Earnings payments this month, June 2020.

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   Will Apseposted 4 years ago

   What will happen if the Amazon affiliate earnings remain unresolved?
   
   Will we only be paid the earnings from the HP ad program?
   
   Will HP estimate our Amazon earnings and make a payment on that basis too? Given that we can do nothing about the Amazon problem ourselves, I think it is reasonable to expect HP to do what it can to keep much needed revenue flowing to writers.

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      NateB11posted 4 years agoin reply to this

      Been wondering what's going to happen with Amazon earnings too.

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      Robie Benveposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I get several amazon sales every week and I bet a lot of us do. I'd really like to know what's happening, if they are not going to be remunerative for us we should delete them all. There is no sense that we keep sending them referrals.
      I really hope the program resumes though.

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      JerryFisherposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      Will if HP can't solve it then it would only seem fair that we are allowed to put our own Amazon link in.

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      peachpurpleposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I don't depend my earnings on amazon because it had been down and out for months. Just rely on hubpages program instead.

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   lobobrandonposted 4 years ago

   Amazon earnings from May are paid out in July. They have a two-month delay. But, it does not seem like the problem would be resolved by then either, so let's see if the staff have anything new to say.

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      Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      Amazon slashed rates on April 21 so that is a good chunk of the month that was probably affected.

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      robhamptonposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I have a feeling that this may be one of the "new and exciting changes" No more Amazon affiliate program like when the eBay program ended years ago. Might be new, but not really exciting. The staffs lack of communication and transparency has been pathetic on this. All I know is that the links in my articles are making Amazon some money (perhaps Hubpages as well, who knows since we're completely in the dark on this) So wtf is going on?

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         OldRosesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         I don't think that it's fair to blame the staff for lack of communication and transparency.  They are always very helpful and very quick to answer questions.  I'm sure that the decision to keep us all in the dark is above their paygrade.

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            Solarasposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            We are not blaming Samantha or Matt Wells. We do have a legitimate bone to pick with those that knows, but won't say. We deserve some sort of answer, even if it is "here is the situation and we are not sure yet what the outcome will be." But telling us that Amazon has goofed-up is a stiff arm.
            
            People need to plan accordingly, and not based on hopes and dreams.  If no money will be coming in arrears for April, people need to know that. If commission rates will be halved, we need to know that too.

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               OldRosesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               I don't mean to be argumentative, but they have already told us that.  How many times do they need to say it?  I'm sure that when there is news to report, they will tell us.

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                  Solarasposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                  I don't mean to be argumentative, but it has been over 6 weeks without an answer to: what is our new commission rate?
                  
                  Is the Amazon program going to continue on Maven?
                  
                  Are Maven and HP considering another affiliate program?
                  
                  Will we be paid anything for Amazon for the month of May?
                  
                  What sort of a problem is it that no one seems to be able to rectify?
                  
                  What has Amazon promised to do and in what time frame to correct this so called data problem?
                  
                  Given how difficult HP Staff have made it to ad Amazon links and capsules over the last several years, would they like us to just delete all links to Amazon?

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                  Sherry Hewinsposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                  I agree. They've said all they are going to say until they are good and ready. I understand the frustration, but no amount of asking or complaining is going to change the situation.

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                     Marisa Writesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                     Unfortunately, HubPages doesn't see us writers as we see ourselves.  We see ourselves as a vital part of the HubPages team.  After all, without us, HubPages would be nothing - so surely, we deserve to be kept fully informed?
                     
                     HubPages doesn't see us that way.  We;re just the hacks who provide the fodder for the site. They're hoping most of us won't even notice what's happening with Amazon - you'll notice they haven't posted an Official Announcement or a blog post about it.   The ONLY news we've had is a couple of "we're working on it" posts by Matt in a forum thread.
                     
                     When there's a crisis, the writers get treated like mushrooms. It's been like that since 2011, so get used to it, I'm afraid.

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                     Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

                     If this drags on for months (and covid issues could drag on for months) Maven needs to start thinking about how writers here are going to be treated.

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            Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            Nobody coming to these forums can find an official thread about this issue or even any responses staff have made without wading through a dozen or more threads.
            
            That is poor communication.
            
            Even if the reality is "we don't know what is happening" writers have a right to hear that.
            
            Also, if we persecute staff (at a modest level) they might be motivated to find out what they can.

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               Marisa Writesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               I don't think posting on the forums constitutes persecuting staff, since I'm beginning to suspect they don't monitor the forums much.

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            JerryFisherposted 4 years agoin reply to this

            They have not been quick or very helpful on this one.

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   Solarasposted 4 years ago

   I did come across this:
   
   "Publisher direct programs temporarily halted due to COVID-19
   The Information reported last week that Walmart and Amazon suspended direct ecommerce deals (i.e. affiliate marketing) with digital media companies including BuzzFeed, Vox and Vice.
   
   However, Amazon is only suspending publisher-direct programs because of how strained it is by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to two publisher execs and two sources at affiliate vendors. With so many products zipping out of stock and the added complications of nonessentials not being shipped right now, Amazon is temporarily halting its ecommerce deals with other publishers.
   
   By contrast, the removal of third-party affiliate vendors is a true policy change, not just a health crisis response. According to one affiliate network exec who said he was warned of the change, Amazon has planned to remove third-party affiliate networks since before February."
   
   https://www.adexchanger.com/ecommerce-2 … e-program/

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      Sherry Hewinsposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      Whether temporary or permanent, are sales still being made from these links, and Amazon is just pocketing the money? It seems to me that Amazon is probably making a bundle during the pandemic. People can't go out to shop, so they shop online. I know that my Amazon sales were great during the lock-down, until they pulled the plug.

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         Solarasposted 4 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, I believe that Amazon is an ugly corporate citizen, using the pandemic as an excuse to further line their pockets. They don't pay commissions until 60 days after items ship; there should be no problem for them to keep track of orders, when they ship and schedule commission payments. It would appear that the idea is to just not pay their biggest publishers for 2-4+ months.
         
         Jeff Bezos personally has made an additional $24 billion thanks to Covid 19 by the end of May 2020.  I suppose the attitude is, people would have bought everything from us anyway, so why should we pay commissions for what would inevitably been our sale.
         
         Covid 19 has become the cover story for a lot of abuse and ineptitude.

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            DrMark1961posted 4 years agoin reply to this

            I think a lot of us are very tired of hearing that excuse. Amazon is the corporate world at its worst. I am certainly willing to go back through all of my articles and delete my Amazon refereces--I would change them to "this product is usually available at your local pet store".

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               Solarasposted 4 years agoin reply to this

               lol - I will tell you this though.  Petsmart has a new, buy online and pickup at the store feature.  A puppy chew deterrent spray online costs $6.99. I went in because I thought I wanted to get another one of them. Shelf price for the same item $19.99.  sick.

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   Solarasposted 4 years ago

   From other things I have read, Amazon is seeking to eliminate the 24 hour cookie, and only pay commissions for the individual item clicked on. So, if they click on "Tasty Nutri Tablets 60 mg" and then buy 100mg, Amazon may say, "No commission for you"
   
   That would make a tremendous change in Amazon earning potential combined with lower commission rates. 
   
   Maven should consider adding a few of the bigger affiliate programs that go directly to manufacturer websites.  There are a few companies that manage these direct affiliate programs for hundreds of websites and they pay better commission rates than Amazon.  It would be good for the economy as a whole; Amazon has too big of a market share; we should be helping feed the smaller fish.

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   Will Apseposted 4 years ago

   Repeating my request for interim Amazon payments...
   
   We all signed up for the HP Amazon program, mostly after having our own Amazon accounts, on the basis that HP would pay us what was owed.
   
   As far as I am concerned both Amazon and HP have some kind of responsibility.  One or both messed up, not us

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   PaulGoodman67posted 4 years ago

   It's very frustrating. Amazon income makes up a significant part of my earnings. I've had similar issues with dentistry over the COVID lockdown period. Months without treatment. Finally got an appointment next week. Haha! I hope the Amazon thing can be resolved soon.

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      Will Apseposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      This whole issue is like unanesthetized tooth pulling, lol.
      
      Amazon really are making extra billions but they cannot pay someone to look for our data?

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         PaulGoodman67posted 4 years agoin reply to this

         Apparently not.

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   Kenna McHughposted 4 years ago

   This Amazon SNAFU is affecting a lot of lives. All due respect, Matt at HP has not been successful in handling this issue. I would like to know how much effort Matt has put into this issue. What has he done so far, sent an email? Talked to them on the phone?  Does he call them every day? Has anyone else reached out to Amazon? Let's get someone you CAN HANDLE this issue—enough, already.

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      Marisa Writesposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      I very much doubt Matt is the man handling the issue.  He is just the man whose job it is to keep an eye on the forums.
      
      As I said before, when there have been major crises in the past, HubPages has been known to behave like this, leaving their writers in the dark. Whether that's deliberate because the negotiations are business-sensitive, or whether it's just that we get forgotten because they're too busy putting out fires, I don't know.

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   bdegiulioposted 4 years ago

   Check your earnings, looks like the Amazon $$ have been posted.

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      Sherry Hewinsposted 4 years agoin reply to this

      Hallelujah! Thanks.

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