Amazon

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   theraggededgeposted 4 years ago

   37 cents in six days! At this time of year? That's got to be a glitch, right?
   
   I have sales just about every day, even though the amounts have fallen off a cliff over the last year. But five of the last six days are $0.00.

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      samanthacubbisonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      @theraggededge, I just took a look and there isn't anything wrong with your Amazon set up. There is also no glitch that I am aware of. It may just be a slow week!

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         theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks for looking, Samantha.
         
         On the 1st, there were two sales, on the 2nd there were three. Then it stopped. It's very strange - a run of six days with nothing, apart from that 37c. Out of eight days this month, five have had zero sales.
         
         During the same period last year (1st - 8th Dec), there were 38 items ordered; this month, six.

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            samanthacubbisonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            I'm sure it's frustrating, but I'm sure it'll make a comeback!

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            Marketing Meritposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            I would do as Em Clark suggested Bev. My topics don’t typically lend themselves to Amazon items, so I don’t make any significant sales. However, I do make regular, small sales on one of my hubs. When these dried up, I checked the link only to discover that the item had been removed. Not sure if Amazon had changed the product code, but when I selected an alternative item, the sales returned.
            
            Difficult for me to comment on whether it’s been a slow week for Amazon sales on HP. My personal websites are still doing well for this, but not as great as usual for the time of year.
            
            Good luck with this.

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               theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               I'm the same, I don't add Amazon to all my articles, maybe 1 in 3. I checked a few of my higher traffic ones and they look okay.
               
               I'll go through some more later.
               
               I am getting sales through my website too. It's never a huge amount but steady.
               
               At the peak, I was getting almost $300 per month from Amazon. Then something changed when we switched to the new method of calculation and it slipped to about $50 - $70. That was made up by higher ad earnings, so it didn't matter too much. But this month - well...

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2. 83

   FatFreddysCatposted 4 years ago

   I officially gave up on Amazon earlier this year. Now that most people stream music and movies (the two things I write most about) it was no longer worth the trouble putting Amazon links to physical copies in my articles/reviews.

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3. 87

   Em Clarkposted 4 years ago

   Did you check to see if the links that you normally make sales off from are working correctly?

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      theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      No. Good idea. I'll go through my articles.

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4. 0

   Beth Eaglescliffeposted 4 years ago

   Have you checked for returns? I've had a lot of minus amounts (which have cancelled out sales) after a bumper Black Friday week.

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   1. 89

      theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      No returns. Just zeros

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5. 100

   DrMark1961posted 4 years ago

   I just checked mine after I saw this post. All is normal.
   I would try to contact the team about this but I am not sure if they are going to be able to help in a timely manner.

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6. 92

   Rochelle Frankposted 4 years ago

   My Amazon sales have been on the high side this week. Usually Amazon accounts for at least half of my earnings, and usually more.

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7. 94

   Kenna McHughposted 4 years ago

   Steady as she goes, no complaints here.

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8. 90

   Will Apseposted 4 years ago

   I used to make thousands of dollars in November and December. I have a feeling those days are gone unless something changes radically.

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   1. 89

      theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I wonder what it is though? It's not like we're not getting the traffic, okay maybe a little less but people are still shopping online, right?
      
      I found when I switched to inline links that sales increased. Maybe readers are wary of them now?

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      1. 92

         EricDockettposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         Your traffic is still okay compared to last year? You seem to have a lot of articles on Exemplore. I have an account with almost entirely Exemplore articles and traffic has gone off a cliff in the past year. I write about different topics than you, but I thought the whole site took a dive.
         
         As for the text links, I know people say they convert better but that hasn't been my experience at all.
         
         I don't want to complain about HubPages. On the whole they do an excellent job and I am doing fine. But some of the changes they have made over the past couple of years have really hurt the Amazon program. Calling those out probably wouldn't be productive.

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            theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            Yes, traffic increased on last year, Although not really an accurate reflection as I have more articles.
            
            Exemplore usually does well for me with Amazon - just via a few links though - mostly books, tarot decks, etc.
            
            HP Ad earnings still pretty good, not as high as last year but good enough.
            
            I'll see what happens over the next week or so.

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      2. 78

         lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         How did you do for November? There were some big updates in November and it is possible that your traffic stats are the same but the people visiting your articles are of a different lot, not the kind searching to buy something, but just looking for information instead. These people would not click through to Amazon.
         
         Compare your traffic stats, clicks and sales. Don't just look at sales.
         
         About the differences between the old method of Amazon calculations and the new, it makes absolutely no difference as was explained by the staff, some others and me almost a year ago? If something changed, it was your traffic because statistically, the change to the new method would result in exactly the same payments. But for this new change, you need to look at other stats too, something on the lines of what I said in the previous paragraph of this message.

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         1. 89

            theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            Last month Amazon sales numbered 58 but revenue down - all mostly small items.
            
            Regarding the calculation... I know it didn't make a difference but it coincided with a massive drop and never recovered; from a couple hundred dollars pm to $50 - 80 pm. That is now the norm. That's why I was concerned about the miserable three sales over the last 8 days.
            
            Maybe it will recover

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               chef-de-jourposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               Some useful help in the comments here for you Bev, hope it works out. Could be part of a natural downturn or ....just thinking off the top of my head... close rivals are ranking higher? Plagiarist site? Have you altered crucial text or anything in your articles?

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               1. 89

                  theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                  Yes, good stuff here.
                  
                  My higher  traffic articles tend to rank in the top five for their titles and key phrases, so I don't think it's competition.
                  
                  I really thought it was a glitch because it's so unusual not to get any sales... and it happened so suddenly from the 3rd Dec. All doddling along, more or less as usual; two or three sales per day, and then, zilch. For six days. It's very unusual to see one day with nothing, but six is weird.
                  
                  Anyway, onward and upward. Thanks for your input, folks.

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               lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               Yeah, it did coincide with one of the big G updates if I recall. With the new system, HP makes exactly 40% of what you make and that would still be a total of just (at 80 a month) 112 a month. For it to have been the same it would be HP getting 0 from their 40% share.
               
               The recent update was also a major one and there have been a lot of people on FB groups who have complained of similar or increased traffic numbers but drops in commissions. The few that have dug deeper found out that they lost rankings for buying terms and gained in other key phrases. This is why I believe that access to data from Google Search Console would be very very helpful to us.
               
               My personal sites has increased in traffic 60% month on month after this recent update and 600% year on year but commissions are just 10% more than they were last year for November. I could argue that they are actually lower because I have added pages.
               
               There are no new adblock or others that block text based links, none that I know of. It's therefore not just people not clicking due to them not seeing the links. Also, it's definitely not a change in behavior as such drastic changes in human behavior on a wide scale is less likely than a change in Google rankings considering the time frame. If it's a Google algo change that did this it is very likely that they will recover soon, so I do hope that this was algorithm related and nothing else.
               
               P.S: There's a guy I follow who is very good at SEO and data analysis Glenn Allsopp who has analyzed around 50 sites that were positively and negatively affected by the Nov 2019 update, my site is one of them and he would be releasing his statistics based results to a closed group sometime in the next 2 days. If there's anything that stands out that is applicable to HP and the niche sites, I'll drop some info on the forums.
               
               Let's see if there are any others who have high Amazon numbers on HP who chip in to this conversation.

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      EricFarmer8xposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      You really had such success on Hubpages?! I know some people make that kind of income as Amazon Associates on their own websites.

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9. 78

   lobobrandonposted 4 years ago

   All seems normal on my account, but I don't make much just a few dollars in December. Already surpassed last December, enough for a coffee. Summer is when I can get a coffee machine instead of just a cup.

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10. 85

    Robie Benveposted 4 years ago

    My amazon sales increased this month, surprisingly. I had a few returns causing negative daily balances but in general it has been good, no complains. Actually, I'd like to know what I've done right to create the increase... is there a way to see which articles/links create the sales?

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    1. 78

       lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       Unfortunately, no. There's no way to determine which articles brought you the sale.

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          DrMark1961posted 4 years agoin reply to this

          I can tell a lot of times because the product sold is something I discussed in one article. (A type of shampoo, for example.) For Robie, she might find that a pallet that she uses and describes in one article sold, so that might tell here where it was sold from.
          The other day someone bought an oak TV console from one of my hubs. I have no idea where THAT cam from!!!!

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             lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

             Obviously from your article on composting dog waste. The person reading it said "damn, that's neat". I'm sure there are documentaries just like this article that cover cool stuff on TV.
             
             Oh, I don't have a TV, I watch everything on Netflix on my computer and their documentaries are mostly history-based. I need a TV, but first, a console to place it on. Let's see now... what should I get? Aha, an Oak TV console, just what I need. It's also compostable once I'm done with it.

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                DrMark1961posted 4 years agoin reply to this

                Actually I think the guy was thinking "I want to buy this oak tv console. It looks like a piece of s*** and as soon as it arrives I can dump it in the dog compost."
                (When I saw how much my Amazon earnings were for the day I had to go look at it. Thank goodness I do not have to buy furniture from Amazon or their partner-in-crime, Ikea.)

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                   lobobrandonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                   Hahaha.

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             Robie Benveposted 4 years agoin reply to this

             Thanks DrMark, sometimes I can guess which articles generated sales, but 1. most of the times they are just painting supplies different from those that I have listed. 2. I have the same brush set in two or three articles. Then I get the random electric neck warmer, guitar picks, camping knife and all kinds of oddities that who knows where they come from...  like your oak tv console. ahah

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11. 0

    Beth Eaglescliffeposted 4 years ago

    This has been my best season ever in terms of number of sales. However, Amazon has reduced the commission rate on more categories to 4% instead of 10% so I need more sales to achieve the same earnings.

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12. 96

    PaulGoodman67posted 4 years ago

    Like some others, I used to have an Amazon windfall at this time of year, but that is no longer the case. The factors, as far as I can see are:
    
    1.Amazon reduced its percentages quite drastically.
    2. Google algo changes keep reducing traffic to Amazon-orientated hubs. You really want to be number one in the SERPS as that's when people really click, so even if your traffic may not look that bad, the drop in ranking is really bad.
    3. Reduction in links and less prominent links, due to HP "snipping" and self-editing - this is linked to #2.
    4. It seems much harder to get sales in particularly lucrative products nowadays, likely due to #2. What clicks I do get now tends to be for cheaper, more obscure items.
    
    I don't have much hope of the old days returning. I've been focusing on HP Ads, but that can be equally frustrating, for other reasons!

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13. 89

    theraggededgeposted 4 years ago

    And today (or for yesterday, rather) three sales and $6 Thank goodness for HP ads, which have cheered me up

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    1. 96

       PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

       The Amazon I am earning on my best days in the run up to Christmas nowadays is about the same as what I was regularly earning on my worst days in mid-summer a few years back. The sad thing is that whenever I think it's bottomed out, it then seems to get worse. I dread to think what earnings will be like once Xmas is over.

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    k7nshiroposted 4 years ago

    good men

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    1. 89

       theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       Hmm... 'Haytham'. That rings a bell
       
       Been here before, haven't you?

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15. 89

    theraggededgeposted 4 years ago

    Anyway... my Amazon has returned. Yay. Who knew there were bath salts costing $88?

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       samanthacubbisonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

       Those are organic, free-range bath salts. Farm to table. "Premium" quality.

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          theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

          They should consist of gold dust at that price! Aw... imagine getting out of the bath with sprinklings of gold dust stuck to your bits

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             samanthacubbisonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

             That's basically describing anything at LUSH. (So much glitter!) Also, there's an ice cream that costs $1,000 because it's coated in 23 k gold.

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                theraggededgeposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                LOL... Here in Wales it'd be coal dust.

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16. 94

    Kenna McHughposted 4 years ago

    Yes! I've been an Associate for a long time.

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17. 90

    Will Apseposted 4 years ago

    When a site slips in authority, anyone writing in highly competitive niches will suffer.
    
    If someone is covering a topic where there is very little competition, a slip in authority probably does not impact their traffic much at all.
    
    That would explain why some people are doing OK and others are not.
    
    Amazon-orientated pages are always going to be fighting a storm of competition, because of the money involved.

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       PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

       That's true.

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          Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

          And it is the site that needs the authority. There is nothing much you can do onpage, sadly.

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             PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

             Yes, I agree. And if the ratings on Ubersuggest are accurate in any way, then the individual niche sites vary quite a bit in their perceived authority (which is partly why hubbers have varied experiences during algo updates) and the authority ratings can go up and down. The Owlcation down turn, for example, was a result of diminished site authority, that's my understanding.

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                Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                Had a quick look at owlcation, Within 2 minutes found this page:
                
                https://owlcation.com/social-sciences/P … al-Murder#
                
                The page has no place on olwcation. It belongs in a corner for pseudoscience and quackery. Or a corner for bad SEO practices.
                
                If you check the 4 links on the page, they are all self-serving. They point to the guys blog, his book for sale and 2 of his other pages on other niche sites. Interlinking the niche sites will look blackhat to a self-respecting search engine.
                
                As to the content... There is absolutely no evidence presented to support any of his assertions. The term "narcopathic" seems to be entirely made up and is not defined.
                
                Looking at another of the guys' pages (on remedygrove):
                
                https://remedygrove.com/bodywork/The-In … f-Crystals
                
                Quote:
                
                "Another credible scientist who carried out plenty of research on crystals and who has also confirmed and corroborated the conclusions of the above researchers is the late Dr Masaru Emoto"
                
                Emoto studied Foreign Relations at university before deciding that human consciousness effects water molecules. Not surprisingly Wikipedia describes him  as a pseudoscientist.
                
                Okay, with Remedygrove you are in the land of "if you say so" but straightforward lies are not acceptable, surely?

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                   PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

                   I know you say Google is all about automatic assessment of stats, and I don't disagree. It's difficult for machines to assess content, so instead they tend to measure to the readers' reaction, I get that. But I do still think that if the quality of the content is bad it will bring down the site in the long run. The search engines have got much better at assessing the "trustworthiness" of sites.
                   
                   I ended up getting kicked off Mechanical Turk assessment of new hubs some years back, as I couldn't help but mark down articles where I knew the content was really bad, even if the style, arrangement etc. were great. Without wanting to sound like a pr*ck, I do think it somewhat ironic that I have articles on the front page of several niches, but ended up deemed unworthy of assessing new hubs.

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                      Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                      Regarding the owlcation page that I pointed out...
                      
                      Search engines can assess categories pretty well. An education site does not need mental health articles.
                      
                      Health is a YMYL subject and Google reacts especially strongly to poor signals from health articles.
                      
                      Search engines can also detect self-serving links and gateway pages.
                      
                      As to the quality of the page...
                      
                      The guy is clearly not qualified in the subject area and he is too lazy to find some research or opinion from anyone who is qualified, to back up  his claims.
                      
                      Can Google detect this? I am sure Google would love to demote unqualified authors. There are signals an algo could use if someone cared to write the code. If it hasn't already been done, it will be on the wish list.
                      
                      Of course, at some point AI will sweep away all these considerations. It will simply answer your questions in a style that you like. Truthful, conspiracy-minded, depressive, highfalutin, imbecilic (might need to call that "unchallenging"), etc, etc, will all be available.
                      
                      Sorry to hear about your mechanical Turk experience, by the way. I am sure a major pharmaceutical is developing a conscience shrinking drug somewhere in the world. In the meantime, power, having its brazen way with you, is going to be uncomfortable.

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                         PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

                         Our lives are increasingly dominated by algorithms. From what we see on Facebook and other social media sites, to booking tickets and buying online. HP therefore makes a great training ground for modern life! I believe that the Mechanical Turk assessment measures a persons performance by comparing it with how the majority behaves. I was clearly too eccentric!

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