Selling: Amazon Associates

One of the quickest ways to turn traffic into revenue is to join an affiliate program, where you earn essentially a sales commission by referring customers. You get paid when someone makes a purchase, so everyone comes out ahead. Amazon.com Associates program is a good place to start:

• They offer a sliding scale of commissions, depending on volume.
• They will handle all the tracking, purchase, and fulfillment.
• They sell practically everything.

Read About.com's Review of the Amazon Associates Affiliate Advertising Program for another perspective. To start selling as an Amazon.com Associates - join at Amazon.com Associates Central (secure). Under Account Settings,

• Set up your Payee information. I recommend direct deposit.
• Select a fee structure, Classic or Performance.

Then, start by adding Text Links.

It’s a good idea to read and understand the Amazon.com Operating Agreement so you don’t make any mistakes that can jeopardize your revenue. Also, the Agreement describes ways you can sell Amazon products, including:

• Special (Product Text Links) links
• Search box link
• General link to Amazon
• Car Link
• Easy Link
• Search Results link
• Any Page link
• aStore by Amazon Link
• Omakase Link
• Context Links
• Quick Linker Links
• Your Video Widget Links
• Preview Player Link

Tips

• Read the Agreement so you understand how you will make money.
• Only add one type of Amazon link at a time to your blog. Test to see how this works, and track it against your best keywords and traffic patterns.

This whole process of setting up the account takes about a half hour, not including the time it takes to read the agreement.