Top 10 Ways to Earn Money With Amazon Associates + A Little R & R Wednesdays - a linky party #47

Last month I shared about how you can earn money with ads on your blog. I alluded to Amazon and received quite a few comments from my readers about how hard it is to earn money with Amazon. I totally understand that. I have not earned much myself to-date.

So, I began to research, and found out that there is so much more that I could and should be doing to maximize my Amazon potential! A simple ad on your sidebar wont cut it. In fact, it may earn you a big, fat $0.00!!



1. Recipes - Do you feature recipes? Link to odd ingredients, like coconut oil, specialty noodles, or quality cookware.  Did you know that there are people who purchase their groceries from Amazon? Yes, its true! In your recipe, you can feature a special ingredient and share its benefits or why you use it.

2. Roundup posts - These are super popular right now. Find a topic that your readership is interested in and do a roundup. Seriously, the sky is the limit here: from holidays and home school materials, to baby gear and inexpensive chic jewelry.

3. Deals, deals, deals - What is your niche or readership? Find deals on items and then blog about them.

4. Best Seller lists, Review lists, Top 10s- These are like roundup posts, but better. With review lists, you can even link to other bloggers' reviews and get more attention! You can read more about how to make these work for you in this post: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money with the Amazon Affiliate Program

5. Holidays- Take advantage of holidays. Do round ups, top 10's, best seller lists, "ultimate resource" articles and link, link, link! You can feature a special item you have that you love. And don't forget food!  Do you have a secret ingredient to share, blog about it. Feature it!

6. Your own Reviews - Do you have a favorite product? Kitchen gadget, yard tool, baby item, camera, printer, computer program...(really the sky is the limit here). Review it on your blog and link to it.

7. Product comparisons - Take your favorite product and compare it with other similar products and link to both!

8. Diversify - Use both links and images in your posts (more on that below. Better yet, don't use Amazon's images. Take a picture of yourself (or your uber-cute kid) with the product and link your image with your affiliate code!

9. Store - Create an Amazon store. Just like the Amazon ads you use in your sidebar, the store alone will do nothing for you. But diversification is key. A little here, a little there, and you have yourself a nice income.

10. Buy now button - At the bottom of your review posts, use a "Buy now" button. Such a small thing can make a big difference!

There are a few things to remember as an Amazon Affiliate, though:
1. Use lots and lots of links! In doing my research, those who made a lot of money were very liberal with linkage. They will repeatedly link to the same item throughout the article. But don't just use links in your text, use images. You can use both Amazon's images and your own. 

2. You make a commission on whatever the person buys. This is beautiful, folks! Say your reader clicks on your link, they visit the product and decide to shop around. You may link to a book, but if they see a DVD they like and buy it, you receive commission on the DVD. Seriously, I have received a commission on in-line skates that I have never promoted. True story!

3. Don't be afraid to promote high-end items. The higher the ticket price, the greater your commission. Don't be afraid to promote these kinds of items. You may not sell as many of them, but one sale could bring you more commission than a bunch of little items.

4. You must build trust and rapport with your readership. Ask yourself: "Why would my readers trust me when I tell them they should buy something?" Do you come across as an expert in your niche? You need to, or this will not work as well for you.

5. Don't just push high-end items. The little sales do add up. And in these economic times, you will not have as many big sales as you will little sales. Keep your demographic in mind

6. Don't be afraid to make a shift in your blog. If you want to monetize your blog and truly earn an income, you will need to do some of the top 10 above; which means you may need to make some adjustments in what you blog about. Remember, sometimes change is good.

7. Don't change too quickly or too often. Sudden or frequent change can cost you valuable readers. Make slow, deliberate adjustments that will last. Guide your readers, don't drive them. If you drive them, you will drive them to someone else.





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Read my introduction to this new series here



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 And now for the party!!!!
Here are the "rules"

1. Link up as many posts as you'd like (even giveaways!)
2. Link up old posts you wish would have received more attention!
3. Link back here by posting my button in your post or sidebar - or with a link
4. Visit the post just before yours

The party runs through next Tuesday evening!
So have FUN!

Click here to receive a weekly reminder about this party!



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