I've started a blog. Got some reviews published. some are on the 1-3 pages of google. My affiliate links are under the links section in my blog. My question is how many articles do I need to have published before I start seeing some traffic? Also is it better to write a review of the products as a post on my site to get sales or should I keep it under the links section?
You should have a review on your site as well. If your affiliate links are only under the links section no one will ever click on them - you need to have affiliate links in each of the posts as well, plus include some images that have your affiliate link as well.
Definitely need to write up reviews. Or, if you have a blog post that is related to the product you're promoting, I would insert a blurb about your product in your post. As far as how many articles you need for traffic, that largely depends on several factors, including your niche and your keyword research, as well as how other sites in your niche rank for those specific keywords you choose.