Do you want to tap into the income-earning opportunities that the billion-dollar affiliate marketing industry offers ? According to Statista, affiliate spending in the U.S. will reach $8.2 billion by 2022. This means immense earning opportunities for an affiliate marketers.
The interesting thing about affiliate marketing is the scope for scalability. While a sales person can promote 1 - 2 products from a brand, an affiliate marketer can promote multiple products from different different, even competing, brands and earn commissions from each.
As an affiliate marketer - the money you make and growth you experience is directly proportional to the affiliate marketing program you choose. In our post, 50 Profitable Niches for Affiliate Marketing, we discuss in detail about how you can maximise your online income earning potential by choosing profitable niches and then finding products in those niches from affiliate vendors such as Amazon, Target etc.
To help you get started on this affiliate journey, here is a comparative analysis of Amazon, Target and Walmart affiliate programs – three of the most popular affiliate programs with the best rewards.
Complete Review of Amazon Associates for Beginners
Amazon Associates is one of the largest affiliate programs in the market today. Through Amazon's platform, bloggers, publishers, and content creators can monetize their web traffic and generate income via commissions. Amazon has millions of products that affiliates can share with their audience, via customized links, and divert them for conversions. For every qualifying purchase, affiliates earn money.
Benefits of Amazon Associate Program
Amazon Associates is one of the largest and most popular affiliate programs in the world. Listed below are some of the reasons which help explain why:
Unlimited Product Choices
Regardless of whatever niche you choose to promote, chances are that Amazon already has products pertaining to it. Being the largest e-commerce store in the world, there is an unlimited choice of products to promote. You can sort the products based on product features, pricing, shipping, quality, and other custom aspects. Below is a glimpse of the product categories listed on Amazon. Each of these categories has hundreds of sub-categories and each sub-category has thousands of products from different brands.
Partner with #1 Ecommerce Platform
Amazon is the most popular ecommerce platform globally, with 197 million users per month. To give you a perspective, that is more than the current population of Russia. 89% of these users acknowledge they are more likely to purchase products from Amazon than any other e-commerce site. An average of 4000 products are sold on Amazon every minute. All these statistics solidify Amazon's “ready and rather robust” customer base that affiliates can bank upon when selling affiliated products.
Optimized for Conversion
Another advantage of promoting products from Amazon is the high conversion optimization rate. Products listed on Amazon tend to have higher and faster conversions than any other platform.
Reliability
Amazon's affiliate program is as robust as its product platform. The affiliate policies list all rules and regulations that affiliates have to abide by. It also lays out payout schedules and the commission structure of listed products. Unless there is a breach of any of its affiliate policies, the commissions are paid out on a timely basis.
Excellent Commissions
With Amazon Associates Program, you can earn up to a 10% commission depending on the niche or product category you are marketing.
Click here for a complete list of commissions.
How does the Amazon Associate Program Work?
Registered Affiliate marketers get assigned unique codes for products they want to promote. These product codes can be embedded into blogs, social media and video channels, which customers frequent, to be taken action upon. For example, bloggers can write a review about a product listed on Amazon and then share a link to purchase. The unique code will be linked to this purchase link and if customers end up buying the product, the affiliates get commission. This works similarly with social media marketing where you can promote these products through Facebook Ads and also through YouTube Ads.
Additionally Amazon also provides services to help affiliate marketers in marketing. Some of those tools are as below:
SiteStripe:
Banners:
Product Links:
Product Advertising API:
How do I Earn through Amazon Affiliate Marketing?
As an affiliate marketer, you can earn by promoting Amazon’s products and programs through your website or channel (Social media , YouTube etc). For every qualifying purchase you generate for Amazon, you will earn commission as per their Associates Program Advertising Fee Schedule. The commission percentage varies based on product categories.
Do I Qualify for Amazon Associates Program?
Content creators, publishers and bloggers with a qualifying mobile app or website are eligible to participate in this program. Influencers with a well-established social media following can also participate in the program. To know whether you qualify for Amazon Associates Program, you can check out here.
The process is simple and straightforward. And if anywhere you get stuck, Amazon’s support team is there to provide dedicated support.
How to sign up for the Amazon Associates Program?
Create an Amazon Account
To get started with the sign-up process, you need to first create an Amazon account. Follow this link and provide all relevant details as required to register.
Website and Mobile App List
Provide a list of platforms (website, social media, app) that you would use to promote Amazon products. List down all URLs of your profiles or sites
Profile
Create your store ID and provide few reasons why you will be a good Amazon affiliate, the type of products you want to promote, and to what type of audience
You will also be required to provide information about traffic sources and other monetization methods you use
Verify Personal Information
Next, enter your phone number to verify your identify and have Amazon sending you the authentication code. As you enter the code, the affiliate marketing account will be ready to use
Quick Summary:
- URL: Amazon Associates Program
- Product Range: 350 Million+
- Commission: Up to 10%
- Tracking Cookie Duration: 24 hours
- Fee: Free to get started
We hope this beginners review of Amazon Affiliates will help you determine whether Amazon Associates is a good choice for you.
Complete Review of Target Affiliates for Beginners
Target Affiliates is another affiliate marketing program that helps affiliate marketers with income-earning opportunities.
Founded in 1902 as a brick and mortar store, Target is now the third largest discount retailer in the world. The company is primarily located in the United States where it owns and operates around 1900 stores. Target ventured into online businesses in 1999 and shortly after the target Affiliate program was born. The company's website now lists more than a million products on its online platform and runs one of the successful affiliate programs in the retail space.
Benefits of Target Affiliates Program
Large Selection of Products
Target houses a million + products in varied niches. With such a broad selection, you are bound to find products to promote as an affiliate marketer if your niche is in the any of fields a family friendly store specializes in.
7-day Tracking and Attractive Bonus
In a scenario where Amazon offers 24-hour tracking, Target wins the show with 7-day tracking on all its affiliate links. Thus, your chances of earning a commission from a purchase are higher. Additionally, they also offer bonuses. Affiliate marketers will earn commission on all purchases made during these 7 days and not just the first purchase.
Average Commission Rates
With Target affiliate marketing, you can earn up to 8% commission on popular product categories. While this is not higher than what Amazon offers, but definitely more than average in the industry.
The commission structure is as below. Its important to note that targets affiliate structure gets incrementally high as the sales increase (barring health and beauty which remains at 1%)
Additionally, the below products do not have any commissions so its better to stay clear from promoting these:
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Easy Sign-Up
Even if you have multiple websites or profiles, getting started with Target Affiliates is easy and hassle-free.
How does the Target Affiliates Program Work?
Target Affiliates allows qualifying websites to earn commissions on sales generated via specially-tracked links provided through Impact Radius. When you apply for the affiliate market program via Impact Radius and get approved, you are given the option to place Target.com links through text links, widgets, banners, creative and other tools on your participating website.
When your website visitors get directed to the Target website through these affiliate links, they will be tracked via a 7-day cookie window till they place an order of purchase. When a visitor places an order, it is linked back to your site as a referring source and your affiliate account will be credited a commission for the order. The more number of visitors you refer to Target and who get converted into a paying customer, the more commission you earn.
However, an interesting feature of Target Affiliates is you will get paid every time your referred customer places an order within 7-days of clicking the affiliate link, and not only for the first time.
Who Can Become an Affiliate Marketer for Target
Any website owner that primarily has US-based viewership and a family-friendly site is eligible to participate in the Target Affiliates Program.
How to join Target's Affiliate Program?
Registering as an affiliate marketer is simple and straightforward with Target. It is one of the fastest-growing retail stores on the Internet today, with over 1 million products and releases promotions every week. Here’s how to get started with Target Affiliates:
Create a Target Account
Create your account by providing your personal information here; choose a username and password
Profile
Provide company information (including the Account Display Name you prefer), Website info, Social Media details and other required information
Affiliate Information
In the Promotion Information section, choose the “Partner Type” from different options given in the drop-down menu. Also choose the “Property Type”, i.e., whether you want to register your websites, mobile app, or social networks
Agree to terms and Conditions
Check the payout details, payout groups, and conditions. Download program terms and sign up
Quick Summary:
- URL: Target Affiliate Program
- Product Range: 1 Million
- Commission: Up to 8%
- Tracking Cookie Duration: 7 days
- Fee: Free to get started and add links
Hopefully, this review of Target affiliates for beginners will help you compare with other affiliate programs.
Complete Review of Walmart Affiliates for Beginners
Walmart is the #1 retailer in the US and a widely popular online merchant with over 265 million customers visiting their eCommerce websites and stores every week. There are over 35 million products on Walmart, offering an opportunity for affiliate marketers to earn commissions. Converting your website visitors to Walmart customers is easy because Walmart is a reputable brand with a huge audience base.
Benefits of Walmart Affiliates Program
With Walmart affiliates program, you can turn your website visits or social media followers into revenue-earning opportunities. Here are the benefits of signing up for Walmart Affiliates Program:
Large Selection of Products
Walmart is a leading retail giant in the U.S. with a further presence in 26 other countries around the world. The brand currently lists 35 million products with a wide selection for every niche and interest.
Average Commission Structure
Through Walmart Affiliate Program, you can earn 1-4% of commission with 3 return days. This is not as good as Amazon or even Target, but quite average. The complete commission structure is as below:
Professionally Designed Banners
Walmart provides attractive banners for affiliate products that help attract website visitors and convert them into paying customers.
More Opportunities to Increase Revenue
Walmart Affiliate Program provides weekly free newsletters with links, ideas and product information to help affiliates better their promotion and maximize the potential on earnings. Affiliates also get data feeds with insights on exclusive and top-selling products. Extra opportunities and contests further push for more commissions.
Free Membership
There is no fee to join as a Walmart affiliate marketer or promote products through affiliate links.
Every Day Low Prices
The feature of Walmart’s every day low prices makes it easier for an affiliate to sell more products through referral
How does the Walmart Affiliates Program Work?
When you sign up for Walmart affiliates program, you will receive a set of text links and banners every week through newsletters. You will also get access to newsletters and archived banners for a broad range of products to place on your website. Additionally, you can generate particular text links to anything and anytime on Walmart.com. When you place these text links and/or banners on your website or social profile, it will let your visitors know about Walmart products you are promoting.
When the visitors follow the banners and links to visit Walmart website and perform a qualifying purchase, your account will be credited with a specific commission amount as per their commission structure.
How do you know if your Website qualifies for Walmart's Affiliate Program
Walmart will review every application and determine the eligibility of your website, mobile app, or social profile. It is important for the website not to promote illegal activities, sexually explicit materials, etc. Additionally, it should ideally have a U.S-based audience base. To know whether your website fulfills the criteria of affiliate marketing, read their affiliate agreement.
How to join Walmart's Affiliate Program?
Getting started with Walmart Affiliate is fast and simple like that of Target Affiliates. Click the link here and follow the below steps to get started:
Create a Walmart Account - Enter User Information
Create your account by first providing required personal information, including your preferred Username and Password
Provide Business Details
Next, provide your company information, including Account Display Name, bank location country, currency, and other information
Enter Promotion Details
In the next stage, you will need to choose your promotional methods. This includes selecting your primary promotional method, secondary promotional method, and promoting countries
Media Properties
In the “Media Properties” section, you will need to provide the property type – website or mobile app, property name, URL and description. This defines the property type where you want to place Walmart’s affiliate links and banners.
Agreements
Next is the “Agreements” section where you will get payout details, payout groups, and conditions. Check the box to agree to terms & conditions and click “Submit application”
Quick Summary:
- URL: Walmart Affiliate Program
- Product Range: 35 Million
- Commission: Up to 4%
- Tracking Cookie Duration: 3 days
- Fee: Free to get started and add links
We hope the above review of Walmart Affiliates for beginners will help you determine whether it is the right choice for your affiliate marketing program.
Final Verdict - Amazon, Target and Walmart Affiliate Programs
From the above comparative analysis of Amazon, Target and Walmart Affiliate programs, we can conclude that Amazon is one of the ideal choices to earn higher commissions and provides the best value for your affiliate marketing program. Despite Amazon has allegedly reduced its commission rates for affiliates with high-sales volumes, it is still the best option keeping in mind the large product range, access to a global audience, and high commission rates of up to 10%.
Target Affiliates is also a good choice if your audience is particularly from the U.S, with a primary focus category belonging to baby products, accessories, outdoor, and apparel. The program offers better commission if you can refer over 10,000 sales per month.
