Consider this a word of warning for anyone with an Amazon Associate account. 

Background – Amazon Associates

Amazon Associates is an affiliate program by which you can earn a percentage on sales from people who click via your link. You probably see a lot of this from some people, like, ahem:

Every day at Noon Eastern time, like clockwork….

But many folks have these affiliate links, I used to, and I’ll share why that is past tense in a moment. There are particular rules, as part of the Operating Agreement, that you have to follow. While they seem reasonable and logical, their enforcement can vary.

The Dreaded E-mail

A few days ago, I got an e-mail from Amazon Associates, noting that:

Dear Associate,

Your Associates account has come up for review in connection with our ongoing monitoring of the Amazon Associates Program. During our review, we have determined that you are not in compliance with the Operating Agreement that governs your participation in the Associates Program and  your Associates Program account has been closed. You will not receive further payment of advertising fees.

You are not in compliance with Participation Requirement Number 29 because purchases resulting from Special Links on your site have been for personal use, resale, or commercial use. Additionally, according to Operating Agreement Section 7, any Product purchased through a Special Link by you or on your behalf, including Products you purchase through Special Links for yourself, friends, relatives, or associates as well as orders placed by you for or on behalf of any other person or entity, are not considered Qualifying Purchases.

You can find the complete terms of the Operating Agreement, including the Participation Requirements and Linking Requirements, via this link:
https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/agreement.

We ask that you immediately remove all Amazon Content from your site(s). Any other accounts you have or may open in the future may be closed and you will not receive any advertising fees. We reserve all other rights and claims we may have.

If you feel that your account has been closed in error, please contact us via https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/contact.

We appreciate your understanding in this matter.

Warmest Regards,

Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/associates

That’s a nice touch at the end – Warmest Regards. I’ve gone ahead and put in bold the important part of the e-mail. You see they are referring to this:

Qualifying Purchases exclude, and we will not pay advertising fees on any of, the following:

• any Product that, after expiration of the applicable Session, is added to a customer’s Shopping Cart, is purchased by a customer via our 1-Click feature, or is streamed or downloaded by a customer, even if the customer previously followed a Special Link from your site to the Amazon Site;
• any Product purchase that is not correctly tracked or reported because the links from your site to the Amazon Site are not properly formatted;
• any Product purchased through a Special Link in a Mobile Application that was not an Approved Mobile Application or where the Special Link in an Approved Mobile Application was not served by the AMA API;
• any Product purchased through a Special Link by you or on your behalf, including Products you purchase through Special Links for yourself, friends, relatives, or associates (e.g., personal orders, orders for your own use, and orders placed by you for or on behalf of any other person or entity);
• any Product purchased through a Special Link that violates the terms of this Agreement;
• any Product purchased for resale or commercial use of any kind;
• any Product purchased after termination of this Operating Agreement;
• any Product order that is canceled or returned; and
• any Product purchased by a customer who is referred to the Amazon Site through any of the following:
  • a Prohibited Paid Search Placement; or
  • a link to the Amazon Site, including a Redirecting Link, that is generated or displayed on a Search Engine in response to a general Internet search query or keyword (i.e., in natural, free, organic, or unpaid search results), whether those links appear through your submission of data to that site or otherwise.

Again, I put in bold the key phrase here. Product purchased for resale or commercial use of any kind. So, of course, I haven’t advocated through my Special Links that anyone purchase anything from Amazon. In fact, other than a comment here or there, I’ve never advocated for sourcing from Amazon (to then sell on Amazon). So of course I went back to Amazon.

My response:

Now, I thought I had a good case, right? Here I am highlighting that I’m not advocating folks to buy stuff with my Special Links for resale. Unfortunately, Amazon Associates didn’t really see it this way. Gary, responded:

Dear Associate, As stated in our previous communication, upon a review of your Associates account we have determined that you are not in compliance with the Operating Agreement that governs your participation in the Associates Program.  We have closed your Associates account and you will not receive further payment of advertising fees. You are not in compliance with Participation Requirement Number 29 because purchases resulting from Special Links on your site have been used for resale or commercial use.  Specifically, you are advising your customers to purchase items through your Special Links for resale: https://saverocity.com/taggingmiles/reselling-tools/. You can find the complete terms of the Operating Agreement, including the Participation Requirements and Linking Requirements, via this link: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/agreement. We ask that you immediately remove all Amazon Content from your site(s).  Any other accounts you have or may open in the future may be closed and you will not receive any advertising fees.  We reserve all other rights and claims we may have.

Best regards, Gary – Associates Account Specialist

Now I felt like I was getting someplace. Of course they would see my Reselling Tools link and think judging a book by the cover, that I was advocating reselling stuff bought with my Special Link, but, if they read the post, it would be clear, I was not advocating folks to resell any of that stuff, they were tools for reselling other things! And I stated as much:

Of course, this is a completely logical argument, right? Like, just read the post, and you’ll see! I thought I was set!

Unfortunately not…

Dear Associate, As stated in our previous communication, upon a review of your Associates account we have determined that you are not in compliance with the Operating Agreement that governs your participation in the Associates Program.  We have closed your Associates account, and you will not receive further payment of advertising fees. You can find the complete terms of the Operating Agreement, including the Participation Requirements and Linking Requirements, via this link: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/agreement. We have confirmed that the decision to close your Associates Program account and withhold fees is final, and you are no longer eligible to participate in the Associates Program. We ask that you immediately remove all Amazon Content from your site(s). We reserve all other rights and claims we may have. Any other accounts you have or may open in the future may be closed and advertising fees withheld without further notice. Please understand that this decision is final, and any further requests to review your account or unpaid fees for reinstatement will not receive a response.

Best regards, Gary – Associates Account Specialist

Now, that reads to me like Associates Account Specialist Gary, didn’t have the chance to read the link in completion. Because if he had, I would think, he would have come to the same conclusion I did. Now, maybe, he could’ve come to the conclusion that reselling tools could be for commercial purposes, but I think its pretty obvious that you don’t purchase a tool for reselling, just to go and resell it…  Well, ok, probably not, and certainly not, based on the way I described the various tools that I use.

Wrapping Up

While I wish this experience could have been avoided, I’m unfortunately out of an Amazon Associates link, at least for the time being. I realize there are some out there that may have Amazon Associates accounts, or are considering getting them, and I would encourage you too do so. Its virtually free money, if you can get folks to use them. For bloggers, its a great way for readers to support your blog, but don’t slap folks in the face daily with the link (ok, I had to!). But be careful what products you link to, because apparently Amazon Associates Account Specialists don’t actually read past the link title, or at least that was my experience.

Have you had any experience with Amazon Associates? Was your account in jeopardy? Where you able to get the decision reversed? If so, please share! If not, share your thoughts on my experience anyway.