In 2015, the Federal Trade Commission released their new rules for Disclosure Compliance. These rules are set in place to ensure that readers or viewers of web media (blogs, Youtube videos, etc.) know if the blogger/presenter is sponsored, endorsed, or partnered with a different company.
In blog terms, the readers need to know if the blogger is making money by sharing a link or product. Some bloggers only blog because they are making money/commission on a particular product [so they may be biased and not telling you the full story or truth] however other bloggers only promote what they believe in and trust and use personally [so they are telling you the whole truth about the product]- the website eatdrinkthinkdo.com ONLY promotes tried and trusted products whether or not they have affiliate commissions associated with them. You never know if someone is just selling you something for the sake of it or if it is true, that is why you simply need to be aware sales are involved and keep your thinking hat on. Now I wish the FTC would apply the same standards in medicine and every other aspect of life where we are just told to assume everything is ‘true’
In compliance with the FTC guidelines, please know the following about links and posts on this site:
- ALL links on this site are to people and products that I personally trust and have tried or used, and I include them with or without them belonging to an affiliate program, many do not give me any affiliate commission.
- Some of the links on the site eatdrinkthinkdo.com are affiliate links of which I receive a small compensation from sales of certain items.
- This purpose of this site ultimately is for educational purposes and links to other sites and products will fulfil educational purposes, not commission purposes.
What are affiliate links?
Online companies pay a percentage commission to websites who promote their products. So blogger websites gladly promote products, using a link from the company to direct traffic to the company. They track the link and pay the blogger who sent them the traffic. So the situation has arose whereby in the online shopping age, some people make a career out of referring customers to companies who sell products. The bloggers have websites and write articles, pages, posts, with information and when you search on google you read the information and choose which product you think is best for you. The FTC guidelines now want you to be aware than when you read a blog, it may or may not be biased. The blogger may actually be interested in the message or merely in the sale – so you have to be aware of your sources.
Prices are exactly the same for you if your purchase is through an affiliate link or a non-affiliate link. You will not pay more by clicking through to the link.
Product affiliate links.
For example an enema bucket, if you click the link and buy the product, then the blogger may get a percentage of the sale or some other type of compensation if the enema bucket company has an affiliate program and they are signed up to it. Things like e-courses, and online packages are often affiliate links, but on this site the Hypnosis course that I promote as the best out there actually has no affiliate program, and yet I still rate it number one whereas I’m aware of other hypnosis and mind programs out there with high affiliate commissions and they are not promoted on this site because I believe they are a bit of a rip off. That is the way this site rolls. Again, prices are not different if you use affiliate links or non-affiliate links. You will not pay more by clicking through to the link.
How You Can Get A Website And Become An Affiliate Marketer
If you think affiliate marketing is for you then you can learn the ropes here, you’ll get two free wordpress websites and training in affiliate marketing to try and see if this is for you. Because I recommended you to the people with the websites and include my link here, I will get a commission if you join them. It’s a win win situation, you get a good product and I get a commission for referring you – WHY? Well the company would not have discovered your interest unless I sent you to them. So the same with you, if you know someone interested in getting online and starting an affiliate business or in promoting a message whose costs can be covered and that can be supported with affiliate commissions [as my website is doing] then you’ll get an affiliate commission for signing them up. And the cost is no extra to the person – that is simply how online marketing works.
What about sponsored content and PPC?
I do not write sponsored posts. I want to bring you real, unbiased information. And I am not using PPC marketing.