Finally Approved by the Amazon Affiliate Program

evoloz

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Sorry to revive a few months old thread but I had a few questions revolving around the amazon affiliate links and didn't see the point of starting a new thread.

If you google around the subject you'll find quite a lot of people who claim to have been banned by youtube because of amazon affiliate links, which are apparently a bit of a grey area in youtube rules. I took a look at the TOS and it seems very unclear to me it doesn't really specify either way and couldn't find a post anywhere by any youtube representative to confirm or deny their legality.

So just looking for thoughts? Anyone had any issues using them?
 

Illuminated Nerd

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I was equally as puzzled when I did my research on this subject. There is a truckload of internet forum posts about people that had their accounts banned by either YouTube or Amazon for violating a rule. The majority of the time, they don't even know what rule they ultimately broke and whether it was even their affiliate links that were to blame. Sometimes if they're lucky they know the broad "category" their violation was in (TOS Violation, section x.x), at best.

Based on my research, my opinion is that Amazon and YouTube are generally "ok" with Amazon Links in video descriptions... but it's common for people to misinterpret or ignore the rules from either site and say it's entirely against the rules when they are banned.
 

evoloz

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I was equally as puzzled when I did my research on this subject. There is a truckload of internet forum posts about people that had their accounts banned by either YouTube or Amazon for violating a rule. The majority of the time, they don't even know what rule they ultimately broke and whether it was even their affiliate links that were to blame. Sometimes if they're lucky they know the broad "category" their violation was in (TOS Violation, section x.x), at best.

Based on my research, my opinion is that Amazon and YouTube are generally "ok" with Amazon Links in video descriptions... but it's common for people to misinterpret or ignore the rules from either site and say it's entirely against the rules when they are banned.
Thanks for your reply & i agree with your thoughts it's just shame that youtube don't put out a clear statement of what is and isn't allowed around referral links rather than leaving it up to interpretation!
 

YouTube4x4

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Very useful thread for me since I started doing some research on this subject. Thanks for the tips. A lot of those I did not know about.


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ShireenPlaysYT

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I've now joined Awin (for affliates) and Amazon affiliates - I'm putting html links on my blog and links in my YouTube description.

Let's see how it goes :)
 

CrowdPleeza

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I waited until I had the following stats: 650 subscribers, 19 videos, and getting over 50k views / month. I recently re-applied and got my full approval email 4 days after applying.
As far as those 50k views/month. Where can you find the info on how many views your channel is getting each month?
 

CrowdPleeza

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^

I've checked analytics. I don't see where it gives a monthly breakdown for views to my channel.
 

Jungle Explorer

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I have been an Amazon Associate for a couple years and use the links on my videos to generate sales. There are several rules that you have to follow, but there is currently no rules by either YT or Amazon that expressly prohibit the practice. Likewise there are no clear rules that allow it. This is where the confusion comes in.

My experience is that, as long as you follow these rules, you will be fine.

1. The affiliate link MUST be to a product that is associated with the content of the video.

2. You MUST place a Disclaimer somewhere in the description informing that the link(s) are affiliate links and that you earn money when people use them to buy the product.

3. You CANNOT use wording that encourages people to support your channel by using affiliate links. EXAMPLE: Please use my links to buy products and support my channel!

4. You MUST check the two boxes circled in red in the advanced options as seen in this screenshot. promotion.jpg

5. It is highly recommended that you announce in the video itself how you are receiving compensation for the product in the video. Example: The company sent me this product for free to do this review.