Expanding From Micro-Niche - Amazon Site

Darth

Darth

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While this post/question is about an Amazon affiliate (ie product reviews, top 10) site, my primary skills and experience are in entertainment sites and banner ads.

About 2 years ago I bought an expired domain that is brandable in a way that matches my niche - think something along the lines of home security.

I got my writer to make about 15 articles in total (I have not added any since). Each one reviews a type of product that relates to my niche - think top 10/best xxx style. The pros and cons of each product are considered, they are ranked, with links to Amazon of course.

The site has been making on average $150 per month. I don't really track it and I haven't and don't do any work/SEO/marketing on it since those 2 years ago.

I noticed that after the recent 12 March Google update the site is now getting over 200 visits per day on average. That seems like a pretty good number to build from to me. It was getting around 150/day on average before.

I know that the site has the following issues as of today:

  1. Not optimised at all for conversions/clicks to Amazon. As mentioned my skills are absolutely NOT conversions/selling - more getting eyeballs and traffic to entertainment sites to sell banner ads.
  2. Out-dated content / needs to be updated with latest products (they are 2017 "top" products) - might have changed since, maybe not.
  3. Could be expanded to cover wider niches/more products
I'm assuming that revenue is low compared to the traffic? Niche dependant of course I know.

Amazon stats for last month:
Clicks
3,954
Conversion:
3.41%

I can take care of issues #2 and #3 above, but am I right that, in terms of layout/design/optimisation, that something like Wirecutter eg https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-workout-headphones/ is the way to go? Given they have a ton of money and resources, assuming it would be best to more or less copy them?

I think there is probably quite a bit more potential with this site and I am enthused with the recent uplift in traffic. I also have some time on my hands in the next month or so to work on it. It's just that I have zero experience with Amazon affiliate sites so any ideas or suggestions appreciated. Thanks
 
I'd say that $1 per visitor on this kind of site is not low at all. It's phenomenal. That's $1000 RPMs. What is likely to happen is you'll start expanding to more types of posts higher up the funnel and bring that way down, yet make more money.

Generally you should always have a call to action and often that's in a poppin' color usually in a button. Most people, much of the time, do what they are told, even when it's something tiny like that on the internet. You'd then split test the words like "Click Here" and "Check Price" and "At Amazon" or whatever, as well as colors and design.

Another "generally" good tip is to have comparison tables. A conversion optimization agency put out a post once that said they've never failed to increase revenue by adding a comparison table where there wasn't one. After that it's a matter of split testing the design (vertical columns? horizontal rows? 3 items or 4?)

Like that Wirecutter post you showed, I like to create product boxes that stand out too. I don't do it for every product like they do, nor are they that tiny and contained, but the point is that you can call extra attention to the products you know convert better.

For Amazon the trick really is to simply get them to click and get your cookie dropped, assuming you're doing a basic level of pre-selling so they're primed to at least consider purchasing the item you're sending them to. Amazon takes care of the rest.
  • Image links
  • text links (these do pretty damn well surprisingly)
  • buttons
  • comparison tables
  • product boxes
  • lists
  • pros & cons
All the typical tricks of the trade work. Just give the user plenty of ways to interact psychologically with the page and make sure there's a clear way to click over to Amazon.
 
Thanks @Ryuzaki some solid tips. BTW it's $150 / month on average and 150-200 visits / day on average. So more like 3c per visitor :smile:
 
YES you should just emulate their copy/design since they highly likely have tested stuff and landed on their setup as the winning formula. Look at more than just thewirecutter - find the top 5 players and take them all into consideration.

I personally like to emulate what the SEM marketers are doing, since they tend to be monetization hawks (typically more so than organic guys). I see SEOs rightfully spending most their time on content/links/ranks. Paid guys spend their time on converting & monetization. More $$ means more to bid means better ad positions. So the ads in your face are usually the guys making the most $$. Pay special attention to who is constantly killing it on the paid front.

Once you spend like 1 day adjusting your landers, the real game of these types of sites begins: ranking.
 
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Darth said:
but am I right that, in terms of layout/design/optimisation, that something like Wirecutter eg https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-workout-headphones/ is the way to go?
Click to expand...
These guys have been killing it lately and their design is significantly different from TheWirecutter https://www.carbibles.com/best-leather-conditioners-reviewed/. I'm sure they get sick conversions from all that moving CSS. They have a couple of websites running that design around the web.

Zach said:
I personally like to emulate what the SEM marketers are doing, since they tend to be monetization hawks (typically more so than organic guys). I see SEOs rightfully spending most their time on content/links/ranks. Paid guys spend their time on converting & monetization. More $$ means more to bid means better ad positions. So the ads in your face are usually the guys making the most $$. Pay special attention to who is constantly killing it on the paid front.
Click to expand...
Solid advice there, thanks mate.
 
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