What is an Amazon Affiliate link?

Picture of an Amazon package

What are Amazon Affiliate Links?

Amazon affiliate links are special links that allow you to earn commissions on sales generated by your referrals. These links are often used in conjunction with other marketing strategies such as Niche website publishing or even social media marketing.

The Amazon Affiliate link will contain an Amazon Associates store code you get from signing up at Amazon Associates Central. A little more on how to do that later in the article. 

What are the different parts of an Amazon Affiliate Link?

There are different parts or an Amazon Affiliate link. The following image is a typical affiliate link. 

This is a complete Amazon Affialte Link with URL and Query String

The following are the part that make up the typical Amazon Affiliate link:

Scheme– https

Protocol– https

Host Name– www.amazon.com

Resource– /Industrial-Pipe-Shelf-DIY-Cartel/dp/B010VF41NK/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&qid=1499194158&sr=8-9&keywords=industrial pipe shelves&linkCode=ll1&tag=diyshareable-20&linkId=020ec1b06d98db6595bb73be2f75ec4d”=&tag=diyshareable-20

Host– www.amazon.com

Authority– www.amazon.com

Subdomain– www

Domain– amazon.com 

Tld– com

Path– /Industrial-Pipe-Shelf-DIY-Cartel/dp/B010VF41NK/ref=as_li_ss_tl

File Name– ref=as_li_ss_tl

Query– ie=UTF8&qid=1499194158&sr=8-9&keywords=industrial pipe shelves&linkCode=ll1&tag=diyshareable-20&linkId=020ec1b06d98db6595bb73be2f75ec4d”=&tag=diyshareable-20

Query String:

ie– UTF8

qid– 1499194158

sr- 8-9

keywords– industrial pipe shelves
linkCode- ll1

Amazon Store Code tag'[0]– diyshareable-20

Amazon Store Code tag'[1] – diyshareable-20

linkId- 020ec1b06d98db6595bb73be2f75ec4d”=

What is an Amazon Store Code?

Amazon Store Codes, also called Amazon Associates ID and Preferred Associates ID, are special tags you add to your Amazon Affiliate Links so you will receive your Amazon Commission when an affiliate link is clicked by one of your site’s visitors.  

As an Amazon Affiliate site publisher, you want to make sure all of your Amazon Affiliate links contain your correct store code(s).  If you have missing store codes you will not receive your Amazon Commissions. 

To learn more about how you can have more than one Amazon Store ID on your affinities site, here is an article we wrote called “Why do I have more than one Amazon Associates Store ID on my Niche website?”.

When someone clicks on an Amazon link, they are taken directly to the product page where they can purchase the item. The blogger earns an Affiliate Commission if the person makes a purchase.

If you want to start making money online or just create a passive income, then you should definitely consider becoming an Amazon affiliate. It’s a great way to make extra money without having to spend a lot of time or effort.

What Is The Preferred Associates Store ID?

If you have come across something that is asking for The Preferred Associates ID, this is the same thing as your Amazon Associates Store ID, or Tracking Code. Or if you have called the Amazon Store Tag, The Preferred Associates ID, you are right if you created your store tracking code.

Oftentimes, people will choose or prefer to choose a name, like their business name as an example, as part of their Amazon Associate Store ID. Because of this, your chosen, or Preferred Associates ID, is used to describe your Amazon Associates ID.

You can literally choose any name for your Preferred Associates ID you like, as long as it doesn’t violate any of Amazon Associates’ Terms and Conditions. You can read the “Associates Program Operating Agreement” here.

The bottom line is if you call your Amazon Tracking Code an Amazon Store Tag or a Preferred Associates ID, Linkmoney App can find, fix and replace them with the correct store tag so you earn the most revenue from your affiliate site traffic.

The two types of Amazon Affiliate links

1. Product links – These are links that lead people to the product page on Amazon.com.

2. Affiliate links – These are links to third-party websites that sell the product.

But before you get started, there are a few things you need to know about Amazon affiliate links.

Amazon Product Links are links that allow you to add a product to your cart without leaving the page. They are a convenient way to shop online because you can click on the link and buy the item immediately.

There are two types of Amazon Product Links:

1. Direct Link – A direct link allows you to add a product directly to your cart. The link takes you to the product’s listing on Amazon.com.

2. Affiliate Link – An affiliate link allows you to add the product to your cart and then earn a commission when someone buys the product.

You can use either type of link to promote your own products or other people’s products.

What is the Amazon Affiliate Commission Rate?

When you create a new Amazon account, you will be asked whether you would like to become an Amazon affiliate. If so, you’ll receive a commission for every sale made through your referral link. You also have the option to join multiple affiliates at once. This means that all your referrals will share their earnings from any purchases made via your website.

The Amazon Associates Program Standard Commission rates are:

Amazon Associates Program Standard Commission Rates
All Other Categories4.00%
Amazon Fire Tablet Devices, Amazon Kindle Devices, Amazon Fashion Women’s, Men’s & Kids Private Label, Luxury Stores Fashion, Apparel, Amazon Cloud Cam Devices, Fire TV Edition Smart TVs, Amazon Fire TV Devices, Amazon Echo Devices, Ring Devices, Watches, Jewelry, Luggage, Shoes, and Handbags & Accessories  4.00%
Amazon Fresh, Physical Video Games & Video Game Consoles, Grocery, Health & Personal Care 1.00%
Digital Music, Physical Music, Handmade, Digital Videos5.00%
Gift Cards; Wireless Service Plans; Alcoholic Beverages; Digital Kindle Products purchased as a subscription; Food prepared and delivered from a restaurant; Amazon Appstore, Prime Now, or Amazon Pay Places0.00%
Luxury Beauty, Luxury Stores Beauty10.00%
PC, PC Components, DVD & Blu-Ray      2.50%
PC, PC Components, DVD & Blu-Ray 2.50%
Physical Books, Kitchen, Automotive    4.50%
Televisions, Digital Video Games  2.00%
Toys, Furniture, Home, Home Improvement, Lawn & Garden, Pets Products, Headphones, Beauty, Musical Instruments, Business & Industrial Supplies, Outdoors, Tools, Sports, Baby Products, Amazon Coins    3.00%

If you’re looking to earn extra income, consider starting an Amazon affiliate marketing business.

Here’s why…

1) There Are No Limits To Your Income Potential – The sky is literally the limit when it comes to earning potential. With no limits on commissions, there’s virtually unlimited earnings potential.

2) Low Start Up Costs & High Return On Investment – Starting an Amazon affiliate marketing business doesn’t require expensive equipment or software. 

How much does it cost me per sale?

When you create an Amazon affiliate account, you’ll be given access to your dashboard which will show how many visitors clicked through from your site to Amazon. You also have access to information like how long each visitor stayed on your website and what pages were viewed. This data helps you determine whether or not you’re getting enough traffic to drive conversions.

Once you’ve determined that you do indeed receive enough traffic, you can begin promoting your affiliates’ products via your website.

Who Uses Amazon Affiliate Links?

Amazon affiliate links are often used by bloggers and other content creators who want to earn a commission from sales generated by their posts. They are usually placed within the blog post or article.

Bloggers will decide on a product Niche and plan their Affiliate Marketing Program around that. All of their affiliate marketing efforts will be focused on creating content to drive traffic to their website.

When someone clicks on an Amazon link, they are taken directly to the product page where they can purchase the item. The blogger earns a commission if the person makes a purchase.

There are literally millions of products to choose from on Amazon.com. Niche website publishers generally will choose a product category to focus their content around.

What is do profitable Amazon affiliate sites have in common?

Great blog content

It really doesn’t matter what you are writing about, just make sure the post content gets to the point. Try not to go long winded or just write words to write words. Great blog content helps the reader be more informed than they were before they read your article.

Make sure you use a great product image when discussing your products.

Original content

Write out what you want to say and try and stay away from copying and pasting other people’s content. There is a penalty for plagiarizing content.

Compelling Content

I like to think of compelling content as something that gets me to read more of the article Ask and answer questions and put some flair into the voice of the writing. I even like to use words like “y’all, because I use that word in my talking with others. Try and make your point as clearly as you can.

Target Keywords

This is one of the things that you will need to understand.

Target keywords are words people use to type into a search engine to look for information related to a specific topic. These keywords can be found by doing keyword research. You can also see them appear in web analytics data. Choosing great target keywords will help with your Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Keyword Research Tools: Some tools include SEMrush and Hrefs. Those two I actually use. However, you can find other tools that cost between free and $200 plus a month. depending on features.

Email Marketing

Email Marketing is sending out mass emails to customers about new offers, discounts, sales etc. This helps businesses keep their customer base informed, increase brand awareness and improve conversions.

Email Marketing Platforms: A number of companies offer affordable solutions including MailChimp, Constant Contact, HubSpot and InfusionSoft. Many small businesses start off simply using Gmail then move onto paid services later if they grow.

Goggle Analytics

This is another learning curve you will need to understand to create a great Niche site. Knowing your conversion rates, what percentage of visitors are going where on your website, top pages, and a whole lot more excellent information will come from understanding the Google Analytics panel.

Bonus tip.

Often times Niche publishers will add a pop-up to their site and offer something compelling to get the reader to subscribe to their email campaign.

How do I create a new Amazon associates account?

Go to Amazon.com Associates Central and sign up.

There are some steps you will need to do like you will need to provide your credit card information, which is required to verify that you own the email address associated with the card, and other ways they validate you. It will take a bit of time, but it’s pretty easy to do.

Once you have created an account, you will receive an email from Amazon telling you how to activate your account.

This is important, know and learn the Amazon Affiliate Program Policies and understand how to navigate the Amazon Affiliate Panel.

What is the benefit of becoming an Amazon Affiliate?

1. You earn money when people buy products through your links.

2. You get access to exclusive deals and discounts not available to everyone else.

3. Your customers receive special offers they won’t find anywhere else.

4. You get exposure to a large audience of potential buyers.

5. You can promote your own products and services.

6. You can build your reputation as an expert in your niche.

7. You can increase your sales by attracting more traffic to your site.

8. You can use your affiliate marketing skills to generate leads for your business.

What are the pros and cons of becoming an Amazon Affiliate?

ProsCons
You can make money from your websiteIt’s hard to make money with an Amazon Affiliate program if you are brand new to WordPress and websites in general. 
You don’t have to do any work, other than making the site greatIt takes time to build up traffic
You get paid for every sale you makeYou need to know how to sell products

 How long does it take to make money as an Amazon affiliate marketer?

It takes about 2 months to get started and up to 6 months to really make money. You need to have a good product Niche that people want to buy and sell at least $100/month to start making money.

The more traffic you get to your site, the more sales you will get. It’s all about content and building trust.

How much does it cost to start an Amazon affiliate business?

It depends on how much time and effort you want to put into it. If you don’t have any experience or skills, then it will take a lot of time and money.

You need to know about SEO (Search Engine Optimization), which is basically making your website more visible on search engines like Google, Bing etc.

There are many ways to make money online but if you want to do it right, you should learn from someone who has done it before.

The most important thing is to find out what works for you.

I would say that it costs around $100-$200 per month to run an Amazon Affiliate Business.

How much time do I have to spend working on my Amazon affiliate marketing business?

You need to dedicate at least 20 hours per week, but more is better.

When I first started, I spent a lot of time learning and purchased classes around building a Niche site to market Amazon products.

That is only one part of it. Also you will need to have some understanding of WordPress (or what ever platform you are using).

At some point you will generate enough Affiliate income to expand your content. If you put a team together to create content, this will take you some time to organize and get up and running.

However, here is the good news, after all the time you put into creating content and putting your team together, each Niche site really only takes a few hours a week.

Conclusion

Amazon has been around for decades now, and it has become an integral part of modern life. It’s used by everyone from the average consumer to professionals, and it’s only growing.

There are countless ways to make money online today, and Amazon affiliate marketing is one of the easiest.

In conclusion, there are two main reasons why so many people choose to be an Amazon affiliate marketer. The first reason is because they love selling things. They enjoy helping others and getting rewarded in return. And second, they see the potential to earn thousands of dollars a year without having to invest too much time or energy.

Charles Joyner

Charles Joyner

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