How to Make Money on Amazon without Selling Physical Products


Everyone is looking for a side hustle to bring in some extra cash. 

So, in this post, we will look at seven ways to make money on Amazon without selling physical products. 

Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer and offers many opportunities to make money without selling their products. 

This blog will explore Amazon’s ecosystem and discuss ways to make money on Amazon. So, whether you want to earn extra cash or build a full-time income stream, keep reading to learn how to make money on Amazon without selling physical products.

Quick Summary: Make Money with Amazon without Selling Physical Products

  1. Amazon Associates Affiliate Program 
  2. Self-Publishing with Kindle Direct Publishing
  3. Amazon Mechanical Turk
  4. Working as an Amazon Customer Service Associate
  5. Amazon Flex Program
  6. Amazon Merch
  7. Amazon Influencer Program

How to Make Money on Amazon without Selling Physical Products

1. Amazon Associates Affiliate Program

Affiliate marketing with the Amazon Associates Program offers a lucrative opportunity to earn passive income by earning a commission on every sale generated through your affiliate link.

By utilizing social media platforms, blogs, and other channels to drive traffic and generate sales through your affiliate link, you can cause a lot of traffic and ultimately get paid every time someone purchases during your cookie duration. 

The best part? You will earn 10% in commissions on all qualifying purchases. 

How to Get Started with Amazon Affiliate Marketing?

You'll need to apply to be accepted as an Amazon Associate. Once your application has been approved, you can share products with your audiences. Amazon gives you customized linking tools to market the products successfully, no matter the size of your audience. 

Making Money on Amazon Success Tips!

Here are some tips when doing affiliate marketing with Amazon: 

  • Select products that align with your niche and cater to your target audience. This ensures that you are promoting relevant and valuable items. 
  • Product research can be utilized to monitor the demand for your niche products and how much you can potentially make
  • Create informative and engaging content that encourages clicks and conversions 
  • Tracking tools can be utilized to monitor the performance of your affiliate campaigns, allowing you to make data-driven decisions. 
  • Building a solid online presence through SEO, social media, and email marketing is also essential. 
  • Lastly, continuously analyzing and optimizing your affiliate marketing strategies, including product research, will produce better results.

Earning Potential with Amazon Associates Affiliate Program

The average Amazon affiliate makes around $85,000 annually, with the highest earnings breaking over $120,000 and low earnings still earning $24,000!

2. Self-Publishing with Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)

Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is Amazon’s self-publishing platform for e-books. It offers you a straightforward process to publish your digital books on Amazon. The best part about this money-earning method? There are no requirements for the content you post. It can be any length, does not have to be professionally edited, and can cover many topics!

How to Publish Your First eBook?

  1. Sign up for a KPD account here. 
  2. Enter your book details. 
  3. Upload and preview your book - make sure it all looks correct 
  4. Create an attention-grabbing title 
  5. Set your pricing 
  6. Get ready to sell! 

Earning Potential with Kindle Direct Publishing

I have sold with Kindle Direct Publishing. Amazon’s interface does a great job marketing your book, so long you do the SEO research needed. However, true success is found when you have a large audience to sell your book to outside of Amazon. Think social media following, shoutouts, email lists, etc. 

3. Amazon Mechanical Turk

Amazon Mechanical Turk, or MTurk, is a unique way to make money on Amazon without selling products. It is a crowdsourcing marketplace that connects individuals with tasks that require human intelligence. Almost every job on Amazon Turk is virtual, so you can make extra cash whenever you have free time!

Common Amazon Mechanical Turk Tasks

  • Surveys 
  • audio/video transcriptions 
  • Excel spreadsheet work 
  • Youtube video ratings 
  • Writing Reviews 
  • Writing titles or descriptions for images 

Making Money on Amazon Success Tips!

Here are some tips when doing Amazon Mechanical Turk: 

  • Understand what HITs tasks you would be good at 
  • Focus on the HITs tasks that pay well 
  • Complete profile surveys to get higher-paying jobs 
  • Join forums and communities to grow your knowledge of Turk continually

Earning Potential with Amazon Mechanical Turk

Since most tasks do not require much time or skill, payment for tasks is typically low, ranging from $6-8 dollars a task.

Check out this Turk worker, who made an extra $50,000 annually with Amazon Mechanical Turk.

4.  Amazon Customer Service Associate

Suppose you still want to work virtually but like a more structured gig. In that case, Amazon Customer Service Associate provides an opportunity to assist customers and resolve their queries from your home! 

To apply for this position, visit the Amazon website and search for job openings. As a Customer Service Associate, you can enjoy various benefits such as flexible working hours, competitive pay, and access to Amazon’s resources. 

Amazon Customer Service Associate Tasks

  1. Assist customers with their inquiries about products/orders/services 
  2. Respond to emails, chat messages, and phone calls 
  3. Resolve complaints around products and deliveries 
  4. Provide information on products 

Earning Potential with Amazon Customer Service Associate

You will earn around $25.50 per hour working as an Amazon Customer Service Associate; not bad, right? 

5.  Amazon Flex Delivery Driver

Another way to make money on Amazon without selling products is to deliver packages with flexible hours using the Amazon Flex app. You Get paid weekly for your deliveries and can choose when and where you want to work. 

How  Amazon Flex Delivery Partner Works?

  1. Fill out a Flex Application and download the app. 
  2. Reserve a block that you will deliver on 
  3. On the day of your block, you pick up your packages and deliver them 
  4. You can get paid whenever you want 

Requirements to Become an Amazon Flex Delivery Partner?

  1. Live in a city where Flex operates 
  2. Be at least 21 years old 
  3. Have a valid U.S. driver's license 
  4. Have a mid-sized or larger vehicle 

Earning Potential with Amazon Flex Delivery

On average, you can earn $18-$25 per hour, but that does not include tips! 

6. Amazon Merch on Demand

Merch on Demand By Amazon allows you to sell branded products, but print-on-demand style. You upload your design, and  Merch on Demand By Amazon will handle the production, selling, and shipping! 

How does Amazon Merch on Demand work?

  1. Apply to the Merch on Demand by Amazon program. 
  2.  Upload your artwork
  3. Suggest a listing price
  4. Amazon prints what is sold
  5. Amazon ships it with Prime 
  6. You earn royalties 

Benefits of Amazon Merch on Demand

  • Royalties 
  • No inventory risk 
  • Prime Shipping 
  • Amazon Customer reach 
  • Analytical tools to track your success 

Earning Potential with  Amazon Merch on Demand

Since this is royalty-based, you will have to do some math. On average, sellers will earn a royalty fee between 13%-37%. Some make thousands per month! 

7. Amazon Influencer

Amazon Influencer is another affiliate program that is starkly different than Amazon Associates. As an Amazon influencer, you promote products on social media. This is great if you have a decent following on social platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.

How do I get accepted as an Amazon Influencer? 

  • Submit the application 
  • Must have a YouTube, Instagram, Facebook or TikTok Account 
  • Your followers and engagement metrics will be reviewed 
  • At least 200 followers, a better chance of getting selected above 1000 followers 

How to make money as an Amazon Influencer:

  1. Create a storefront to list the products you will be promoting 
  2. Share your affiliate links as well to earn commissions 
  3. Create effective marketing strategies to get your followers to buy 

I personally create idea lists, videos, and hauls to show products that are found on Amazon. I will be sure to use marketing SEO strategies and good content creation to curate the sale. 

Earning Potential with  Amazon Influencer

Since so many factors determine the amount of money to be made, it is a safe bet to say you will make anywhere from $0-$10,000 per month!  

Wrapping it Up!

In conclusion, there are numerous ways to make money on Amazon without selling products directly. Whether through affiliate marketing, self-publishing, working as an Amazon customer service associate, participating in the Amazon Flex program, selling Amazon Merch, or becoming an Amazon influencer, there are plenty of opportunities to generate income. 

Pick one thing to focus on. By focusing on one thing, you will be well on your way to making a steady income with Amazon! 

GUINEVERE

Writer, Traveler, and Entrepreneur

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