Hi Darlings! Today I’m wanting to explain more about the Reward Style - Liketoknowit platform. My previous post I explained what the app is, who’s it for, how to get accepted, and my story on how I was accepted. I also included some tips on how to make your Instagram and Social channels ready for the evaluation step required to be accepted into the LTK affiliate program.
Today is Part 2. This post I’ll highlight most asked questions about the RewardStyle/LTK platform. If you don’t see an answer to a question please DM me over on my Instagram or drop the question below in the comment section of this blog post!
Question: What I needed to Learn:
When I was first accepted I had to learn how to navigate the app, how to work the RewardStyle website, how to post content to the Reward Style app, how to create links to products, how to save posts for future times, how to read my charts on successful content, understanding the "open and closed commissions" and other analytics. There’s lots of special forums in the Rewardstyle website for its platform users to read up on. You’re also assigned in a group or ‘team’ of people you can email and they’ll reply back answering any questions you have. I have emailed them in the past on a few subjects and they are super kind and helpful!
What I needed to BUY to be successful on LiketoknowIt (Yes I spent money for this app):
Sadly, after being accepted I realized I had to invest to make a profit. The reality is the RewardStyle and LTK platform is a dog eat dog world. You have bloggers who hire digital art people to create collages for them or hire professional photographers so their photos will be noticed in a sea of photos. So running my free blog and doing all I could with my Instagram WITHOUT spending money got me the acceptance BUT it wasn’t going to help me keep my affiliate space (I say keep because it can be taken away).
I wanted my content to stand out and I knew there would need to be some investments. First my old iPhone couldn’t handle the massive amount of storage I needed to run multiple apps, save hundreds of photos, and have the additional apps to edit the content. I also started running into issues with my collage skills. So I invested in Photoshop for my MacBook. I also invested in 2 tripods and a ringlight . A wireless keyboard so I can type posts on my phone without my thumbs hurting (this was SUCH a great purchase BTW! The one I have is from the Apple store $50 [linked here] but there’s more affordable options on Amazon ranging from $32-$50 [linked here and here]). Then of course I started investing in sellable and current fashion + beauty products to make shopable content -> So when I had birthday gift cards, Christmas money, or sold items on Poshmark - I used THAT money to buy new beauty products or outfits that I could style and make content with BUT I made sure it was items I was planning to purchase anyways so I was essentially buying what I want/needed. Now this isn’t 100% a make or break for your platform but I noticed it would be helpful to post styled content some instead of just screen grabs of Amazon finds.
Here’s a better list:
- Newest iPhone with lots of storage ($1200)
- Photoshop for my desktop ($100 yearly)
- 2 tripods ($30-ish each)
- Ringlight ($20-ish)
- Wireless keyboard ($50)
- New and fresh content (probably a couple hundred in 2020)
Sadly, this shows one of the “Bad” of having the LTK affiliate program. You need to be ready to possibly invest into the program if you want to see the payoff. Some girls hire help and some girls buy lots of new clothes and return them (which is fine but retailers are cracking down on this and will literally ban you from their stores).
So my biggest tip on what to buy if you’re wanting to invest is to decide what is most valuable for your content - is it a newer phone? or is it some new threads?
Requirements to keep your LTK page:
So this was something I had NO idea was real. But apparently in the first 6 months you’re being monitored. If you don’t reach a certain number of LTK followers, open/closed commissions, and create X-amount of posts per month, etc -> you can lose your affiliate platform. I passed but I assume some people have their pages removed if they don’t reach goals in a swift speed.
If you lose your page I’m not sure how you get it back - if you need to reapply or what. Like I said, I had no idea this was real until I received emails about it. I’ll attach the email below so you can see what it stated!
How long/How much time it takes before you see any progress:
It took about 1 month before I seen someone use one of my links. I had 10 followers within the first month. And after 1 year I have 400 followers. I gained the most followers when I was posting fresh new content daily. I do recycle old content from time to time but when I’m consistent on the app (so on the app daily) I noticed a big shift in clicks.
To see progress you have to make content. So the days I only post 1 or 2 photos - I don’t see a lot of progress. But the days I post 5-9 posts and reply to messages on Instagram, etc etc - I notice a large shift.
When I started to make money:
My first sale was within 1 month. It was $2.01 in commission… And I cried I was so happy!
Some weeks I only make $1-3. Then other weeks I make $70-150. It all depends on how often you’re posting, if you’re using links that are still active, how engaged you are, if there’s any holidays or special shopping events happening, and how fresh your content is along with how well you describe the posts! Also keep in mind this money is in a ‘holding’ for possible returns.
Also be aware the money is PENNIES ON THE DOLLAR. For example someone purchased an $80+ item on Amazon and my commission was $1.96. But someone else purchased a 1 Piece swimsuit from Aerie and my commission was $3.17. It all depends on the % a brand is willing to pay its affiliate links. Some only pennies, some will give a few bucks.
How long it takes to get money paid out:
To be paid out you must have $100+ of CLOSED commissions. This is something that I wasn’t prepared for; I remember making my first $2.01 in commissions and was like “okay when do I get paid?” and it turns out.... Its a LONG wait to be paid.
This is a commission based platform. So just because you sold something doesn’t mean you’ll make the money. There’s a “open commission” window where the customer can return the products. A returned product = NO commission.
I didn’t get my first pay out till 9.5 MONTHS of having the app and posting daily. And the payouts are every other week. So its always best to have a steady amount of Open commissions coming in so you will always see a pay out each month. To archive that you need to post fresh, new, trending, and valuable content. *Currently while making this post I haven’t had a pay out in 5 weeks*
The money will be placed into your PayPal account. And from there you’ll transfer it to your bank.
Tax information:
YES. You DO have to pay taxes on the money you make. You have to file and claim it; essentially this is free lance work. This past year I didn’t make enough to file or claim but for next year I will have to file. I have already set aside some money into savings so when tax season rolls around the money I owe I’ll have it there to quickly pay out. PLEASE don’t forget to set aside a percentage of what you make for taxes!!!!
Total I made in 1 year:
I don’t want to fully post the exact amount I made for privacy reasons but I do want to be honest with you on how LITTLE I made in 1 year of running my LTK page. In 1 year of doing the RS/LTK I made just under $2,000 in commissions (this is BOTH open and closed commissions, if I only count the ‘closed’ commissions it would be A LOT less). I’ve only been paid out 1/4 of the time of running my LTK page. Majority of the money is in “opened” commissions and there’s still a possibility I will not make $2k. I have to keep in mind of possible customer returns or brands not paying out (yes this is a thing too, I’ve received emails from RewardStyle saying a brand went bankrupt and they’re not responsible to pay out the affiliate platforms in their contract).
Opportunities to make a lot of money & slow moments:
Throughout the year there’s seasons or events where you can make money quick with LTK. LTK hosts special shopping events that you can create content for. I have a huge collection of how I prepped for ‘shopping events’ that I will show in a future blog post and on my Instagram stories.
There’s also slow moments. The slow moments I always try to take time to filter out my collages, delete old inactive links, and create new ‘guides’ or photos. I also take the slow moments to try brand new and creative posts I typically don’t do on my Instagram or LTK page (so a post like “gardening must haves under $50).
Good and Bad moments:
The good moments and bad moments come and go. I love having people privately message me asking for help to find or style for them.
The bad moments is when you see a big sell transaction and then a few weeks later you see the person returned most/all the items. I feel in those moments I let someone down and it breaks my heart that what I presented to someone didn’t work out. I essentially run my LTK page as a resource to help others find beautiful, unique, and trending items from home decor to fashion and beauty. I want my page to take the ‘hard work’ out of online shopping. So I’m the one doing the research for you. Therefore those ‘bad moments’ when I see someone return something means I didn’t do a good job.
Also some bad moments is when you feel the pressure to invest or buy stuff. I feel it ALL the time that I need to get on board with what other bloggers are posting (so like Tula skincare, Dime products, Liquid IV, etc etc) but that is where I have to get off the internet for a day or two. It's very easy to get sucked into copying all the other bloggers. Especially when you see someone with 800K of followers and you feel ‘okay they’re talking about it so I should too’. But honestly that’s not the case. The biggest thing to accept and learn is to NOT compare your small platform with someone with hundreds of thousands of followers. I realized that clearly I’m not at that level and honestly, might never be... So I had to QUIT comparing myself to others. The biggest growth you can get is breaking away from the crowd of copy cats and finding something fresh, new and different.
The best advice I can give is its a FACT there is ALWAYS enough room for someone new. The trick is to TRULY BE someone new and different - draw attention! Always try to stand out and be a fresh face. I promise it’ll work!
Goals for the 1st year & Goals for next year:
My first year with LTK I had little hopes. I hoped to just make a few dollars and be able to post the affiliate links. But wow - I achieved more than I expected in the first year and its GREAT!
For this 2nd year I hope to double everything. Double the following. Double the ‘closed’ commissions. And double the amount of content I create. It wont be easy. But its worth setting the goals high! I also hope in this 2nd year to have a more “branded” look to all my pages that fit the aesthetic of what I’m going for. My personal 2021 goal is to 100% achieve my new style so I’m currently working on making custom layouts for my posts and only use certain style fonts on all my Liketoknowit collages.
Other outlets I used with LTK:
So with LTK I also signed up for this app called Influenster. Its 100% free and they don’t ask to view your social media channels or ‘accept/deny’ you. Its where you set up a profile about yourself (your skin type, your favorite brands, favorite foods etc) and you review products! From time to time if your profile fits some of the brand campaigns - you’ll get a special email with a ‘pre-screen survey’ and you get to try out brands, complete promotional campaigns, and review them! I’ve been sent Charlotte Tilbury makeup, Tom Ford Makeup, Urban Decay, and even Clorox for a home campaign. I think this works aligns great with LTK because I can use the beauty and skincare products on my LTK platform to create content but also when I do a campaign on my Facebook. I sometimes get new followers and then they can access the link in my bio to see my blog and LTK posts too!
Sephora Events is another outlet I took advantage of to learn more about beauty, haircare, and skincare products and get the chance to receive free samples from the events to try out. I love doing these events cause the new knowledge I can use towards future blog posts and if I’m sent free samples of products I can try them out and create content with them too!
Overall, I also always look for opportunities to try out free products. I’ve even shopped brands where if I spend a certain amount I can get free deluxe items to try. Any opportunity to learn more and grow helps not just my RewardStyle/Liketoknowit page but also my blog itself.
Final tips: Always be yourself. Always set your goals high. Always be authentic.
I hope this helps anyone who was curious about what the Liketoknowit App and RewardStyle affiliate program is like! If you have any other questions or want to ask more personal questions on payouts, learning, acceptance, etc PLEASE DM me on my Instagram page! Also I want to take this time to ask you to follow my Instagram and LTK page as well as continue to view my blog. I appreciate all the help and support!
PLEASE follow all my social channels below - not only will this help my blog grow BUT you’ll be able to see new content and future blog posts! My next post relating to RewardStyle/Liketoknow.IT will be based on what I do to prepare content - from a posting schedule to shopping events! I’ll also dive into what the Influenster app sends me and how I use products across all my channels. I’ll tell my brainstorming tips, what apps I use and more! Please check my Instagram account for when that blog post will launch!
Instagram: @brittmcadenmills
Liketiknowit:@brittmcadenmills
Pinterest: @brittmcadenmills
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