Amazon recently announced a new addition to their arsenal of sales tools and seeing as this one is designed to exclusively target Twitter users Amazon UK calls it the “#AmazonBasket”. Amazon.com likes to do things a little differently so they call their version the #AmazonCart.
It’s too early to say how well Twitter users will respond to the idea, but the #AmazonBasket certainly appears to have the potential to boost Amazon affiliate revenues, and marketing the Twitter way is unlikely to be a time consuming task because the system is easy to use and no steep learning curve is involved.
The system only works if Twitter users connect their Twitter and Amazon accounts. That may be a potential spanner in the works if Twitter users don’t wish to do so, but the linking of various different types of account is such common practice these days the amount of nay-sayers is likely to be quite small.
How the #AmazonBasket Works in Three Easy Steps
- The internet marketer sends out a tweet containing an affiliate link to an Amazon product.
- The customer (Twitter page visitor) replies to the tweet, adding “#AmazonBasket”.
- The customer receives a reply tweet from Amazon informing them they have successfully added the product to their Amazon basket. This will also be confirmed via email.
If the customer has not connected their accounts Amazon sends them a response requesting they make the connection.
Some Further Considerations
Seasoned internet marketers will know better than to over exploit the method, but marketing the Twitter way is so quick and easy it would be all too easy for newbie marketers to be tempted to bombard Twitter with too many links. That could cause problems, but if marketers treat Twitter as they would their list of email subscribers (and market with caution) the #AmazonBasket could become their new cash-cow or at the very least wean them a few additional sales commissions.
Customer location is also a consideration. Twitter pages usually have a mixture of readers from all over the world. If a marketers tweets an Amazon UK product only Amazon UK customers will be able to add it to their basket. If the tweet links to Amazon.com the marketer’s source of revenue is limited to Amazon.com customers. This being the case, some consideration should be given as to which links are most likely to secure the best commissions.
