In this digitally advanced world, most individuals share their thoughts, ideas, and views across various social channels. As businesses run out of ideas to broaden their audience segment and boost revenue, the Amazon influencer program is like the first monsoon rain in this drought. It not only helps businesses to get access to more potential buyers, but also introduces them to the wonders of influencer marketing.
Whether you are a business owner seeking new and innovative ways to expand your reach or you are an ardent follower of various influencers trying to understand the game of influence, this blog is just for you! Here, you can learn everything about the Amazon influencer program in India – its definition, how it works, how to join, how to earn from this program, etc. But first, let us unpack the basics.
What Is the Amazon Influencer Program?
Amazon Influencer Program is an extension of the organization’s affiliate program, referred to as Amazon Associates. Social media creators can join this program and monetize their content through product promotions via customized Amazon storefronts. The creators or influencers craft a list of products they want to recommend to their followers. If the followers make a direct purchase from their shared recommendation link, the influencer earns significant commissions, which can go as high as 20%. This percentage depends on the category of the sold product.
The core components of this program include personalized storefronts, single-link sharing, and earnings from direct and indirect referrals. Not everyone can join the Amazon influencer program; there are specific eligibility criteria. There are high-commission category products that bring higher earnings. Besides being a passive income source, this program can boost credibility due to the brand reputation of a global name like Amazon.
Why Is Amazon Doing This?
With influencer marketing booming, Amazon aimed to utilize this trend to broaden its market segment. New-gen buyers tend to spend more time on social platforms; hence, businesses like Amazon want to use them as a sales opportunity. While scrolling through their feed, a simple Instagram reel can make them stumble upon products they did not even know existed.
As the social media influencers have been ruling the field of product marketing for years now, a global player like Amazon wanted to pitch into their marketing plan to multiply sales. Hence, the Amazon influencer program was born. The primary plan was to use the millions of followers of the renowned influencers as a target customer segment. In a densely populated country like India, this program could have a profound impact. Soon, nano and micro influencers joined the list as well, given the growing inclination towards sales generated by influencers.
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Why It Matters For Indian Businesses
This program can benefit Indian businesses in many ways. Let’s decode why it matters for them:
- With the booming eCommerce sector in India, which is projected to grow further in the coming years, it has become essential for businesses to stand out and leave a mark. Amazon, being a dominant player in this sector, can be regarded as a promising platform for the sellers. Amazon influencer marketing helps them showcase the products to a broader audience.
- Trust and credibility are pillars that enable a strong presence in the Indian market. Customers closely follow product recommendations from trusted sources, as their primary objective is value for money. This program connects businesses with influencers who align with their niche and tone. User-generated content has been found to be a key driver of purchasing decisions in India.
- In a mobile-first nation like India, short-form or shoppable video content is in high demand. Videos created by native influencers result in a surge in sales in that region. High-quality videos posted by influencers have higher conversion rates. Therefore, sellers can use this opportunity to blend in and sound familiar.
- The traffic driven by the Amazon influencers is highly qualified. The audience engages with the content before making a purchase. Additionally, the program mechanism is associated with a strong ROAS, as products added to the Amazon influencer list experience a gradual surge in sales.
- As the payment model is based on commissions, businesses only need to pay when a purchase is made. Therefore, there is no need for an upfront payment, which usually happens with standard marketing methods. Businesses can use the sale price to compensate the influencer, thereby avoiding excess use of funds.
Key Differences: Amazon Influencer Program vs Affiliate Program
In the debate of Amazon affiliate vs influencer, the answer can be complex. It is essential to learn about the factors that distinguish these two programs. Let’s explore.
| Amazon Influencer Program | Affiliate Program |
| 1. To become eligible, one must have an active social media presence with a minimum of 1000 followers on any of the platforms, like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc. | 1. This is open to anyone, whether you have a blog or own a YouTube channel. |
| 2. The influencers are reviewed based on their total follower count and social engagement. | 2. Prompt approvals, no review required. But the affiliate must ensure 3 sales within the specified time frame (i.e., 180 days). |
| 3. 1 to 25% commission rate based on product category. | 3. 1 to 10% commission rate based on product category. |
| 4. Influencers share videos or posts recommending products directly from their personalized Amazon storefront. | 4. Affiliates share product-specific links, which are embedded in content. |
| 5. Sales generated through the storefront and bonuses from referrals. | 5. Revenue streams include sales from links and additional bounty from sign-ups. |
| 6. The social media platform is the top priority here. | 6. SEO and content-driven channels top the priority list. |
| 7. Basic database, which involves storefront insights. | 7. Detailed report on analytics from Amazon Associates Central. |
| 8. Region-specific storefront for international reach. | 8. Global monetization is supported via Amazon OneLink. |
| 9. Social media dependency is one of the key advantages here. | 9. Being traffic-dependent is one of its key advantages. |
| 10. This program works best for seasoned curators with a significant follower count. | 10. If you are new to monetization, this program is best for you. |
How The Amazon Influencer Program Works
If you have more than 1,000 followers on social media and love recommending products, this program is perfect for you! Here, you can earn while doing what you love, and in the process, make others’ lives easier. Let us learn how this program works.
1. Check Your Eligibility for Amazon Influencer Program
To become eligible for this program, you must meet all the eligibility criteria. Amazon influencer eligibility requirements include:
- Strong social media presence with a recommended follower count of at least 1000.
- A business profile on both Facebook and Instagram.
- A social account that the public can view. In other words, Amazon must have access to your social content.
- A good engagement rate across social media channels. Influencers with higher engagement get prompt approvals.
2. Create Amazon Storefront
After you receive approval from the company, they will provide you with a unique URL in a format similar to amazon.com/shop/influencername. You can personalize your storefront with additional information, such as your name, profile picture, bio, and banner. Once you load it with sufficient information, you can add product lists on niches that interest you. For instance, fashion, beauty, sports, etc. You can treat this storefront as your small online store and build it with videos on product unboxing and reviews.
3. Start Earning with Amazon Influencer Program
Every time a purchase is made from your storefront or videos, you will receive a commission. It will be a certain percentage of the product cost, ranging from 1 to 20%, depending on its category. At times, product segments such as appliances can give commissions as high as 23%. There are also opportunities for extra earnings. Besides shoppable videos and Amazon Live product streaming, programs like Creator Stars enable influencers to earn rewards based on their stellar performance.
4. Share & Promote
The success of this program hinges on how effectively the influencers promote their storefront. There are several ways to encourage the audience to make a purchase. For instance:
- Social media integration is an effective way to start. Share your personalized storefront across social media or make direct recommendations to influence your social followers. Besides posts, these can also be promoted on the Instagram bio or Facebook stories.
- Individuals are drawn to original content, such as unboxing videos. They get a feeling of relativity, which prompts them to make a purchase.
- You can also create an engagement around any topic, such as addressing any pain point of your target customer. Then you can share the product as a solution, driving quick sales.
What Are The Benefits of Amazon Influencer Program?
The Amazon influencer program is a joint effort to benefit the sellers, influencers, and the organization in a way. While this program enables the sellers to gain external sales from the influencers’ follower base, it also helps the influencers to expand their reach, boost engagement, and gain more followers.
As for the brand, this program is helping to enhance its adoption as a platform, boosting new account registrations. Therefore, this program is getting widely accepted by the socially active individuals and is slowly becoming a passive source of income for many. Sellers are witnessing a rise in the revenue graph as well. If you want to grow your business online, put your trust in BrandLoom, one of the top digital marketing agencies in India.
How Businesses Can Leverage the Amazon Influencer Program India?
There are a number of ways through which Indian businesses can leverage this program and make profits. The major ones are:
1. Strategic Influencer Selection
Businesses can collaborate with the Amazon influencers whose follower base aligns with the product they offer. For instance, if you sell a local snack, you can work with regional food influencers. Looking beyond the follower count and leveraging micro influencers can result in a profitable business for you.
It is a cost-effective way to reduce your marketing costs while integrating with audiences who align with your niche. There are plenty of tools available on the market (e.g., Gluu) that can help to spot fake followers and refine your search.
2. Optimize for Video-first Ecosystem
In this mobile-first era, vertical short-form videos that are optimized for mobile viewing are in demand. Influencers can be asked to create shoppable video content that taps into the customer’s pain point and boosts sales. These videos are placed in the “Videos for this product” section by Amazon for increased visibility. Also, the Amazon live sessions, where the influencers conduct Q&A sessions and interact with the audience, are another effective way to maximize sales.
3. Maximize On-Amazon Visibility
Businesses can enroll in the Amazon Brand Registry. This will enable them to email the customers through “Manage your customer engagement” and notify the followers about any new content with “Brand Follow”. Multiformat content can be obtained from influencers to make the most out of this partnership. These may include product page videos, detailed written reviews, image carousels, and new topic suggestions.
4. Off-Amazon Amplification
Businesses can ask the Amazon influencers to share their storefront links across their social channels. This will help to expand customer reach. Also, the posts with clear CTA are a key factor in boosting sales. They can track attribution as well to maintain steady growth. Amazon attribution tags are useful for the measurement of off-Amazon traffic and sales generated from influencer posts.
5. Data-Driven Campaign Management
Indian brands rely on performance metrics to improve their business growth. They can monitor key metrics, such as checking CTR (click through rates) on the links shared by Amazon influencers, track conversion rates by comparing overall sales and the sales generated from the program, measure the percentage of new-to-brand, i.e., audience expansion, etc. Also, they can optimize with Amazon DSP for retargeting purposes.
6. Compliance & Best Practices
It is important for businesses to follow the Indian advertising guidelines and ensure the influencers tag them accordingly. Besides clearing FTC/ASCII disclosure, avoiding discount abuse is a must to ensure businesses earn maximized profit from the Amazon influencer program. Long-term partnerships with influencers are more effective in harnessing the most of these social creators and driving sales. A minimum of 6 months of collaboration is recommended.
Challenges In Implementing This Program
While influencer marketing is a booming sector in India, there are several challenges that today’s businesses face with the Amazon influencer program sign up. Let us look at the major ones.
1. Influencer Vetting & Fraud
With many tools and software available in the market that can bring fake followers and automated engagement, it has become challenging for brands to distinguish between them. They find it hard to choose an influencer with organic engagement and real followers. If they end up collaborating with an influencer who has an inflated follower count through illegitimate means, then it will result in a waste of funds.
Such influencers do not add value and soak up the marketing cost. At present, the Indian influencer market is filled with such fraudulent individuals. Also, there is a poor availability of regional influencers with a higher follower count. This makes it difficult to reach audiences from tier 3 cities.
2. Operational & Compliance Issues
Tax-related complications, such as TDS deductions on influencer payments, GST on free samples, etc., make it difficult to ensure overall compliance. This may lead to accounting errors and further fund loss. Without standardized agreements on exclusivity, usage rights, and FTC disclosure in place, it becomes difficult to avoid legal complications. BrandLoom can ensure you seamless influencer marketing services and maximize ROAS.
3. Quality & Authenticity of Content
Reviews with too positive a tone often become a source of mistrust – this is very common among the Indian audience. Whenever they come across a review that is too polished, they feel it is unreal or fabricated. As most influencers are not aware of this, they fall prey to this, which eventually affects the businesses that collaborate with them. It costs them time and effort. Production barriers are present as well. Many influencers do not possess the tools or knowledge to create Amazon-optimized videos. This is more common among influencers from remote places.
4. Measurement & Attribution Gaps
There are measurement and attribution challenges, such as delayed data, cookie limitations, and the absence of audience demographics affect the sales graph. The Amazon influencer program dashboard shows sales with a 48-hour lag. This creates barriers for real-time optimization. All these factors can keep Indian businesses from making the most of AIP.
5. Platform Limitations
With no direct influencer-brand API, low storefront discoverability, and a rigid commission structure limit the program from ensuring higher levels of outcomes for the companies in India. A very few percentage of buyers actively go through influencer pages for products, limiting the overall reach.
6. Market-specific Challenges
Regional language barriers, logistical challenges, price sensitivity, scarcity of top creators, and commoditized content are a few roadblocks that make a negative impact on businesses in India. At times, influencers do not like the product; then the return costs can create a hole in the seller’s pocket.
How Digital Marketing Agencies Can Help
Digital marketing agencies are equipped with adequate tools and skills to overcome the above-discussed challenges and help Indian businesses. With advanced technologies, they can identify fake followers and find the influencers with genuine followers and organic engagement. They partner with different organizations to get access to the regional talent pool. This will help them to influence the audience living in tier 3 locations.
Digital marketing agencies reduce compliance-related errors extensively by partnering with RazorpayX and similar platforms. They manage tax deductions efficiently and generate accurate invoices. The agencies come up with creative briefs where they urge the Amazon influencers to highlight the pros and cons of the product in a way that it does not seem fabricated. Hence, digital marketing agencies are highly preferable to ensure you make the most out of the Amazon influencer program. BrandLoom provides organizations with well-integrated influencer marketing solutions that boost sales.
How Successful Is The Amazon Influencer Program In India?
The Amazon influencer program has become popular in India post its launch. The creator base in the country witnessed a massive expansion of 25% just after one year of its launch. More social media influencers are signing up for this program, opening new horizons in the product marketing sector in India.
This program heavily influences customer buying decisions, as more than 50% of the buyers have reported that they have bought a product after watching an influencer use it or promote it. A densely populated country like India has a massive number of social media users who closely follow the influencers through mobile devices.
While celebs are known faces, most of these influencers are not recognized by every other citizen. Hence, when they promote a product, the audience gets an advertorial vibe. Rather, they can resonate with the content and end up buying the product you recommend. This is why most major brands nowadays are collaborating with influencers rather than popular celebrities. A cost-effective way to boost revenue, isn’t it? If you also want to see your business grow, sign up for BrandLoom’s influencer marketing service.
Does It Change The Face Of Retail?
While it may seem untrue, the Amazon influencer program is slowly but steadily changing the face of retail. Now, you may wonder how. Firstly, influencers realistically showcase their recommended products and their benefits towards them, which the traditional advertorials cannot replicate. They are building trust among the users and influencing buying decisions. Especially, the new gen shoppers follow their favorite influencers and try to use any product recommended by them.
Secondly, an Amazon influencer shop or storefront acts like a mini online store in your neighbourhood. They aim to simplify your shopping experience by leveraging their trust and credibility. Besides a curated shopping experience, they offer a glance at their daily-use product list, which impresses as well as influences their followers.
Thirdly, when a brand collaborates with an influencer, they instantly become visible to their wide audience pool. For instance, the influencer posts the video and invites the brand page or the CEO as a collaborator. This improves brand visibility and increases sales.
Lastly, an Amazon influencer integrates the content with social platforms. They post videos, posts, stories, etc., to promote the product. Therefore, they are turning your usual shopping experience into an extension of content consumption, revolutionizing the way Indians used to shop. Hence, the change in the retail sector is prominent.
Who Is This Program For?
This program is not for every brand. One must determine their unique requirements before investing in Amazon influencers. If your brand matches one of the factors below, then this program is ideal for your business.
- Zero or poor social media presence
- Amazon sellers
- Direct-to-consumer brands
- Brands offering specialized products
Is The Amazon Influencer Program Worth It?
While the program appears to be an alluring source of passive income for influencers, earning money for qualifying, it may not always be efficient for brands. This is no viral trend where you must jump in or else you will be left out. Instead, this presents a growth opportunity for individuals with specific attributes. Hence, before applying for this program, it is crucial to determine whether it is worthwhile with your precious time.
If you are a brand with a poor social media presence, you should opt for Amazon influencers. In social platforms like Instagram, they post their promotional content and add the brand as a collaborator. Hence, the post appears in both of their feeds. This works as a passage through which new followers visit the brand page out of curiosity and mostly start to follow it if it aligns with their needs. Sometimes, they can follow a page just by seeing attractive messaging and creatives, while it may not directly serve any of their purposes.
The Amazon influencer program can benefit your brand if you are seeking a niche audience for your specialized product. BrandLoom can help you come across relevant influencers who work in your niche, thereby helping to maximize sales. This also works wonders for brands operating in the health, beauty, wellness, and fashion industries. The other organizations can rope them in as well, but their effectiveness will increase if the marketing method aligns with your requirements. BrandLoom can create the perfect influencer list for you, tailored to your goals and budget.
Frequently Asked Questions
Amazon influencers share links from their personalized storefront. If anyone follows that link and makes a purchase, the influencer gets a commission. Amazon directly pays the influencer’s registered bank account. An Indian bank account is mandatory for influencers from India. The account holder can withdraw the cash through the bank or use it as credit via UPI transfer.
Businesses also make direct payments to the influencer. They pay only when an active purchase is made from their storefront link. BrandLoom, one of India’s top influencer marketing agencies, can drive sales by connecting your brand with the right influencers who speak your brand voice.
Amazon is a globally recognized brand that operates in numerous countries. With the Amazon influencer program, the organization aims to boost sales by utilizing nano, micro, macro, and mega-level influencers, leveraging their follower counts. In a heavily populated country like India, this program can be proven highly beneficial as the target customer base is wider. The company has launched Creator Central in India to ensure that social creators have access to the right tools and resources.
This platform aims to support Indian influencers to monetize their content and also businesses to expand their market. Business owners can utilize this platform to connect with suitable influencers. Businesses can seek help from digital marketing agencies like BrandLoom to level up their profit game with impeccable influencer marketing services.
Aspiring participants must follow the eligibility requirements for Amazon influencers. Firstly, the applicant must be 18 years of age or older. Otherwise, they will not be shortlisted despite meeting all the other eligibility requirements. Secondly, for Indian influencers, they must have an Indian Bank account to receive direct payment from Amazon.
Thirdly, they must have a strong follower count. While nano-influencers with 1,000+ followers can apply for this program, those with a higher follower count have a greater chance of being shortlisted. Lastly, Amazon considers a few other aspects before finalizing the influencers. The applicant’s profile should be open to the public. Influencers with Instagram or Facebook profiles must have a business account. Amazon influencers can multiply the revenue of Indian businesses and help them tap into the emotions of the regional audience, too.
A strong social media presence is a must. While there is no fixed minimum followers for Amazon influencer program, the ones with 1000+ followers count get an upper hand with approvals. One must have a business account on Facebook and Instagram. Also, that account should be accessible to the public so that Amazon can review the account. There should be good social engagement on your profile with regular posts. This helps to accelerate the approval.
The individual must be at least 18 years old. Additionally, if you reside in India, you will need an Indian bank account to receive payments. When Indian businesses work with Amazon influencers, they make a payment when there is an active purchase. Businesses do not need to pay unless there is a purchase made from the Amazon influencer list.
A strong social media presence is one of the key attributes that the brand looks for in an Amazon influencer. This implies a solid follower base and organic engagement with them. While follower count is one of the major eligibility requirements for Amazon influencer, there is no such count specified that the aspiring influencers can follow. It is not official, but the applicant must have at least 1000 followers to be eligible for this program.
While choosing the influencer, some businesses focus on follower count, while some rely on engagement rate. Therefore, businesses can choose someone with 1000 followers with high engagement over another with 10k followers but less engagement and an inconsistent posting schedule. BrandLoom, the best influencer marketing company in India, can boost your sales by aligning your brand promotions with the right influencer.
While everyone can apply to become an Amazon influencer, the organization shortlists the ideal ones by closely reviewing all the applications. Applicants with a strong follower base across social platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, are highly preferred. They should own a business profile on Facebook and Instagram, and their social channels should be set to public, allowing Amazon to review their content.
A preferred applicant must be consistent with social postings and should have good engagement on their accounts. Their content should be original, high-quality, and the tone should align with the brand’s product categories. Irrelevant content niche and inconsistent posting can be key reasons behind rejection. The approved Amazon influencers are open to working with Indian brands and working for their growth.
If you work closely, you can get prompt approval from Amazon to join their influencer program. If you have a low follower count, you can post regularly and engage actively with other users. This can help to increase your follower count and fulfil one of the key eligibility requirements for Amazon influencer program.
If you are from India, you have to open an Indian Bank account for seamless transactions. Once you get approved by the organization, you will get plenty of opportunities to collaborate with businesses. Digital marketing agencies like BrandLoom can work as a bridge between the brands and Amazon influencers to drive lasting results.
Yes. The Amazon influencer program is completely free to join. There are no registration fees required. No hidden costs are there as well. There is zero investment, while you get enormous outcomes if you stay focused and consistent. As for businesses, they can collaborate with Amazon influencers and ask them to promote their products through realistic video content or social posts.
The businesses need to pay only when a purchase is made from the links shared by the Amazon influencers. They can make a direct payment to the influencer’s account. Hence, businesses can collaborate with the influencers without any upfront cost.
After you become an Amazon influencer, you must stay focused and consistent with your approach to emerge victorious. You must curate content that aligns with the product you’re going to promote. While recommending the product, it must address the customer’s pain points. This will help to grab the attention of the target customer segment.
You have to engage with the individual commenting under your post to clear any queries they have regarding the product or the buying process. Businesses also look for influencers who actively engage with their audience. It helps them to drive sales and multiply revenue.
You do not need a website to become an Amazon influencer. However, you must have social media accounts with a minimum of 1000 followers to be eligible for the program. The account should have a good engagement rate and consistent posting on a regular basis. It will add value to your profile and make it more appealing to Amazon, thereby improving your chances of getting selected.
Businesses nowadays have an official website to cater to their new generation customer base, who are prone to online shopping. If your business has an online presence, it will be easier for the Amazon influencers to shift the flow of customers towards your page. Therefore, before opting for influencer marketing, build a strong digital presence. BrandLoom, the top digital marketing company in India, can help you build it from scratch.
