How To Use Amazon Affiliate Links on Instagram: A 101 Guide

When you think of ways content creators make money on Instagram, you probably picture huge brand deals or sponsored posts. And sure, the glitz and glam of being famous do allow influencers to earn money that way. But most of the time, creators—especially smaller ones—make money by working hard for it. One way to do that is by raking in lots of commission from selling products through special, customized links. Are you curious as to how that’s done? Let’s talk about how to use Amazon affiliate links on Instagram.

What Is Affiliate Marketing on Instagram?

Affiliate marketing is a marketing strategy in which businesses enlist the help of affiliates to promote their products. The business provides unique affiliate links to these partners to share with whomever they’re trying to close a sale with. As a reward, these affiliates get a commission from every product they sell using that link.

There are many ways to promote affiliate products and links on social media platforms. You can also post product reviews and blog posts raving about the goods you’re trying to sell. Then, insert the affiliate link casually to entice your audience to purchase the product for themselves.

Affiliate marketing on Instagram specifically refers to promoting the products you’re trying to sell through Instagram content. The common practice is to then share your affiliate link with your audience and potential customers, typically through your bio. It’s an awesome way to sell on Instagram and earn money without having to mount your own business!

How To Become an Amazon Affiliate

One of the largest and most popular affiliate rewards systems today is Amazon Associates, the online marketplace’s affiliate program. Thousands of content creators, publishers, app owners, and bloggers all over the world are proud Amazon affiliates. You get the prestige of being an Amazon partner. You can also get to earn up to 10% of each sale you make in commissions!

Are you wondering how to become an Amazon affiliate? It’s super easy! You can sign up to become an affiliate as long as you own a website or mobile app. This is a hard requirement because these channels are where you will post your affiliate links for others to shop from.

Once you sign up and Amazon approves you, you only need to create your unique links. Amazon has a link builder specifically designed for affiliate marketing efforts.

Generate custom links to the Amazon listings you want to promote. And yes, you can create a link for any active Amazon listing and earn a commission from it. Then, you can instantly post the link on your social media platforms and websites.

Signing up to be an Amazon affiliate is a fantastic way to earn some passive income on social media. Sure, researching trending Amazon listings your target audience might like, generating links, and promoting products is hard work. But once your links are published publicly, you just have to wait for the sales and commissions to roll in.

The Amazon Influencer Program: The Affiliate Program for Established Creators

Amazon’s affiliate program is perfect for anyone on the internet looking for a side hustle. However, they also have a second program built specifically for content creators who are more established on social media. This is called the Amazon Influencer Program, and it was designed with popular influencers with bigger fanbases in mind.

Apart from custom affiliate links, Amazon influencers also get their digital storefront. This is a personalized page on the Amazon website where they can curate promotional content featuring the listings they want. These encompass photos with tagged products, review videos, and even livestreams.

When people buy products from their content, these influencers receive a commission. That means Amazon influencers have two main streams of affiliate marketing income—purchases from their links and storefronts.

While almost anyone can become an Amazon associate, the screening process for Amazon influencers is much more stringent. Amazon accepts sign-ups from content creators on any social media platform, from Instagram to TikTok. However, they only accept influencers who meet a specific number of followers and engagement metrics. It’s, without a doubt, more exclusive and harder to get into than the regular affiliate program.

How To Use Amazon Affiliate Links on Instagram

So, you’ve finally generated your first few Amazon links to products you want to sell and earn commission from. What’s next? How do you get the ball rolling and drive traffic to these listings using your unique links?

The first thing you want to do is shorten your affiliate links. Some Amazon links can be incredibly long, overwhelming, and full of random letters and numbers that look like gibberish. It’s far from the most sophisticated, tidy links you’ll ever see. So, use a service like Bitly to shorten your link and make it more visually appealing when posted online.

Then, add your links to your Instagram bio. The platform doesn’t allow clickable links in post captions. So, adding links to your bio is your best bet at driving traffic to those sites. You can post up to five different clickable links in your bio.

Do you want to promote more than five affiliate links on Instagram? Consider using services that let you consolidate multiple affiliate links on one page, such as Linktree. That way, your followers and potential customers will have access to all those links simultaneously.

Aside from directing users to the link in your bio, you can also insert your affiliate link in Instagram Stories. Post a compelling photo or video of the product you’re trying to sell. Then, use the swipe-up feature to lead your followers to your unique Amazon listing link easily. Note that this feature is only available for accounts with over 10,000 followers.

Pro tip: always update the links in your bio. Make sure the right links are available depending on which products you’ve been promoting in your content recently. You don’t want to encourage people to visit links in your bio only for them to realize they aren’t there. Talk about unprofessional!

How To Sell Amazon Products on Instagram as an Affiliate

Once you have all your links set up in your bio, it’s time to get cracking and make promotional content. Here’s how to sell Amazon products on Instagram through the posts you publish:

1. Create content that will drive interest in the Amazon products you’re looking to sell and make a commission from. These include cute photos of the products, videos of your honest review of them, unboxing Reels, and more.

2. If the goods you’re selling are shoppable on Instagram, tag the products in your photos. You can tag up to 20 products in a single post, provided they’re all on their respective brands’ Instagram Shops.

3. Write a compelling caption about the products in your post. Tell your followers about their best features and why you love them. Then, direct them to the affiliate link in your bio in case they want to buy them, too. Don’t forget to disclose to your audience that you are an Amazon affiliate and get a small commission from sales! Then, post away and wait for those commissions to roll in.

Becoming Successful Instagram Amazon Influencers or Affiliates: 4 Key Tips

Do you aspire to be one of the most popular and effective Instagram Amazon influencers in the marketplace? Are you constantly challenging yourself to get higher commission earnings as an affiliate? We’re not going to lie—it can be really challenging to find success doing affiliate marketing. Regardless of whether you become an affiliate or an influencer for Amazon, you need to hustle to see results.

Are you committed to the journey but don’t know how to craft the perfect affiliate marketing strategy? Here are four tips to keep in mind if you want to become successful in Amazon affiliate marketing on Instagram.

1. Constantly Strengthen the Trust Your Audience Has in You

Your biggest asset as an Amazon influencer or affiliate is the trust your audience has in you. Because your followers value your recommendations, you can close sales regularly and make commissions from them. So, never be complacent about the level of trust and credibility you have. Work hard to maintain that influence you have over your followers.

One way to maintain their trust is always to be authentic. Engage with your fans when they send messages and comments. Speak up about what you believe in instead of just posting trendy, unoriginal content. Post valuable content that will cement you as an expert in your niche. That way, people will always value your opinion when you promote products.

2. Post Creative Content Showing How You Use the Products You Sell

Next, make sure the creative content you publish featuring your affiliate products is interesting and exciting to your target audience. Don’t just grab boring photos from the Amazon listing and post them on Instagram. Make original content people will actually want to consume. Here are some content ideas for promoting products:

• Your “day in the life” videos featuring the products you’re selling. This shows your audience the role these products play in your life. It’s kind of like social proof that these products are worth their money.
• Tutorial videos on how to use those products. Talk about your favorite features and how they can be useful.
• Lifestyle photos that can showcase the Amazon products you’re selling in an aesthetically pleasing, aspirational way.
• Educational content or infographics that raise awareness about why people should buy those products. For example, if you’re selling reusable water bottles, publish content about eco-friendly alternatives, ocean preservation, and more.
• “Try-on” videos, specifically for clothes, shoes, bags, accessories, fitness gear, perfume and other wearable products.

3. Operate Within a Specific Niche

Don’t spread yourself too thin when trying to sell products through affiliate marketing. Choose a specific niche you want to specialize in.

Focusing on one industry allows you to build an image of authority and expertise for yourself on that topic. That’s why it’s better to sell products within the niche your Instagram account is already active in.

For example, if you’re a fashion influencer, promote affiliate products in the clothes and accessories category. If you’re a food influencer, try selling kitchenware, storage solutions, and even hard-to-find ingredients for dishes.

Because you make valuable content within those niches, people will find it easier to trust your product recommendations. That means higher conversion rates for your links, leading to bigger commissions for you!

4. Engage Your Followers and Answer Questions About the Products You Sell

If your followers ask questions about the products you posted about, always answer them. Remember—you are an expert in these product recommendations, not just a passive affiliate. Educate them about the product’s features and how to maximize them. If you answer your potential customers’ burning questions, they are more likely to bite the bullet and buy something.

You can even take an active role in answering questions about the products you’re promoting with Q&A sessions. Create an avenue where your followers can ask you anything about those products, whether on Instagram Stories or Live. Then, scope out the most frequently asked questions and answer them on your page.

Of course, doing all this means you have to know your products well. Know the ins and outs of the products you’re promoting so you can give a detailed response to every question.

Rake in More Amazon Commission by Promoting Your IG

Becoming an Amazon affiliate or influencer is a terrific side hustle that can earn you big bucks. By promoting affiliate products you know your followers will love, you can pull in tons of commission. Leverage your audience’s trust in you and use those marketing skills to maximize your position as an affiliate. Perfect your affiliate marketing strategy, and you’ll be swimming in lots of extra cash!

Of course, you can’t expect to be successful in affiliate marketing if you have no solid audience to market to. Now that you know how to use Amazon affiliate links on Instagram, ensure your promotional content reaches the right people. How? With Path Social, of course.

At Path Social, we help you find the type of Instagram audience most likely to love your content. That means people who find your niche relevant to them and might be interested in your affiliate products. Then, we push out your content to appear on their feeds. This boost in visibility and reach gives you an uptick in followers, giving you a larger pool of potential buyers. Gain more followers with our trusted service today!