Amazon "Add to Cart" (90 Day Cookies)
Amazon's standard affiliate cookie only lasts 24 hours. If your visitor doesn't complete checkout within a day of clicking your link, you lose the commission. FreshStore's Add to Cart link type fixes that by switching your Amazon Buy buttons to use Amazon's "Add to Cart" mechanism, which extends the cookie window from 24 hours to 90 days.
How it works
When a visitor clicks a Buy button on your store, FreshStore sends them to Amazon with an "Add to Cart" link instead of a standard product link. Amazon adds the item to the visitor's cart automatically and tags them with your affiliate ID. The visitor can then carry on browsing, leave the site, and return up to 90 days later. As long as they complete checkout in that window with the item still in the cart, you earn the commission.
Why 90 day cookies matter
Standard Amazon cookie: 24 hours. Add to Cart cookie: 90 days. That is up to 90 times longer for a single click to convert into a commission. For higher-priced items where buyers want to think it over, this can meaningfully change your earnings.
Most affiliate sales don't happen on the first click. People research, compare, sleep on it, then buy. With a 24 hour cookie, every visitor who hesitates is lost. With Add to Cart, they have nearly three months to come back, and the item is already waiting for them at checkout.
Where to find it
Open your store admin and go to Offer Settings, then the Amazon tab. You'll see an Amazon Link Type setting with two options:
- Standard Link (24 hour cookies): the normal Amazon product page link.
- Add to Cart Link (90 day cookies): the extended-cookie behaviour described above.
Pick Add to Cart, save, and your store's Amazon Buy buttons switch over immediately. For a deeper comparison see Amazon Affiliate Link Types.
Tips
- Best results come on higher-priced products where buyers naturally take longer to decide. The longer cookie window captures those returning visitors.
- Make sure your Amazon Tracking ID is set up correctly first. See How to create an Amazon Tracking ID.
- If you use multiple Tracking IDs across regions, check the Amazon tab in Offer Settings to confirm each is wired up.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
Will visitors be confused that an item lands in their Amazon cart?
A small number may notice and find it unusual, but most shoppers expect Amazon to behave that way and carry on as normal. The commission upside on the rest of your traffic typically outweighs this.
Does this work for every product?
It works for in-stock products that FreshStore can pull from the Amazon API. Out-of-stock or unavailable items fall back to standard product links.
Does the 90 day window reset if they add another item?
Yes. Each new Add to Cart action refreshes the cookie. See also Full Shopping Cart for related cart behaviour on your store.
Do I need a special Amazon account for this?
No, your standard Amazon Associates account works. If you haven't set one up yet, see How to open your Amazon Affiliate account.