Amazon, ooooh amazon.
Today starts off with another dose of reality.
I wake up, get a cup of coffee, and sit down to check my emails. Hey, theres an email about my amazon affiliate account. So, let's check that out to see what it has to say.
Amazon has closed your account for problems with your website. Needless to say that fear, panic, curiosity, anger all set in at once.
Backstory: when I created my site, I simply went to the associates site, found the products that I wanted to display, got the picture of the item, copied the link that was generated, and put the link into post (associating it with the pic), and off I went. DON'T DO THAT!
I'm 46 years old and that's the way things were done in the past. You find what was interesting to you, copied and pasted a picture and the link to your site, and voila, you were done.
HOWEVER, my lesson for the day is that Amazon will shut you down if you don't use the correct API to list items and it will get your account shut down immediately.
Some of the more tech savvy folks may already know about this, but as I explained above, it's the way things were done several years ago, and because I didn't do the proper amount of due diligence, another lesson has come my way.
My reaction to all of this? Well, my first reaction is (as I'm writing this within minutes of finding all of this out), like I don't have enough to learn already, know I have to sit down and learn another program that would equate to needing a four year degree on another topic, just so I can post some freaking advertisements.
I've been struggling, as some have been able to attest to through live chat and some private messaging, but I am really beginning to be completely overwhelmed again. It just seems like every little bit I learn leads to 6 more lessons that I have to figure out.
I guess that if I can figure this one out, and persevere through yet another hurdle, maybe I can make a buck. Gotta tell you though, this is an emotional roller coaster.
I really am hoping that writing all of this out and sharing it is going to help me deal with it and help give me the resolve to keep going. I'm sure some folks are tired of hearing about my woes, as everyone has their own issues to deal with. But, I will say, It's getting tougher and tougher to keep going.
I hope everyone's day goes well, and all my best going out to those affected by the storms.
Ty
Recent Comments
17
Hey Ty,
So you know I am doing that exact same thing as you, if they shut me down I couldn't care less...
I'm in bed so to speak with alot of Amazon's competitors and their rules and regulations are not near as strict.
Have you tried working with walmart ( through linkshare) or wayfair (through shareasale)?
I find them (and lots of other merchants) much easier to work with.
Feel free to pm me if you need help with getting other merchants signed up
if u correct the problem u can call Amazon back nad tell them that u fixed and they might reinstate your account. It is worth a shot if u want to keep using Amazon.
btw the post from Dom is Using Amazon Product Images On Your Site
thanks carl. they did tell me that if i can get the errors corrected that i can reapply with the same email address. im just not really sure i want to have to learn yet another technology on top of what is already necessary at this time. this is just getting to be too much at one time. not saying im done, but im damn close. getting a kick in the nuts like this 3 weeks in is a real problem for me.
I understand, try to just stick to what the course is teaching and not to worry about what is said in the chatroom. Everything is covered in the training as u go, but most people seem to jump ahead because of something the saw in the chatroom. It can be distracting. Do not get me wrong, the chatroom is a great place to get a question answered if u are stuck, but just because someone said to add affiliate links to your site before u have had the training on doing that can get u side tracked. Just take your time and if it gets too much, then take a break for a bit and then come back to it. We will all still be here for u and the training will wait for u too. Just relax and take things slow, there is a lot of info to absorb and the best way to learn it is through the training. U can always look at other training videos that might enhance what u are currently learning in the course and that is ok to do.
So relax, take a deep breath and take a break for a bit, albeit only for a few hours or a few days, it is all ok. Go out and take your mind off of this for a minute, give it a rest and time to recoup itself. :)
carl
Actually, you are wrong. In the lessons, we have shown to use images in the way which is against Amazon policy. I have passed the courses two times so I know for sure.
You may be correct in that, some of the videos are old but I never mentioned anything about the training, with regards to what the videos teach u to do or not to do with Amazon images. I was just trying to be supportive to a friend of mine. In the the first post, I merely posted the article to which 3t's was referring to.
You did mention what the courses are teaching us, this is the training. We all have a serious issue with Amazon and it appears nobody knows how to deal with it correctly. It is not enough to be supportive, many could be affected the same way as he was. In fact, Amazon policy in this issue is clear, problem is it is so bad and hard to obey.
I feel your frustration. This is not an easy business. Each new lesson creates so many new questions but let's just keep moving forward. Thanks to your mistake, I can avoid that one. Hopefully you can get Amazon back. One day and lesson at a time. Debbie
One of the biggest reasons i put this up was so others will have a heads up.
going to have to do some soul searching before continuing.
Could you say more precisely what the problem was?
This can happen tp anybody so this would be helpful. Thank you.
I tried to just copy and paste the pictures and text links for the products instead of using their api system to generate the links like they wanted me to do.
their system saw the copy and pasted items and shut down my account as a violation of their usage agreement.
There was a blog recently by Dom and he spoke with somebody from Amazon who warned about this.
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Ty, me again. Do you understand the difference between the following two cases.
1.They want us to use 'Image' with embedded link, so that they can control it and remove remotely when they end contract with manufacturer/seller.
2. Now, we can use the image in our usual way (screenshot, or download and add to the site), I mean image from any source, in most cases it is not possible to guess from where the image comes. Then add their link. They can always make the link dead the same way as they do when they remove the image in the first case. But we do not have a ugly empty space in the post.
So what makes the difference from their perspective. I do not get it.