Every once in a while you should revisit posts or pages that include Amazon affiliate links.
Sometimes the product you link to has moved or been removed from the site.
If you haven’t already, add SiteStripe. It lets you create links as soon as you find a product you like. From the product page you can create Text, Image, Text+Image or Custom ads for your site.
Text+Image Links
If you have added a Text+Image link, it is really easy to tell when the page it links to is gone. It turns into a flashing orange rectangle.
You can search for the product again and add the updated link. If it doesn’t exist at all anymore, you don’t have to remove the information if it still has some value. You can go to Amazon Associate Central > Product Linking > Native Shopping Ads > Search Ads and put a responsive ad unit on the page.
Create Search Ads
Display search results from Amazon.com by specifying a search phrase and selecting a relevant category to your page content in a responsive ad unit that works across screen sizes.
The links don’t expire. If someone clicks on the garish orange flashing link and buys something, you still get credit. But they are way more likely to click on something more relevant.
Search Ads
Search ads are less likely to expire. They also aren’t as easy to scan for. (I can scroll a page in a couple of seconds and not miss the flashing orange. ) But sometimes search ads no longer show anything that makes any sense.
The search ad above used to show the product above it. But the product isn’t on Amazon anymore, so the search shows a bunch of things that must vaguely meet the search criteria. But not likely what the person on that page is looking for.
If you don’t know about Amazon Ad Caching yet, read this post: Amazon Ad Caching