How ElectricBikeReport.com Generates Revenue and Pays Its Team Members

All of the banner ads on our website and within our newsletter are from brands we approve of, have vetted, and would feel comfortable with our readers purchasing a bike from. We do not allow just anyone to advertise on ElectricBikeReport.com, we are very picky, and we have a long line of brands asking us for ad spots that we turn away every year.

Most (but not all) brands that we review have affiliate programs. If we recommend a reader purchase a certain bike, and that reader makes that purchase, then in most cases we earn a small referral fee from the brand (at no increased cost to the consumer).

However, we do not make recommendations based on how much commission we make. Our staff writers are not paid commissions, they are salaried and are not incentivized to ‘sell’ specific products. They are tasked with helping our readers find the best e-bike for their specific needs.

In addition, because most brands have some form of affiliate program, it really doesn’t matter to us which bike we recommend. If we recommend a Trek, Rad Power Bike, Aventon, etc., we can still earn a commission without raising costs to the consumer.

We also greatly appreciate brands who support us through affiliate programs.

We put around 100 miles on each bike that we test, have multiple riders test each bike, and do our very best to really put each e-bike we review through a gauntlet. This takes a lot of time, which in turn costs us quite a bit of money. Most brands we work with are happy to cover these costs; however, we NEVER guarantee a positive/good review and we always try to find something that a brand can improve on with each of their models.

Brands do not get to review the video or written review before they are published and we will never recommend a bike that we would not feel comfortable recommending to our friends and family. Essentially, there is a fee to cover our time and production costs. We do not charge to ‘promote’ a bike and reviews are not promotions or commercials. They are reviews, and we take great pride in being able to claim that we spend more time testing e-bikes than any other media outlet currently. Most outlets will put 5-10 miles on a bike and call it good. As mentioned above, we put around 100 miles on each bike we test, keep most of those bikes for a year, and continually test them throughout the year vs newer models.

These posts are educational in nature and provide value to our readers. We never want our subscribers to feel like they are simply being marketed to from our brand sponsors. Our readers don’t like that, and brands don’t gain much from that type of advertising.

We do allow a ‘sales pitch’ at the end of the article from the brand, which may include promotion of the brand, a specific product, or current sale.