Amazon associates...success or waste of time?

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   Rickrideshorsesposted 13 years ago

   Hi,
   Since starting Hubpages I've had no success at all with the Amazon affiliates program. This is in direct contrast with Google Adsense which I've had a few pay outs with.
   
   What are other peoples experiences with Amazon? Do you get many clicks and how many of those translate into sales?
   
   I'm starting to think that it might be of any use putting Amazon capsules in my hubs. Though I could see how they might be more popular with things like book, film and music reviews about the specific product.

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      Greekgeekposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Amazon Associates can pay well, but it's always a little harder to get "coincidental" sales -- people who come to your page to read about your topic, then happen to see an Amazon ad and like what's there enough to buy it -- rather than "direct" sales, where you've written a product review and so have attracted exactly the kinds of visitors most likely to buy it.
      
      This doesn't mean you can't get "coincidental" sales, you just have to be a bit more rigorous in selection of product (what will the readership of this article be most keen to buy? Don't go for the most expensive item; try to think of an item they may buy often or -- better -- not too expensive, but might be fun?). The description is essential; you have to cram a commercial... something we all HATE... into 2-3 lines, by telling what it is and making clear its benefits (what's it in for your particular audience...why should they care or want it?)  Select items with intriguing-looking thumbnails that begged to be clicked on, and check the customer reviews on the product page to make sure there aren't a bunch of "this product is awful and it made my horse break out in pink spots" complaints.
      
      I say this based on experience elsewhere, mind you; I'm waiting for my first sale here since I started over with a new set of Hubs in September. But that's how it works on my blog and other article publishing sites.

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   EmpressFelicityposted 13 years ago

   Before Panda, I was just starting to get going with Amazon. In fact, if it hadn't been for Panda I think I would now be doing far better with Amazon than with HP ads/Adsense.
   
   Even after the first incarnation of Panda I still managed a small trickle of Amazon income every month but this has decreased even further since my second, sales-oriented account lost almost all its traffic overnight back in August this year. I have started to take down my hubs from this account and will either put them on Squidoo or one of my own sites.
   
   PS: I've sold almost no books at all on Amazon. The clicks and sales come from people who are looking for specific products.

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      Rickrideshorsesposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Right, that's led to more questions!!! What's Panda? Most of my hubs are informational so I suppose I haven't really noticed too much of a drop.
      
      Though now you mention it, there are a number of informational hubs I slapped Amazon capsules in that HAVE dropped and I wondered why.

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         EmpressFelicityposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         An algorithm change that Google made to its search engine. They keep releasing new versions of this algorithm (Panda 2.1, 2.2 etc.), which probably accounts for why people here (myself included) have experienced vast plunges in their viewing figures on specific dates. 
         
         If you believe Google, Panda is supposed to make searches give better quality results. Does it heck! If anything, the quality has gone down since the first version of Panda was launched in February.

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            klanguedocposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Panda is an algorithm based on Artificial Intelligence, so it is continuously learning and adapting to better understand what "good" content is. It is always shifting.

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   Marye Audetposted 13 years ago

   Amazon contributes about 10-20% of my hub income. I think it is worth it.. Mke sure that you choose items that are closely related to your hub article; items that your readers might need to buy after reading your article. For example, one of my top articles is about how to make doughnuts. In the amazon capsule I have electronic deep fryers, frying thermometers, sprinkles for decorating, and more recipe books about donuts. I usually sell 5 or so deep fryers a month off of that article.
   Placing the Amazon capsule to the side of my articles works well for me, too. Just use different techniques until you get something that works and then keep doing it... good luck

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      klanguedocposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Do some kind of products sell better than others?

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         Marye Audetposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Not really. I add [products to my articles that are very specific to the article and they do fine. I don't tend to write reviews of products either...

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         Marye Audetposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Not really. I add [products to my articles that are very specific to the article and they do fine. I don't tend to write reviews of products either...

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   klanguedocposted 13 years ago

   I have had little success with both of them

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5. 59

   paradigmsearchposted 13 years ago

   Amazon was a total bust for me last time. I'm still mulling over if I should even bother signing up again.

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   Dale Mazurekposted 13 years ago

   If you just build hubs and put Amazon capsules you wont do so well.  If you build hubs directed specifically at Amazon products and do the proper key word stuff you will do much better with Amazon.
   
   I do not build Amazon specif hubs but I do okay with Amazon.  I know I could do better but I have my focus on a few other things.
   
   Dale

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7. 86

   Stacie Lposted 13 years ago

   Amazon sales are hit or miss for me..some months are great and other s are a total bust...

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   sparksterposted 13 years ago

   I've had a little bit of luck with Amazon Associates. I probably get a sale for about every 50 clicks but the commission isn't so great.  Selling $65 worth of Amazon products makes about $2.60.

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   David 470posted 13 years ago

   What months do Amazon pay? I never filled out the information to get paid, so they could not pay me yet.

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      seamistposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Amazon pays around the 26th to 28th of each month as long as you make payout. For those who have their checks direct deposited, I believe payout is as little as $10.

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         seamistposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Amazon is also two months behind in paying. For instance, if you make $50 this month, you won't recieve the check for that until December.

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    seamistposted 13 years ago

    Actually, if you can get the traffic to your hubs or websites, I think it is easier to make money with Amazon. Furthermore, with Amazon, you don't have to worry about someone click bombing you like with Adsense. The key to making money with Amazon is use keywords targeted to a specific product. The more targeted the keyword people are using, the more likely they are at the buying point rather than the tire kicking stage. For instance, if you use a broad based keyword compared to a brand name + model #, it's more likely you will get a sale from the brand name + model # because they have already partially made their decision and are just looking for information to confirm they've made the right decision. Secondly, since Amazon has a commisssion structure, you want to have the majority of your articles for higher priced items. However, since commissions are also based how many sales you've made, you'll want to have a popular, lower priced item too to raise the number of sales. If you're interested, I wrote a hub on how to promote Amazon which has a lot of helpful tips.

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    trich36posted 13 years ago

    hey man i need some help with the google adsense. i got denied for it for some reason... can you help me out?

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       wordscribe43posted 13 years agoin reply to this

       You need to have more than one hub.  I'd write quite a few high quality, well written and informative hubs before trying again. 
       
       To answer the OP's question, for me Amazon is lucrative.  But, just slapping on some capsules willy-nilly isn't the way to go.  The products must be tightly related to what you're writing.  Or, you need to do product reviews, imho.  I make wayyyy more with Amazon than Adsense, personally.  I also have two Amazon affiliate sites, though.

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    Cyber Scribeposted 13 years ago

    Amazon accounts for 3/4 of my total income from writing, but very little of that comes from Amazon capsules on HubPages. I advertise Amazon in other places.
    
    The beauty of Amazon is that you can advertise a book and they will click on the link and buy something else. The minus is that they have to buy within 24 hours.
    
    Some people get more money from Google, some from Amazon, some from other sources. For me, it's Amazon.

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    Rosie2010posted 13 years ago

    I set my Amazon payout at $100, so it's taking me a long time to reach payout threshold.  I joined HP in November 2010, and I registered with Amazon around the same time.  I had a few sales totaling about $50 in earnings until June 2011, when it just stopped.. June and July zero sales!  It was depressing!  Then sometime in August I got three sales. Yippee! I earned $3.15.  And last month (September) I earned more than $20.. I was so thrilled!  I might just reach my Amazon payout by the end of October (fingers crossed!).
    
    I have a few product hubs that are starting to make money for me.  I only add Amazon products to my non-sales hubs that are relevant to the topic.. such as movie reviews - dvds and/or books, health and diet topics - books, exercise gears.  I get a few sales from non-product hubs, but not much.  But a few cents add up.
    
    I earn more on HubAds and Adsense, but the few dollars I earn from Amazon is a nice bonus.

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