kick-starting your Amazon affiliate marketing program.
- Visit the Amazon Affiliate marketing program’s homepage
Log into the Amazon affiliate marketing platform to discuss the next steps.
- Sign in with your Amazon account
Logging into the Amazon account connects you to a page requesting your email, phone number, or password. Input the necessary details and create an Amazon account if you don’t already have one.
- Follow the instructions on the screen
Follow these instructions after signing up on the Amazon Affiliate platform.
- Input your account details, including your phone number, email address, and other important information required.
- You will be directed to mobile apps and websites you want to promote. Many options are available, so choose the ones you want. Next, include your website URLs, social media channels, and applications.
- Describe how you will get people to visit your websites. Outline how you will generate traffic, make money from your website and build links.
- Input your payment and tax ID information. Then, return to your dashboard and enter your 4-digit PIN provided by Amazon. You can include more payment information later.
- Read the terms and conditions. Click “Finish” if you agree.
Amazon must approve your application before you proceed. You will be accepted into the program if your website meets the requirement and you fill out the required field. You can also access the Amazon Associates page once your website has been approved.
After approval, check the dashboard for other necessary information like monthly summaries and commission overviews. You can create affiliate links at this stage, but you must repeat the registration processes for each location if you want to create multiple Amazon regions.
What Are the Requirements for Becoming an Affiliate?
The Amazon affiliate program is open to all affiliates globally. It doesn’t require a registration fee. You also don’t need to maintain a quota to earn your commission. In addition, you can start earning immediately after your application is approved. However, you must have one or all these marketing channels: Website, social media, and apps.
- Website: Websites are the most popular ways to promote Amazon products. However, you must have up to ten entries of original content for your website to qualify. Primarily, your website must not contain sexually explicit materials, promote violent activities, infringe on intellectual property rights, or discriminate against gender, race, nationality, age, or sexual orientation.
- Social Media: Your registered social media platforms must be active and with organic followers to qualify. Business or Public Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, etc., are some social media platforms Amazon affiliate marketing programs offer promotions on.
- Apps: You can apply with your mobile apps if it differs from Amazon’s shopping app. You can also use mobile apps if it doesn’t have tracking features and is available for free on Amazon, Apple, and Google Play Stores.
- Affiliate Disclosure: An affiliate disclosure is also known as an affiliate link disclosure and an affiliate link disclaimer. It is a statement on your blog or website that states you are compensated by the companies you promote. Once you’ve received a product endorsement on your website, you are required by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to have an affiliate link disclosure. An FTC-complaint affiliate disclosure should “clearly and conspicuously” describe the nature of your relationship with the company you promote and your compensation with them. Your affiliate disclosure should be placed close to your affiliate links, the promoted products, or other conspicuous places on your website.
- Account dormancy: You have about 180 days to refer a sale through your affiliate links after you’ve applied as an affiliate marketer on Amazon. Your application will be reviewed within 24 to 48 days after three qualifying sales. The reason for this is to ensure affiliates’ websites can drive enough traffic for sales through original content. However, your account will be withdrawn if you don’t make a sale through your affiliate links in 6 months.
Guidelines for Amazon Affiliates
Amazon affiliates guidelines are the policies every Amazon Associate affiliate marketer must follow to maintain compliance. Let’s discuss some of the guidelines below.
1. Don’t manipulate cookies
Running an affiliate marketing business on Amazon requires strict adherence to Amazon cookie policies. Amazon provides its cookies to affiliate marketers, and you can use them to track customers’ experiences on your site. Manipulating cookies with the software will completely get you barred from your Amazon affiliate program. So, avoid cookie manipulation tools and adhere to Amazon’s cookie policy.
2. You can’t promote sexually explicit products
Amazon restricts you from promoting unapproved products. So, you can’t advertise sexually explicit products, obscene materials, or violent or discriminatory products because Amazon doesn’t approve of them. In addition, you must avoid targeting your marketing strategy to kids below thirteen years.
3. You must follow the requirements for displaying prices
Specific guidelines are associated with displaying prices on your affiliate website. Ideally, you can’t display prices on your website because product prices can change over time. However, Plug-ins like the AAWP, Affiliate WordPress Plugin for Amazon Affiliates, automatically obtain the right product prices on Amazon, so you can be sure the prices displayed on your website are accurate. In addition, start with the lowest new price if you want to display Amazon product prices on your site. You should also display “used prices” if there are any.
Finally, use the “Check Price” or “Buy Now” buttons on your website if you don’t display product prices on your website. These call-to-action buttons will direct readers to Amazon so they can check prices or buy through your link.
4. Include a privacy policy
A privacy policy is a legal document that contains how you gather, disclose or use your customers’ data. Adding a privacy policy to your affiliate website ranks your website on the search engine ranking pages (SERPS). A privacy policy also helps you comply with privacy regulations and build consumers’ trust.
Here is vital information to include in your privacy policy:
- Information you’ll collect
- How you’ll collect the information
- The third parties you’ll share the information with
- How you intend to use the data you collect
- How you’ll protect your consumers’ data
Failure to comply with these regulations may get your account barred from the platform. However, adhering to these policies will help you maintain compliance, build trust with customers, and succeed on the platform.
Maximizing Your Affiliate Website’s Value With AAWP
The Amazon Affiliate WordPress Plugin (AAWP) offers features that help you get the most from your affiliate marketing program. It automatically refreshes links, products, and prices, providing real-time updates. It’s also highly customizable, so you can select the designs, custom styles, and templates that best suit your website’s design.
As an affiliate marketer, you can benefit significantly from using the AAWP due to the functional features it offers. Some of these features include:
- Geo-targeting to support multiple countries: Affiliate marketers without the geo-targeting feature are restricted with their earnings. However, this feature opens more opportunities for affiliates to earn from other Amazon stores, increasing their earnings.
- Auto Product Update: The AAWP gathers real-time changes in product information, increasing your pricing accuracy.
- Comparison Table: The comparison table simplifies users’ experiences by enabling them to compare various products and prices at a glance. The AAWP lets you create comparison tables, enabling your audience to make quick comparisons and faster purchase decisions.
- Amazon Compliance: AWPP makes it easy for affiliates to comply with Amazon’s regulations by offering features like automatic affiliate disclosure and image via proxy.
AWWP offers other features like click tracking, caching, and Amazon prime flagging to improve user experiences. However, its user experience is less desirable due to some drawbacks. For example, its interface is not completely user-friendly for beginners. Additionally, it doesn’t provide options to search for Amazon products directly from the plug-in.
How Influencers are Earning Money on Amazon
Amazon’s affiliate marketing program provides consistent passive income opportunities and a wide range of product selections for marketers, among other benefits. However, maximizing your earnings can be challenging. So, here are a few tips that help.
1. Choose a Niche for Your Website
“Commit to a niche; try to stop being everything to everyone.” – Andrew Davis
Streamlining your affiliate marketing niche helps to stand out and channel your marketing efforts to the right audience effectively. So, rather than make your website about various industries, pick a niche and target your marketing to the people who need products in the niche you are marketing.
Picking an industry you are interested in will:
- Help you provide expert tips and solutions to users.
- Allow you to provide value and establish good relationships with your customers.
- Project you as an authority in the niche – People love specialists, so they are more likely to trust your recommendations for promoting a product or service.
- Reduce the competition – focusing on highly specific content gives you fewer businesses or marketers to compete with.
2. Write Product Reviews And Comparison Posts
Product reviews and comparison posts are effective ways to provide expert opinions about the products you promote. They also let you recommend promoted products without being salesy because rather than hard sell, you are offering the product as a solution to their needs.
In addition, product reviews and comparison posts are high-intent content because users who view them are often close to making a purchase. However, they may be undecided on the brand, size, or type to opt for. Comparing similar products gives them options to choose from. Additionally, including other helpful information will help them decide what works best for them. By facilitating their decision-making process, you increase their chances of purchasing the products or services you recommend.
3. Provide Valuable, Consistent Content
An effective way to promote Amazon products as an influencer is to build a practical content marketing strategy that helps you mention and link promoted products as often as possible. While it’s great to blog consistently, quality matters more than quantity, especially regarding SEO. Useful content generates more engagement, and engaged posts rank higher on search engine pages.
Therefore, creating content for the sake of it won’t help. Instead, develop relevant content that addresses your users’ needs, and link your products as solutions. Doing this boosts your search engine rankings, projects you as an authority, and ultimately increases your leads and sales.
4. Build a Storefront for Your Website
A storefront requires less content development and upgrades. It serves as an online store, so users can browse through products easily when they land on your site. The difference, however, is that links in your storefront direct users to Amazon rather than a transaction page on your website.
Moreover, you must review the storefront regularly to make necessary updates. So, if a product’s price changes or it becomes unavailable on Amazon, you can make the right changes to reflect in your storefront.
5. Promote Your Website on Social Media and Search Engine
An effective content marketing strategy, including SEO and storefront, will put you in the right position to get noticed, promote products, and drive traffic. However, harnessing the possibilities of all platforms and features will skyrocket your sales and help you maximize the Amazon Affiliate marketing program effectively. So, don’t limit your efforts to your website or blog; harness social media to reach more people.
Promote your products on social media organically by providing engaging content that builds traffic. You can also invest in paid social ads and target them to your audience. Primarily, social media marketing is an excellent place to create a buzz around promoted products and gain qualified leads.
- Amazon’s commission for Affiliate marketers ranges between 1% to 20% depending on the products category.
- According to ZipRecruiter, Amazon affiliates earn up to $55 434 per year.
- The top 1% earners make between $111, 500 and $121,000, while the lowest 10% earn around $16,500 to $26, 000.
Amazon’s Recruitment of YouTube and Instagram Stars
Amazon recruits video influencers in various categories, from fashion to home and tech, to join its Amazon live. For example, popular Instagram influencer Helena Desmettre and YouTube creators Tiffany Ma and Shea Whitney say Amazon contacted them to join their Amazon live show in 2021. Other influencers have also collaborated with brands for sponsored live streams.
The main perk of becoming an Amazon influencer or content creator is passive income revenue. Amazon influencers also have access to tools and programs that facilitate their promotions.
Why Amazon Live Has Struggled to Win Over Content Creators
The main problem content creators and influencers say they encounter with Amazon Live is the struggle to drive traffic. Since Amazon doesn’t have a portal that allows users to view, like, and unlike the pages of the influencers they follow, it’s challenging to drive traffic to the platform. So, many content creators have to depend on their social media following to drive awareness and sales.
How to Increase Your Amazon Affiliate Earnings
Implementing certain tips and strategies will skyrocket your sales and increase your earnings as an affiliate marketer on Amazon. Here are practical tips you can adopt to boost your earnings.
1. Compare similar products
Product comparisons convince users to buy a product because it provides options and explains why a product is better than its alternative. In addition, examining the pros and cons of products and highlighting their benefits allows users to decide the most suitable option for their needs. So, compare similar products, provide expert tips, and use in-content links to direct users to Amazon.
2. Develop an effective keyword strategy
“If you’re going to post content on your site anyway, you might as well take the time to make sure google takes notice of your effort.” – The Content Factory
An effective keyword strategy ranks your affiliate website on search engine results. So, if you want to increase your affiliate marketing business earnings, implement relevant keywords in your content to attract your target audience to your page.
3. Leverage Social Media
It’s vital not to limit your affiliate marketing business to your website and blog. Instead, harness social media to increase product awareness and generate more leads. Create product reviews, and produce engaging content to highlight product benefits. Promoting your products on social media increases engagement, and product visibility, generating more leads.
4. Promote High-demand Products
High-demand products sell faster. So, it’s easier to gain leads and sales when you sell products people want. To know what products are in-demand, check Amazon’s bestseller list to find what people are buying. You can also conduct keyword analysis to discover commonly searched products.
Conclusion
Amazon affiliate marketing programs are highly profitable for influencers, content creators, and marketers. However, you must meet the requirements discussed in this article to be eligible. It’s also essential to comply with Amazon guidelines to stay in business.
The tips in this article will help you navigate the Amazon affiliate program as a beginner. However, successfully marketing Amazon affiliate products requires a professional website to build credibility, promote products and attract your target audience.
Next Steps: What Now?
Here are the first steps to creating a professional website for your affiliate marketing business:
- How To Start Affiliate Marketing
- How To Build An Affiliate Marketing Website in 8 Steps
- Find the best website builders
- Know The Best Website Themes To Consider
- Find the Best Web Hosting
Further Reading – Useful Resources
Here are other helpful resources to know more about Amazon affiliate marketing:
