So you’re ready to get started with affiliate marketing on your website. But have you thought about what kind of niche you are going to use to stand out from all the others and make you the biggest profits?
There are a lot of different internet Marketing Niches to choose from!
About Niche Marketing
Niche Marketing refers to finding, and exploiting, a particular market, or a focused subset of a larger target market. What that boils down to is simply a focus on one specific piece of a market – boiling it down to one manageable topic at a time. This is of key importance as you begin to build your website for the purpose of monetising it.
There are several steps to Niche Marketing.
1. You first have to find ideas which will be most profitable and least competitive.
2. Then you have to identify appropriate keywords. With keywords in hand, you have to write compelling content that will help you sell the products you are promoting.
3. And finally, with all the pieces in place, you can then find products which fit the niche and an affiliate marketing program to make money.
Some people find the first step – finding ideas, the hardest. Here are some creative tips for helping you find a good niche market.
Your Surroundings
There is no need to go any further than your own home to look for niche ideas. After all, everything you’ve bought to furnish your house could possibly become a great niche.
Think of your hobbies, or the things you tend to most purchase for your home. What is lying within your visual range right now, as you read this?
Keep an open mind and look around your surroundings with fresh eyes.
Hang Out At Shopping Centres
Sit back for an afternoon and do some people watching. Note trends. Read the store names on shopping bags. What consumers are buying in a shopping centre will be the same types of things someone will buy through an online store.
Ask Friends And Family
Find out what the people closest to you are interested in. What topics cause them to seek more information? What types of hobbies or interests are they so excited about they will join online forums and eagerly await the arrival of the newest product?
Everyone is different, so you should find a great variety of ideas to use this way. Some will be more interested in family topics, others in technology, and still others excited about the latest celebrity gossip. All of these areas should present some great ideas for your niche.
Check For Online Trends
Tools like Google Trends can provide a lot of information about the things people are looking for. If you think a particular niche is a good idea, research it to find out what types of programmes you can participate in as well as how much earning and traffic potential there is.
Now What?
Once you have created a list of ideas, run them through the Google Adwords tool and see what type of products are returned.
Do a regular Google search to see how many sites concerning your niche are already in existence. This is your competition. If there are too many, you may find it hard to make a profit. Conversely, if there are too few it could mean that there are just too few potential customers interested in your niche idea.
Ideas for creating a niche site worth spending the time and effort to market, are all around you. Keep your eyes and ears open, and you may just find the perfect niche for you and your internet marketing goals.
About Sean Rasmussen
Great advice Sean. The one about hanging around at shopping centers is one I hadn’t thought of.
How do you use the adwords tool to find out about returns? Is the same one used for finding keywords?
Hi Gee
I was also wondering about the adwords tool also, and thought it may have been a typo, so looked it up and yes it is google adwords Keyword tool.
Rita
Hi Rita
I think there are lots of options when you are signed up for Adwords. Sean will know what they all are
Hey Rita, I found the adwords tool awesome when I was researching keywords for my adwords campaigns…and they were easily added by a click from the keyword tool straight to your adwords campaign. Just a note here…don’t forget about negative Keywords to cut down your cost…for example..if you are selling a product on wart/mole removal you dont want clicks from people who are looking for a mole (the animal) remover/exterminator
Hi Sean,
I think I have an idea for something that may be a good niche so I will be looking it up soon and I can practice the research techniques I am learning here to see if it’s a viable product or not.
Thanks Sean,
Jill.
Hello Sean,
I have struggled for some time on finding a “Niche Product” to sell on line. Over the last week we have had a break through. With our boys, and my hubby David we are putting our heads together and are thinking of how we can put together our Niche product. With these tips on how to search for the best key words, and to see how many others are out there already on the internet within the same product….thank you
Cheers
Lisa
Hi Sean,
I really love Google Insights for Search. It gives me a ton of in-depth information on all potential niches.
Hi Sean
There are many great ideas here and this will help me immensely to develop further niche markets and to look in depth at the ideas I already have.
I had not thought about shopping centers , which is a creative idea and have not got the skills of deciphering online trends at this stage.
I don’t think one can ever learn enough about niches, keywords and SEO.
Thankyou.
Great point on people watching..I also check out the front cover of the glossy magazines in the impulse buying section when you are exiting the supermarket…these always have current offline trends, which are also online trends, ‘splashed’ across them m/
Hi Sean,
Armed with the knowledge from this article I will now be more observant when in the Shopping Malls. I’ll note the things shoppers are interested in and what sort of purchases they are making.
Choosing the right niche product takes a bit of time to research and to get it right. The information you have in this article is a big help when it comes to making the right decision.