Make Your First $5k As A TikTok Shop Affiliate: The Quick Start Guide

Looking to make money on TikTok? You need to get to grips with the new playbook.

Once upon a time, the three main ways to make recurring revenue on TikTok was by a) securing brand partnerships, b) promoting affiliate products or c) earning (pennies) via the Creator Fund. Not anymore. 

In 2024, it’s now all about TikTok shop. 

Now, creators can take advantage of lucrative earning opportunities without ever leaving the app. Creators from our Academy are consistently earning $10k, $20k (or in Abbey’s case, even $83k) per month from the social commerce platform, and even more creators are flocking to get a piece of the pie.

Curious about how you can get your first paycheck as a TikTok Shop affiliate? Below, we break down how to make your first $5k. Thank us later.

What is TikTok shop affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing allows creators to earn a commission for every sale they generate for a brand. You’ll have seen affiliate links in YouTube description boxes or on swipe up Instagram stories for years… 

But, affiliate marketing always had one big flaw. You had to send an audience 

from a social platform to a brand site to make a purchase…. This wasn’t good for the social platforms that wanted to keep users scrolling.

Until, TikTok shop. With TikTok shop, creators can find products they want to promote, tag the product in their video and a viewer can purchase on the app in just a few clicks.

There are now over 200,000 sellers on the platform and it’s growing every day. Add in hefty commission rates ranging between 5% and 50% and it’s a perfect storm. 

How to make your first $5k as a TikTok Shop affiliate

There are a lot of creators making BIG money on TikTok shop right now. There are also a lot of creators who haven’t yet made a dollar. If you’re asking me, they’re leaving money on the table.

Getting started as a TikTok shop affiliate is the hardest part… once you get going, there’s no stopping you. Make those first few sales, and trust me when I say the thousands come after. 

So, how do you make those crucial first few sales?

Step 1: Sign up as an affiliate

You can’t win if you’re sitting on the bench. First, sign up. You’ll need to be at least 18 years old AND have at least 5,000 followers. If you meet the requirements, simply head for Creator Tools in your profile and hit ‘TikTok Shop for Creator’ to apply.

If you don’t have enough followers, there are workarounds. Starting TikTok shop without 5000 followers isn’t as easy, but it is possible. Workarounds include but aren’t limited to:

1. Joining as a business: This was the first workaround and got a lot of creators on to the platform. Essentially you’ll create a business TikTok shop account and then link your personal account. It comes with risk — tread carefully.

2. Acquire an account: Online marketplaces such as Fame Swap allow creators to sell their accounts — at first glance, US based accounts with +5k followers are going for around $150. We’re currently testing this in the Academy. Watch this space.

3. Utilising grow rooms: Grow rooms are lives hosted by a TikTok creator that exist solely to help you grow your followers. Everyone attending essentially wants the same thing — follower growth. It’s a ‘you scratch my back I scratch yours’, kind of scenario.

It goes without saying that no work-around is risk free, but once you meet the requirements, the possibilities are endless.

Step 2: Find trending products you want to market

Ok, you’re an affiliate — now what? Next up, it’s time to find profitable products on TikTok Shop. While filming with products you already own is a great way to get started, it’s not scalable. If you’re looking to really push those first few sales, you need a strategic approach to product selection. In short, you’re looking for trending products with great reviews. 

By choosing a product that is already trending, you tap into this sweet spot of hitting an audience that is already aware of a product with your content. You might just be the one that tips them over the edge. 

Great product and seller reviews mean TikTok has no reason to suppress your views. Win, win.

Step 3: Get free samples or purchase the product 

Once you’ve found the product you want to promote, you can request a free sample on TikTok shop from the seller. 

Sellers can only send out a limited number of samples each month. If there are still samples available, you can request this via the Product Marketplace for Creators. If the brand approves your request, the product will land at your doorstep. You also have a monthly limit on sample requests, so don’t go crazy with low value items.

If there are no samples available, or they don’t accept your request, all is not lost. 

Simply buy the product and create the content off your own back. In the UGC world, working for free is seen as dirty. Wrong mindset here. If it’s low value, it’s a no-brainer.

4. Create content using existing TikTok shop frameworks

TikTok shop frameworks are the closest thing you’ll get to a cheat sheet. By framework we just mean a creative approach: this might be a video theme, a specific hook or a creative element in your content. Look at the top performing TikTok shop videos using tools such as Kalodata and start to dissect the strategies. You’ll see reverse hooks, price comparisons and engagement bait used time and time again.

We’ve recently launched TikTok Shop: The Sauce in The Academy — a 13 module course where we walk you through 12 frameworks with examples. Get access for just $30 for your first month. 

5. Repeat, at scale

The creators who are crushing it with TikTok shop all have two things in common: speed and volume. The creators that are dominating the space are often creating multiple TikTok shop videos per day, and they do this consistently. This means creating simple, straightforward videos that take 5-20 minutes to make with minimal editing. 

By doing this, you can give yourself the best chance for one of your videos to go viral. Even if every single one falls flat, you’ve learned what doesn’t work three times faster than if you were posting once per day.

And that’s how to become a TikTok Shop affiliate

For UGC creators or influencers who are used to having to hustle for brand deals, TikTok shop allows you to take the reins in your own creator journey. It can be a game changer, but only if you’re playing. You can sit on the bench, or you can dive in head first. 

So go get set up, find winning products and start making those sales.

If you want to join the biggest community of TikTok shop creators making bank, the Academy is waiting. Our members are making five-figures in TikTok Shop commission every week. Ready to join them?