People read for many reasons.
some do it for fun, while others do it because they have to for their college course.
You are reading: Affiliate marketing for books
and some read to their children because their parents read to them when they were younger.
The fact is that the written word is still incredibly important to people all over the world.
And so it’s no surprise that the book industry is worth $119 billion a year.
The problem is that it can be difficult to build a profitable affiliate site around this theme.
But if you put on your authority hacker hat, you’ll find that there are several ways to approach this problem.
You just need the right variety of affiliate programs to promote.
book affiliate programs
- indigo books affiliate program
- textbook solutions affiliate program
- barnes & noble affiliate program
- biggest books affiliate program
- second hand books affiliate program
- second sale books affiliate program
- calendar club affiliate program
- eagle saver book affiliate program
- vital source book affiliate program
- affiliate program from premier collectibles
indigo books
indigo is, in its own words, the largest bookstore in canada.
And while we have no way of proving it, they have been around in one form or another since 1940.
so they obviously know what they’re doing because they’ve overcome everything from the dot-com bust to digital downloads to kindle.
And while they place special emphasis on being a leading provider of children’s books, they also stock tens of thousands of fiction and non-fiction titles for teens and adults.
This affiliate program pays between 2% and 10% on referred sales, which is confusing.
but here’s how it breaks down: you’ll earn 5% for every book you sell, but you can earn 10% if a referred person signs up for the indigo rewards program.
other than that, all your affiliate metrics are where you want them to be.
url: indigo (chapters)
commission: 5%
epc: $43.89 (cad)
Cookie duration: 7 days
textbook solutions
textbook solutions is the brainchild of two texas a&m students who spotted a gap in the education market back in 2007.
and it was just this: textbooks were getting ridiculously expensive.
In fact, the average college student spends up to $1,200 a year on necessary reading material.
so they set up a textbook rental business, saving students up to 90% on the cost of buying the book.
oh, and they buy textbooks too, so you can trade in those old tomes you no longer need.
let’s start with the things we don’t like about this affiliate program: the 1-day cookie is inevitably annoying, i.e. they could change it.
but what we love is that it’s in the top 50 deals on the shareasale affiliate network (44) and also has an impressive epc considering we’re only talking about renting textbooks.
url: textbook solutions
commission: 30%
epc: $101.17
Cookie duration: 1 day
barnes & noble
and here we have another survivor of the digital reading revolution: barnes & noble.
in fact, they adapted better than most and launched their nook e-reader to compete with the kindle.
and its analog book business has also done well, claiming the title of the number 1 bookstore in the united states, with 1 million titles in stock at any one time.
they seem to remain competitive by offering not only novels and children’s books, but also textbooks for students.
Because there is still a strong market for print books, despite what people think.
sit down.
It’s unlikely you’ll retire on what you earn from referring new clients to barnes & noble: they pay an affiliate commission of 2%.
and his epc is far from massive.
The only reasons they go overboard here are:
- brand name – you won’t even have to work to promote them
- your “network” earnings score says your affiliates are making money
then promote them through your affiliate program, but don’t be exclusive to them.
url: barnes & noble
commission: 2%
epc: $4.77
Cookie duration: 1 day
biggest books
bigger books had been a leading e-retailer of new and used college textbooks between 2001 and 2014.
That was the year they started offering a textbook rental option, simply because many students couldn’t afford the textbooks they needed for upcoming semesters.
but they also offer a full range of e-textbooks, replacing heavy books with e-reading files.
And they’re also more than happy to buy your existing used textbooks from you, which lowers the cost of investing in them in the first place.
This affiliate marketing program pays a 5.5% commission on all textbook sales and rentals, with an average payout of $4.98 per transaction.
Their “power rank” score and epc tell you they have a lot of affiliates making money.
and there is also the small detail that they have an 18% conversion rate.
url: biggest books
commission: up to 6.5%
epc: $90.42
Cookie duration: 30 days
second hand books
I became a huge fan of buying used books about a decade ago when I checked off an important bucket list item: spend a year reading.
See Also: 7 Books to Read if Youre an Economics Student | Top Universities
Used books became my go-to option because I could buy a whole box for what I’d pay for a single new hardcover novel.
Unfortunately, I didn’t know about secondhand books back then, even though they have grown to be the largest online retailer of used books in the US.
As of this writing, they have 7 million books in stock, including everything from children’s classics to the latest fictional thrillers, as well as rare and collectible items.
Not sure how you can sell used books to your audience?
tell them that reading books they already own reduces their carbon footprint.
which is totally true.
As an affiliate, you will receive a 5% commission on every purchase your visitors make.
but you can get an 8% reduction if you refer more than $10,000 in sales each month.
It’s always nice to see a provider that offers a sliding scale to the best because it encourages other affiliates to really push themselves to the next level.
url: second hand books
commission: 5%
epc: $21.85
Cookie duration: 7 days
second sale
Two things occurred to me when I landed on the Second Sale Used Book Specialists home page.
- they have the ugliest header I’ve seen in years
- they have over 10 million used books in stock
but you should never judge a book by its cover; we’ll explain why a little later.
They are happy to sell their visitors’ books for as little as $3.78.
but they’re also just as happy to buy used books from their visitors, or anyone else.
and they also offer free standard shipping on almost all the books they have in stock.
Now, while we criticize their headline for being ugly, these guys convert over 30% of their traffic into affiliate sales.
If you’re not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, believe me, it’s exceptional.
so even though you may think their website looks dated or cluttered, they keep their new and existing customers very, very happy.
and that’s much more important than a few design issues.
url: second sale
commission: 5%
epc: $81.03
Cookie duration: 90 days
club calendar
yes, yes, I know it says calendar club.
and no, they don’t just sell calendars.
In fact, they are a kind of family-oriented bookstore, with many educational and entertaining titles for children.
but they also have lifestyle and motivational books for adults.
I like how they have categorized their books, where you can choose between specific authors, activities like bedtime books, or even the style of book you want to read: humor, sports, travel, entertainment, etc.
p>
A good detail is that they have stores both in the US and in the US. uu. as in the UK, so they are suitable for a regional or international audience.
Affiliates are paid a 5% commission on all books sold, but you’ll take a 10% cut of any incidental calendar purchases.
One more thing worth noting is that they offer a 45-day cookie, which is 44 days longer than some of the other affiliate programs listed there.
I mean, who doesn’t offer at least a 7-day cookie these days?
url: club calendar
commission: up to 10%
epc: $26.81
Cookie duration: 45 days
save eagles
eagle saver has no interest in selling you anything.
Instead, they want to buy your used books (as well as your cds, dvds, and games) for cash.
and that includes a single copy of a book, or even if you have boxes with the same title, they have a special “mass checkout” option for that.
You also don’t have to wait to get paid: the money will be in your checking or paypal account 24 hours after eagle saver receives your books.
if you’re worried about shipping costs, don’t – choose fedex or ups and print your shipping label. eagle saver takes the financial hit there for you.
The website looks and feels dated, but how are your affiliates doing?
Your affiliates are doing great thanks to the 28% conversion rate, 5% commission, and a 45-day cookie.
what more could you want from an affiliate program?
well, other than getting paid to do absolutely nothing, which is highly unlikely.
url: eagle savior
commission: 5%
epc: $78.70
Cookie duration: 45 days
vital source
You could invest in a small mountain of paper textbooks for your college course.
or you can choose to save the trees and purchase e-textbook versions from vital source.
the cost associated with purchasing textbooks can result in some students simply running out of them, which then affects their grades.
With vital source, students can choose exactly the e-textbooks they need, but at up to 80% off regular prices.
See Also: How to Change Kindle Account Country? A Quick Guide! – TheBookBuff.com
This is possible because this company has relationships with 7,000 educational institutions, 500 stores, and 1,000 publishers.
so they can negotiate better prices on behalf of students around the world.
Your traffic must have a large percentage of students for you to successfully monetize this offer.
but if you do, you can earn a 3% commission on every customer you refer to them.
and you have 30 days to turn that interested visitor into a paid lead.
url: vital source
commission: 3%
epc: $53.28
Cookie duration: 30 days
early collectibles
And we end this roundup with a pretty good deal: top-tier collectibles, purveyors of all kinds of rare books, and collectives.
now, if you’re a book nerd (like me), you’re probably dreaming of the day you’ll be browsing through a used book store, only to find a signed first edition of “the hobbit”.
Okay, that will probably never happen… but I can dream, right?
Meanwhile, top-tier collectibles can have the autographed first edition of the book you want.
or a signed copy of a book by a loved one’s favorite author.
Either way, this is one of those truly unique affiliate programs that can be fun and profitable to promote.
autographed books and first editions are often valued in the hundreds, but sometimes in the tens of thousands of dollars.
and regardless of the value of the book, you will receive a commission of 15% for each transaction.
Which could be hundreds of dollars to sell just one book.
url: first level collectibles
commission: 15%
epc: $34.25
Cookie duration: 60 days
bonus offers
You know what avid readers need as much as the next book from their favorite author?
a comfortable reading chair.
be a modern recliner.
or a replica of a vintage leather armchair.
oh, and probably some bookshelves too.
so you can easily earn multiple affiliate commissions for the same amount of effort it takes to earn one.
here are some programs that will help you do just that.
dock 1
pier 1 is your source for some of the best handcrafted furniture available online.
But their products don’t come cheap: the recliner pictured above costs nearly $700.
So it would make sense to only promote your range of products to an audience with the purchasing power to buy them.
You will earn 4% commission for each new customer you refer to Dock 1 through your affiliate links.
but the nature of your product (interior design/home décor) means there is also the possibility of charging a commission for “incidental” items purchased.
url: dock 1 affiliate program
commission: 4%
epc: $34.50
Cookie duration: 45 days
sofa mania
sofa mania has the opposite business model of pier 1: they believe in stacking them high and selling them cheap.
And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that because it means your visitors can buy the reading chair they really want for much less.
Like a faux “lazy boy” recliner for under $250.
and you seem like a nice guy for helping them find one they can afford.
This affiliate offer pays a 5% commission on all sales, averaging $22 per transaction.
Which is not bad by itself, but their metrics indicate that their affiliates make multiple sales each month.
url: sofa mania affiliate program
commission: 5%
epc: $96.00
Cookie duration: 30 days
to you
As you can see, affiliate programs for book lovers are a bit of a mixed bag.
On the one hand, you have big companies that offer a 2% commission rate and a 1-day cookie.
Meanwhile, book companies you’ve (probably) never heard of before are paying 2-5x more commissions, offering a 45-day cookie, and having much better performance metrics.
That’s why we try to add as much variety to the offerings as possible, while still giving you profitable affiliate programs to promote.
Now, we have a gift for you if you want to learn more about exactly how you make money with these programs.
You can sign up for our free training webinar on how to create your first affiliate site.
That’s 20 years of industry experience condensed into two short hours.
Just tell us where to send your invitation and we’ll take care of the rest.
See Also: 15 Fun, Creative Math Books for Students in 1st to 8th Grade | Prodigy Education