An affiliate disclosure is a plain statement that a website may earn a commission when you buy something through its links. Its purpose is transparency: it tells you about a financial relationship that could affect what you read, so you can decide how much weight to give a recommendation. On Janet Media Group sites, it means every page with affiliate links tells you so, near the links themselves.
The Short Version
- The sites in the Janet Media Group portfolio earn commissions through retailer and brand affiliate programs.
- When you buy through one of their links, the retailer may pay the site a commission.
- Your price does not change.
- The commission never decides which product is recommended.
- This site, the Janet Media Group hub, has no affiliate links at all.
How Affiliate Links Work
When a site joins a retailer's affiliate program, it gets links that identify the site as the one that sent you. If you click one of those links and buy something, the retailer records the referral and may pay the site a share of the sale. Programs set their own rules about which purchases qualify and how much they pay, and each Janet Media Group site names the programs it takes part in on its own disclosure page.
The Federal Trade Commission advises that a label reading simply "affiliate link" may not be enough, because "consumers might not understand that 'affiliate link' means that the person placing the link is getting paid for purchases made through the link" ( FTC Endorsement Guides FAQ). That is why our sites explain what their links mean in plain language.
What "We May Earn a Commission" Means
You'll see a line like "we may earn a commission" on our portfolio sites. It means exactly what it says: if you buy through a link on that page, the retailer may pay the site a small fee for the referral. The word "may" is there because not every click, or every purchase, qualifies. The fee comes from the retailer's side of the sale. You pay the same price you would have paid by going to the retailer directly.
How Product Guide Sites Make Money
Across the web, product-guide and review sites usually earn money in one or more of these ways:
- Affiliate commissions from retailers when readers buy through their links.
- Display advertising shown alongside the content.
- Sponsored content paid for by a brand.
- Selling their own products, memberships or services.
Janet Media Group sites earn money through affiliate commissions. If a site ever has another kind of paid relationship with a brand, that relationship is disclosed too, and labeled where it appears, as our editorial standards require.
Where You Will See Disclosures
On our sites, the disclosure appears on every page that has affiliate links, near the links, not only in a footer or on a separate page. That follows the FTC's guidance, which says "a single disclosure on your home page won't be sufficient" and that "the closer the disclosure is to your recommendation, the better." The FTC's Disclosures 101 guide makes the same point for anyone recommending products online.
Each portfolio site also has its own disclosure page that names the specific affiliate programs it takes part in. Those details belong on each site, because each site's programs are its own.
This Site Has No Affiliate Links
janetmediagroup.com is the publisher's home base, not a product guide. It does not recommend products, it has no affiliate links, and it sells nothing. Its links to the sites in our portfolio are ordinary links to sites we own, added once each site is live.
Why Commissions Don't Choose the Picks
A commission is how a site pays its way. It is not how a site decides what to recommend. On every Janet Media Group site the order is fixed: the pick is made first, based on who a product is for, how it compares and where it falls short, following the method in how we choose. Only then is a link added. A product that earns a site nothing can still be the top pick, and a product with a generous commission can still be the one a page tells you to skip.
Questions about any of this? Write to Janet H.
Affiliate Links: Common Questions
What is an affiliate link?
An affiliate link is a special link to a retailer that tells the retailer which website sent you. If you buy something after clicking it, the retailer may pay that website a commission. The FTC notes that the words "affiliate link" on their own may not be understood by readers, which is why our sites explain what the links mean in plain language.
What does "we may earn a commission" mean?
It means that if you buy something through a link on the page, the retailer may pay the site a small fee for sending you. You pay the same price you would pay anyway; the fee comes out of the retailer's side of the sale.
How do product review sites make money?
Most product-guide and review sites earn money in one or more of these ways: affiliate commissions from retailers, display advertising, sponsored content, and selling their own products or memberships. Janet Media Group sites earn money through affiliate commissions, and any other paid relationship is disclosed as well.
Do affiliate commissions change the price I pay?
No. The price you pay is the retailer's price. Buying through one of our links does not add anything to it.
Do commissions change which products your sites recommend?
No. On every Janet Media Group site the recommendation comes first and the link comes second. A product that earns a site nothing can still be the top pick.
Are paid reviews legal?
In the United States, the FTC's Endorsement Guides say that when there is a material connection between a reviewer and a brand, such as payment or a free product, it should be disclosed clearly. The FTC has brought cases against companies that posted fake reviews and against reviews that did not disclose they were paid for. This is general information, not legal advice.