The Amazon Affiliate program, also known as “Amazon Associates,” can be an easy way to make money online by just monetizing your website or blog. Firstly sign up, get an instantaneous approval, and place Amazon affiliate links on your blog or website pages. Anytime someone makes an Amazon purchase using one of your links, you get the commission — it’s just that easy.

The real question is how do I get started? Below, you’ll find a step-by-step guide to becoming an Amazon Affiliate, with details. Whether you’re hoping to become an entrepreneur, starting your own business, or just looking for a small online business as a side hustle, I hope you’ll find this guide a helpful place to start.

What is the Amazon Affiliate program ?

The Amazon Affiliate program, or Amazon Associates, is an affiliate marketing program. It’s free for website owners and bloggers to become Amazon Associates. They advertise products from Amazon.com on their sites by creating links. When customers click the links and buy products from Amazon, they earn referral fees.

How Does Amazon Associates Work?

 Amazon’s affiliate program lets you advertise eligible Amazon items to your target market using a unique product link on your website or blog. When customers click the link, they will be redirected to that item on Amazon.com. If they purchase the item from Amazon within 24 hours, you will receive a commission on item purchased. This fee is based on a percentage of the product’s price and varies by product type.

When a buyer closes their tab without making a purchase, you will not earn commission on further purchases. However, if they eventually return to the site using one of your affiliate links, a new 24-hour window for you to earn will open. It’s predominant to take note that the window expires when a buyer places an order or re-visit the site using another affiliate’s link. 

Occasionally, a customer uses your link to visit Amazon, add the item to their shopping cart, and then leaves without completing a purchase. If the order remains in their cart before it expires (usually after 90 days), you will still receive a referral commission. Except for the reward will only reflect on your account only after the buyer purchases the item, accepts the delivery, and pays Amazon in full. 

How much does the Amazon Affiliate program pay?

You can earn, on average, from $100 to $20,000 from the Amazon Affiliate program, depending on how many referrals you generate for Amazon. The Amazon Affiliate program operates on a commission basis, meaning you’ll make a percentage per sale.

The commission rate varies depending on the item category. For instance, if you run an automotive blog, you can earn 4.50% from each sale. If you sell three car parts at $1,000 each in one day, you’d make $135 from those three transactions. If you sell the same product 30 times per month, you’d make $1,350 every month.

On start of your Amazon Associate journey, the numbers can distort on the low side, so be sure to have another source of income in addition to being an Amazon Associate.

Before signing up on the platform, it’s important to review the Amazon Affiliate program’s commission rate per product category. That way, you can calculate how much you can potentially earn depending on your website’s or blog niche.

Amazon Program Requirements and Rules

Being an Amazon Associate is a great way to monetize passion projects or make additional income from your brand. However, Amazon has requirements for associates to follow, so it’s best to comprehend those before you join. First, you must have a website or blog full of original content that is easy for the public to access.

Other requirements are in place for ethical promotion as well as preventing associates from gaming the system. Noncompliance may result in being banned from the program. Here are some of the big ones to keep in mind:

• You must disclose on your site or in your communication that you may be eligible to earn from your recommendations.
• You must not make false or deceiving claims in your recommendations.
• Your website must not contain inappropriate content.
• Avoid referring to prices (with some exceptions) since prices often change.
• Do not use Amazon affiliate links in offline promotions, eBooks, or email.
• Do not use link shorteners on affiliate links.

After you sign up, you’ll also need to think about the requirements for the application review process. Amazon requires new affiliates to make a minimum of three sales during their first 180 days. The Associates team also reviews websites, mobile apps, and social network accounts. They’re looking for consistent, fresh, and original content that brings value to Amazon customers.

You can read Amazon’s full policy here. It’s also a good idea to review the operating agreement for associates for other requirements.

Note: Amazon’s affiliate program is one of the most popular programs. As of 2021, it’s the top affiliate marketing network in the world, with over 900,000 affiliates. But it isn’t the only one. There are other affiliates program out there that are worth trying if you don’t qualify to become an Amazon Associate.