Amazon Affiliate: The Definitive Guide - Geniuslink

Amazon's affiliate program is designed to reward you for helping them sell more products and services. It's not designed to give away a percentage of their ... Home AmazonAffiliate-TheDefinitiveGuide AmazonAffiliate-TheDefinitiveGuide ByJesseLakes TheAmazonAffiliateprogramhasbeenaroundfornearly20years, anditisstilltheonewerecommendmosttoaffiliatemarketerswho arejustgettingstarted.So,afteryearssupportingthousandsof AmazonAssociatesacrossthreeplatforms,we’vegatheredwhatwe thinkissomeofthemostimportantinformationandhavedistilled itintothisdefinitiveguide. Whatwe'llcover Chapter1:WhatistheAmazonAffiliate Program? Chapter2:HowtoBecomeanAmazon Affiliate Chapter3:HowtoStayCompliantasan AmazonAffiliate Chapter4:HowtoIncreaseYourAmazonAffiliateCommissions (akaBestPractices) Chapter5:GoingGlobalWithYour AmazonAffiliateLinks Chapter6: AdvancedAmazonAffiliateTips Chapter1-WhatistheAmazonAffiliateProgram? Learnwhataffiliatemarketingisandthebasicsofhowitworks. Getaglimpseatthelargestaffiliateprogramintheworld,Amazon’sAssociate’sprogram. SeethethingsthatsetAmazon’saffiliateprogramapartfromtherest. Whatisaffiliatemarketing? BeforewediveintowhattheAmazonaffiliateprogramis,weshould probablystartwiththequestion"Whatisaffiliatemarketing?"in general. Thegististhatanaffiliatemarketingprogramisawayforabrand orretailertotrackreferrals,sales,and/orcertainactionsand rewardthosewhoareresponsiblefordoingso. WhenIwasworkingatAppleastheGlobalProgramManagerofthe iTunesAffiliateProgram,Idescribedouraffiliateprogramtomy marketingpeersasan"infrastructuretofacilitatepartnerships." Thisprocesstypicallyinvolvesthreemajorpieces--thebrandor retailer(Amazoninthiscase),thepersonreferringtheshoppers (thisislikelyyou),andthewaytheydothis(aspecialized trackinglinkisoftenused). Thewaythingswouldworkisthatyou,withawebsite,app,and/or socialmediachannel,makearecommendationaboutaproductor service,addinginsightsandvalueintothebuyingprocessforyour community,andthenfollowthatupwithaspecializedaffiliate trackinglink.Youraudience--theshopper--willthenreviewyour insights,andiftheyaremoved,willclickonthatlink,betaken totheretailer,andideallybuytheproductorserviceyou recommended.Theretailerwillthenseethesalewasreferredby you,withinacertaintimeframeoftheclick,andthencredityou forthesaleatapredefinedrate. Ideally,thisprocessrepeatsitselfagainandagain,andwiththis success,youexpandtherecommendationsandinsightsyouprovideto supportagrowingaudience.Everyonewins--theshoppersgetunique andadditionalinsights,yougetrewardedforyourtimeandeffort, andtheretailerismakingadditionalsalesitmaynothavemade otherwise. Thissimplificationoftheprocessignoresthesign-up,set-up,and paymentaspectsoftheaffiliateprogram.Whilethoseareimportant, theyareadministrativetasksthataren’tasinteresting.More detailsonthosewillfollow. Besidesthespecificbrandorretailertheysupport,thetwobiggest factorsthatdifferentiateanaffiliateprogramarethecommission ratestheypayout(oftenaspercentageofthesalesprice)andhow longtheshopperhasbetweenclickingyourlinkandmakingthe purchase(oftencalledthe"cookiewindow"). WheredoestheAmazonaffiliateprogramfitin? Amazon’saffiliateprogram,officiallyknownas"AmazonAssociates," isverysimilartothetensofthousandsofotheraffiliateprograms outthereandfollowsthemodellaidoutabove.Ingeneral,for sendingqualifiedshoppersintotheAmazonstoreviaaspecialized link,youwillberewardedwithacommissiononsales. Afewdifferencestonoteinclude:Amazondoesn’tcalltherewards "commissions,"optinginsteadfor"Fees"and"Bounties."Theyalso refertoyou,traditionallyreferredtoasan"affiliatepublisher," asan"Associate." Additionally,Amazon’saffiliateprogramdoesnotuseanaffiliate network,athird-partyservicethatoftenprovidesthetrackingand reportingservicestoboththeretailer/brandandthepublisher. Amazon’saffiliateprogramisinternal. Traditionally,thespecializedaffiliatetrackinglinkforan affiliateprogramislongandugly,asitincludesmultiple parametersandadditionalinformationnecessarytomakeoneormore redirects.However,sinceAmazon’saffiliateprogramdoesn’tusean affiliatenetwork,thereisonlyaminordifferencebetweenalink you’dseeinyourbrowserwhileontheAmazonsiteandanaffiliate link.Thatdifferenceistheinclusionoftheparameter"tag" followedbysomecharactersthatendwith"-20"forAmazon.com. Normallink: https://www.amazon.com/Martian-Andy-Weir/dp/0553418025/ Affiliatelink: https://www.amazon.com/Martian-Andy-Weir/dp/0553418025/?tag=geniuslink-20 Amazon’saffiliateprogram,likethemajorityoftoday’saffiliate programs,usesthe"lastclickattribution"model.Thismeansthe Associate--akatheaffiliatepublisher,akayou--whosendsa shoppertoAmazonisonlyrewardediftheyarethelastonetodo so.If,forexample,yousendashoppertoAmazon,butbeforethey leave,gotoanothersiteandreadanotherreviewthenclickon anotheraffiliatelink,youloseoutontheopportunitytoearna commission.Whilethatotheraffiliatelink,thelastclickbefore thepurchase,willgetcreditforthesale. Anotherwaytoloseoutoncommissionsisforthe"cookiewindow"to expire.ThecookiewindowisthetimeAmazonallowsforasaleto happenandstillbecreditedtoyou.Amazon’saffiliateprogramhas aprettytightwindowof24hours.Soifsomeoneclickedonyour link,didn’tclickonanyotheraffiliatelinksbutwaited25hours beforetheybought,youwouldmissoutonthereferralcredit.Other programscanbemuchlonger.Walmart,forexample,offers72hours. However,it’simportanttonotethatAmazon’scookiewindowisn’ta measureofclick-to-purchasebutratherclick-to-cart.Aslongas theproductismovedtothecartwithinthe24hours,thenpurchased andshippedwithin89days,you’llearnthatcommission.Thisgives someextraflexibility,butalsocancreatesomeconfusioninyour earningslaterdowntheroad. Finally,it’simportanttonotethattheAmazonaffiliateprogram, whileoftenreferredtoasasingleentity,isactuallyacollection of15independentandstorefront-specificaffiliateprograms.Just asAmazonhasdifferentstorefrontsfordifferentpartsoftheworld (eg.Amazon.caforCanadaandAmazon.co.jpforJapan),eachofthese storefrontshavetheirownaffiliateprogramtosupportthat specificstore.Unfortunately,youcan’tearncommissionsfromthe CanadianAmazonstoreusingtheAmazon.comaffiliateprogram.This isanimportantconsiderationwhenyouhaveaglobalaudience,and we’lldiginmorelaterduringthebestpracticessection. AmazonstoreusingtheAmazon.comaffiliateprogram.Thisisan importantconsiderationwhenyouhaveaglobalaudience,andwe’ll diginmorelaterduringthebestpracticessection. WhatsetstheAmazonaffiliateprogramapart? TherearethreemajorbenefitsofusingAmazon’saffiliateprogram. Whileallthreearerelated,themajorbenefitsincludetheprogram beingeasytogetstartedwith,beingfairlyeasytouse,andthe relativelyhighconversionrates. TheAmazonaffiliateprogramiseasytolaunchbecauseitdoesn’t requiretheadditionalstepofusinganaffiliatenetwork,the optimizeddashboardandtheminimalbarrierstostartusingthe program.Infact,unlikemanyaffiliateprograms,Amazondoesn’t actuallyreviewyoursiteuntilyou’vegeneratedthreesales.In comparison,multipleaffiliateprogramsrequireyoutoverifyyour websiteorsocialmediachannelorpaysomenominalfeebeforeyou canevenapplytoaspecificaffiliateprogram. ThesamefactorsthatmaketheAmazonaffiliateprogrameasyto startalsomakeiteasytouse.However,becauseofit’shugesize, thereareahugenumberofresourcesavailableaswell.This includeseducationalresources,how-toguides,andeasieraccessto experts(oratleastthosewithexperiencewhoarehappytoshare). Thisalsoincludesasizableecosystemofthird-partytoolsand pluginsthatprovidesignificantfunctionality"outofthebox." Thismakescreatingafairlysophisticatedsetupfairlysimpleby combiningvarioustoolsinthepropermanner. Additionally,theAmazonaffiliateprogramtypicallyhasafairly highconversionrate.Ofcoursethisvarieswidelybyyoursiteor channel,theproductsyourecommend,andyouraudience,butthe Amazonprogramoffersthreeadvantages. First,intheU.S.,ahugenumberofpeoplearecomfortableshopping onlinewithAmazon. EMarketerpegstheirmarketshareat38%,far aheadofmanyofitsotherecommercecompetitors(for example,Walmartisinthe4%-5%range).Thisfamiliaritywith Amazon--andevenbetter,havinganAmazonPrimemembership-- meansonceyougetashopperintotheAmazonstore,youroddsare highcomparedtosendingashoppertoastorethey’veneverused before. Second,Amazonhasamassiveproductcatalog.Amazonisthe "everythingstore,"andyoucanfindprettymuchanythingforsale. Thisallowsyoutorecommendveryspecificproductsyournichewould appreciate.Orbetteryet,youcancompareyourpreferredproductto afewofthecompetingproductstoaddevenmorevaluetothebuying experience. Finally,Amazonwill,inmostcases,payyouacommissionfor everythingthatisboughtbytheshopperyourefer.Thiscombines thepriorpoints,butbecausesomanypeoplearefamiliarwith Amazonandbecauseyoucanbuysomanydifferentproducts,many affiliatepublisherswillfindthatwhiletheymayberecommendinga specificTV,forexample,theyareactuallyearningcommissionsfrom salesoftoiletpaperandtoastersbecauseshopperstheyrecommended neededtobuythoseproductsanywhere,andhappentodosowhile insideofyourcookiewindow.Theearningsfromtheproductssold thatyoudidn’trecommendarecalled"Halocommissions,"andAmazon isnotoriousforthese. History Amazonwasnottheinnovatorofonlineaffiliatemarketing,even thoughtheyareoneoftheearlierpioneers.TheAmazonaffiliate programlaunchedinJuly1996,makingitnearlyaquarterofa centuryold.Inthattime,fromourcalculations,it’sbecomethelargestaffiliate programintheworld,withmillionsofaffiliatepublishersplacingtheirspecialized linksacrosstheinternettoreferrershoppersintoAmazon’smassive store.Amazon’saffiliateprogramwasalsoaninstrumentalpieceof theirearlygrowth.Onereportclaims40%ofsalesin2008camefrom theAssociatesprogram! GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Chapter2-HowtoBecomeanAmazonAffiliate CleardirectiononhowtogetstartedwithAmazon’saffiliateprogram. ThedetailsongettingsignedupforyourfirstAmazonaffiliateprogram. BestpracticesforsigningupforinternationalAmazonaffiliateprograms. GettingsetupwiththeAmazonaffiliateprogramisfairlyeasyto doandshouldn’ttakemorethanhalfanhour.Ifyoualreadyhavea siteorcommunity,thenIencourageyoutodiverightintothenext sectionandignorethefollowingfewparagraphs. However,ifyouarejuststartingoutanddon’tyethaveawebsite, achanneloranaudience,thenhearmeoutforamoment. Therearetwoschoolsofthoughthere.Oneistobuildacommunity first,THENstarttomonetizeitviatheAmazonaffiliateprogram. ThesecondistosignupfortheAmazonaffiliateprogramveryearly intheprocesstoensurenopennyislost. Ifyouarebrandnewtoallofthis,thenIwouldencourageyouto takethefirstpathandstartworkingonbuildingyoursiteand communityfirstbeforeworryingaboutmonetizingyourefforts.Isay thisforafewreasons: Whileseeingthefiscalupsideofyourprojectcanbeincredibly rewarding,itcanalsobeverydistractinganddishearteningearly onifyouarenotseeinganycommissionsorclickscomingthrough. Iwouldrecommendyoufocusfirstonyourcraftandspendsome timebuildingwhateveritisyouplanonbuilding.Onceyou’ve startedtoputoutsomecontent,startedtogetsomeengagement andproventoyourselfthatyoudon’thateworkingontheproject, thenit’stimetostartmonetizing--notbefore. Amazondoesn’treviewyouraccountuntilyou’vegeneratedthree sales,andyouhave180daystodoso.Ifyoufailtodothis withinthattimeframe,youriskhavingyouraccountclosed,which rendersyourpreviousaffiliatelinksworthlessandcreatesadded workonceyougetanewaccountsetup. AmazonrecentlychangedhowyoucanaccesstheirProduct AdvertisingAPI,thetoolthatisessentialforsomeofthemore interestingWPpluginsandrelatedtools(butnotGeniuslink). Beforethischange,itwasbeneficialtogetsignedupwiththe programassoonaspossibletogetaccesstothePAAPI,butwith thischangethereisnodifference. WhichAmazonaffiliateprogramshouldIsignupforfirst? NowthatyouarereadytodiveinandgetsignedupfortheAmazon affiliateprogram,youneedtodecidewhichprogramtostartwith-- remembertherearenow15independentAmazonaffiliateprograms! Thequestioniseasilyansweredbygoingtotheanalyticsofyour projectandseeingwherethemajorityofyouraudienceiscoming from.IfmostofyourvisitorsarecomingfromtheUnited StatesAmazon.com,thenyouwanttostartoffwiththeAmazon.com affiliateprogram.However,ifthebulkofyouraudienceiscoming fromIndia,thenAmazon.in’saffiliateprogrammakesmoresense. Ultimately,you’llwanttosignupforalloftheAmazonaffiliate programsthatmatchthecountrieswhereyouseeatleast1%ofyour site’s,orchannel’s,traffic.We’llcoverthisfurtherinthebest practicessectionlater. It’simportanttonoteyouarenotnecessarilysigningupforthe AmazonaffiliateprogramthatmatchestheAmazonstoreyouuseor thecountryyoulivein.Ratheryouaresigningupfortheprogram thatmatchesthestoreandcountrywherethebulkofyourtrafficis from.It’sanuanceddistinctionbutvitallyimportantinensuring yourinitialeffortsareasfruitfulaspossible. Finally,it’simportanttonotethatforthemajorityoftheAmazon affiliateprograms,youcansignupfrom--andgetpaidfrom-- anywhereintheworld.ThismeansifyouarebasedinMexicobutsee mostofthetrafficonyourYouTubechannelisfromtheUS,you’d wanttoinitiallysignupfortheAmazon.comaffiliateprogram. Youcaneasilyjumpbetweentheregion-specificAmazonaffiliate programsviathedropdownintheupperrightofanyAmazon AssociatesCentraldashboard. SigningupfortheAmazonaffiliateprogram Onceyou’venarroweddownwhichAmazonaffiliateprogramyouwantto startwith,it’stimetodigin.Iwon’tguideyoustep-by-step throughthesign-upprocess,asI’vedonethatinmultipleplaces before.Ifyouwantavideowalkthrough,pleasecheckoutour recordedwebinaronYouTube[].Wealsohaveastep-by-step guideinourKnowledgebase[]tohelpyouout. Afewthingstoconsiderasyouaresigningupfortheprogram: IfyouareapplyingforanAmazonaffiliateprogramthatisina foreignlanguage,thenusingtheChromebrowserwithbuilt-in translationcanbereallyhelpful. IfyouaresigningupfortheUKprogram,thenattheendyou’llbe askedifyouwanttousethesameinformationtoautomaticallyapply fortheotherfourprogramsinEurope.Iencourageyoutodothis andsaveyourselfsometime(andfumblingaroundwithforeign languages). Rememberthatanyinformationyouaddnowcanbeupdatedlater.This meansyoucanspeedthroughfairlyquickly,butontheflipside, it’simportanttokeepyourinformationuptodateasyour strategiesdevelopandyourportfolioandonlinepresenceexpand. Onarelatednote,it’simportanttoknowifyouplantoprimarily beusingyouraffiliatelinksonsocialmediathatyouincludethe fullchannelwhenyoulistoutyourwebsites.Forexample,just listingYouTube.comisn’tenough--theywanttoknowthefullURL toyourchannel. Whilewetypicallyencourageyoutofilloutyourtaxandpayment informationwhileyouaresigningup,youdon’thaveto.Andsince youwon’tbepaidforapproximately60to90daysafteryoustart earningcommissions,youhaveplentyoftimetocomebacktoit. Nextsteps Onceyou’vegottensignedupwithyourfirstAmazonaffiliate program,it’stimetogetyouraffiliatelinksinfrontofyour audience. Therearelotsofdifferentwaystodothisandtheydependonthe nichethatyou’vebuilt. Forcommunitiesaroundsocialmedia,anintelligentlinkmanagement toolcanbereallyhelpful.Maywerecommend Geniuslink? ForWordpress-basedwebsites,thereareanumberofpluginsthatcan bereallyhelpful.Ourfavorite,becausewebuiltit,isthe AmazonLinkEngine,whichconvertsyourregular Amazonlinksandturnstheminto globallyawareAmazonaffiliatelinks. GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Chapter3-HowtoStayCompliantasanAmazonAffiliate UnderstandtheimportanceofbeingcompliantwithAmazon’sOperatingAgreement. Learnthetopwaystogetyouraccountintrouble. Learnbestpracticesforpostingaffiliatelinksonsocialmedia. InyourexcitementtogetstartedwithyournewAmazonaffiliate account,I’mguessingyoudidn’tgetachancetodigintothe AmazonAssociatesOperating Agreement ortheaccompanying Policies page,didyou? Whileit’snotedge-of-your-seat,page-turningmaterial,itis reallyimportanttoread!TheOperatingAgreementandPolices outlinetherulesoftheAmazonAssociatesgame,andit'seasyto losethegameifyoudon’tknowtherules. Forbetterorworse,theAmazoncomplianceteamisreallygoodat findingpossibleviolationsandforaffiliatepublishers,pleading ignoranceisn’tenoughtokeepyouraccountingoodstanding. Further,justdoingthesameasotheraffiliatesitesyouseeonline isn’tavalidexcuseeither.Unfortunately,thereisalotof misinformationandmisunderstandingsrelatedtoAmazonaffiliate governanceandpolicies,soit’sbesttogotothesource. Webelieveit’snotworthriskingyouraccountwiththelargest affiliateprogramintheworldduetobeinginahurry,andwe stronglyencourageyoutotakethetimetoreadtheoperating agreementandpolicies.Butwewanttohelpyougetstartedonthe rightfoot. Thisisatopicwefeelpassionatelyabout!We’vewrittenaboutit manytimesinourblogandspokenaboutonstage,inwebinarsandin podcastinterviews.Whilethischapterisnosubstituteforreading theoperatingagreementandpolicies,wewantedtosharethetop reasonswe’veseenaffiliatepublishersgettheiraccountsclosed, aswellasshareafewadditionalnotesforthosewhoplanto primarilyusesocialmediafortheiraffiliatemarketingcampaigns. Pleasedon’tmakethesesamemistakes! Cloakinglinks Thisisabroadcategory,andtherearereallythreedifferent thingsthatcangetyouintroublehereifyoudon’tpayattention. Nocloaking-"Cloaking,"intheworldofaffiliate marketing,istheprocessofintentionallyhidingordisguisingthat alinkisactuallyanaffiliatelink.Whilethereissome semi-legitimatereasoningbehindwhyyouwoulddothis,you absolutelywanttoavoidthispracticewithyourAmazonaffiliate links. It’simportanttonoteAmazonabsolutelyallowsyoutousealink shortenerwithyourAmazonaffiliatelinks.Howeverwhendoingso, it’simportantthatyoudisclosethedestinationofyourlink,which leadsustothenextconsideration. NotmentioningAmazon-"ShopperTrust"isanimportanttheme toAmazonandthatrelatestotheiraffiliateprogramaswell.When youpostAmazonaffiliatelinksusingathird-partytool,like Geniuslink,it’sreallyimportantthatyoumention"Amazon"innear proximitytothelink.Thisisespeciallyimportantforshortened linksusedonsocialmedia.It’sessentialtheshopperknowswhere theyaregoingwhentheyclickonthatlink(itcanalsohelpwith conversionratesbyhelpingtheshopperbettertrustthelink). Additionally,whenyouraffiliatelinkisliveonawebsite,it’s importanttheconsumeragainknowswherethelinkwilltakethem. Youcanincludevisualcuesinnearproximityofthelinks,include Amazoninthecalltoaction,orwithsomethird-partytoolsyoucan letthelinkremainanAmazonlink,sowhentheshoppermousesover thelinkintheirbrowser,thestatusbarshowstheAmazonURL. Notlistingyoursite/channel-Rememberthatstepwhenyou weresigningupfortheAmazonaffiliateprogramwhereyoulisted thevarioussitesandsocialmediachannelsyouwereplanningon usingyourlinks?Well,haveyoukeptthatupdated?Unfortunately, it’seasytohaveashiftingstrategyandplaceyouraffiliatelinks innewplacesandforgettoupdatethatlist(viatheAssociates Centraldashboard).ThiscangetyouintroublewiththeAmazon complianceteamandiseasytodo. Offlinelinks Amazondoesn’tlikeitwhentheycan’ttrackorreviewtheplacement ofyouraffiliatelinksandassuchhasaruleaboutno"offline" placements.Whileonemightdebatetheirdefinitionof"offline,"it istheirprogram,sotheygettodecide.Ultimately,itmeans affiliatelinksaren’tallowedtobedirectlyplacedintoemail, PDFs,oreBooksorinprint,QRcodes,etc. Yes,weknowthatsomeofthelargerpersonalitiesonlinemightbe includingAmazonaffiliatelinksintheirregularemailnewsletters, butthat’stechnicallyagainsttherulesforuswiththestandard AmazonAssociatesagreement. However,thereisalegitimateworkaroundforwhenyouwanttoplace anaffiliatelinkinanemail,PDF,ebook,printed,orviaaQRcode --insteadplacealinktoa Geniuslink"ChoicePage." TheseChoicePagesareoptimizedlandingpagesthatarespecifically builttorecommendaproductviaanaffiliatelinkandincludethe necessarydisclaimer(moreonthatinamoment).Andbecausethe affiliatelinktechnicallylivesonthislandingpage,it’snotin violationofAmazon’srulesfortheiraffiliateprogram. It’simportanttonotethatbyusingChoicePages,youalsoneedto updateyourlistofwebsites/channelswhereyouraffiliatelinksgo soyouaren’tlabeledascloakingyourlinksasdescribedabove. Mentioningprices(oravailability) Rememberthat"ShopperTrust"isanimportanttheme.Further,it’s importanttonotethatAmazon’sproductcatalogisconstantly updating.Combiningthese,youcanquicklyrealizewhyAmazon doesn’tlikeitwhenyoumentionspecificpricingoravailabilityof aproduct--it’slikelythatshortlyafteryoupublishthis informationitwillbeoutofdateandwrong. Asaresult,Amazonhasahardrulethatanymentionofpricingor availabilitycan’tbemorethan24hoursoldandstronglyrecommends thatifyouplantousepricingoravailabilityinyouraffiliate marketing,youtakeadvantageofatoolthatleveragestheProduct AdvertisingAPIoruseitdirectlyyourself. Usingtheirstarratingsandreviews Similartothenoteabove,duetothevolatilityoftheirstore, Amazondoesn'tlikeaffiliatepublishersusing"static"versionsof theirstarratingsorproductreviews.Theseareavailabletouseif youareusinga"dynamic"source,specificallyAmazon’sPAAPIora toolthattakesadvantageofit. Theydonotappeartohaveanyproblemwithyouusingyourown ratingsystemoryourownreviews!Justbesuretomakeitclear thatit’syours. Askingforaclickorbookmarkonyouraffiliatelink Don’tdoit! Amazondoesn’tallowanysortof"incentivized"behaviorconcerning theiraffiliatelinks.Thiscanbeassimpleasmentioningyourpage orchannelis"supported"byAmazon’saffiliateprogramorearning affiliatecommissions.Ontheflipside,beingasforwardasasking someonetoclickyourlinkbeforemakingapurchaseonAmazonor askingsomeonetobookmarkyouraffiliatelinkforfuturepurchases willcertainlylandyouinhotwaterwhenyouarecaught. Notlinkingtoproducts Amazon’saffiliateprogramisdesignedtorewardyouforhelping themsellmoreproductsandservices.It’snotdesignedtogiveaway apercentageoftheirmarginwhennovalueisbeingaddedtothe buyingprocess.Asaresult,youcanquicklygetkickedoutofthe affiliateprogrambyturningyourlinkstosupportarticleson Amazonintoaffiliatelinks,etc. Notincludinganaffiliatedisclaimer Lettingyouraudienceknowthatyouarepromotingaproductandthat moneyisonthelineisabsolutelycriticalintheworldof affiliatemarketing,especiallywiththeAmazonaffiliateprogram. Thereareactuallytwolevelsatwhichit’simportanttomake disclosuresandpubliclystateyourusageofanaffiliateprogram, Amazon’sprogramornote.Oneisatthe"link-level''tofulfillthe FTCguidelines,andanotherisatthesite-orchannel-levelto ensurecompliancewiththeAmazonAssociatesOperatingAgreement. FTCDisclaimer TheFederalTradeCommission,oftheUS,hasthemandatetohelp ensuretransparencytotheaverage(American)shopper,specifically thattheyknowwhentheyarebeingadvertisedto.Intheeyesofthe FTC,being"advertised"toincludesusingaffiliatelinkswhenyou recommendproducts.Asaresult,tobeingoodstandingyouneedto makeadisclosurethatis"clear"and"conspicuous." Whilewearen’tqualifiedtosayexactlywhatthismeans,wedoknow thatsaying"affiliatelink"isn’tgoodenoughastheFTCargues that"affiliate"isn’tatermtheaverageconsumerknows.Becauseof this,werecommendmakingsureyourdisclosureincludesverbiage about"earning"money. Itisalsofairlyclearthatadisclaimerinthefooterofyoursite doesn’tfittheFTCguidelines.Ratherthepreferenceisinnear proximityofyourlinksor,asweregularlysee,atthebeginningof yourarticleinfullview. Theserulesarealsoapplicabletosocialmedia,notjustwebsites! BesuretoincludeyourFTC,link-leveldisclaimersinyourtweets, posts,andvideodescriptions.Ifyoudon’thaveroomordon’tlike thelook,thenyoumaywanttocheckoutChoicePagesthatincludea built-inFTCdisclosure. AmazonAssociatesDisclaimer InadditiontotheFTCdisclaimer,theAmazonAffiliateprogramalso requiresyoutoincludeanoticetoyourcommunityinregardsto yourrelationshipwithAmazon.Thisdisclosurehasbeenshortenedto asinglesentencethatsimplyreads: "AsanAmazonAssociateIearnfromqualifyingpurchases." UnliketheFTCdisclosure,thisoneisallowedtobeabitmore buriedandisokayinyourTermsofServiceorAboutUspage. Ideallythough,itwillliveonit’sowndisclosurespageonyour websiteandincludealinkfromyourlink-levelFTCdisclosure. Forsocialmedia,theAmazondisclosurecanliveinthe"info"or "about"sectionofyoursocialmediaprofile. Additionalconcernsforsocialmedia UsingtheAmazonaffiliateprogramonTwitter,Twitch,Pinterest, YouTube,Facebookandothersocialmediaplatformsisgrowing quicklyandfullysupportedbyAmazon,withafewcaveats.They’ve outlinedafewclarificationstosocialmediauseina separate article.Inshortthoseinclude: OnlyInYourChannel TheAmazonaffiliateprogrammakestherequirementthatyouonly postlinkswhen"Youarethesolemoderatoroftheaccountthatyou plantopostto."Thismeansthatpostingyouraffiliatelinksin forums,groupsorinreplies/commentsisn’tcool. Public Amazonhasacomprehensivereviewprocesstoensurecompliance withinitsaffiliateprogram,andinorderforthatprocesstowork, yourlinksmustbepostedsomewherethatiseasilyaccessible.If Amazon’scomplianceteamcan’tcheckyourlinkstoreviewthemthen theycan’tensureyouarefollowingtherules. NoPaidAds Amazonstraightupsays "No,youcannotuseaffiliatelinksinpaidadsorpay("boost") poststhatincludeaffiliatelinks.Theycannotcontainorbeused toadvertiseyourAmazonaffiliatelinksandsendthecustomer directlytoAmazon." However,ifyouarelookingforasolutiontothis,we’dagain recommendlinkingtoChoicePagesfromyourads. Greyarea WhiletheOperatingAgreementandPoliciespageanswersalotof questionsandclarifiesalotofthings,we’llbethefirsttoadmit thatyou’llstillfindtherearegreyareas.Whenyoucomeacross these,andtheyareapplicabletowhatyouaretryingtodo,it’s bestnottoignorethemandassumethatyoucanmakeagoodpoint (trustme,theyplaytheirgamebytheirrules).Asaresult,we recommendthesetwothings: First,thinkaboutthesituationfromAmazon’sperspectiveandbe honestwithyourself.WouldAmazonwantyoudoingthis?Thelikely answerisprobablyno. Second,askthem!TherearemultiplewaystocontactAmazon affiliatesupportincludingbychat,aphonenumber,andaformto startanemailthread.However,whenyouaskaquestion,we recommendyoudon’tjustaskoncebutaskviadifferentchannelsand differentmediums.Werecommendaskingthesamequestion,phrased slightlydifferently,atleastthreetimesandcomparingthe responseandusingtheresponsethatcameupmostoften. GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Chapter4-HowtoIncreaseYourAmazonAffiliateCommissions(akaBestPractices) LearnhowSEOiscrucialtosuccesswithaffiliatemarketing. SeehowConversionrateoptimizationisalsoanessentialskill. Readhowbuildinganaudienceshouldbeyourtoppriority FromsupportingthousandsofAmazonaffiliatebloggersoverthe years,weareintheuniquepositionofhavingsomereally interestingconversationswithbloggers,creatorsandinfluencers whousetheprogram.We’vealsolearned,forthemostpart,thereis no"silverbullet,"andbigmonthlyaffiliatepayoutscomefrom monthsofhardwork.We’vealsolearnedthe"tricks"aretypically justslowdeathsentencesanddoingthingstherightway(the"white hat"approach)iscriticaltolong-termhealthandwealthinyour affiliatemarketingbusiness. Wehavealsoheardsomethingsgetrepeatedtimeandtimeagain abouthowtobuildasuccessfulbusinessaroundaffiliatemarketing. Wehaveaggregatedthosebelowsoyouhavesomebestpracticesto getstartedwith.Pleasenotethatwhatworkswellforoneperson maynotworkwellforyou,sodon’tbeafraidofbeingagileand tweakingthese,andaddingothers,tobuildyourplaybookfor maximizingyouraffiliatecommissions. SearchEngineOptimization Whilenotspecifictoaffiliatemarketing,SEOisthebackbonefor internetmarketing.WhetheryouhaveaYouTubechanneloraniche authorityblog(orboth),it’simportantyoudrivepeoplewhohavea generalinterestinyourdomaintoyourcontentsotheycanclickon them!Thereisnopointgeneratingatonofcontentifnooneis goingtointeractwithit.Sowhileyouhoneyouraffiliate marketingskills,besuretoatleastdabbleinSEOskillsaswell. WhileSEOisnotourspecialty,therearesomeamazingpeoplewho alsohappentobeaffiliatemarketerswhooffergreatresources. However,outsideofthegeneralplatitudesofbuildingbacklinksand keywordresearch,thereareafewtidbitswe’veheardrepeateda numberoftimesfrompeoplewetrust. Firstisafocusaroundinternallinks--thelinksfromone ofyourpagestoanotherpage.Oftentimesinternallinksarean afterthought,butmanyarefindingthatoptimizationofyourwebsite aroundbacklinkscanbeahigherROIthanbuildingbacklinks, especiallyforamorematuresite. Thesecondisaround"nichingdown"andnotonlyfocusing yoursiteorchannelonveryspecificareasbutfollowingthesame principlewithyourkeywordresearch.Itseemsthatfocusingonlong tailkeywordswithlowcompetitionwilloftenyieldpromising resultswellbeforemid-bodyortopkeywordsorthosewithmore competition.Winninglotsoflittlebattlesfortrafficisnotonly goodforgeneratingtraffic,andsubsequentlyaffiliatecommissions, buthelpfulinmorale,too! Afocuson"Buyer’s"keywordscanalsobehelpfulingetting therighttraffictoyoursiteorchannel.Thismeanstargeting peoplewhomaybelowerinthemarketingfunnelandwhoaremore mentallypreparedtomakethepurchasethanthosewhoarejust startingtheirresearchonaspecificproductcategorythatties intoyourniche.Whilethereisawholeartandsciencetoit,the gistisriffingoffofkeywordslike"[product-name]review"or "Whatkindof[product-name]shouldIget?" Multipleaffiliatelinksperpage Aneasytraptofallintoearlyinyouraffiliatejourneyisto writeagoodproductreviewbutthenonlyincludeasingleaffiliate linkattheendofyourarticle.Thisonlygivesyouasinglechance toearnacommission. Thebestpracticeistoactuallyincludemultipleaffiliatelinks fortheproductthroughoutthepage,startingasearlyasthefirst paragraph.Includingalinkwhereyoumentionthenameofthe specificproductyouarereviewingorincludingacalltoaction halfwaythroughyourreviewcanalsobehelpful. Calltoaction Aquicknoteonthe"CalltoAction."ACTAisthephraseyouuseto encourageyourreaderstotakeaction,clickonyouraffiliatelink, andmovethroughthebuyingprocess.ExperimentingwithyourCTAs canleadtoanincrementalincreaseinconversionrates,butit’s somethingyouneedtoalsobecarefulwith! Havingastrongcalltoactioncanbehelpfulinthatconversion frompagevisitstolinkclicks.Forexample,endingyourCTAwith theword"now"toinspireactioninatimelymanner. You’llalsowanttotryandincludeaCTAabovethefold(whatis showninthebrowserwindowbeforeyoustarttoscroll)andinthe firstparagraphallowsthoseinyouraudiencewhoareeagertobuy aneasyexcusetomoveforwardwithoneofyouraffiliatelinks. It’simportanttoremembernottogettooaggressivewithyourCTAs andbecautiousoftheAmazonaffiliaterules.Thisprimarilymeans beingcognizantof"incentivizing"clickslikewetalkedaboutin thepriorsection.Further,youwanttobewearyofwhatwecall "weaselwords"(suchas"best,discount,lowest,sale,etc."that maynotactuallybetrue). IncludingmultipleCTAsthroughyourpagecanbehelpful--justbe sureyoudon’toverdoitandsoundtoomuchlikeausedcar salesman. RelatedProducts Anotherwaytoincludeadditionalaffiliatelinksonyourpageisby includingasectioninyourreviewaboutproductsrelatedtotheone youarereviewing.YouseeAmazondoingthisallofthetimewith their"CustomersWhoBoughtThisItemAlsoBought"sectiononevery productpage.It’sagreatpracticeandsomethingyoucaneasily applytoyourreviewarticlesandstilladdvaluetothebuying process. Comparisons Averycommonpracticethesedaysisaroundreviewingmultiple competingproductsinasinglepageorvideo,likewitha"buying guide."Thisallowsforafewdifferentbestpracticestopeek through,includingusingcomparisontables,beingauthentic,and anchoring. ComparisontablesareanotheraspectthatAmazonuses regularlyontheirsite.Keepscrollingpastthe"CustomersWho BoughtThisItemAlsoBought"sectionandyouarelikelytocome acrossone.Thesetablesaregreattostartoffwithanaffiliate linkbehindastrongcalltoaction("CTA")andagoodwaytorecap theaspectsoftheproductsyouwerereviewing. Authenticityisaveryimportantaspectofdoingproduct reviewsandsomethingwestronglyrecommend.You’lllikelyfindthat whenyougiverealisticreviewsanddon’tskipoverthenegativesof aproduct,you’llfindyourconversionratesincreaseaspeopleare morewillingtotrustyou.Withanyproductreview,asectionthat highlightsthenot-so-greataspectsisimportant.Affiliate marketersoftenfindit’seasiertobecriticalofaproductwhen comparingittoitspeersasitoftenfeelsmorenatural. Finally,comparisonsareagreatplacetointroducetheconceptof anchoring.Anchoringisa"cognitivebias"thatyoulikely seeahundredtimesadaybutsubconsciouslyignore.Inshort, anchoringisthepracticeofhowyouorderthingssothatyouplace theitemyoudon’tintendtosellfirstsothatthesecondorthird itemseemmorefavorableaftercomparingthemtothefirst.For example,placingthemostexpensiveproductfirstmakesthesecond, alower-priceitem,seemmoreattractiveinsteadoforderingthe listfromleastexpensivetomostexpensive. Onethingtonoteisthatincludingtoomanyproductsinyour comparisonscanleadtotheparadoxofchoiceandactuallyhamper thebuyingprocess.Itseemsthatthreetofiveproductsisthe sweetspot. Buildingacommunity Typicallywhenwestartoutinouraffiliatemarketingjourney,we areeagertomakerecommendationsandgeneraterevenue.Whilethis iscertainlyanimportantgoal,it’simportantnottobeshort sighted. Manyexpertsintheworldofaffiliatemarketingactuallyprioritize generatedaffiliatesalesasasecondarygoal.Theirprimarygoalis tobuildanengagedandactivecommunity.It’sonlythenthatthey starttomakeproductrecommendationsandgenerateaffiliate revenue.Onceyouhaveacommunityandhavebuilttrust,you’llfind thatmakingrecommendationsofproductsandservices(viaaffiliate links)issignificantlyeasierandyourcampaignswilllikely convertmuchhigher. Forsomechannels,thisiseasierthanothers.Forexample,on YouTubeaprimarygoalistobuildthatsubscriberbase.Those subscribersarethecommunity,andonceyouhavealargeactive group,it’seasiertomakerecommendationsthatresultinsales. Forwebsites,thiscanbeabitmoreofachallengeasthat "community"aspectisn’tasinherentasitiswithsocialmedia.As aresult,aprimarygoalfornichewebsitesistobuildanemail listandthenkeepthatactivewithregularemails.Thewebsite eventuallybecomeslessimportantandtheemaillist,akathe community,becomesmuchmoreimportant. Justremember,youcan’tembedAmazonaffiliatelinksdirectlyinto youremails!Butyoucanuseyouremailstodrivethemtoalanding page(orChoicePage)fromwhereyouhaveyourAmazonaffiliate links. Internationalshoppers Theinternethasneverbeenmoreglobal,andchancesarethepeople visitingyoursite,readingyourposts,andwatchingyourvideosare fromallovertheworld.Oneofthemostamazingthingsaboutthe internetishowitbringstogetherpeoplewhocareaboutsuper specificandnichethingsintotribesnomatterwheretheyarefrom. It’salsoeasytoforgetabouttheinternationalaspectofyour audience,butit’ssomethingwestronglyrecommendyoucheckon, especiallyafteryou’vestartedtoseesomeinitialtractionwith yoursiteorchannel. Whileatsomepointyoumightconsiderlocalizingyourpageor channelwithadditionallanguages,thegististhatifsomeoneis visitingyoursiteorchannelnow,thelanguageisn’tthebiggest hurdleforthem. However,readingorconsumingcontentinaforeignlanguageisway easierthanbuyingsomethingfromaforeignstore!Amazonknowsthis andhasspentbillionsofdollarsonasolution.Amazoncurrently has17independentstorefrontsaroundtheworldandcontinuesto launchnewAmazonstorefrontsinvariouspartsoftheworldtocater toshoppersinspecificcountriesandregions.WhenAmazondoes this,theycanoffernotonlyashoppingexperienceinalocal languagebutalsoinlocalcurrencywithfastandefficientshipping anddelivery,aswellastheappropriatetaxes.Ultimately,thisa muchmorestreamlinedbuyingexperienceandresultsinmuchhigher conversionrates. Sowhileitispossibletosendyourwholeaudiencetoasingle Amazonstore,andearnsomeaffiliatecommissions,ifyouarelike thethousandsofclientswehaveatGeniuslink,you’lllikelyseea significantincreaseinyourconversionratesandcommissionswhen youstartsendingeachofyourforeignshopperstotheappropriate productintheirlocalAmazonstorefront.Moreabouthowtooptimize yourAmazonaffiliatelinksforyourglobalaudienceisinthenext section. GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Chapter5-GoingGlobalWithYourAmazonAffiliateLinks UnderstandhowAmazon’saffiliateprogramisgeographicallyfragmented. Explorehowyourrevenuemaybeimpactedby"geo-fragmentation." Learnbestpractices,andtools,forsupportingandmonetizinganinternationalaudience. Aswealludedtointhepriorchapter,oneofthekeyoptimizations --practicedacrosstheboard--istoexpandpastusingasingle Amazonaffiliateprogramtoconcurrentlyusingmanyoftheregional affiliateprograms.Traditionally,Amazonlinksarestaticandsend everyone,nomatterwheretheyarefrom,tothesamedestination.So thereissomeworkinvolvedgettingpastthis,butworkingthrough thesetuphastwomajorbenefits. First,andmostimportantly,isaroundanimproveduserexperience foryourinternationalcommunity.Bysendingthemtothecorrect productbutintheirlocalAmazonstorefront,theycantake advantageoftheirPrimemembership,cantransactintheirlocal currency,shouldreceivetheproductfastervialocalshipping,and havingtheprocessintheirnativelanguageshouldreducethe frictioninthewholebuyingprocess.Thisimprovementinthebuying experiencenotonlyhelpsinthefinancialaspects,discussednext, butshouldalsohelpyoucontinuetogrowyourinternational audience. Pleasenote,however,thatjustsigningupforaninternational Amazonaffiliateprogramwon’tmagicallymakeyourlinkswork.(More onthatinaminute.) Thesecondmajorbenefitisfinancial.Bymovingtoan"intelligent" Amazonaffiliatelink,onethatsendsforeignshopperstotheright productintheirlocalAmazonstorefront,youshouldalsoseean increaseinyourconversionrates,yourearningsperclick,and ultimatelyyourtotalrevenue. Thishappensbecausetheinternationalshopperswhoyouweresending toyourlocalstorefront(sayyourUKshoppersgettingsentto Amazon.com)hadasignificantlylowerchanceofconvertingdueto theitemsweoutlinedabove.However,bysendingyourUKshoppersto thecorrectproductinAmazon.co.uk,theAmazonstorefront specificallyoptimizedtosupportshoppersintheUK,you’llseea muchhigherconversionrate. Isyouraudienceinternational? Manyofusdon’trealizehowdiverseourtrafficisafterspending allofourtimeintheweedscreatingcontent,workingonSEO, buildingaffiliatelinks,etc.Asaresult,Iwouldencourageyouto takeamomentrightnowandcheckyoursiteorchannelanalytics. EveryanalyticspackageI’veeverseenhasageographicbreakdown, andIencourageyoutofindandreviewthatrightnow.Asyoulook atit,youhavetwoquestionstoanswer. HowmuchofmytrafficisdomesticandmatchestheAmazonstore andaffiliateprogramI’mcurrentlyusing? Howmuchofmytrafficisinternational?Andmorespecifically, whataremytopfiveinternationalcountries? Ifyourinternationalaudienceislessthan10%ofyourtotal,then I’dencourageyoutojustjumptothenextsection. However,ifit’smorethan10%,thenpleasekeepreading.We’ve foundthatforevery10%ofinternationaltrafficyouget, whenyoulocalizeyourAmazon affiliatelinksyou’lllikelysee yourtotalrevenueincreaseby5%.Forexample,ifyoursiteorchannelhad50%international trafficandyouweremaking$1KamonthfromAmazon.comcommissions, thenlocalizingyourAmazonaffiliatelinksshouldaddanother$250 toyourtotalrevenue.Thisbringsyouupto$1,250amonthin commissionswithnoadditionalworkortraffic.This$250is essentially"foundmoney"ormoneythatwaspreviouslyjust"lefton thetable!" InternationalAmazonaffiliateprograms Asofthiswriting,therearenow16publicAmazonaffiliate programs--andonethatiscurrentlyprivate--spreadacrossthe world.Inaddition,weseenewAmazonstorefrontsandtheir correspondingaffiliateprogramslaunchingapproximatelyeverysix months. TheinternationalAmazonaffiliateprogramlandscapecurrently includes: Americas UnitedStates:Amazon.com/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/home Canada:Amazon.ca/AmazonAssociates: https://associates.amazon.ca Mexico:Amazon.com.mx/AmazonAfiliados: https://afiliados.amazon.com.mx Brazil:Amazon.com.br/AssociadosAmazon: https://associados.amazon.com.br Europe UnitedKingdom:Amazon.co.uk/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.co.uk Germany:Amazon.de/AmazonPartnerNet: https://partnernet.amazon.de France:Amazon.fr/ClubPartenairesAmazon: https://partenaires.amazon.fr Spain:Amazon.es/AmazonAfiliados: https://afiliados.amazon.es Italy:Amazon.it/ProgrammaAffiliazioneAmazon: https://programma-affiliazione.amazon.it Netherlands:Amazon.nl/AmazonPartnerNet: https://partnernet.amazon.nl Turkey:amazon.com.tr/AmazonGelirOrtaklığı: https://gelirortakligi.amazon.com.tr *TheaffiliateprogramforTurkeyiscurrentlyprivateandrequires aninvite. Asia Japan:Amazon.co.jp/アソシエイト（アフィリエイト: https://affiliate.amazon.co.jp India:Amazon.in/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.in China:Amazon.cn/AmazonAssociates: https://associates.amazon.cn Singapore:Amazon.sg/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.sg UnitedArabEmirates:Amazon.ae/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.ae Oceania Australia:Amazon.com.au/AmazonAssociates: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com.au Wheretostart(andwhichAmazonaffiliateprogramstoavoid) ThefirstAmazonaffiliateprogramyoushouldstartwithshouldbe whereyouthoughtthebulkofyouraudiencewasgoingtobecoming from,likelywhereyouarebased.Now,yourgoalistosignupfor additionalinternationalAmazonaffiliateprogramswhereyousee significanttraffic.Thiswilllikelybeslightlydifferentfor everyone,however,thisisthetypicalgameplanonemightuse. MostofourclientsstartwithAmazon.combecausetheyareeither US-basedortheiraudienceisprimarilyUS-based. NextistypicallyCanada(amazon.ca),followedcloselyby Amazon.co.uk(UK).TheserepresenttheEnglish-speakingcountries withthelargestAmazonstores(Amazon.com.au/AustraliaisEnglish speakingbutasmallerandmuchnewerstorefront). AtrickwhensigningupwiththeAmazonUKprogramisthatafter you’vefinishedtheprocess,youcanautomaticallyapplythesame informationtofouradditionalprogramsinEurope:Germany,Italy, France,andSpain.Thismakesthesign-upprocesssignificantly fasterandwhenfactoredinwithCanadaandtheoriginalAmazon.com /USprogramgivesyousevenaffiliateprogramsthatoftencoverthe bulkofyourinternationalaudience. Eachoftheseprograms(US/Canada/UK/France/Germany/Italy/Spain) offercommissionpayoutsviadirectdeposittoanumberof countries. ThenextaffiliateprogramstypicallysoughtincludeAmazon.co.jp (Japan)andAmazon.com.au(Australia).Withthemorerecentlaunches ofaffiliateprogramsforAmazon.ae(UAE),Amazon.sg(Singapore), andamazon.nl(Netherlands),we’dbucketthosehereaswell. TheaffiliateprogramforAmazon.in(India)isabittrickyasit doesn’tcurrentlyprovideinternationalpayments.Werecommendto ourclientsthatiftheyhaveasizableaudiencefromIndia,signup withCuelinkstoaccesstheAmazon.inprogram.Cuelinkscanthen helpdealwiththetaxesandfeesformakinginternationalpayments foryourAmazon.insales. TheAmazon.cn(China)storefrontandaffiliateprogramhasn’t receivedmuchattentioninthelastcoupleyearsandweguessthat itwon’tinthefuturesowedon’trecommendputtingmuchfocus there. TheAmazon.com.mx(Mexico)andAmazon.com.br(Brazil)affiliate programsaresimilartoIndiainthattheydon’tcurrentlymake internationalpayments.Sounlessyoulivethere,orknowsomeone whodoesandisokaywithyouusingtheirlocalbankaccount,then wetypicallyrecommendavoidingtheseprogramsasyoucanearn commissionsinternationallybutwon’tbeabletobepaidforyour referrals. TheAmazon.com.tr(Turkey)affiliateprogramiscurrentlysetto privateandrequiresaninvitationtoparticipate. Whilegettingsignedupfortheinternationalaffiliateprogramscan beabitofwork,eachprogramusestheexactsameformsoeachone shouldn’ttakemorethan10-20minutes. Intelligentlinks Gettingsignedupisonlypartofthebattle.Youarereadytoearn commissionsfromreferralstoeachofthestorefronts,sonowyou needtodrivesales! Themostbasicwaytodothis--andwhatweDONOTrecommend--is foreachproductyourecommend,addingallofyourregionalAmazon affiliatelinksandhavingtheconsumerdecide.First,thiscreates frictioninthebuyingprocessforallofyourconsumers,andwe oftenseethatconversionactuallydecreasesacrosstheboard.It’s alsouglyandjustplainbadUI! Instead,westronglyrecommendusingatoolspecializedinexactly this--sendingeveryclicktotheappropriateproductintheAmazon storefrontthatislocalfortheshopperclickingthelink.There aretwomajoroptionsforthistypeoftool,inaddition,anumber ofAmazonaffiliate-focusedWordpresspluginsthatprovide simplisticversionsofthisservice. AmazonOneLink Amazonintroducedasolutiontoit’s"geo-fragmentation"challenge inJuly2017viaajavascriptbasedtool.Initiallyjustsupporting thetranslationofamazon.comlinkstoamazon.caandamazon.co.uk, thetoollaterthatyearexpandedtoalsosupportamazon.de (Germany),amazon.fr(France),amazon.es(Spain),amazon.it(Italy), andamazon.co.jp(Japan). HighlightsoftheOneLinktoolisthatitisofferedforfreeby Amazon,andit’sproducttranslationisfairlyrobust,especiallyin comparisontotheothertoolsthatexistedinthespaceatlaunch. Unfortunately,theOneLinktoolhassomesignificantdownfalls including: Adblock-OneLinkisonallofthemajoradblockinglists whichregularlykeepsinternationalshoppersfrombeingredirected totheirlocalstorefront. Javascriptbased-Beingpurelyjavascriptbasedlimits OneLinktoonlyworkingonyourwebsite(whereyoucaninstallthe JScorrectly)andtheJSisregularlyblockedbyshoppersusingan ad-blockingextension. Supportedstorefronts/affiliateprograms-OneLinkonlyworks withAmazon.comlinks(oramzn.tolinksthatwerebuiltfrom amazon.com)andcanonlytranslatetosevenofthe17totalAmazon storefronts. Geniuslink Oneoftheoriginal"Intelligent"linkmanagementtools,westarted supportingtheAmazonaffiliateprogramwithauto-affiliationand linklocalizationinmid2013afteradaptingourpatentedlink translationprocesstosupportthemulti-facetedretailer.Inthe lastsevenyears,we’vecontinuedtoimproveontheserviceandlink translationandarenowthepremiumproviderandlargestindependent Amazonaffiliatelinkmanagementplatform.TheGeniuslinkserviceis usedbymanythousandsofAmazonaffiliatepublishers,creators,and influencersofallsizes. Whilewemightbebiased,thebiggestcomplaintofGeniuslinkis typicallythatithasamonthlyfee,basedonusage. IncomparisontoOneLink,Geniuslinkreallyshines. ProductMatchingAccuracy-Geniuslinkgoestothecorrect productinaninternationalAmazonstorefrontsignificantlymore often.Thisbettertranslationallowsforhigherconversionand commissionrates(Amazonpaysalowercommissionforsearch-based affiliatelinksintheEuropeanprograms). LinkCustomization-WithOneLink,youarestuckwiththeir internationaldestinations,eveniftheyarewrong.WithGeniuslink, youhavecompletecontroloverhowalinkfunctions,allowingyouto fullycustomizetheperformance. Coverage-OneLinkcanonlytranslateAmazon.comlinkstosix otherstorefronts.GeniuslinkcantranslatemostanyAmazonlink, regardlessofwhichstorefrontitoriginatedat,tomostanyAmazon store.Thefewexceptionsareforthemostrecentlyadded storefrontsandaffiliateprograms,butthoseshouldbesupported soon. Implementation-WhileOneLinkispurelyJavascript-based, GeniuslinkalsooffersaJavascriptsolution.However,aWordpress plugin,API,andChromeExtensionalsoareofferedinadditionto theGeniuslinkdashboardwhereshortlinkscanbebuiltandfully customized.Theseshortlinkscanthenbesharedanywhere,including socialmedia(whereOneLinkcannot). ServiceCustomization-Geniuslinkofferssupportforusing multipletrackingIDs,markinglinksthatshouldn’tbetranslated andothervariouswaystocustomizetheserviceforyourspecific needsOneLinkdoesn’tprovide. NextSteps Regardlessofthelinkmanagementtoolyouchoose,aftersigningup fortheinternationalAmazonaffiliateprogramsthatcorrespondwith yourtopfivecountries,decideontheintelligentlinkmanagement servicethatworksbestforyou.It’simportanttoimplementthe servicethentestyourlinksandwatchyourreports(andcheckfor thoseinternationalcommissionstostartcomingthrough)toensure everythingisworkingcorrectly. GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Chapter6-AdvancedAmazonAffiliateTips Getaglimpseatadvancedoptimizationtoolsandtechniquestomaximizecommissions. SeehowdiversifyingyourrevenuecanhelpboostyourAmazonconversions. Learnaboutadditionalwaystorecommendproductsandearn. Nowthatyou’vespentsometimelearningahandfulofbest practices,gettingsetuptoearncommissionsinternationally(and provideabetteruserexperienceforyourforeignfans),it’sagain timetolevelupyourAmazonaffiliatemarketinggame. Thefollowingsixadvancedtacticsareforthosewhoalreadyhave putinsometimegrowingtheircontent,haveseensometractionfrom theirefforts,arefocusedonbuildingacommunity,andgenerating atleastafewhundreddollarsamonthincommissions.Ifyou haven’tquitehitthesemilestones,youarestillwelcometodive in,butyouarelikelynottoseethefullpotentialofyour efforts. BrokenAmazonaffiliatelinks Justliketherestoftheinternet,linkstoproductsonAmazoncan "rot,"andthiscanbeamajorproblemforpublishersandcontent creatorswhohavebeenbuildingAmazonaffiliatelinksoverthe courseofyears.AlinkthatgoestoAmazon’s404(DogsofAmazon) pageinsteadoftheproductyouarerecommendingisn’tgoingto convertandessentiallybecomesawastedclick.Additionally,alink thatgoestothecorrectproductbutiscurrentlyoutofstockorno longerbeingsoldisalsoawastedeffortandwillconvertata significantlylowerrate,ifatall. Wecallthis"LinkHealth,"andit’softenthelastthingon someone’smindastheyareinitiallybuildingtheircontentand addingintheiraffiliatelinks.Whiletheoddsarethatthefew linksyoujustaddedwill"break"ortheproductgoesoutofstock arerelativelylow,theolderyoursiteorchannelis,orthemore affiliatelinksyouhaveposted,thehighertheoddsare. Findingandfixingtheselinksandensuringproperlinkhealth becomesanothertasktoaddtoyourgrowinglistasyoucontinueto growyouraffiliatemarketinggame.Unfortunately,it’snotaseasy asjustclickingonallofyourlinksandseeingwhatonesbreakas thatistechnicallyagainstAmazon’srules(andcanbeverytime consumingandinefficient). WiththeGeniuslinkplatform,we’vebuiltinalinkhealthreport andprovideaneasywaytoupdateaffiliatelinksthatarenolonger working,recognizedbyAmazon’sProductAdvertisingAPI,orarefor productsthathavegoneoutofstock.Thereareotherthird-party toolsavailableaswell,thoughmostseemquiteexpensiveforthe limitedservicetheyprovide. UsingmultipleAmazonaffiliatetrackingIDs WhenyoufirststartwiththeAmazonaffiliateprogram,youare issuedaninitialtrackingID(thatseriesofcharactersthatends in"-20","-21",or"-22"basedonwhatregionoftheworldyouare locatedandisresponsibleforconvertinganormalAmazonlinkinto anAmazonaffiliatelink).Whatmanypeopledon’tknowisyoucan actuallybuildupto100uniquetrackingIDsinyouraccount,then withinyourreportsyoucanfiltereachbyyourtrackingIDs.These twopiecesallowyousignificantlymoregranularityinmeasuring youraffiliateeffortstodeterminewhatisandisn’tworking. TheeasiestexampleisthatyoushouldcreateanewtrackingIDfor eachwebpropertyorsocialmediachannelthatyoucreatesoyoucan measurehoweachperformsincomparison.Thismightmeanthatfor yourYouTubechannelyoubuild,thenuse"youtubeabc-20"andfor yourblogaboutcats,youdothesamewith"catsite123-20"and finallyyourviraldogvideowebsitewoulduse"dogvidsxyz-20".Now thatyourthreechannelshavethreedifferenttrackingIDs,youcan jumpintotheAmazonAssociatesCentraldashboardandlookatyour clicks,salesandcommissionsonapertrackingID,akaperdigital property,basistostarttodeterminewhatisandisn’tworking.You mayfindyourYouTubechannelgetstheleastclicksbutconvertsat thehighestrate,orthatyourearningsperclickfortheviraldog videoishalfofwhatthecatbloggenerates,orthatfromyourcat blogyouareseeingthatpeoplearebuyingalotofcatbackpacks butthatisn’tsomethingyou’veeverwrittenabout. Ineachofthesethereareactionableinsightsthatcanbegleaned tohelpyoufocusyourtimeandeffortsorrefineyourstrategy wherehavingallofyourlinks--acrossallofyourchannels-- wouldhaveonlygivenyouablendedideaofyourclicks,sales, commissions,EPCandconversionrates. WithinGeniuslink,weuseasystemcalledGroupsandOverridesto allowclientstoeasilyensurethecorrecttrackinginformationis usedwitheachlink.However,youmightfindthatawell-organized spreadsheetisenough. A/Btestingyouraffiliatelinks Whileyoushouldalwaysbetestingyouraffiliatelinkstoensure theyareactingliketheyshouldandincludeyouraffiliatetracking information,youcanlevelupbystartingtoperformA/Btesting withyouraffiliatelinkstoincrementallyincreaseyourconversion ratesandboostyouraffiliaterevenue. Fromoneperspective,A/BtestingyourAmazonaffiliatelinksmeans experimentingwiththevisualcomponentsofyourlink.Thiscan includeadjustingyourcalltoaction(besurenottoinadvertently createan"incentivized"situation),thetreatmentofthelink(font type,size,color,etc.),andlocationoftheaffiliatelinks.Todo thistesting,thereareanumberoftoolsthatcanhelpyourun multipleversionsofasinglewebpageatthesametime,includinga freetoolprovidedbyGoogle. TheotherperspectiveofA/BtestingforAmazonaffiliatelinks dealswithchangingthedestinationofyourlink.Optionshere includetestingifalinkdirectlytotheproductdetailspage convertsbetterthantoasearchresultspagefortheproduct,or theproductpageonAmazonisbest(alwaysgoodtotestwithyour audienceandtheproductsyouarerecommending,butwe’vefoundthe productdetailspageistypicallyyourbestbetandresultsinthe highestcommissions).Forsomeproducts,likecameras,youcantest ifthelinktothespecificproductconvertsbetterorifyouhave moreluckwithacamerathatincludesabundle(likeacase,lens, filters,memorycards,etc.).Finally,youcanalsotestwhich retailerconvertsbest--itmaynotbeAmazonafterall! Fordoingexperimentswiththedestinationofyourlinks,the GeniuslinkplatformincludestheabilitytodoA/Btesting,a featureweregularlyuseinourownresearch. WhenyouaredoingtheseA/Btests,it’simportanttobeas scientificaspossible.Thisincludespayingattentiontothe details,takingnotesoftheprocess,testingonlyonechangeata time,runningtheexperimentwithatestandcontrolversionatthe sametime,andhavingenoughtraffic/clicks/salesthatyourresults areclosetostatisticallysignificantaspossible. Usingmultipleaffiliateprograms WhilewefirmlybelievethatAmazon’saffiliateprogramisthebest placetostart,andoneofthebestprogramsintheworld,it certainlyisn’ttheonlyaffiliateprogram.Infact,westrongly encourageyoutostartusingmultipleaffiliateprogramsafter you’vestartedtogetthehangofhowtheprocessworks.Doingso oftenyieldssomeunexpected,butpositive,benefitstoyour affiliategame. Amazondoesn’tselleverything Thefirstreasontousemultipleaffiliateprogramsisthatwhile Amazonsellsmosteverything,theydon’tselleverything!Amazonis primarilylimitedtoconsumerpackagedproductsaswellasphysical anddigitalproducts.WhiletheyareexpandingintosellingB2B SaaS,you’lloftenfindsomeofyourfavoritetoolsandservices haveagreataffiliateorreferralprogramthatcanbeuseful. Ontheflipside,withafewexceptionsfortheirproprietary productsandbrands,everythingthatissoldonAmazonisalso availablefromotherretailers. Betterconversion,commissionrates,cookiewindows,orterms Ingeneral,Amazon’saffiliateprogramhassolidconversionrates duetothemassivenumberofproductstheydosellandtheeasy abilitytoearn"halocommissions"andtheircommissionratesare decent.Buttheircookiewindowisrelativelyshortatjust24 hours,andtheirtermsarequiterestrictiveincomparisonwith peers. WhiletheAmazonaffiliateprogramoffersdecentcommissionrates, werecentlymappedthepastdecadeofAmazon.comaffiliate commissionratesandhaveseenasteadydecline.Youmayfindthat specialityretailersfortheproductsyouofferhavebetter commissionrates,oratleastbetterconversionrates,whichequate toahigherEPCortotalcommissionsattheendoftheday. Youwillalsofindthatthe24-hourcookiewindowistheverylow sideoftheindustry,withmanyotherretailersoffering3-to7-day windows(theamountoftimeashopperhastopurchaseyourproduct afterclickingyouraffiliatelinkforyoutostillearna commission). Youmayalsofindthatotheraffiliateprogramsprovidebetterterms andbenefits.Forexample,manyaffiliateprogramsareokaywithyou usingtheiraffiliatelinksinsideofemailorwithinanad. Additionally,programslikeB&HPhotoVideoofferaloanerprogram totheiraffiliateswheretheycancheckout,use,andreviewmany ofthehigh-endproductsavailableforsaleonB&H’sstore. Diversifyingyourrevenue OnlyusingAmazon’saffiliateprogramisakintoputtingallofyour eggsinonebasket.Itmakesthingssimpleandallowsyoutomove fast,especiallyintheearlydays,butitcanbeincrediblyrisky. Wehaveseentoomanypeoplehavetheirrevenuecompletely eliminatedduetosomeunforeseencircumstanceorinadvertent violationofAmazon’soperatingagreementwithverylimitedoptions goingforward. BoostyourAmazoncommissions Unexpectedly,we’vealsofoundthatbyincludingAmazonalongwitha handfulofotherretailerssellingthesameproductthatyoucan actuallyboostyourconversionsandcommissionswithAmazon.From whatwe’vegathered,byprovidingaffiliatelinkstootherretailers sellingthesameproduct,aninterestedconsumercanquicklydothe researchtheyneedtofeelconfidentmovingforwardwiththe purchase(somethingakintothe"yesladder"orbuildingaseriesof "microconversions").Asaresult,theconversionratesandtotal revenueareoftenhigherwhenincludingmultiplebuyingoptions insteadofjustusingAmazon. Anditseemswearen’taloneinthisdiscovery.You’llfindthat someofthebiggestplayersintheaffiliatespaceusethesame tacticwhentheydoproductreviews. ChoicePages Fortheexactreasonsmentionedabove,we’vebeenworkinghardona tooltohelpyoudiversifyyouraffiliaterevenue,boostyourAmazon commissions--aswellasprovideasimplesolutiontosomeof Amazon’scompliancechallenges(eg.linksinemail)--andensure fullcompliancewiththeFTCandAmazondisclosurerequests.Wecall theseChoicePages. Theyareeasytobuild,simpleandelegantlandingpagesthatallow youtorecommendasingleproductacrossmultipleretailersviaa shortlinkthatcanbeusedanywhereandshouldbeusedeverywhere. ProductcurationviaKit Attheendoftheday,yourjobasanAmazonaffiliatemarketeris tocuratethebestproductsinacertainnicheandsharethosewith youraudience,allwhileearningacommissionforyourefforts,of course. Youcandothatacrossyourwebsite,blog,andsocialmedia.Youcan alsodothatwithKit,anewersocialmediaplatformspecifically designedforcuratingandsharingproductswithanemphasison affiliatemarketing. Expandingyourproductcurationeffortspastyourcurrentdigital properties,andontoKit,allowsyouaconcisewaytobundle productsforyouraudienceaswellasallowsyoutobediscoveredby consumerslookingforexactlythetypesofproductsinyourareaof expertise. TheKitdashboardalsoallowsyoutoaddinyouraffiliatetracking informationforthemajorityofAmazon’saffiliateprogramsworld widesothatyourrecommendation’slinkstoAmazonwillincludeyour affiliatetrackingIDs.Thisisagreatopportunitytocreatenew trackingIDssoyoucancomparetheperformanceofKittoyour existingpropertiesandmarketingcampaigns. AsKitnowlivesintheGeniuslinkfamily(weacquireditinlate 2019),we’llbesurethatKit’ssupportfortheAmazonaffiliate program,andaglobalaudience,aretopnotch! ExityourAmazonaffiliatebusiness WhilesettingupyourAmazonaffiliatewebsitetobealong-term, sustainable,andpassiveincomebusinessisoftenthegoal,youmay findtheultimate--andbest--payoutiswhenyousellit! ThereisabsolutelynothingwrongbuildingupanAmazon affiliate-focusedwebsite,gettingittoacertainsizeintermsof trafficoraffiliatecommissions,andthenlettingitcoastwhile youfocusonotherthings.Butjustlikewediscussedabovewith linkhealthanddecliningcommissionrates,youmayfindthatyour "passive"businessisnotreallypassive.Addinotherfactorslike Google’sregularlychangingsearchenginealgorithmupdates, Facebook’stweaksandfriendlinesstowardsexternallinks,or YouTube’sheadscratchingmoves,andyoumayfindthatmomentum oftendiesquickerthanyou’dlike. OftenthebestmoveforyourAmazonaffiliatebusiness,afteryou’ve putthetimeandeffortintoitthatyoufeelisright,istosell it. Amazonisperfectlyfinewithyousellingyourdigitalproperties, buttheydohavesomeconcernsaroundallowingsecondary-useraccess intoyourAssociatesaccount,andyouarenotpermittedtosellyour Associatesaccount.Ratherthebuyerofyoursiteshouldcreate theirownAmazonaffiliateaccountthenreplacethetrackingIDon theaffiliatelinksinyoursitetotheirs(Geniuslinkmakesthis supereasy!). Amazonaffiliatewebsitesareoftenpricedata"multiple"ofwhat yourmonthlyaffiliaterevenueis.Oftenthisisaround20x(+/-5) butvariesdependingonmultiplefactors.Agoodbrokercanhelpyou navigatethesewaters. Aswithanybusinessanentrepreneurbuilds,itbecomestheirbaby. Andwhilehardtosaygoodbye,theultimatemilestoneforthe entrepreneurialjourneyisexitingthebusiness. Goodluck! AstheformerGlobalProductManagerfortheiTunesAffiliateProgramatApple,andconsultanttotheMicrosoft StoreAffiliateProgram,Geniuslinkco-founderandCEOJesseLakeshasseenhisfairshareofaffiliateprograms fromboththeadvertiserandpublisherperspectives.He'salsolearnedhardlessons,oftenfirsthand,about whichaffiliateprogramstocommittoandwhen.He'ssharedtheselessonsandexperiencesviafrequentonstage presentationsatthetopaffiliateconferences,numerousinterviewsforprint,podcasts,anddigital periodicals,andisaregularcontributortotheGeniuslinkblog. GetaPDFcopyofthisguideinyourinbox.Signup Get14dayswithinfiniteclicksforzerodollars. StartNow News&Updates SiteMap Howitworksfor... Affiliates Creators Youtubers Authors Brands Retailers Features&pricing Pricing Allfeatures Localization ChoicePages Supportedaffiliateprograms Linkbuildingmethods Linkmanagement AboutGeniuslink Testimonials Blog Support Contact Ourteam Jobs Meta AmazonAffiliate-TheDefinitiveGuide "IsGeniuslinksafetouseforAmazonAssociates?" Geniuslinkvs.AmazonOneLink TermsofService PrivacyPolicy GDPR AffiliateDisclosure SpamPolicy Donotsellmypersonalinformation(EU&US-Californiaonly) ©byGeoRiotNetworks,Inc.