By Nicole S., Assistant to Vivian Arend

Affiliate income can be an integral part of any author’s income. Finding a system that works best for each of us to use our links to the fullest is a time-consuming task, but has the potential to be incredibly beneficial. Here are the three steps we took to ensure that we get the most out of our Kobo Affiliate Program. (Note that KWL authors will get a bonus of additional 1% commission for ebook sales )

Step 1: Get Set Up

Setting up is basically that—compiling all your information in one central location that will allow you to easily access the information in the future. We’ve created a spreadsheet that lists of all Vivian’s books, the direct kobo affiliate link, as well as a short link that we created. This spreadsheet is kept in a place that is accessible to everyone who works with Vivian and might need to pull the links quickly. This step can take some time, but once you have the information at hand, it’s a step you won’t have to repeat ever again.

When Vivian loads a book for pre-order, it’s a quick task to go in and pull the links and add them to our spreadsheet so we have them in place for all social media, website, and newsletter marketing.

Step 2: Update Your Links

Because Vivian has a lot of books, this step took us the longest. While it is time consuming, it’s also crucial to the success of your affiliate program: updating your links. We went through and updated Vivian’s website so that all links go through the affiliate program. Vivian also uses redirection links, and we made sure to go in and update those links as well. Basically, wherever you have a link to your book at Kobo, use your affiliate account. This is a one-time task that might seem easy to push to the bottom of your to-do list, but without taking the time to complete this step, you’re missing a chance to make money through your affiliate account!

Step 3: USE THEM!

This step seems so simple, but it’s one that can be easily forgotten. It’s important to utilize your links every way possible once you have them. The short links you have ready and waiting on your spreadsheet are great to have for social media, especially when promoting the book leading up to and during release week. If you are having a sale on a book, make sure the links you provide your readers is through your affiliate account. The more you use the links, the more you’ll get a kick back on your sales.

We hope that you use these three simple steps to get started with your Kobo affiliate account, so you can start earning today!

Vivian and Nicole

With over 2 million books sold, Vivian Arend is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over 50 contemporary and paranormal romance books, including the Six Pack Ranch and Granite Lake Wolves. Vivian and her assistant Nicole have been working together for almost 4 years after bonding over sexy wolf shifters, smoking-hot cowboys, and a general love of all things romance.