We’ve decided to share a sample disclosure policy for blogs using affiliate links because almost everyone with a blog these days is using affiliate links. If you want to start a blog, this is an amazing way to monetize it. *Please keep in mind, this is not legal advice. It is just information we found that seems useful, so we are sharing it. Always consult with a real lawyer when creating legal text.
But what exactly are affiliate links?
An affiliate link is just a link to a product or service that you like enough to recommend with confidence, with one extra bonus. When people buy that product or service through your link, the company thanks you for the referral by giving you a small commission. This is how bloggers keep food on the table and can afford to invest time creating new blog posts. It’s the 21st century so most people reading blogs understand how this works and are very happy to thank bloggers they love by purchasing through their links if they plan to buy anyway. Purchasing through affiliate links doesn’t cost any more money. It just helps real people support themselves, because instead of giving all your money to a big corporation, a small cut goes to actual humans who spend their time creating content for you. If you use affiliate links, you should include a clear disclosure policy. You can give it its own page, or add it to your Privacy Policy page, like we did, here. Here is a sample disclosure policy for blogs with affiliate links. You are welcome to copy/paste it and replace the text with your own information.
Sample Disclosure Policy You Can Copy/Paste:
Our blog is written and edited by the founders of Arts Terminal. You can learn all about us here. Occasionally, we may have guest posts written by a group of individuals. This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions, or other forms of compensation.
The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics, or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space, or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content.
In case you’re curious, here are some examples of affiliate links with a clear disclosure at the beginning:
*This post contains affiliate links. That means I’m about to recommend things I like, and I may receive a commission if you buy through any of these links (at no extra cost to you). I only recommend products and services I know. If you plan to buy website hosting in the near future anyway, buying through my links just means that the hosting company will give me a small portion of their profit. This is one of the ways bloggers make money, and you can do it too.
If you are interested in using affiliate links to make money from your blog, try to recommend great services. I build a lot of blogs and websites (if you want me to build one for you click here), so I often recommend affordable hosting companies. At the moment, I have 3 favorite hosting companies, because they offer great hosting for WordPress websites and have the right configuration to be able to properly handle Elementor websites. I’m obsessed with Elementor because it’s one of the hottest products on the market right now and turns a normal WordPress website into an awesome special effects-packed, highly customizable, next-level gorgeous web building platform. I’ve literally used it on every single project I’m involved in since I discovered it.
MY TOP 3 SHARED HOSTING CHOICES FOR WORDPRESS/ELEMENTOR:
These are my favorite 3 to use at the moment because they offer the best combination of security, speed, flexibility, and ease of use at the cheapest prices:
- SITEGROUND – 3.95 €/mo. Regular 9.95 €/mo. Use them for my international clients. They love this company and it’s super secure, fast & simple to use.
- GreenGeeks – $2.95/mo. Regular $9.95/mo. They’re a green company, which is really neat. If you want a 100% eco-conscious business, they’re a great choice for website hosting!
- A2 Hosting – $3.92 USD mo. Regular $7.99/mo. This is the bargain basement option, but would totally work for most small websites.
These companies all have great affiliate programs, so if you like their services, why not sign up as an affiliate and recommend them?
WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO BUILD A BLOG OR WEBSITE FOR YOU, SO YOU CAN TRY OUT BLOGGING WITH AFFILIATE LINKS YOURSELF?
You can head over here to our custom website order form. You just check the boxes next to all the pages and features you want, then click the view cart button to see a detailed estimate. I also offer 3 very simple website design packages on Fiverr, which is a great option if you just need a basic website and don’t have a lot of customization requirements.
