# Writer advice regarding Amazon Affiliate links - a way to make more money :)



## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Hello, fellow writers. Just wanted to drop by and leave some tips for making more money as an author. I was inspired to write this post by my latest affiliate check ($206) and also by the fact that so many of the authors I see out there aren't taking advantage of this totally free program Amazon has, and I really think they should.
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Why should you be an Amazon Affiliate?*
1. I will make about $2,800 this year or more from it. It's always huge during the xmas buying season, and my checks get bigger every month as my brand gets bigger. I assume you could use more money.
2. The money is great for offering promotions to readers. I give away Kindles, gift certificates, books, swag, etc, and it doesn't cost me a penny.
3. You don't have to do much of anything to get it, so the time ROI is huge.
4. The reports Amazon lets you have access to 24/7 have a wealth of marketing and customer buying activity data you can't get from anywhere else.
5. There's probably another awesome reason I'm forgetting. Feel free to comment below with your thoughts.

I'm going to discuss this process assuming you know nothing/nada/zip about the program, so my apologies to those of you get bored with the details.

So, Amazon has this program where you can earn a commission on anything a person buys on Amazon (anything, not just books), so long as they visit the site from a link you provide. Amazon is able to track their access to the site and their purchases using a small code you embed in the link they click on. Here are more details on the program itself if you want to read the legalese: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/ . Looking at my report right now, I can see that people recently used one of my book links and then ended up buying: cameras, exercise equipment, clothing, vitamins, video games, instant video rentals (just recently started seeing these), gas can, towels, kitchen stuff, make-up, computers, gift cards, groceries, mp3 downloads, shoes, purses, sports equipment, and of course a crapton of Kindle ebooks. 

Each of the Amazon sites have their own program, so you need to sign up for each one separately if you want to earn money from foreign shoppers too. (I'm talking Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.fr, Amazon.de, etc.). The code will be different for each.
*
How to make a link with your affiliate code in it:*
[sign up with Amazon for the affiliate code first, of course]
1. Here's a link to one of my books: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008E95UOK . Note that I've cut out all the extraneous information (name of book, search terms used, etc.) All that info is unnecessary; this link will get you to my book.
2. My affiliate code for the U.S. Amazon site is *ellcas-20*. I'm going to add it to the back of the link with a little tiny code along with it: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008E95UOK/*?tag=ellcas-20*
3. I can go to bitly and shorten that code if I want, to either hide the affiliate code or to just save space. Note that some mailing list companies like Mailchimp don't allow affiliate codes in their emails, so you have to use bitly or tinyurl to hide the code. Here's the bitly code for that link: http://amzn.to/10Jn3Ni
4. If you have customers living in other countries, make sure you use the affiliate code for that country and clearly show the link for each country separately. If you use your Amazon.com affiliate code in an Amazon.co.uk link, you won't get commission for the purchases.

*Here's where to use it once you apply and get your code:*
1. Every time you post a link to your book _or someone else's book _on your Facebook wall, use the Affiliate Code in your link. I'll often tell my readers about great indie reads or promos other indies are running, and I always use my affiliate code in the link. This also goes for links to anything at Amazon. I used to have a link to Amazon Gift Cards, so readers could gift my books to other readers, and I used my link code in there. Last month 3 gift cards were purchased and I got a commission from it.
2. On your website, every link back to Amazon should have your affiliate code in it, including a link to your Author page. (Yes! Even just your author page can earn you money).
3. On your Facebook, don't use that app to list your books (from Free Booksy I think it is, called "BUY MY BOOKS" maybe?? can't remember). That's giving the affiliate money to that app developer, not you. Put your own links up in your profile and use your _own_ affiliate code in them.
4. You can use *www.bitly.com* to make short codes of your links and then you can track how many times it was clicked and where people are in the world when they're clicking. The account at Bitly is free. I love the info I gain from knowing about the click activity on my links.
5. When you Tweet a book, use a bitly link with your affiliate code embedded in it.
6. What am I forgetting? There are other places you put links, besides websites, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, etc. If you can think of them, post below.

*Here's where not to use it:*
On Kindleboards.  Their rules are that they get to use their affiliate code on your books as a way to pay for the admin of this site.

I hope this helps someone out there make more money, fund promotions or freebies, and discover how their readers are finding them and the other things their readers like to read or purchase. Happy weekend, everyone!


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## 41352 (Apr 4, 2011)

Thank you, Elle, for yet another helpful post!!


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## BelindaPepper (May 19, 2013)

I first jumped in as an Amazon affiliate a couple years ago, so what I'm about to say MIGHT be outdated, but you should definitely check.

You cannot use your Amazon affiliate code in any "offline" fashion (that INCLUDES via email, and within the content of your ebook). In fact, the ONLY place you're allowed to use your affiliate code is within the content of the website the affiliate account is associated with. That means no facebook, no youtube descriptions, no forums- period.

Of course, the way marketers have got around this is to have their links point to the corresponding web page on their site (where the book is listed) and put the affiliate link THERE. For example, if you sign up to ebookshabit.com, you'll get a daily email about that day's ebook deals. That site stays afloat by earning commissions. But the affiliate links aren't within the email. The cover thumbnails within the email point to the corresponding post on the website, which has the affiliate link there.

Operating Agreement here: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/agreement?ie=UTF8

This is the rule I'm thinking of, though I had to use Google to find it (if someone can find it within the agreement or other legal pages, awesome):



> You will not engage in any promotional, marketing, or other advertising activities on behalf of us or our affiliates, or in connection with the Amazon Site or the Program, that are not expressly permitted under the Operating Agreement. For example, you will not engage in any promotional, marketing, or other advertising activities in any offline manner, including by using any of our or our affiliates' trademarks or logos (including any Amazon Mark), any Content, or any Special Link in connection with an offline promotion or in any other offline manner (e.g., in any printed material, mailing, email or attachment to email, or other document, or any oral solicitation). Upon our request, you will provide us with written certification that you have complied with this Section 6. We will specify the form of, and content required in, that certification in our request. Any failure by you to provide the certification in accordance with our request will constitute a material breach of this Operating Agreement.


Basically, you can link to your Amazon book listing however you choose, but there are restrictions in place if you want to use your affiliate link.

MANY people break this rule (thus a large number of folks using affiliate links via email, on social networks, and within ebooks), but it's still a violation. And if Amazon finds out, you risk having your account banned, and you lose out on any earnings that haven't yet been paid.

*On the plus side*, it's always best to direct your marketing efforts to your personal site anyway, for so many reasons. So all those email/social network/forum links? Point them to your website. Then on your website, have your affiliate links.


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## BelindaPepper (May 19, 2013)

Aha, I found it:

https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/operating/participation?ie=UTF8 *<<< READ THIS PAGE, IT'S IMPORTANT*

I believe they also don't allow people to modify or "hide" their affiliate link. So hiding your affiliate link behind a bit.ly link or somesuch is also against the rules, because it obscures 1) where you're sending the customer, and 2) the nature of the link (ie that it's an affiliate link).


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

BelindaPepper said:


> Aha, I found it:
> 
> https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/operating/participation?ie=UTF8
> 
> I believe they also don't allow people to modify or "hide" their affiliate link. So hiding your affiliate link behind a bit.ly link or somesuch is also against the rules, because it obscures 1) where you're sending the customer, and 2) the nature of the link (ie that it's an affiliate link).


I've used the shortcodes without problems for over a year. If you hover over or click on them, the affiliate code is in plain view, so it's not that a person can't see he's using an affiliate link. Most people don't care or even realize there's such a thing. Long codes don't fit in a lot of restricted spaces and they're ugly, that's the main reason I use them.

Thanks for updating with the links to the TOS.


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## Lissie (May 26, 2011)

Actually Elle is right on that - according to Amazon themselves bit.ly, pretty links etc are OK - because you are not deliberately cloaking http://marketingwithsara.com/amazon/warning-to-all-affiliate-marketers. You do need a standard disclaimer on your website though saying you are using the Amazon affiliate program.

And remember that yes 4% of a $2.99 book is nothing much, but if you buyer goes on and buys a $2000 camera - you get a percentage of that too. - very, very nice.


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## Natasha Holme (May 26, 2012)

If your website is built with WordPress you can use the 'Amazon Affiliate Link Localizer' plugin to automatically convert the link address to go to the Amazon store for the country your visitor is in (including your affiliate code for that country). If you haven't set up an affiliate account for a particular country, any proceeds go to the developer of the plugin.


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## sighdone (Feb 4, 2011)

I've had an Associate account for a while now, but I always seem to neglect it. Thanks for reminding me about it.

You mentioned they sometimes do free Kindle giveaways and the like, where do I find those types of offers?


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## Quiss (Aug 21, 2012)

Yep, I started this in January and really just use this on my own web site.  
Made a whopping $3.26  Weeeee!

Regarding that $2000 camera - is there not a ceiling per item?


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

sighdone said:


> I've had an Associate account for a while now, but I always seem to neglect it. Thanks for reminding me about it.
> 
> You mentioned they sometimes do free Kindle giveaways and the like, where do I find those types of offers?


No, what I meant was, I do promotions where I give away Kindles and gift certificates, and I used the affiliate money to fund those promotions for my readers (or the readers of other indies in the case of my group promotions).


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Quiss said:


> Yep, I started this in January and really just use this on my own web site.
> Made a whopping $3.26 Weeeee!
> 
> Regarding that $2000 camera - is there not a ceiling per item?


I've seen items as expensive as 2k on my reports. (Also a camera). I don't know about ceilings but I do know some items have different commission levels, set by Amazon.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

NatashaHolme said:


> If your website is built with WordPress you can use the 'Amazon Affiliate Link Localizer' plugin to automatically convert the link address to go to the Amazon store for the country your visitor is in (including your affiliate code for that country). If you haven't set up an affiliate account for a particular country, any proceeds go to the developer of the plugin.


You wouldn't know off hand if there was something similar for blogger? I'll do a search for it in a bit, but if you knew of one I'd appreciate a heads up.

I've been rethinking a lot of stuff lately, and becoming an Amazon affiliate is one of the things twitting around in my head.


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Sheila_Guthrie said:


> You wouldn't know off hand if there was something similar for blogger? I'll do a search for it in a bit, but if you knew of one I'd appreciate a heads up.
> 
> I've been rethinking a lot of stuff lately, and becoming an Amazon affiliate is one of the things twitting around in my head.


'

I could be wrong about this, but I seem to remember reading on my blogger stuff that they don't allow affiliate marketing AT ALL on their system. Double check that, but it that's the case, it's probably time to move over to a self-hosted Wordpress site. You could be paying a lot for that free blogger site if you look at all the affiliate income you're missing out on.


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## lynnfromthesouth (Jun 21, 2012)

Blogger does allow Amazon, but they're very pro-Adsense, and all the gadgets are related to Google. You have to code it yourself. There's a gadget that lets you do HTML and Javascript, and you can flip posts into HTML mode to post the code. 

The Amazon associates browser strip is really helpful for generating codes quickly.


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## Marti talbott (Apr 19, 2011)

I use them too. Once you get the hang of it, it is often easier to build an associate link than a regular one. Like others, I only use them on my website, but I like being able to see how many clicks translate to sales. I don't make much money either, but the possibility is there and I do sell items other than just my books.

You can use them on blogspot, I do.
http://maritalbottstories.blogspot.com/


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## Sebastiene (Dec 15, 2011)

That last time I checked, people living, or with their businesses registered, in certain states couldn't make money from the affiliate program. (Amazon protesting new tax laws in those states.) My affiliate account was cancelled by Amazon for this reason when I lived in Illinois. Now that I've moved, I'll have to check.

Found it!

"In addition, if at any time following your enrollment in the Program you become a resident of *Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, North Carolina, or Rhode Island*, you will become ineligible to participate in the Program, and this Operating Agreement will automatically terminate, on the date you establish residency in that state. In addition, you must promptly notify us in writing of your *Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, North Carolina, or Rhode Island* residency, which you may do via the Contact Associates Customer Service form...."

But don't think I'm knocking the idea! Thank you for reminding me about this program.


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## ElHawk (Aug 13, 2012)

This is really cool.  "Get the web site up for Ironside" is on my agenda this weekend, so I'll have to incorporate the affiliate link there for starters and see where it goes from then on out.


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## journeymama (May 30, 2011)

Does anyone know if they're accepting accounts from California again? My account was shut down because of skirmishes with taxes in California and I didn't receive any info about it being reinstated.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

You don't need bit.ly. When you go to create links, there's a button to auto-shorten them.


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## Sebastiene (Dec 15, 2011)

journeymama said:


> Does anyone know if they're accepting accounts from California again? My account was shut down because of skirmishes with taxes in California and I didn't receive any info about it being reinstated.


In trying to find that list of states, I did run across someone asking that question. The response they were given was that California was back in.

More importantly, what I quoted above is the current TOS, and California isn't listed. So, go for it!


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## Jan Strnad (May 27, 2010)

journeymama said:


> Does anyone know if they're accepting accounts from California again? My account was shut down because of skirmishes with taxes in California and I didn't receive any info about it being reinstated.


I was bounced, too, but then invited back in. I haven't done it, but I intend to, one day.


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## GWakeling (Mar 23, 2012)

Thanks for the reminder on this, Elle. I use it haphazardly but really need to focus my attention on using it for all links I make!

Geoff


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## Guest (May 25, 2013)

Fascinating stuff.  I've been meaning to get my act together with the Amazon affiliate program, but I'm naturally lazy so I haven't done that yet.  Will have to do it soon...


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## wildwitchof (Sep 2, 2010)

Elle, I've only recently joined your figurative fan club, but I had to post a big thank you for this post today. Last night as I was falling asleep I told myself to post a request for help on this topic. Last week I got great Facebook advice, but this affiliate stuff is a total mystery to me and I'm throwing money away tuning it out. .... so, anyhoo, THANKS. I don't know how you do it. Are you one of those people who doesn't need sleep? LOL


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## Jan Strnad (May 27, 2010)

Okay, I've re-upped for one reason: To sell *this item*!

http://www.amazon.com/Datastroyer-Model-1000-Disintegrator/dp/B004VTON72/

Only $141,093.71!

If you can find out that there's such a product as a DATASTROYER MODEL 1000 DISINTEGRATOR and not instantly want one, you are certainly different from me!

BTW, the reviews are a hoot!


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## CoraBuhlert (Aug 7, 2011)

Thanks a lot for this advice, Elle. I remember looking into the Amazon Affiliate progam a while back, but then giving up and deciding to go back some other time. I guess I should really get it set up for COM, UK and DE.

One question: I recall hearing somewhere that Google punishes websites in the search ranking for using affiliate links and that some ad-blockers block them. Is there any truth to that?


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## ToniD (May 3, 2011)

Great info Elle--and others who've contributed. This has been on my to-do list for awhile and it has just jumped to the top.

Jan: if you're going to buy the Datastroyer would you mind accessing it via my book link (once I get my affiliate code in place)? Thanks, will return the favor. I'm in the market for new athletic shoes.


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## crashaddict (Mar 27, 2013)

I think I'd heard of this before but never given it much thought. However after reading this post I went and signed up! Good timing too, as I had just finished reviewing Bioshock:Infinite on my blog. Went and posted an affiliate link at the bottom, muahaha! 

Thanks Elle!


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## S. Shine (Jan 14, 2013)

Thank you, Elle! Much appreciated that you brought this one up!


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## Ty Johnston (Jun 19, 2009)

Great idea! I used to be an Amazon Affiliate myself, then I moved to one of the few states in which Amazon does not allow the program.


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## Some Writer Cat (Sep 22, 2010)

ellecasey said:


> I hope this helps someone out there make more money, fund promotions or freebies, and discover how their readers are finding them and the other things their readers like to read or purchase. Happy weekend, everyone!


Thanks, Elle. I can't believe I haven't been doing this. I knew about it, even tried it out early on, but like an idiot it never occured to me to to *put the links in the actual books,* especially since I've used perma-free short stories tied to novels to great effect.

Thunk.

That was the sound of my head hitting the desk.


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

Thanks for posting this thread, Elle. I joined the affiliates program a little over a week ago, and have been so enthusiastic about inserting the affiliate links that I forgot to notify visitors to the website that I was a participant. Will have to rectify that.

If you use smarturl to make your links, then you can set it up so that one url can automatically divert to one of several amazon websites, depending on where the visitor to your site is based. Smarturl also provides stats.


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## Anna K (Jul 2, 2011)

Can you use affiliate links with Wordpress.com? Somebody had told me only Wordpress.org allowed them, so I never pursued it.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

A couple of things people should be aware of when using Elle's very good advice about affiliates.

1)  Use of affiliate codes other than KB's own here is not allowed, according to the TOS you signed up with, so, while using the affiliate codes other places is a great idea, please don't do it here.  You make more work for me.


2)  Amazon recently implemented a rule wherein (and I'm paraphrasing) if 80% of book downloads through your affiliate code are free, you forfeit ALL affiliate money for that month.  This has really impacted sites that used to advertise free books, including KBoards.

Thanks!

Betsy


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Anna K said:


> Can you use affiliate links with Wordpress.com? Somebody had told me only Wordpress.org allowed them, so I never pursued it.


That is correct. You are subject to having your site shut down unless you use the paid Wordpress site. Which, I guess, confusingly is Wordpress.org?

Betsy


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Vaalingrade said:


> You don't need bit.ly. When you go to create links, there's a button to auto-shorten them.


Yes, but the benefit to using bitly, as I mentioned in the OP, is that you can track a lot of the info from the clickers. Marketing data is awesome.



Gretchen Galway said:


> Elle, I've only recently joined your figurative fan club, but I had to post a big thank you for this post today. Last night as I was falling asleep I told myself to post a request for help on this topic. Last week I got great Facebook advice, but this affiliate stuff is a total mystery to me and I'm throwing money away tuning it out. .... so, anyhoo, THANKS. I don't know how you do it. Are you one of those people who doesn't need sleep? LOL


Welcome to the club! Glad to have you as a part of it. And yes, I do sleep, but I also spend an inordinate amount of time online. 



CoraBuhlert said:


> Thanks a lot for this advice, Elle. I remember looking into the Amazon Affiliate progam a while back, but then giving up and deciding to go back some other time. I guess I should really get it set up for COM, UK and DE.
> 
> One question: I recall hearing somewhere that Google punishes websites in the search ranking for using affiliate links and that some ad-blockers block them. Is there any truth to that?


I have no idea, but I could care less. People go to my site searching my name directly, and I'm not doing any SEO or anything like that. That's not how readers find books in my experience, so it's not a priority for me.



Anna K said:


> Can you use affiliate links with Wordpress.com? Somebody had told me only Wordpress.org allowed them, so I never pursued it.


Wordpress offers two types of sites: Those they host and just their software or platform that you use on your own self-hosted site (downloadable through wordpress.org or usable through many service providers like my host: Hostgator.com). If you do a self-hosted site, you can do whatever the sam hill you want with it. If you use the free wordpress service (much like Blogger), you can't.



Betsy the Quilter said:


> A couple of things people should be aware of when using Elle's very good advice about affiliates.
> 
> 1) Use of affiliate codes other than KB's own here is not allowed, according to the TOS you signed up with, so, while using the affiliate codes other places is a great idea, please don't do it here. You make more work for me.
> 
> ...


I did mention in my OP that the KB rules are that we can't use our own affiliate codes here. 

I post freebies all the time on my sites and the paid stuff far outweighs it. Like by thousands and thousands of dollars every month. It won't be a problem for authors. It's a problem for sites like Pixel of Ink and eReader News Today who were only advertising freebies. Now they advertise both freebies and for-pay books as a result, which I think it good for everyone.


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## CoraBuhlert (Aug 7, 2011)

ellecasey said:


> I have no idea, but I could care less. People go to my site searching my name directly, and I'm not doing any SEO or anything like that. That's not how readers find books in my experience, so it's not a priority for me.


I don't do any SEO either, but I've got an active blog and get search engine hits for all sorts of searches, not just my name or my books, so I don't really want to get hit for using affiliate links. Still, thanks for answering.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

ellecasey said:


> I did mention in my OP that the KB rules are that we can't use our own affiliate codes here.
> 
> I post freebies all the time on my sites and the paid stuff far outweighs it. Like by thousands and thousands of dollars every month. It won't be a problem for authors. It's a problem for sites like Pixel of Ink and eReader News Today who were only advertising freebies. Now they advertise both freebies and for-pay books as a result, which I think it good for everyone.


Thanks, Elle, I missed that. But I would have wanted to mention it anyway for the tl;dr folks (like me, apparently . It's in our ToS that people agree to and yet, I have to remind people from time to time that it's not allowed. 

As some authors only have a few books and run them free a lot, I just wanted to make sure they were aware of Amazon's new restriction.

Betsy


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## LilianaHart (Jun 20, 2011)

Elle is giving great advice. If you're not an Amazon affiliate you need to do it ASAP. You can also become affiliates in the other countries as well, though they pay by check instead of DD. my affiliate payments started around $200 extra a month, but now it's around $1000 extra per month. That's $12,000 a year of basically free money. I put my affiliate links everywhere--my newsletter, website, Facebook, twitter etc. It really adds up. Great tips, Elle!


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> That is correct. You are subject to having your site shut down unless you use the paid Wordpress site. Which, I guess, confusingly is Wordpress.org?
> 
> Betsy


Wordpress.com do allow affiliate links to some organisations, including Amazon> Quote: "There are exceptions to this policy. Amazon.com and other select affiliate links are permitted so long as they are not the primary content of the blog in question. Other exceptions are made on a case-by-case basis." Check out their Affiliate Links Support article


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## lynnfromthesouth (Jun 21, 2012)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> 2) Amazon recently implemented a rule wherein (and I'm paraphrasing) if 80% of book downloads through your affiliate code are free, you forfeit ALL affiliate money for that month. This has really impacted sites that used to advertise free books, including KBoards.


This is such a weird rule. I understand why they did it, but you can't completely control how your users react. If you have even one free book link, that still could result in more than 80% of your downloads.

Does it help to remove your affiliate codes from freebies, or do they still track where the links come from and include those? I'm really not sure users shopping for other stuff affects freebies as much as we'd like to believe it does. When I want to buy something, I shop. When I get a freebie, I usually grab just that and leave.


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## Raquel Lyon (Mar 3, 2012)

I would love to do all the things suggested. I could really do with some extra income, but don't these words from Amazon's conditions mean we can't, or am I reading it wrongly?



> 6. You will not engage in any promotional, marketing, or other advertising activities on behalf of us or our affiliates, or in connection with the Amazon Site or the Program, that are not expressly permitted under the Operating Agreement. For example, *you will not engage in any promotional, marketing, or other advertising activities * in any offline manner, *including by using any of our * or our affiliates' trademarks or logos (including any Amazon Mark), any Content, or any *Special Link * in connection with an offline promotion or *in any * other offline manner (e.g., in any printed material, mailing, *email* or attachment to email, or other document, or any oral solicitation). Upon our request, you will provide us with written certification that you have complied with this Section 6. We will specify the form of, and content required in, that certification in our request. Any failure by you to provide the certification in accordance with our request will constitute a material breach of this Operating Agreement.





> 9. *You will not * sell, resell, redistribute, sublicense, or transfer any Content or any application that uses, incorporates, or displays any Content. For example, you will not use, or enable or facilitate the use of, Content on or within any application, platform, site, or service (including social networking sites) that requires you to sublicense or otherwise give any rights in or to any Content to any other person or entity, nor will you *create links formatted with your Associate's tag for, or display such links on, a site that is not your site.*


I would welcome any input from legal jargon savvy people, as it's pretty much all hogswash to me. Even so, I'll be erring on the side of caution.


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## Mel Comley (Oct 13, 2010)

Great info Elle, I've added it to my ever extending to-do list.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

I set up an astore and just point people to the astore pages instead of making affiliate links every time I need to use one.

I like this because, I can navigate to the web page, put my cursor in the address and copy-paste. (When people buy from the astore, I get the same affiliate commission.)

If you want to see what it looks like, check it out: http://astore.amazon.com/vjchaaut-20

(This meant for demonstration purposes, but if it's out of line with the KB rules about affiliate links, I'm really sorry!!)


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## BillSmithBooksDotCom (Nov 4, 2012)

Smashwords' affiliate program does allow you to promote off-line...all you're not allowed to do is spam, use fraud/spyware and misappropriate the Smashwords brand name.

Plus they pay 11% (authors can increase the affiliate rate as high as they want to encourage sites to promote them and get sales).


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## ToniD (May 3, 2011)

ellecasey said:


> *
> How to make a link with your affiliate code in it:*
> [sign up with Amazon for the affiliate code first, of course]
> 1. Here's a link to one of my books: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008E95UOK . Note that I've cut out all the extraneous information (name of book, search terms used, etc.) All that info is unnecessary; this link will get you to my book.
> ...


Elle, thanks again for the detailed how-to; very helpful. I followed your steps, up through bitly, and thought I'd done it right. However, I just got the following email from Amazon that included this graf:

"Your Associates ID tonidwigginsc-20 will be used to track qualifying purchases made
by your site visitors when you link to Amazon. All links and widgets
built using the tools in Associates Central,
http://affiliate-program.amazon.com, will automatically contain your ID,
*provided you log in before building them*."

Re the bolded bit: if I read this correctly, Ammy is saying I must build the link directly on the site in order for it to work. Yes, no?

I logged in to sign up for the program, got the affiliate code, and then built my own link following your step #2.

Am I good to go, or not?

Thanks Elle!


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

ToniD said:


> ...
> All links and widgets
> built using the tools in Associates Central,
> http://affiliate-program.amazon.com, will automatically contain your ID,
> ...


You're good to go. As long as you have your affiliate tag appended to the Amazon URL (as Elle described in the OP), your account will get credited. The shortest natural URL would be http://amazon.com/dp/YOURASIN?tag=YOURTAG.

As Elle mentions, it can be shortened using bit.ly or smartURL. (But be aware that some people are leery about clicking on shortened URLs because spammers and phishers use them so often.)


----------



## bookworm77 (Mar 10, 2012)

BelindaPepper said:


> I first jumped in as an Amazon affiliate a couple years ago, so what I'm about to say MIGHT be outdated, but you should definitely check.
> 
> You cannot use your Amazon affiliate code in any "offline" fashion (that INCLUDES via email, and within the content of your ebook). In fact, the ONLY place you're allowed to use your affiliate code is within the content of the website the affiliate account is associated with. That means no facebook, no youtube descriptions, no forums- period.
> 
> ...


Thanks for mentioning these restrictions. Just play by the rules and you should do fine. Amazon Associates is a great way to earn some extra income. I like the fact that you can get a commission on everything in the customer's shopping cart.


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## ToniD (May 3, 2011)

Harvey said:


> You're good to go. As long as you have your affiliate tag appended to the Amazon URL (as Elle described in the OP), your account will get credited. The shortest natural URL would be http://amazon.com/dp/YOURASIN?tag=YOURTAG.
> 
> As Elle mentions, it can be shortened using bit.ly or smartURL. (But be aware that some people are leery about clicking on shortened URLs because spammers and phishers use them so often.)


Thanks Harvey! Good to know I'm good to go because I already posted the affiliate links into my website and FB.


----------



## chalice (Jan 5, 2013)

*Click on the link below and get a list of all the countries that you can sign up to become an Amazon Associate for.

https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/t22/a13

Regards,
Shana Jahsinta Walters.*


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## NathanHaleJefferson (Apr 3, 2013)

CoraBuhlert said:


> One question: I recall hearing somewhere that Google punishes websites in the search ranking for using affiliate links and that some ad-blockers block them. Is there any truth to that?


I have no idea about google punishing websites using affiliate links, but if I had to guess I'd say its just an urban legend.

As for add blockers - I don't know of any that will block a link with affiliate code the way the OP describes.

BUT FOR THE LOVE O GAWD, if you use the picture/text/combo links generated by Amazon understand that a LARGE portion of people won't see them due to ad and spam blocking software. I've gone round and round with a couple of blogs I've done interviews/guest posts for because they just stick the Amazon link up and no one sees it.

To get around this on your website (should be a non-issue inside an ebook?) host the image on your website and insert the link manually. Yes it takes about 30 seconds extra (maybe 10 minutes to learn how to do it the first time.) but it will work a lot more often than not.


----------



## bellabentley (Mar 25, 2013)

I'm late to the party...just now seeing this post. Thanks so much, Elle, for posting this! <3 I definitely will try and post the link on the back of my books! I was wondering, like KDP, do they pay 60 days after each month and do they do EFT? thanks again!


----------



## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

bellabentley said:


> I'm late to the party...just now seeing this post. Thanks so much, Elle, for posting this! <3 I definitely will try and post the link on the back of my books! I was wondering, like KDP, do they pay 60 days after each month and do they do EFT? thanks again!


They pay the month after, I think. I think. I don't keep track of it, really. I just take the money and spend it on promos and stuff.


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## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

How do I put the affiliate code links in my facebook page?


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

beccaprice said:


> How do I put the affiliate code links in my facebook page?


Read this thread from the beginning.


----------



## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

I did, Elle, but I'm still confused. Guess I'll just try it again.


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

beccaprice said:


> I did, Elle, but I'm still confused. Guess I'll just try it again.


Maybe if you can be more specific about what part is confusing you, someone can help. Details?


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## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

no, I think I see now. I can't put up some sort of permanent widget on the fb page, but only provide a link every time the book or story is mentioned - is that it? I was looking for something permanent.


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

beccaprice said:


> no, I think I see now. I can't put up some sort of permanent widget on the fb page, but only provide a link every time the book or story is mentioned - is that it? I was looking for something permanent.


You can put up a "page" on your facebook page that is permanent. If you go to my Facebook page you'll see I have my Amazon store there. You can put whatever you want in an Amazon store, your books, cameras, ice skates, whatever. 
http://facebook.com/ellecaseytheauthor
I'm not sure if that helps you or not...


----------



## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

Thanks, Elle, and I'll pass this information on to my husband, who is more conversant with this sort of thing than I am.

ETA: I see, your links are in the graphic. That is probably something for another day - we're still getting the basic site set up.


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## chalice (Jan 5, 2013)

*Elle Casey this question is for you.
I love the banner you have in your signature.
Where did you get this one made?
I am looking for a recommendation.

Regards,
Shana Jahsinta Walters.*


----------



## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

chalice said:


> *Elle Casey this question is for you.
> I love the banner you have in your signature.
> Where did you get this one made?
> I am looking for a recommendation.
> ...


Hello, Shana!

I actually made this one myself using GIMP. It's a free program that works very much like Photoshop. I watched a few videos online and read a bunch of tutorials so I could play around with graphics and book covers. It's been a blast! If you have time to learn it, I recommend it just to help with even communicating with your graphic artist. I'll never be one of those, but I'm capable now of making banners and postcards and stuff. I made a few basic book covers too.


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

ellecasey said:


> You can put up a "page" on your facebook page that is permanent. If you go to my Facebook page you'll see I have my Amazon store there. You can put whatever you want in an Amazon store, your books, cameras, ice skates, whatever.
> http://facebook.com/ellecaseytheauthor
> I'm not sure if that helps you or not...


Hi Elle. Thanks for this great info. Have you a link to explain how to insert that Amazon store link so that it opens in your FB page? Do FB charge for having it there?


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

George Hamilton said:


> Hi Elle. Thanks for this great info. Have you a link to explain how to insert that Amazon store link so that it opens in your FB page? Do FB charge for having it there?


The instructions are here in this thread. Several people have included instructions, so just read through the posts and you'll find them.

No, Facebook doesn't charge. You make money when people click!


----------



## Raquel Lyon (Mar 3, 2012)

I have a question.

I'm using up the last two free days for select on my prequel, yesterday and today. It's a bit of an experiment this time, as I intend to set it permanently free soon anyway. The last three day promo had me spending hours contacting over forty sites, along with posting on all the social media places. All that work got me 245 downloads, total. So, this time, I decided to cut out the sites and just do social media.

Now to get to my question. I wanted to see which places were most effective, so I used my affiliate codes in all links posted on twitter, facebook etc., but shortened them with tinyurl. Looking at my account, none of the 24 (yes count them, 24) downloads, in the past twenty-four hours, came through any of my links. Which means either my social media contacts are rubbish, or, and here's my question, does tinyurl strip my affiliate code from the link?


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

Ooops! I'd forgotten about this thread, so missed some responses. Thanks for trying to help. 

I've been with Blogger for years, tried to switch over to Wordpress once but didn't like any of the free options, couldn't figure out how it worked, either, and never went back to look at anything else. It wouldn't do me any good to change anyway, as I'm in one of those states that isn't allowed to be in the affiliate program. 

But, congrats to all who can take advantage of this. Maybe Amazon and NC can work it out at some point, and things will change on this front for me.


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## J.P.Hemlock (Jun 20, 2013)

Some really interesting info here, defiantly going to look up amazon affiliates. Will it make a difference that I'm in the UK?


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

J.P.Hemlock said:


> Some really interesting info here, defiantly going to look up amazon affiliates. Will it make a difference that I'm in the UK?


They have the same thing on all Amazon sites, even the UK one. You should get an affiliate code for EACH site individually, because you only get commissions when someone uses the link for the right store. Then you can do something like this:

Buy my books on Amazon.com [make it a hotlink with your affiliate code in it]
Buy my books on Amazon.co.uk ["]
Buy my books on Amazon.de ["]

etc....


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

ellecasey said:


> They have the same thing on all Amazon sites, even the UK one. You should get an affiliate code for EACH site individually, because you only get commissions when someone uses the link for the right store. Then you can do something like this:
> 
> Buy my books on Amazon.com [make it a hotlink with your affiliate code in it]
> Buy my books on Amazon.co.uk ["]
> ...


Hi JP.
You can create one link to your book using SmartURL, and it will divert to the Amazon store in the country where the clicker is based. Use Amazon.com as the default. You also get access to stats.


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## J.P.Hemlock (Jun 20, 2013)

George Hamilton said:


> Hi JP.
> You can create one link to your book using SmartURL, and it will divert to the Amazon store in the country where the clicker is based. Use Amazon.com as the default. You also get access to stats.


That's fantastic thank you!


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## BellaRoccaforte (May 26, 2013)

If you happen to be a pointed headed analyst by day like me you can actually track the source of your clicks since Amazon's tracking is crap.

We you create your affiliate link, take it on over to the google url builder. https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1033867?&rd=2

you can enter useful information in there like the name of the site you are advertising on, then create a bitly url based on the tagged url and you will be able to see exactly how many clicks you got.


----------



## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

Bumping this cause the world must know!


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

George Hamilton said:


> Hi JP.
> You can create one link to your book using SmartURL, and it will divert to the Amazon store in the country where the clicker is based. Use Amazon.com as the default. You also get access to stats.





J.P.Hemlock said:


> That's fantastic thank you!


Two things--
(1) If your goal is just to get people to your book to buy, using links on your site or FB page from SmartURL or ViewBook.at or other site works fine; if you have an additional goal to gain affiliate fees, not so much; SmartURL and ViewBook.at make their money to pay for the service by appending their affiliate code to the end of the URL, which is understandable. But you should be aware of this.
(2) As use of affiliate codes other than KB's own is not allowed per Forum Decorum, you can't use SmartURL or ViewBook.at or similar services here, sorry. (Or your own affiliate codes.) We're looking into ways to provide an equivalent service for your links here.

Betsy


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## ElHawk (Aug 13, 2012)

Just a quick note to let people know how well the Affiliate Program is working for me.  I'm not making huge bucks off it, but it's noticeable pocket money on a monthly basis.  I joined up when Elle first posted this thread and use it fairly infrequently...just when there's a genuine reason to link somebody somewhere to a book I think they'll like, etc.  I've had my affiliate links pay out on some high-dollar items like big gift card purchases, purchases of Kindles, etc.  

It's pretty cool!

It's such an easy way to earn a little extra cash that I'm now working on curating my own targeted ebook mailing list (similar to Bookbub, but probably won't ever get as huge!).  It's worth putting a little bit of time into this program...it pays off!


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## Courtney Milan (Feb 27, 2011)

BellaRoccaforte said:


> If you happen to be a pointed headed analyst by day like me you can actually track the source of your clicks since Amazon's tracking is crap.
> 
> We you create your affiliate link, take it on over to the google url builder. https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1033867?&rd=2
> 
> you can enter useful information in there like the name of the site you are advertising on, then create a bitly url based on the tagged url and you will be able to see exactly how many clicks you got.


You can actually do something a little easier to track the source of your sales. If you login to your affiliate account, in the upper right left hand corner of the screen is something that looks like this:










Click on "manage" right above the drop down box. You'll get a screen listing your tracking IDs. Click on "add tracking ID."

I have cmwebsite-20, cmnewsletter-20, cmtwitter-20, cmfacebook-20... If you unclick "combined reports" in the graphic above, it'll show you how much you've sold for that tracking ID alone. That way I can tell what site my buys come from. If you have a bit.ly ID, you can also shorten your URLs and track how many people click on the link versus how many buy--that gives you a pretty interesting set of analytics.

Oh, and the best thing anyone has ever bought from my affiliate ID? A $6,000 diamond ring. I about fell off of my chair when I saw that.


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

ElHawk said:


> Just a quick note to let people know how well the Affiliate Program is working for me. I'm not making huge bucks off it, but it's noticeable pocket money on a monthly basis. I joined up when Elle first posted this thread and use it fairly infrequently...just when there's a genuine reason to link somebody somewhere to a book I think they'll like, etc. I've had my affiliate links pay out on some high-dollar items like big gift card purchases, purchases of Kindles, etc.
> 
> It's pretty cool!
> 
> It's such an easy way to earn a little extra cash that I'm now working on curating my own targeted ebook mailing list (similar to Bookbub, but probably won't ever get as huge!). It's worth putting a little bit of time into this program...it pays off!


It does pay off. I use it to fund reader prizes like gift cards and kindles.


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## ToniD (May 3, 2011)

Thanks Courtney for that tracking info.

Elle, this thread has been sooo helpful.


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## Wansit (Sep 27, 2012)

Awesome advice - thanks Elle. And great tip Courtney!


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Two things--
> (1) If your goal is just to get people to your book to buy, using links on your site or FB page from SmartURL or ViewBook.at or other site works fine; if you have an additional goal to gain affiliate fees, not so much; SmartURL and ViewBook.at make their money to pay for the service by appending their affiliate code to the end of the URL, which is understandable. But you should be aware of this.
> 
> Betsy


From what I've read (I think in Let's Get Visible), if you append an affiliate code, smarturl won't, but if you don't, they will.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

George Hamilton said:


> From what I've read (I think in Let's Get Visible), if you append an affiliate code, smarturl won't, but if you don't, they will.


That would be good to know; I'd check with the service itself if I wanted to use an affiliate code with my link; or I'd check my link after I've made it. I've not seen any that didn't have the service's affiliate code on it, but that could be because not many authors use their own affiliate code.

Betsy


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## George Hamilton (Dec 14, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> That would be good to know; I'd check with the service itself if I wanted to use an affiliate code with my link; or I'd check my link after I've made it. I've not seen any that didn't have the service's affiliate code on it, but that could be because not many authors use their own affiliate code.
> 
> Betsy


Hi Betsy,
This from their FAQ indicates they'll only add affiliate links if you haven't:

How does smartURL make money? 
smartURL's primary revenue comes from affiliate links. If a URL within a smartURL links to a storefront, *and that URL has not been affiliatized by the user creating the smartURL, then we may tag that link with smartURL's own affiliate code.* This enables us to take a small percentage of the revenue generated when a user clicks on a smartURL and purchases a product.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

George Hamilton said:


> Hi Betsy,
> This from their FAQ indicates they'll only add affiliate links if you haven't:
> 
> How does smartURL make money?
> smartURL's primary revenue comes from affiliate links. If a URL within a smartURL links to a storefront, *and that URL has not been affiliatized by the user creating the smartURL, then we may tag that link with smartURL's own affiliate code.* This enables us to take a small percentage of the revenue generated when a user clicks on a smartURL and purchases a product.


Good to know. I know some members here use a similar service, ViewBook.at; hopefully they have a similar practice. (But again, neither may be used here.)

Betsy


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## Harry Manners (Jul 6, 2013)

This all great advice. I hadn't hear about the affiliate program at all before this. Thanks to everyone for their sound contributions!


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## JennR (Sep 14, 2012)

I've read this whole thread and I'm still not sure if it's okay to use my Amazon affiliate id to promote my other books in the back of each Kindle book.

It seems some people are saying they're doing it, and other people are saying Amazon says you can't use it in an offline way including email.  Is a Kindle book considered online or offline?


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## JennR (Sep 14, 2012)

Well, I just googled the answer to my question. At first I thought you can but on re-reading it, it doesn't specifically mention the Associates program for this question.

It's the bottom question and answer.

https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/help?topicId=A1CT8LK6UW2FXJ

ETA: Just found another site that says you can't so I think I'll err on the side of caution.

http://www.bemorethanyouare.com/kindle-misinformation/


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## legion (Mar 1, 2013)

JennR said:


> I've read this whole thread and I'm still not sure if it's okay to use my Amazon affiliate id to promote my other books in the back of each Kindle book.
> 
> It seems some people are saying they're doing it, and other people are saying Amazon says you can't use it in an offline way including email. Is a Kindle book considered online or offline?


I felt the same way and scrounged around trying to find the answer. I ran into the conflicting answers you did, but you found the gem--that link you gave to Amazon/KDP was clear enough for me! 

Since the following Q/A follows one about linking via the Amazon Associates program, I'll take it as continuing that thread.



> Can I include a link to my book's product page on Amazon inside my Kindle edition?
> Absolutely!


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## JennR (Sep 14, 2012)

> Can I include a link to my book's product page on Amazon inside my Kindle edition?
> Absolutely!


But on re-reading it, it doesn't actually say an Amazon associate link in that question and answer which is why I'm not going to use my associate link in the back of my books :-(


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## GWakeling (Mar 23, 2012)

Courtney Milan said:


> You can actually do something a little easier to track the source of your sales. If you login to your affiliate account, in the upper right left hand corner of the screen is something that looks like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This is an awesome tip and something I never realised before. Now I can tell which links are providing the most click-throughs! Thanks.


----------



## Guest (Aug 10, 2013)

Thanks for the info. I had no idea you could use them on FB. What about PinInterest? I haven't explored that site yet, but did start an account so I'm ready! 

The thing I'm confused about is that when you sign-up for the Affiliate Program, you're asked for the website you'll be using it on. I thought that determined whether or not you got credit. But you're saying, or I think you're saying, that the link itself will have your affiliate info so if I put it on the blog, FB or my website, I still get credit? 

This opens up a whole panacea or can of worms ... not sure which yet!  

Thanks so much!


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

If you recall, Elle, I got mine set up a few months ago...only to lose them after a month because our state decided to tax online purchases so Amazon sent me an email that I could no longer have an afilliate account. .


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## ccabbott (Aug 3, 2013)

For those of us in banned states, Viglink is supposed to be an alternative. I haven't tried it.


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## valeriec80 (Feb 24, 2011)

JennR said:


> But on re-reading it, it doesn't actually say an Amazon associate link in that question and answer which is why I'm not going to use my associate link in the back of my books :-(


From what I understand, the penalty for using your associate ID in the "wrong" places is that you don't get paid the fees. For me, this is an acceptable risk, since I'm positive I won't get the fees if I don't use the affiliate code. This way, there's a chance that I will.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

I see Amazon is restricted for Viglink. It says they have to ask AMazon for permission for you. I'm thinking this probably means no because of the taxes in my state. Anyone know?


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## Guest (Aug 11, 2013)

Okay, I have tried using the link example shown with my affiliate ID shown. I posted it on Twitter and got seven clicks on one tweet -- none of which show up in my statement. 

Is there a reason they're not showing up? I definitely copied and pasted the info. 

Was all set to do this and now am not getting credit for clicks.


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

WPotocki said:


> Okay, I have tried using the link example shown with my affiliate ID shown. I posted it on Twitter and got seven clicks on one tweet -- none of which show up in my statement.
> 
> Is there a reason they're not showing up? I definitely copied and pasted the info.
> 
> Was all set to do this and now am not getting credit for clicks.


Show us the link you used. That might help answer the question...


----------



## Guest (Aug 12, 2013)

ellecasey said:


> Show us the link you used. That might help answer the question...


Thanks so much for replying.

This was the original link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0049H8WS2/?tag=bicameralwrit-20

I changed that into a Bitly one:

http://amzn.to/18n5yHJ


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Hmmm ... I can't see anything wrong unless you've spelled anything wrong.  The format is good.  It's for the US site, so if you're looking at your US statement, that should show.  Maybe email Amazon...


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## Guest (Aug 12, 2013)

ellecasey said:


> Hmmm ... I can't see anything wrong unless you've spelled anything wrong. The format is good. It's for the US site, so if you're looking at your US statement, that should show. Maybe email Amazon...


I copied and pasted, but I'll double check.

I will email them because I love this idea so much and could use the extra income.

Thanks so much for sharing this info.


----------



## GWakeling (Mar 23, 2012)

I'm still loving this thread, and have ramped up associate links accordingly. However, I haven't got a single sale yet...on anything. I was wondering what link click numbers people experience before they start noting sales? Is it hundreds? Thousands? I've had 197 clicks so far this month....is this super low to be expecting an associates income?

Geoff


----------



## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

GWakeling said:


> I'm still loving this thread, and have ramped up associate links accordingly. However, I haven't got a single sale yet...on anything. I was wondering what link click numbers people experience before they start noting sales? Is it hundreds? Thousands? I've had 197 clicks so far this month....is this super low to be expecting an associates income?
> 
> Geoff


I would say it took me many months before it started adding up to anything. It seems to correspond to reader base and having sequels and a mailing list. With all of those things, it adds up to more 'clickers'.


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## GWakeling (Mar 23, 2012)

ellecasey said:


> I would say it took me many months before it started adding up to anything. It seems to correspond to reader base and having sequels and a mailing list. With all of those things, it adds up to more 'clickers'.


Thanks, Elle. I wasn't sure whether I was missing the mark entirely and there was something I should be doing that I'm not. I'll keep posting links with my associates tag and see what happens.  New book soon, so I know I'll get some hits from that!

G x


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

GWakeling said:


> Thanks, Elle. I wasn't sure whether I was missing the mark entirely and there was something I should be doing that I'm not. I'll keep posting links with my associates tag and see what happens.  New book soon, so I know I'll get some hits from that!
> 
> G x


I also put my link on any other books I talk about. I do a lot of cross promotion with other authors (or I just pimp their books because I like them or want to help out), and in every case, I use my link. That turns into a lot of clicks. I also put up links to Kindles and stuff in case anyone wants to buy one and they happen to be on my site. Also Amazon gift card links.


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## GWakeling (Mar 23, 2012)

ellecasey said:


> I also put my link on any other books I talk about. I do a lot of cross promotion with other authors (or I just pimp their books because I like them or want to help out), and in every case, I use my link. That turns into a lot of clicks. I also put up links to Kindles and stuff in case anyone wants to buy one and they happen to be on my site. Also Amazon gift card links.


That's a good idea. I always use links on other people's books so I can track sales and which sources are working for clicks. I hadn't thought about trying to link occasionally to Kindles or Amazon gift cards. That's a great idea!


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## DGS (Sep 25, 2013)

Not available in my state. No workarounds here?


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## Ethan Jones (Jan 20, 2012)

Thanks, Elle.

I followed your advice and made my first 8 cents during the last three days that my affiliate account is up 

Have a great weekend everyone,

Ethan


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

Ethan Jones said:


> Thanks, Elle.
> 
> I followed your advice and made my first 8 cents during the last three days that my affiliate account is up
> 
> ...


I've made about $120 so far this month. Keep it up! Eventually, it adds up. And I know what I make is a tiny bit compared to some others.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

ellecasey said:


> I've made about $120 so far this month. Keep it up! Eventually, it adds up. And I know what I make is a tiny bit compared to some others.


Hey Elle, do you notice you make more at the .co.uk site over the .com? I do, but my sales are way higher at .com I thought it strange that americans are buying through "clean" links. But then I thought maybe they're more paranoid than me and strip tags?


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## 54706 (Dec 19, 2011)

markecooper said:


> Hey Elle, do you notice you make more at the .co.uk site over the .com? I do, but my sales are way higher at .com I thought it strange that americans are buying through "clean" links. But then I thought maybe they're more paranoid than me and strip tags?


I make waaaay more money through my US links. I have an affiliate account at all the European Amazons, but no far I've just made pennies. But that makes sense because I sell about 15% of the books in the UK that I do in the US and a much smaller percentage in FR, ES, IT, and DE. So that tells me I just don't have many foreign fans, so not many foreign clicks.


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## Lydniz (May 2, 2013)

Amazon.com turned me down for an affiliate account   although the UK site didn't. Perhaps they're easier to please.


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## Sarah Stimson (Oct 9, 2013)

That's so weird Lydniz - I got appproved last week for .com, .co.uk, .de, .es, .fr and .it

Is it worth speaking to Amazon about it?


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## Lydniz (May 2, 2013)

Not really. They were polite about it, but the underlying message was "Your website is crap and we won't make any money out of you." Which is perfectly true. I'll apply again once I've got a bit more content on my site.


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## Sarah Stimson (Oct 9, 2013)

Bah humbug to them.  Surely *any* money they could make is better than *no* money?  I don't really understand why they don't just let anyone have an affiliate account to be honest!


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## 68564 (Mar 17, 2013)

I only ever registered for .com - wonder if I am missing out. I hate having more and more accounts to track so I have avoided it...


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## Christa Wick (Nov 1, 2012)

VydorScope said:


> I only ever registered for .com - wonder if I am missing out. I hate having more and more accounts to track so I have avoided it...


Best as I can tell, you have to have an EU bank to get a UK affiliate account? I know I started the process and got hung up on something -- or maybe you can only get direct deposit and otherwise have to do a check, which is really hard to cash and takes up most of what you earn to cash it.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

VydorScope said:


> I only ever registered for .com - wonder if I am missing out. I hate having more and more accounts to track so I have avoided it...


I would say you are missing out on the UK but not the rest. I sell in 1s and 2s in all the other amazons so only affiliate to US and UK. I do wonder about Barnes and Apple though. I sell a lot there. I really should see if they have affiliate programs


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

O h dear God, I just applied to the apple affiliate program and the Barnes affiliate program. Both use outsourced companies. Dear God in heaven, you have no idea how GREAT Amazon affiliates program is until trying to decode WTF to do on those other programs.


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## Saul Tanpepper (Feb 16, 2012)

markecooper said:


> O h dear God, I just applied to the apple affiliate program and the Barnes affiliate program. Both use outsourced companies. Dear God in heaven, you have no idea how GREAT Amazon affiliates program is until trying to decode WTF to do on those other programs.


Apple just removed itself from LinkShare, which is what B&N and Kobo use, but the hoops you have to jump through suck big time. I typically make a few dollars with that account each month-- nowehere near as much as with Amazon. B&N didn't used to grant royalties on ebooks, but I think this has changed. If not, you can request ebooks be added. I still haven't bothered to sign up for a new iTunes new affiliate account. Besides Amazon, LinkShare, and Apple, there are a bunch of other affiliate services, and folks should be signing up for these, especially if you focus on a niche market/vendor.

It never ceases to amaze me how many book bloggers and review sites aren't even Amazon affiliates. That's a bunch of money they're losing out on.


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