LTK vs Amazon Influencer: Which Platform Is Right For You?
When you start blogging, there is so much information out there and so many different affiliate programs it can be completely overwhelming. Which platform is the best? Which one is right for you? Which one is easiest to navigate? Which one is most lucrative.
I have been a Liketoknow.it blogger for over a year now, and I have been an Amazon Fashion Influencer for 6 months. I am here to break down the pros and cons of each platform to better inform you as to which affiliate program would be better for you.
This is all my own experience and personal opinion.
LiketoKnow.It
LTK was the first affiliate program I joined. (See blog “How I Started Blogging” to hear about the process of applying). It has been around for years, and for quite some time has been a forerunner in the blogging world. It is a coveted platform where established bloggers can post their items and create shoppable links for their followers, earning a small commissions on the items that are purchased through their links.
Pros:
LTK has been around since 2011. It is established, and most people know about it. A lot of big bloggers are on there, giving it credibility and likability.
LTK has relationships with thousands and thousands of brands, which means that a lot of the items you may want to share are going to be affiliated with LTK. This allows you to branch out and have creative freedom over what you want to share to your followers.
LTK sets you up with a personal phone call when you sign up to explain the platform and help you with any questions you may have.
LTK has a big team, and good support system. If you have a problem, you can email them, or reach out to your original contact and they typically respond right away.
Cons:
LTK has been around since 2011 and is well established. This means, if you are a newcomer you are low on the totem pole. LTK sends out promotional emails frequently, but they tend to promote only the biggest bloggers that are most lucrative to them. From a business standpoint this makes sense, however it makes it difficult for any newcomers to gain recognition or support in terms of building their audience.
LTK has a strange relationship with Amazon. Since I have been working with them, there have been a few hiccups in terms of amazon sales. For one, you cannot see which items from Amazon you are selling, unlike other brands. This can make it difficult to see which items your audience likes in terms of what to promote and what not to promote.
If someone is shopping on LTK and it opens the Amazon app, you lose the sale. This can be a huge issue since most people shop on their phones. If they are amazon shoppers, odds are their app will open if they want to purchase something. That means you most likely will lose credit for the sale.
The platform can be a bit confusing at first. When I see bloggers who are new to the site, they are completely lost as to how to work it, and what to do. Definitely not user friendly in the beginning, but easy to navigate once you are educated.
Amazon Influencer
I joined the Amazon Influencer program back in July, but never really did anything with my storefront. Being an amazon influencer allows you to make lists, and share items on your storefront to other people. If they buy things off of your storefront, you make a commission on the the sale. In September, the Amazon Fashion Influencer team reached out to me. This is a different program than the normal Amazon Influencer Program. Same concept, but with added benefits.
Pros:
The Amazon Influencer program has been around for a long time, however it hasn’t gotten much buzz until these past couple of years. The Amazon Fashion Influencer program is relatively new. This means, if you come in as a fashion blogger, you are one of the firsts. This is a HUGE deal, as getting yourself known and established is much easier when there is less competition.
Everyone loves Amazon. I cannot express this enough. Throughout my year of blogging and using affiliate links, I have noticed that with all of the different brands I have promoted, Amazon wins every single time. I’m not sure if it is the ease of buying and returning, or the fact that you can get everything off of Amazon, but it is a clear winner in my books.
You get credit for things you don’t post if someone clicks on one of your links and continues to shop. This is true for LTK as well, however I see way more items come through on my Amazon account then my LTK account under the Amazon sales.
Amazon allows you to link products directly to the page, and if it opens the Amazon App, you still get credit.
Amazon Fashion Influencer program sets goals for you, and rewards you with Amazon Gift cards and flat fees, which is a really nice perk. You also make more percentages on certain item through Amazon Influencer than on LTK.
Since Amazon Fashion is new, they are constantly coming up with innovative ways to enhance the platform.
You can see an itemized list of every single item that is being purchased under your storefront. This is extremely helpful in terms of what your followers are liking, what they are into, and what is trending.
Cons:
Amazon Fashion Influencer program is relatively new, so the amount of support is limited. Sometimes it can take me days to get a response to an email regrading a question I have. The girls who run the program are SUPER nice and always helpful, but the resources are limited, which can be a tad bit frustrating.
You don’t get a welcome call or a person designated to you to help you setup your account and walk you through it. I had so many questions, which other bloggers helped me with. But my biggest learning curve happened at an actual Amazon event where I met some of the girls who run the program and I was able to ask them questions face to face.
Because it is part of Amazon, you are only able to promote items from Amazon. When considering which platform is right for you…are you going to be someone who only promotes Amazon, or do you want to be able to share other brands?
So what does all of this mean to you, and what do I prefer? For me, personally, I have been working very closely with the Amazon Fashion Influencer team. Amazon is my main affiliate platform and choice of brand to promote. However, I do share other brands, and I do have a following on LTK. So, I work with both platforms, and always share all of my content on each when applicable.
I do make more money on the Amazon Influencer platform. In one month I made almost more than I made in one year on LTK. Does this mean I would totally bag LTK? No, because like I said it serves its purpose and it has it’s own audience.
If you are purely an Amazon shopper and sharer of all things Amazon, my advice would be to stick to the Amazon platform. If you like to mix things up, or Amazon isn’t your cup of tea, then LTK or another affiliate program would be better for you.
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P.S.
I hope that all of this information was helpful! If you have any questions at all regarding blogging or either of these platforms please do not hesitate to reach out! As always, I am all about bloggers supporting bloggers, and boss babes building up other boss babes!