Not many of my friends or family are on TikTok. Up until the fall of 2023, I was happily working on my websites. I have a Facebook account for personal use but am on it a few times a year at most. I’m not on Instagram or any other social media sites.
The only reason I got on TikTok was because my websites were hit badly by Google’s Helpful Content Update in September 2023. What this meant for my already-small sites what that I went from making a decent living on it (around $40,000K – $50,000, for the last few years) to $14,000 in 2024.
It hurt my family because that was most of our income. I was a member of an SEO course who was offering a class to become an Amazon Influencer. I bought the course. However, in order to get qualified, you need to have a social media account that is active and doing well.
Joining TikTok to Become Amazon Influencer
The course expert recommended starting on TikTok instead of other options saying it was the easiest one to build from nothing. The instructor recommended starting in one of three niches to start building a TikTok account quickly: travel, food, or pets (especially dogs or cats).
I don’t travel anywhere, I hate making food and don’t go anywhere to be posting exciting food shots, and I don’t have pets. Yes, I’m a boring middle-aged person who has a very happy but small world at the moment.
So in August 2024, I joined TikTok. With zero followers, I started learning about TikTok and the algorithm. It’s truly amazing how quickly I was connected with other moms trying to grow their accounts.
Growing a TikTok following
My sole reason for going on TikTok was to become approved for the Amazon Influencer Program. This means I would be able to have an Amazon storefront. Another thing (if I made it to the next level) is that you can make product videos, and they appear on those product pages. When someone watches your video and buys the product, you earn a commission.
Amazon’s approval system had to do with engagement. How many followers, likes, and comments I had on my TikTok videos.
I spent a ton of time following and engaging with people so they would do the same with my videos. It took me a long time to feel comfortable posting; I actually still am not.
In the beginning, I didn’t show my face. Then I graduated to showing my face in my profile picture. Then, a little here and there in videos.
I didn’t like it
Truth be told, I didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t like making videos or using my time to like and comment on other people’s videos. I didn’t care. Fast forward to March now, and I still don’t like it.
Every few days, I would check on Amazon to see if I was approved. This was into November at this point. Keep in mind, this was alllll I was doing. I mostly gave up on my websites. I was taking the Amazon course though.
I learned about TikTok Affiliate Program
As I was trying to build up engagement on TikTok, I started seeing products too. People were doing mini ads for products and linking them to the TikTokShop. I saw lots of moms doing this. I also saw a lot of people like me who were newer and trying to become TikTok Affiliates.
One day I gave up TikTok. I was so burned out. This was in early November. I was probably off of it for six days. Then I realized I needed to get more content out there so that I would get more engagement. I needed to spend time making videos instead of engaging so much.
So one Saturday in November, I posted three videos on TikTok and checked Amazon later that night, and I was approved for the Influencer Program. I reached my goal at last!
Switched gears to Amazon
I changed course and started pursuing making the videos to get approved for Amazon. I started learning more and more. After a week and lots of reshots, I submitted my three Amazon videos.
Less than a week later, they were approved. I learned I had to keep an active TikTok account because I needed a link to my Amazon storefront from TikTok. The idea being that Amazon wants influencers to bring traffic to Amazon.
So I logged on TikTok to try to engage a bit and check and saw I was approved to be a TikTok Affiliate!
Approved as a TikTok Affiliate
This was what everyone was working for on TikTok… this was the dream! I thought it was a bigger opportunity to pursue TikTok vs Amazon because of the commission. That was the route I chose. I don’t know if it was the right one.
But I do believe, if I would have done Amazon (all in like I did with TikTok) that I would have regretted not doing TikTok.
However, the difference would have been that I could have spent all this time (from mid-November to now or whenever) putting up Amazon videos and not using (wasting) any of my time engaging with people which is a huge time suck.
Everything I did would have been about content
Everything would have been about building my Amazon presence. However, I’ve been burned by Amazon before and have been involved with them since 2006/2007. Amazon doesn’t need to pay people commission like they used to do. People go to Amazon on their own… they are Amazon!
Instead, I focused 100% on TikTok. I’ll write more about it some other days for sure. I got lots of free samples. Just today, I received a gardening hoe. Yesterday, I received a 10 foot fast-charging cable. The day before that I received a free sample of a face cream and also a steam mop.
The free samples are great but you still need to fit them in your home and do videos about them. But I find it’s a fascinating topic to discuss with people because, again, no one I know is on TikTok selling TikTok Shop products.
So at least I feel interesting like I did when I talked about my websites.