The Twelve Weeks of Christmas-Week 6

So far in this series we have prepped our sites and landing pages, learned how to set up an autoresponder and make an email campaigns. For the next several weeks, we are going to look at which niche we are going to target and what we are going to sell them.

What is a niche market?

Understanding the correct definition of a niche market prevents needless mistakes when finding one. Before I tell you what it is, let me tell you what it isn’t. It is not a keyword that receives a lot of traffic, with little or no competition for it and assumed a profitable opportunity. That is not the case at all.

A niche market is a group searching for a solution to a specific problem and not finding many relevant results. It is usually a smaller segment of a larger industry. If you break a niche down far enough, you will eventually find its origin.

Of the millions of keywords possible online, only 15-20 percent actually has something advertised under them. That is reason for caution. There are, however, still many untapped niches on the Internet. Just ensure that before spending time and money marketing, there are affiliate programs or ways to generate revenue using them.

Profits

Determine if a niche market is profitable. If it’s not, dump it and continue looking for one that is. Find one that has opportunities. Once you do, expand your research, do an analysis and implement a campaign. You can make almost any niche profitable if you know who the consumer is and do adequate research on the niche.How profitable a niche is rests on consumer demand.

You can research this in several different ways:

* Expand on Higher Level Markets

Expand on higher level niches using a keyword research tool. Determine if there are other niches within this industry that receives traffic and are searched for by people. Google offers a good research tool for free that will do the job.

* Problem Statements

Search for problem statements. How to, get rid of, solve, repair, fix, cure are all examples of problem statements. This often reveals niche markets. If a lot of people are searching for the same solution, chances are good you hit gold.

* Using Forums/Groups

Forums and groups often uncover many niches you can turn into campaigns. People looking for a solution to their problem use forums, groups, and blogs to communicate their concerns. When visiting a forum, look at the common questions people are asking “how do I speed up my computer, how do I eat when pregnant, where do I find a good laptop for cheap, etc.” Do your research to see if you can make them profitable.

Do a Google search to find forums within a particular industry. Search: industry name + forum. The top three search engines offer groups. That’s a good place to start your search.

That’s it for this week. Next time we’ll talk about how niches are influenced by Supply and Demand. We will also talk a little about product selection.

To your success,

Brad

Brad McGovern is the Marketing Manager at Article Marketer, and offers advice and news of note to article marketers. Watch for more from Brad in the coming days!