As the online marketing industry gains momentum, more and more consumers are looking in the direction of influencers before making purchases. People find it easier to trust the reviews and recommendations of like-minded individuals who are comparable to themselves. So, consider the Amazon Affiliate program if you are just interested in bringing in extra money or are ready to step foot into the world of influencing.

For those of you asking yourself, “what is an Amazon Affiliate?” let me explain. Simply stated, it’s a referral program that pays a commission to individuals who send traffic to their site following the result of a sale. An Amazon Affiliates’ job is to promote products or services by providing reviews or recommendations, and when a viewer sees this, they can click on a link that sends them to the seller’s site on Amazon. It’s that simple! There is a catch though. You can only earn a commission if the viewer clicks on your link AND makes a purchase.

To get started, you must first find your niche. What do you want to promote? An excellent place to start would involve something you have a great deal of knowledge in. Anything you are passionate about. After you’ve discovered this, it’s time to create a website. To be an Amazon Affiliate, you must have a website, blog, app, or YouTube channel. It’s also recommended that you have a healthy following and some content already visible to your followers. This will give Amazon a better sense of who you are and how you will promote and assure you will be able to send traffic their way. Once your site is ready, head to the Amazon Associates page and click “sign up.” Enter the necessary information requested to sign up. Here you will also be asked to choose Amazon topics that best fit your niche. This helps Amazon understand the products its affiliate links will target. An affiliate link will then be generated in your dashboard for you to start using.

The exact percentage you’ll earn varies depending upon which category the item you’re promoting falls into. For instance, let’s say you post a video rating the best lawnmowers of 2022 then Amazon would pay you 3% for any sales you generate through that affiliate link. On the other hand, if you’re promoting the newest video games to hit the market then you would receive 1%. You can find a list of categories with the commission rates on their website for reference. Sure, the percentages you earn are nothing to brag over. Just remember each commission you make adds up. As time goes by, so will your number of dedicated followers clicking on your links. A valuable piece of advice is to stick to products that are priced on the higher end. An item selling for $200 will produce far more commission-wise than something only going for $20.

Anyone can become an Amazon Affiliate, regardless of how many followers they have. The bigger your audience though, the greater your reach and the more money you can earn. If you have a blog, YouTube page, or even a decent following on social media and are interested in making some additional cash on the side, becoming an Amazon Affiliate is definitely one easy way to do that. Expect it to take a little time though. It could take up to as long as 18 months, but if you stick with it, you’ll begin to see your earnings increase month after month after month.