Yes! Get Paid to Shop and Eat!
Hooray! It's time to learn how to get paid for your shopping and eating habits.
Online retail is a significant business, with an estimated $21 trillion in annual sales, according to eMarketer. In addition, over 100 million people worldwide make an average of $150 annually from e-commerce sites like Ebay or Amazon. Sounds like fun and money coming together? Well there are a few things you should know before signing up as an Amazon delivery person...
#1: Amazon will pay you based on the number of deliveries you make per week. The richer your customer base, the better your earnings potential because companies need products delivered more frequently than small orders placed by one person per day. How much you make depends on the company. Many will pay as little as $1 for each delivery, which is a flat rate per week. You'll earn more with companies that pay you a percentage of sales. The minimum they stick it is 15% per sales transaction, so you can make over $300 per week with big companies like Comcast and Macy's .
#2: Once you're signed up, Amazon won't tell you how much money you're making. It's not easy to find an actual number. The company makes you earn the money first, which means it will take weeks of deliveries before you find out what your earning potential is. You'll have to contact customer service and ask for your balance at the end of each week in order to track your income. The same goes with any other e-commerce delivery service you work with.
#3: Delivery jobs are seasonal. Once the holidays roll in, Amazon needs more delivery people than any other time of year. However, you can't depend on holiday jobs if they're not paying enough because they usually only pay during high season—November through January—and then cut off their payrolls until next year .
#4: You may have to buy your own truck or car and pay for gas. This is not necessarily a negative, as you'll have more control over your hours and will also not have to pay for parking. You can find the details on what you will need to pay before getting started on the Amazon website .
#5: Your income depends on how many deliveries you make per day, which is dependent upon how many deliveries a customer needs that day. So if someone has two people in their household, that's not enough deliveries for you to earn a living delivering Amazon products. So keep this in mind when choosing whether or not the job is right for you .
#6: You must earn a high school degree. Amazon strictly requires that its delivery people have a high school education, and that's an important requirement because it means that training is available for you to continue on as a full-time Amazon employee .
#7: You must be an adult. You cannot work for Amazon if you're under 18 years of age. As I said before, it pays based on the number of deliveries a week, so it takes time to get where you need to get financially speaking. That's why most young people want this type of job—they can earn money while they're in high school or college and have no obligation to attend classes or deal with work requirements once they leave school .
#8: You may be asked to sign a non-compete agreement. While this is not always required, it is definitely something to look out for. Amazon requires that you do not take your business outside of their company as it is against their terms. They are also a family company and don't want people competing with them by selling the products they carry .
#9: It's easy to apply online, but you must sign up in Autumn or Winter because that's when they need delivery people most and they won't allow you to apply any other time of the year. If you're a student and looking for a way to make money during summer break, this is not for you .
#10: Sometimes you get paid before your car runs out of gas. That's because you're getting paid like an independent contractor rather than an employee, which means that Amazon gives you a direct deposit for the amount you earned. As long as your account is not in the red, which would be the case if it was an employee's account, they'll take their cut of what you've earned and then give it to you when your vehicle runs low on gas .
#11: You must live within 30 miles of a major metropolitan area. I spent hours online trying to find out where I had to live to work with Amazon and could not find a clear answer. They only say that if you live in certain locations you'll need to work primarily with them. Because of that, I'm not even going to try and list all the cities where they have fulfillment centers .
#12: You can use the money to pay off your student loan or buy a car, but only if you earn it honestly. Amazon will not help you finance anything, but they will let you use your earnings from their company to pay off your student loan, even if it's a federal student loan. The nice thing is that you don't have to provide collateral on these loans because Amazon won't touch them .
#13: Amazon is no place for the faint of heart. It's very tough to make a living there. Most of the people who work for them have at least a bachelor's degree, so if you're struggling in school, it might not be the right job for you .
#14: You must start in November and expect to be fired in May. That means that it could take six months before you get paid enough to pay off a debt or buy yourself something nice for Christmas .
#15: If you want to quit, you're out of luck. You cannot be an employee at Amazon. Once you sign a contract, you're stuck with them until they decide you're no longer needed .
#16: You have to pay for your own stuff. Amazon does not reimburse you for gas or any other costs you incur in your vehicle. You get what they pay out after all of your fees are paid, which includes the gas and some other costs, like insurance and maintenance .
#17: They'll make you do deliveries at night if they want to. Many people work as delivery drivers for Amazon during the day and then try to sleep in the middle of the day only to be woken up by a customer that wants their order delivered at night when nobody is on duty .
Conclusion
Whether or not you want to work for Amazon depends on if you can handle the above. If you're looking for something more than just a job to make money, and are willing to invest a lot of time and energy in the process, then Amazon is not for you .
But if you just need an extra income or want to earn enough extra cash to pay off your car or student loan, then working with Amazon may be a viable option. Just be prepared to work hard, long hours as well as deal with some difficult customers and lack of opportunity when it comes to your career choices .
*Please note this article was written based on information provided on the company's website. This article was last updated November 2018.