If you’re interested in getting started with affiliate marketing, you may have heard of RewardStyle — but what exactly is it? Read on to find out everything you need to know about RewardStyle and Liketoknow.it!
When starting out as a blogger or instagrammer, you’ve probably heard about how lucrative affiliate marketing can be as an income stream. It’s one of the easiest and most passive ways to make money blogging, and while it helps immensely to have a large and engaged platform, it’s accessible enough that you can start using many affiliate marketing platforms right when you begin blogging.
Especially for fashion, beauty, and home bloggers, affiliate marketing is a great way to make money, because so much of what you’re doing is based on sharing products you love.
While there are a ton of options to begin affiliate marketing, one of the biggest and most desirable platforms is called RewardStyle. It’s got a huge name in the blogging and Instagram community, and it’s definitely earned it.
But starting out, RewardStyle can be a little intimidating, confusing, and not super user friendly. So I wanted to put together a post to help share everything you need to know to get started with RewardStyle and use RS and Liketoknow.it to make money blogging.
I’ve divided this post up into the most common questions I’ve had and seen, but if there are any other questions you have about the platform, feel free to comment below, or send me a message on my instagram @goforkady.
Without further ado — here’s your ultimate guide to RewardStyle!
This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I may receive a small commission if you shop through these links at no extra cost to you. For more information, check out the disclaimer here.
What is RewardStyle?
RewardStyle is an affiliate marketing platform, meaning it’s a website you sign up for that enables you to get commissionable links to products. These commissionable links allow you to share products you love to your followers, and when your followers purchase those products through your links, you can earn a small commission on them.
What’s the difference between RewardStyle and Liketoknow.it?
This is kind of a complicated question, because they are two apps that go hand-in-hand on one platform, and as time goes on the line between the two is blurring. In simplest terms, RewardStyle is the “back end” of the platform, the tool you use to find and link products, check your analytics and commissions, and create posts.
Liketoknow.it, on the other hand, is the app through which you can shop people’s posts. For a long time, the only way to share Liketoknow.it images was through RewardStyle, but I noticed recently that you can actually share images directly on the Liketoknow.it app, and there are even a couple exclusive features on the LTK app that make posting there a cool option — but more on that later.
How can RewardStyle help me?
At a most basic level, RewardStyle can help you make money blogging or monetize your instagram posts. It’s a great platform for affiliate marketing because they’ve already partnered with so many brands, so being part of RS means you can link to almost any product under the sun without having to sign up for each of their affiliate programs.
While RS is most popular with fashion bloggers, you can use RewardStyle to share links for so many products that anyone from beauty bloggers, home bloggers, mommy bloggers, DIY bloggers, travel bloggers, and more can benefit from joining!
Beyond just basic monetization, being a part of the RS community means you could get promoted on the Liketoknow.it Instagram pages, which could majorly grow your brand. They also have a collaboration section that allows you to work directly with brands — more on that here, as I haven’t used it yet.
How do I get approved for RewardStyle?
Part of RewardStyle’s allure is its exclusivity; they don’t accept just anyone. A little more frustrating than that is that they don’t have a concrete set of requirements either.
Some good general guidelines to getting approved for RewardStyle are to make sure you post consistently; have bright, high-quality images; maintain an engaged following (of any size!) and share shoppable content.
People tend to miss out on that last one a LOT — the entire point of Liketoknow.it and RewardStyle are to shop, so you have to share things people can buy! As much as we all love a morning coffee pic or a pretty sunset, the benefit of RewardStyle is affiliate marketing, and posting photos of purchasable items is the backbone of the platform. If you’re not already doing that, you might want to consider moving your content more in that direction.
From my experience, follower count matters a lot less than you would think, and they really focus more on consistency and engagement. I’ve heard stories of people with 200 followers get approved and stories of people with 20k get denied — so don’t stress about your follower count! Again, to put it bluntly, from a business perspective the point of the app is to turn your followers into your buyers, and if your audience isn’t engaged with what you’re sharing, you won’t be able to convert them into sales on the LTK app.
Finally, make sure your feed is high-quality. RewardStyle promotes an exclusive image, and it helps to make your feed look intentional, thoughtful, and clean. That doesn’t mean it all has to be beautiful, staged, filtered photos — just try and make sure you’re using a high quality camera (your phone should work), and that your photos are clear and show off the products you love in a good light.
My application was denied, what should I do now?
Join the club! So, so many people are denied their first (or second… or third…) go-around. It’s extremely common where it’s almost a rite of passage at this point, so don’t freak out!
When you first get declined, I would take a look at the reasoning they give you — it’s probably because your feed isn’t one of the things I mentioned above. Take some time and work on it! There’s no rush, and when you apply again they’ll appreciate that you made the effort to improve.
Another mistake I see often, and definitely made myself, is applying too soon. Unfortunately, RewardStyle isn’t one of those platforms you can join right from the start. They want to make sure you’re committed to this, and they usually look for a solid 3-6 months of consistent content creation before accepting you.
After putting in the work and waiting a bit, you can definitely apply again, but be warned — there is a finite amount of times you can apply for liketoknow.it. From some people, I’ve heard 6 times is the absolute max, and from others I’ve heard them receive a warning and a mandatory waiting period after the 3rd denied application. I personally was accepted on my second try, so I can’t speak to this myself.
One of the biggest ways to be accepted to RewardStyle if you’ve been denied in the past is to get a referral. I applied through a referral about 3 months after my first application was denied, and wound up getting accepted from that. If you think you’re ready to apply and want to be referred, shoot me a DM on instagram @goforkady (but please follow me first so it doesn’t go to spam! I’ll follow back!). I’d be happy to look over your account for you, offer any tips, or refer you if I think you’re ready!
While you wait to be accepted into RS, there are definitely alternatives you can pursue as well which I go into below!
What alternatives to RewardStyle should I try and what are the pros and cons of them?
The most popular alternative to RewardStyle is ShopStyle Collective, which works almost identically to RewardStyle, but has a somewhat lower barrier of entry. You still have to apply and get approved, but they tend to accept newer bloggers than RS does. Also, while you’re waiting for the approval process, you can use all of their linking tools — you just can’t make commission until you’re approved. This is great because when you do get approved, your blog will already have monetized links throughout it!
I personally belong to both ShopStyle and RewardStyle — if things aren’t available to link on one app, they might be on the other, so I find it helpful to use both. Many people think ShopStyle is more intuitive and user friendly, and I agree that their online interface is nice. However, RewardStyle and Liketoknow.it have built their platform around being very instagram-friendly and focused on the fashion niche. As someone whose two main channels are this blog and my instagram, both of which are heavily focused on fashion, I prefer to use RS/LTK as my main app.
Coming soon though on ShopStyle is a new LTK-type app called Tapto.shop — they’re currently working on developing it and billing it as the “Instagram ‘Link-in-bio’ that dreams are made of” — so I’m excited to see it when it comes out and see if it works better than LTK!
Previously, ShopStyle had a commission structure that was click-based, so it was a favorite for a lot of people because you could still make money even if you weren’t converting sales. However, they’ve since switched to a sales-based commission structure like RS is, so the difference between the two apps isn’t as significant anymore.
Another alternative for RewardStyle, especially if you’re a blogger, is to use a tool like Skimlinks. I absolutely love Skimlinks, and it was the first tool I used to monetize this blog. Skimlinks works by adding a simple line of code into your blog, and all of your links become affiliate links without you having to do any work!
It’s really amazing, and so great for people just starting out and wanting to make money blogging, because there’s no complicated signup, no approval process, and commissions are click-based and sale-based, so you don’t have to stress about converting right off the bat! The commissions can admittedly be pretty low, but if you’re brand new, seeing that first six cents hit from someone clicking through is pretty exciting, and better than nothing!
Amazon’s affiliate program is another great alternative to RewardStyle, and another one you can join while you’re fairly new. In fact, since Amazon’s commission structure is so specific to them, you often have to be wait to be approved separately when you’re linking to Amazon through RewardStyle or Shopstyle, so it’s nice to be part of their affiliate program already so you can link products on your blog directly through them instead of RS or SS.
Amazon is obviously amazing, and though the commissions have ebbed and flowed over the years, it’s still an affiliate marketing backbone for so many people in this community. The one catch is that you have to make 3 sales within the first 90 days, or you won’t be fully approved and you’ll have to apply again later.
Finally, there are other, smaller affiliate networks, like Awin, Rakuten, and Pepperjam, that you can use to become an affiliate for brands like Lulu’s and Etsy. But to be honest, once you’re part of RewardStyle or ShopStyle, you can rely on those programs a lot less because the products you want are already partnered with RS and SS.
How do I link products through RewardStyle?
Linking products through RS depends on where you want to post them, but both start with a special RewardStyle product called Link Ninja. Link Ninja is a button you add on your toolbar, or a separate tab in the RewardStyle app, where you can get a direct link to a product or save a favorite product to link later.
If you’re writing a blog post, you can just keep the products you want to link open in a separate tab, and use the Link Ninja button to add product links as you go. Alternatively, you can save products to folders or favorites, and then link them in carousels (like I have on my Shop my Favorites page), boutiques (like I have on this post), or other interactive widgets throughout your post.
If you’re sharing a post on Instagram, use the Link Ninja tab in the RewardStyle app, or on your desktop, to add products you want to share to your favorites. Then, when you’re sharing your look, you can select the products directly from your favorites folder.
How do I post and share a Liketoknow.it look?
For the longest time, you were meant to use the RewardStyle app to post and share your looks, but lately I’ve noticed you can actually post directly in the LTK app too, and it even comes with a couple great features as well. This makes me think they may be eventually transitioning away from the RewardStyle app for a more streamlined approach, but who knows Personally, I’m used to posting in RS, but will probably start using LTK more soon.
Building a post in either app is easy and super similar to Instagram. On the RewardStyle app, tap Enable a New Image. On LTK, go to your home screen and tap the red plus sign. Select your image, go through your favorites to add the pictured products, and post!
First, your post is published on RS/LTK. Then, you’re given the option to share the post through Instagram or other social media, complete with a watermark that signals to your followers that they can screenshot the post so it can be shopped in the LTK app.
Side note, in case you didn’t know, LTK is named that because when it first came out, you used to just be able to like the post, and then it would send outfit details to your email. As privacy measures changed and the app was developed though, they transitioned to a screenshot/app system. Now, you can screenshot any LTK-enabled Instagram post, and as long as you have the LTK app on your phone, the app will work in the background to find the screenshot and match it to the LTK post so you can see the image with shoppable details right in the feed of your Liketoknow.it app. It’s really amazing stuff!
Now, for the few differences. Posting directly through RewardStyle is how the whole process was meant to go, and it shows. I love it because you can go straight from favoriting products to posting your image without having to switch apps. They also have a bunch of hashtags and instructions you can copy and paste into your caption that help discoverability and teach your followers how to shop your posts. These tools can be super helpful, especially if you’re new to the platform.
One annoying thing though is that you can’t post an image on the RewardStyle app without adding the “bundle,” which is the enabled link to your post, the tag for LTK, and the LTK hashtag. Keep in mind, you don’t have to add these when you share the post on Instagram, but some people don’t like that they have to be in the caption in order to post, so I figured I’d note it!
One major thing posting through the Liketoknow.it app has that the RewardStyle app doesn’t? The ability to distinguish between links to exact products and similar or related products. In my opinion, this is an absolute game changer when it comes to linking on Liketoknow.it.
One of the most frustrating things as both a consumer and as a poster on these apps is feeling like you have to disclose when you can’t link an exact product, or worrying that you’re misleading your audience when you link something similar because the exact thing is sold out or unlinkable. It can be hugely annoying, and being able to use the LTK app to categorize each item I’m linking as exact or similar is probably the best thing I’ve seen on this app since it came out. I love it!!!
What stores and brands can I link through RewardStyle?
RewardStyle partners with more than 5,000 brands around the world, so chances are, you can link to almost any brand you can think of. A quick way to find out is to go to a product page on a website and click your Link Ninja button — you’ll see an error message if you can’t link to that retailer. One notable exception that RS doesn’t link to which frustrates me because I shop there a lot is Zara! Zara isn’t available on RewardStyle OR ShopStyle and it’s a huge bummer because their jeans are some of my all-time favorites.
How do I link exact items vs. similar or related items?
At this time, you can only do this when you post your image directly through the Liketoknow.it app. When adding your products while building your post, you just tap the bubble next to the product to indicate it’s an exact match. When you post, your products will be categorized below your post as exact or related!
Do I have to add the link and tag bundle to every post?
If you post through the RewardStyle app, you have to add the bundle in order to post. However, if you post through the Liketoknow.it app, the bundle isn’t required at this time.
What do the icons mean on the RewardStyle app?
There are three icons under your posts on the RewardStyle app dashboard: the LTK icon, an email icon, and a shopping bag icon.
The LTK heart icon is just a number of how many people have liked or screenshotted your posts.
The email icon on the RewardStyle app means that number of people have received details of your post to their email account — remember how I said earlier that used to be how Liketoknow.it worked? Tons of people, myself included, still get emails sent when they like or screenshot a post, and this number indicates how many people have received an email.
The shopping bag icon shows how much in commission you made from links on that post.
Do I need followers or sales to stay active on Liketoknow.it?
This is something that I’ve seen some debate about: are there requirements to maintaining an active LTK account?
From my experience, I’ve not been told of any specific app follower count, number of sales, or quota of posts I need to stay active on the platform. However, others I’ve spoken to have been told that they have nine months to reach 60 followers, post 30 images, and make consistent sales in order to maintain their account, or your account will be “re-evaluated” and possibly deleted.
[Edit: Fun fact! I just noticed one of my email addresses wasn’t forwarding correctly and I did in fact receive an email from RewardStyle after my first month stating the following:
“…you have a total of 9 months to reach your ultimate goals of posting a minimum of 30 LIKEtoKNOW.it images, growing your followers to at least 60, and making sales each month”]
Whether or not that guideline applies to everyone is unclear — I’ve spoken to some who aren’t active on the LTK app itself and have never heard of these requirements — but either way, it’s never a bad idea to strive to grow your following on the Liketoknow.it app, post consistently, and make sales. If you’re having trouble reaching your quota, I’m happy to follow back anyone on the LTK app — just shoot me a comment here or on my IG so I know to follow you back!
So at the end of the day, is growing your follower count super important on the LTK app? Not exactly. But while people aren’t necessarily scrolling the LTK app like they are Instagram, people do open it, and why wouldn’t you want to be on their front screen when they do?
Do I have to use Liketoknow.it?
This is such an interesting question that didn’t occur to me for the longest time, because for so many people in the fashion/lifestyle blogging community, affiliate linking through LTK and Instagram go hand in hand.
But there are so many bloggers out there who don’t have active Instagram followings or don’t benefit from being on Instagram in any way — for them, how and why could you even use the Liketoknow.it app?
At the end of the day, RewardStyle is still an affiliate linking platform, and many users of it make a good living just using text links on their blogs!
If you’re one of those users for whom you have goal requirements, but your blog doesn’t exist or benefit from being on social channels like Instagram, it doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be able to use the platform anymore. As I said above, if you don’t meet your goals, your account will simply be “re-evaluated” to ensure you have the intent to monetize your content — which, if you’re sharing links through your blog as opposed to the LTK app, you clearly do.
If you have any concerns about being asked to meet your goals when you’re not an “influencer,” just a blogger, definitely reach out to your representative for help — that’s what they’re there for!
How do I see who follows me on the Liketoknow.it app?
The interesting thing about the Liketoknow.it is that as a consumer, you don’t have to sign up for an account to use the LTK features. Because of that, not everyone who follows you will have a profile, and therefore, they can’t show you the usernames of everyone who’s following you because not everyone has a username! A little annoying and weird? Sure, but no big deal!
How do I get paid from RewardStyle?
Through RewardStyle, you accrue commission based on people purchasing items through your affiliate links. The commission rate varies from retailer to retailer.
RewardStyle pays out biweekly once you’ve hit a commission threshold of $100 — meaning until you’ve made $100, you can’t cash out sooner. Payments are made through PayPal or Alipay.
How long will it take to get paid from RewardStyle?
Sales on RewardStyle aren’t paid out until they’re “closed” by the retailer, meaning when your sale is still open, the commission is pending. Each retailer sets their own close date, but many are around 150 days — meaning yes, you might be waiting a bit to get paid! These dates are long to allow any time for the person who purchased the product to potentially return it (in which case, your commission would be adjusted or removed).
Once your commissions are closed and you’ve hit the $100 threshold, you’re eligible to be paid biweekly on Fridays.
Am I allowed to shop through my own commission links?
While I haven’t been able to find anything on the platform itself that indicates this is allowed (Amazon, for example, strictly forbids it), everywhere I’ve read says yes! Not only that you are allowed to, but you’re encouraged to! So keep that in mind if you’re making an online shopping run and are a member of LTK.
I’ve also read of some people using LTK to build Christmas or birthday lists for friends and family — it spoils the surprise, sure, but it’s also like a double present!
How can I use Liketoknow.it as a consumer, follower, or reader?
Before I was an influencer on Liketoknow.it, I was an avid user of the app, and still am! I obviously love the ability to shop people’s outfits, beauty routines, and home decor, and use the app for that all the time.
However, one of my biggest secret tips is using the Liketoknow.it app for outfit inspiration when I haven’t even bought a piece yet!
Did you know you could search the Liketoknow.it app by product? Just type in the name of the product you want to buy (no brand name necessary, just the product name), and the app will pull up looks from everyone who has tagged that product! To me, that’s such a good way to see if I’ll be able to style an item before I buy it, and help me figure out whether or not it’s worth making the purchase. It’s one of my favorite things to do with the app!
Hopefully, that answered all the questions you may have about RewardStyle and Liketoknow.it. I know this post was a novel but I really wanted it to be a helpful guide to anyone who’s looking to get started in monetizing their blog with RewardStyle!
If there’s anything I missed, if you have any questions, or if you want me to look over your profile/refer you to RewardStyle, comment below or DM me on Instagram @goforkady and I’ll be happy to help however I can! In the meantime, follow me on the Liketoknow.it app and shop my most recent LTK posts in the feed below!
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