Wouldn’t it be nice to make money every time you write about your emotional support water bottle or your must-read book during the day? Here’s the key: Amazon Associates. Even if you’re just getting started as an influencer, becoming an Amazon affiliate can be a great way to earn as you grow.
Sounds difficult? Don’t worry. In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about Amazon Associates’ well-established affiliate marketing program. Learn how to get started, how to post your recommendations, and how to reap the sweet rewards of your great taste.
What is Amazon Associates?
Amazon Associates is an affiliate marketing program. This allows creators, influencers and bloggers to monetize their reach. Members, referred to as “Amazon Affiliates”, may earn a percentage of the sales that come from their referrals when they post Amazon affiliate marketing links on their website or social media.
Anyone can sign up for Amazon Associates, no matter how many subscribers they have. (Note: This does not apply to the Amazon Influencer Program). Of course, the more followers you have, the bigger your reach and the more commissions you will earn.
Source: Pinterest
Amazon Influencer vs Amazon Partner: What’s the Difference?
The first thing you need to know is that Amazon has several different affiliate programs that are part of Amazon Associates. Start by figuring out which one works best for your style of influence.
The Amazon Standard Affiliate Program is best for those who run blogs and websites. It’s also perfect for those who are still growing their social media follower base. Are you planning on getting most of your referrals through writing articles, blogs, or emails? Select this option.
If you have a lot of followers on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, or Facebook, then Amazon Influencer might be better for you. Amazon Influencer is an extension of Amazon Associates. It is designed for social media creators and influencers who already have followers.
Amazon doesn’t specify how many followers a creator needs to become an influencer. But we’ve heard of creators with less than 200 followers getting accepted, and some with far more followers getting rejected. If you want to sign up, our best advice is to give it a try! You have nothing to lose.
There is another big difference between Amazon influencers and regular affiliates. Influencers can create their own dedicated site on Amazon called Amazon Storefront. Here, influencers can showcase products on shopping lists, photos, videos, and livestreams.
Source: Amazon
How does Amazon Associates work?
Imagine if every time you recommended a product to a friend, you got paid for it. This is the Amazon Associates program. Like something? Tell your friends and earn. It is so simple.
Sign up, decide what you want to promote, and then build affiliate links as you browse.
Browse Amazon by logging into your affiliate account and you’ll see a toolbar called “SiteStripe”at the top of every page. The SiteStripe Dashboard will generate links and photos for each page so you can easily share them on your website or social media.
Each link has an embedded code that tells Amazon that the referral came from you. Paste it into your post, add it to your Amazon storefront, or use the link in your bio. Amazon will track how many users clicked on the link and then made a purchase. Once they add an item to their cart, you will receive a credit if they complete a purchase within 24 hours.
You then earn a percentage of that mail-order sale through a monthly check or Amazon gift cards. Boom. Wealth!
How to become an Amazon partner
Ready to start? Here is our step by step guide on how to sign up for affiliate marketing with Amazon.
Step 1. Sign up to become an Amazon partner.
To get started, go to Amazon Associates Central and click Sign Up. You can use an existing Amazon account or create a new one using the email you link to your website or social media channels.
Step 2: Add your website or social channels
Signing up with Amazon Associates will walk you through a series of prompts. You will need to add your name, address and phone number. You will then be prompted to add your “website and mobile apps”. These are the websites where you will promote your Amazon affiliate links.
Source: Amazon
Here you need to enter the URL of your website, blog or social media pages. Don’t have a website domain but are planning to promote Amazon products on your social media pages? Don’t forget to post public links that take users to your profile.
Step 3: Create Your Amazon Associates Profile
Then create your Amazon Associates profile. Here you will create an Associates ID. This is the identification code or store ID that Amazon uses to track clicks on your links. Choose the short version of your business name or social media ID so you can easily identify which clicks are coming from which channels.
At this point, you will also need to tell Amazon a little about your business or focus. It will ask about your audience, the types of products you plan to promote, and how you drive traffic to your website or social media channels.
Source: Amazon
Step 4: Add your tax and billing information.
The final setup step is to add billing and tax information so Amazon can pay you. Once you start earning commissions, Amazon will pay you by check or Amazon gift cards. At this step, you can specify your preferences.
Be sure to complete the tax information prompt. You will need to provide a social security number, employer identification number, or other tax ID.
Step 5: (Optional) Sign up for Amazon Influencer
Want the opportunity to create an Amazon Storefront? Apply for an Amazon Influencer account. Here’s how to become an Amazon influencer.
Go to the Amazon Influencer Dashboard and click Sign Up. We recommend that you use the account you used to sign up for the Amazon Associates program.
Once you have created your account, Amazon will ask you to link your social media accounts. By doing this, you give Amazon permission to evaluate your content, subscriber count, and engagement rate. He, in turn, will use this information to approve or reject your participation in the program.
Not all authors will be approved for the Amazon Influencer Program. Some users are approved immediately, others are denied or sent for review. If you are approved or your application is pending, you can start building Amazon Storefront right away.
If you weren’t immediately approved for the Influencer Program, don’t panic! You can still use your Amazon Associates account to earn commissions while you grow your following. Consider building a link tree and adding it to your social media bios so your followers can still buy all your recommendations in one place.
Source: Amazon
How Much Can Amazon Partners Earn?
Now for the big question: how much can you really earn as an Amazon employee? Since Amazon pays a percentage of sales, it all depends on your reach, engagement rate, and how often you post affiliate links. We have seen some authors make over $16,000 per month while others make $0. It varies widely.
How much you get paid per sale depends on the category or type of product you are promoting. Each product category or event is associated with a commission percentage or flat fee. Amazon counts non-purchase activities, such as registering a Kindle or Audible, as “events.”They usually earn affiliates a fixed fee.
So how much does each category cost? According to Amazon, partners earn 20% from Amazon Games, 10% from luxury beauty products, and 3% from toys, furniture, and pet products. Other categories have lower payouts. As you can see, how much you earn depends on what you are promoting.
Amazon will also pay creators a flat fee or “bounty”when people click on their links and then take a specific action. For example, creators earn $5 each time one of their referrals signs up for an Audible trial and $3 each time one of their referrals signs up for a Kindle trial.
How to Make More Money with the Amazon Affiliate Program
If you have created an Amazon Associates account and are ready to start your social selling game, you will need a few tools to help you increase your sales. Here are some tips to help you make more money with Amazon’s affiliate marketing program.
Find your niche and cater to it
As a rule, users see your content because what you have posted directly applies to them. Look at key social media demographics and make sure you recommend products that match them. Age, gender, income, educational level, and other factors may determine your recommendations.
Focus on products that are applicable to your messages and content. If people are coming to your page for healthy recipes, don’t spend too much time decorating a Showcase filled with fashionable clothes and accessories. Pay attention to how many clicks each link receives to gauge relevance.
Create demo videos with TikTok and Reels
We’re not saying there’s no more static content, but you definitely want to take advantage of the popularity of Instagram Reels and TikTok right now. The secret behind these tools is an omniscient algorithm that shows users the most relevant content at the right time. This means more clicks for you!
So how do you use these features to earn more referral money? Create Instagram or TikTok videos showcasing the products you recommend. Demo videos and try-ons will bring you a lot of traffic when you showcase the products you like.
Inspo Alert! For ideas, check out the TikTok kitchen organizing video or browse the crafting drums on Instagram. These niches are filled with professionals who are great at monetizing their content with Amazon affiliate links!
Reels and TikTok are essential if you want to expand your reach, but you also don’t want to miss out on opportunities to market to your existing audience. Be sure to post affiliate links regularly on your Instagram and Facebook Stories, as well as your static grid.
Go deep with product recommendations on YouTube
Instagram and TikTok may have a moment, but that doesn’t mean old reserves like YouTube should be put aside. According to our Global State of Digital Report, YouTube is the second most popular social platform in the world after Facebook. In fact, users spend almost 24 hours a month on YouTube!
But it’s not just YouTube’s popularity that should draw you in as an Amazon partner, but how people are using it. YouTube users are often looking for more in-depth comparisons, demos, and how-to videos. Less stringent time limits allow authors to go deeper and respond to more user queries.
Depending on your niche, YouTube can be a bit more competitive than other social channels. It provides more options for users at the bottom of the funnel who are ready to make a big purchase, so it can bring you more in the long run.
Note. Be sure to include links to partner products in the description of every YouTube video.
Source: YouTube
Get to know your users where and when they scroll
Knowing your followers well means knowing which social networks they frequent and when. Assess what content they want to see when they visit a particular channel.
For example, if they are visiting you through your blog or YouTube channel, they are most likely looking to learn more about a particular topic. Consider this an opportunity to dig deeper into product comparisons or how-to guides. If they’re browsing your Instagram or TikTok, they probably want something short, bright, and descriptive.
You will get more affiliate link clicks if you post at the time of the day when your user is most active. Use Hootsuite to determine the best times of the day to post and increase your reach and engagement.
Follow higher paying categories or events
Not all products are the same, at least in the eyes of Amazon. If you want to earn more with less effort, look for high commission categories.
The highest commission categories on Amazon include Amazon Games, luxury goods, physical books, kitchen supplies, and automotive products (between 4.5% and 20% of sales). Amazon Games will earn you a 20% commission, so take this as your sign to start posting game content.
The highest rewarding events include signing up for paid Audible and Kindle memberships (up to $25 sign up). What does this tell us? Maybe it’s time to fall in love with reading and join the #booktok fun!
Note. Amazon commission rates are subject to change, so check the latest commission income report before deciding what to focus on.
Get easy clicks with Pinterest
Whether they’re into fashion, crafts, or interior design, users head to Pinterest for inspiration. This means that the platform is a hotbed of curated product recommendations from experienced buyers like you.
The great thing about posting Amazon recommendations on Pinterest is that you don’t have to create video content. Although, of course, this can bring you more clicks). Simply create eye-catching static Pins that link to your website, blog or social media channels.
Advice. Make sure your Pinterest image size is optimized for this platform. Pinterest recommends using an aspect ratio of 2:3 or 1000 x 1500 pixels for static Pins.
Source: Pinterest
Write gift guides and lists on your blog
Bloggers and journalists were the first affiliate professionals, and they still reign supreme when it comes to Amazon Associates. Create blog posts with gift guides, product review articles, comparisons, and lists of your favorite items. This will help you get more information about links to your products.
And don’t forget to tell your audience about it! Not only should you direct your followers to your website content via social media and email, but you should also learn a little about optimizing your site so that Google will display it when people search for relevant terms. Improve your search engine optimization (SEO) skills to make the most of non-social content.
No matter how tempting, no gatekeeper
Basically, your followers are looking for the next best thing to make their life better, easier, or more glamorous. Avoid posting the obvious and instead focus on the smart, innovative, or lesser-known stuff. Inspo: An influencer-approved water bottle that is scented.
We know that hot new cosmetics and revolutionary gadgets can go viral and sell out quickly. (See: Dyson Airwrap or Something Else by Charlotte Tilbury). But as tempting as it is, don’t leave your favorite foods at the gate! Share the best of the best and you will be richly rewarded.