In the previous lesson, I talked about some important things to keep in mind as you choose a niche market.
I ended the lesson by asking you to brainstorm some possible topics for your information product.
Today we’re going to do some research to help you determine whether your topic has good potential for success…
(Watch this video…)
Main points:
– How many results?
– How many paid ads?
– What kind of sites are in the top 10?
(This shows you how hard it will be to compete with their listings from an SEO standpoint)
If you plan on launching many niche sites, you should consider investing in a tool that will help you automate most of the above processes. I recommend Keyword Elite
Look at:
– How many advertisers?
– How much traffic they are getting?
– How much they are spending daily?
– What are they advertising?
– Do any related advertisers have an affiliate program? (potential back end promotions)
UPDATE: The CB site has changed, and now you have to be signed in to see the marketplace. You can sign up for a free CB account here:
https://accounts.clickbank.com/public/#/signup/form/key//cid/AffiliatesDIY
Action step:
1) Go through the research process I used in this lesson, and answer these 4 questions for each topic that you are considering.
– How big is the niche?
– How competitive is the niche?
– How potentially profitable is the niche?
– Is there potential for back end products?
2) Choose a niche that seems to have a good balance; one that you want to pursue. We will be further refining it in the next lesson.
Once you’ve identified a potentially lucrative niche, you need to go the extra mile and dig deeper. You need to zoom in on the market and find out EXACTLY what they want.
There are some simple ways of surveying the market and focusing your topic to give it the best chance of success, and I’ll be detailing those strategies in the next lesson.
As always, you are welcome to post your questions and comments below 🙂
Have a great day!
Thanks Eric. I use the same research methods but the Clickbank one is new for me. I usually don’t even look on click bank until after I’ve done my research but from now on I will use it as part of my research. With Ebay, the only thing I do differently is use a “completed item” search instead of the regular search to see how many auctions closed with bidders since the regular auctions don’t reveal much about the Buy It Now auctions.
Back-end products are subsequent product offers made after the initial purchase. For example, when you order a fry at McDonalds and they ask you do you want to super size it, the supersize is a back-end offer.
Hi, Eric! I seem to have problem with the video Lesson#20, it always stops at 17.54 no matter how many times I tried. Can you help?
Hello Eric,
My lesson also stopped before the end. Is it possible to fix it?
Hi Eric Lesson 20 stops consistantly at 27 minutes and 31 seconds – the total time is 34:21
is the problem on myside or yourside?
Thanks
Paul
As you can see above, it appears various people are having trouble with it. However, the video is OK. It must be due to the length. It’s either being limited by the browser, or else perhaps due to your RAM being used up.
I would suggest…
1) close ALL other programs on your PC except the one broswer window with this video
2) try a different browser (For ex. Firefox)
Eric,
I really am happy with these video tips. Is there a way you can tell how long a product has been on clickbank?
This video was very informative! I’d like to share my experience with the research tool/0r spy on the competition free tool http://www.ppcwebspy.com/downloads/?xcd527 that allows you to browse Google and view the keywords of any Adwords advertiser is bidding on, how much they are spending daily and many other things.
Thanks
Hi eric, Iam enjoying your lessons immensely one of my niches is inventing.I have invented a product for the beauty industry. It is fully patented, tested and accepted.I am looking for some one to joint venture with. go to http://www.perfectflo.com for more info.
john
Hi Eric, very informative lesson, helped out alot with guilding me in the right direction and I learn something new with every lesson, Thanks again, James
what do you think the spanish marketplace
I do not know a lot about it, but from what I’ve heard, it is significantly less crowded than the English speaking market online… which means its probably a great opportunity for many niches.
I do not know of any way other than perhaps to look up the vendor’s domain in the Wayback machine (archive.org) and see how far back their sales page goes.
Looks like you haven’t had a response since March 2009. Well, good job! Your Tips are very helpful.
Eric – Spyfu does not appear to offer a free option. Are there other similar products that are free?
Answered my own question. The link in this lesson took me to a subscription page that I could not find a way out of. Going directly to spyfu.com bring up the free search page.
Hey thanks it’s good info
Your tips are very helps if one understand it very well. I have decided that it is the only strategy I will use.
Thanks
REV. JOHN
This information is worth Paying for. Thanks again Eric!
Robin
SpyFu is not free or least not now it isn’t. Is there another version? Also CB is having A LOT of issues w/ a lot of my counterparts not getting credit for sales etc. (You should let others know about alternatives). Please stress the importance of and how you can use other tools to double check CB’s numbers. THANKS!
i am selling a service will you be covering this
Best lesson yet. Thanks again for all your doing. The lessons you have put together are priceless. God Bless
I am focusing on selling information products, rather than a service. But the same principles apply, so you can still use the lessons.
I have 7 CB accounts, and I haven’t had any problems with them. There are certainly alternatives, like Paydotcom, but I still think CB is an excellent choice for information products.
Hi Eric thanks for the great information on niche marketing your insights on research is on point you been a great help. Until next time
hi eric, i chose you first because of the free info. you provide for us newbies. i have a idea, of product that will revolutionize the cosmetic industry. i am not quite clear as to how to go about promoting my idea. i thought of talking it to all the cosmetic moguls, and sell to the highest bidder, or to all of them. do you have any thoughts on this subject. i believe it is huge. rob
Hi guys, just finished lesson 20 (great stuff Eric). anyone know how I can get google toolbar or equivalent with page ranking for my imac.
Thanks
I think you can use it with the Firefox browser on a Mac.
Be careful, as big companies will not hesitate to rip off your idea and run with it.
On the other hand, if you have a good idea, it’s best to exploit it quickly, as someone else will likely come up with the same idea in the near future.
I am not familiar with the cosmetics industry, but a potential key for a situation like yours is relationships.
Your key to success is in making a relationship with the right person(s), or partnering with someone who already has those relationships.
Instead of taking it to all the moguls, I would focus on becoming friends with one mogul that you can trust. Offer them a percent of the profits or something. You can then use their leverage to take your product to the industry directly, or to pitch it to the other moguls.
Hi Eric,
My first internet marketing project is to promote my Dad’s existing website (after I have gained the know how from this experience I will then embark on my very own). My Dad is in stock trading for over 40 years and he has compiled a program to rank stocks which anyone without much knowledge of technical analysis can use to pick and trade stocks. He is putting up the results of his analysis on 4 major stock markets everyday on his website(NYSE, NASDAQ, HK, China). My question to you is to which category (the 18 ways to make money on your lesson 4) do you think this belong? An info product? Is it difficult to maintain a site in 2 languages? Your advise is greatly appreciated.
Shirley
Yes defintely an information product, which is what these lessons are all about.
Most likely the best way to monetize it will be as a membership site, which I cover in lesson #32:
And on the front end, you would give away from free info to build a list of prospects (using an email opt-in list on Aweber), which I will also be covering in these lessons.
To maintain a site in 2 languages, I would simply hire someone to maintain it in the 2nd language. That way you only need to worry about 1 language.
Eric,
Thank you so much for your response. I have been ernestly checking for your response everyday after I posted and diligently following your lessons and doing the homework.
You are such a good intelligent man and genuinely want to help people.
So I will build a list by providing free info before I start a paid membership?
As for hiring someone to maintain a site in a 2nd language (chinese), does that mean translating from 1st to 2nd? Is it expensive? Where can I find resources for this kind of services?
Shirley
Eric,
If you have a few moments can you also take a look at my Dad’s site (www.mystockpoint.com) and give a few comments?
It is very crude and needs lots of work but my Dad has compiled this great program (good info product and essence of his 40 years as a stock broker). I want to help him since he’s in his 70’s. Since I’m a newbie and knows very little I only added keywords, description on each main page and Google Analytics to the site so far without much research and before starting your lessons.
I know the site needs good passionate content about my dad’s info product. I learned from your lessons so far that I can be an internet marketer and therefore can help him.
Shirley
Yes you should start building a list, even before starting the paid membership. And then continue to build the list after starting it.
Yes you would hire someone to translate from the 1st language to the 2nd.
As for outsourcing the translation, some of the resources from lesson #39 would be applicable: http://www.ericstips.com/tips/lesson39/
Any of the outsourcing sites could be a good place to find a translator, but the one that comes to mind is Odesk. They have a translation category… I just looked and saw Chinese translators running anywhere from $3.33 to $26 an hour.
I took a quick look at the site. It’s definitely got potential, as virtually any good stock picking/analysis system can be sold if you have a good sales pitch.
For example, you can see my site http://tradingprosystem.com
I would keep the English and Chinese on seperate pages. Basically mirror image of the site, and you could have the two flags at the top corner of the page to toggle between the two languages. In other words, the English version of the site would be located at http://www.mystockpoint.com/… and a mirror image of it would be in Chinese at http://www.mystockpoint.com/cn/
Your home page will eventually become a squeeze page to build your list, which will lead to a sales page. And the real content will be in the password protected member area.
Eric,
Thank you so much!!! I learned a lot. I’m compiling a list of niches on a spreadsheet(still working on this lesson’s homework) that will tie to my Dad’s info product. I’m an analyst by trade and can’t wait to analyze the findings when I’m done.
BTW, what is a squeeze page? Will you talk about key words and how to get more traffic? Also, will have to be concerned about key words or the niche in the 2nd language?
I can’t wait for the lessons on how to build the web pages (just know tiny little about html)…. I really want to restructure my Dad’s site like you said, start building the list and putting in good content. I’m so excited now that I have the direction and the vision of where this is heading. Hooray!
Shirley
A squeeze page is a page with an opt-in form, designed to build your list. The visitor must opt-in in order to get more info. I’ll be covering it in a lesson.
Yes I’ll be talking about how to get traffic. As far as the keywords, it just depends on your traffic strategy. If you want to get traffic from the search engines, then yes you would want to target your keywords in the 2nd language as well.
Thank you for the tips they are really helping in alot of ways. The reserch tools you give are great.
Eric, DON’T DO IT!!!!
I passed 200 pounds ages ago and have not been able to get it off! I have managed to lose about 40 pounds that never came back, but I still have a big gap between where I am and where I want to be. So, please, for your family and yourself, watch what you eat more closely and move your body. (That’s the part I have the most trouble with….)
Posted with loving care, Louise
I spent a lot of time reseaching for my FF&E contractor business. There were a few websites on Google, but they were for companies with many years of experience. Some were in other countries. There was absolutly NOTHING for my local area. That is either a good thing or a bad thing. It could be bad because maybe there is no market for an independent FFE contractor or consultant. It might also mean that I would have access to the whole area for promoting a new business. I do want to make my website for this business (FFEDesign4U), but I don’t see that it will be profitable anytime soon. I also am fearful of how someone who has not quite gotten her degree can compete with people who have been in the profession for years. It’s like starting a new franchise without the backup. My gut says to still go for it, but not to make money NOW.
I do have a question:
In addition to your lessons, you have introduced us to Micro-Continuity and Video Skinning. These seem very similar in many ways. Is one program better to follow than the other? The only problem I have with a video-based sales regime is that my voice is not very good for presentations. My vocal chords do not touch, so I have little to know projection. People have trouble hearing me on the phone — how would I produce a video? I wanted to get the MP3 player, but I do not have the $97 require for the upsell (Micro-continuity). I was wondering if a PowerPoint presentation could be used without the voiceover? Any suggestions?
I had to replay your video to make sense of the research steps without your “holding my hand”. I did the research on “FFE contractor” on Google and never got on to the other steps. Now, armed with better notes, I’m off to do more research. I’ll report in later with my topic for my Eric’s Tips business.
Louise
Both of those are strategies that you could use within your business… but neither of them are 100% essential to building your business. So if you can not afford it for now, I would not stress about it.
The micro-continuity could be a could payment/pricing strategy to use, depending on what your product is (it may or may not be ideal).
The video skinning is a great sales method, but it is not the only sales method. Well written copy is still effective. Additionally, you could potentially hire someone to read a script for you if you were to make a sales video.
I have always struggled with the research and finding keywords. After watching you video I think it is finally making some sense.
Correction: http://www.spymarketer.com
The lesson on section20 could not be completed through the fault of hold up
before your lessons i bought 9 domains for a year,smart huh!i have the domains but no idea what to do with them.can you help me get started i am also into click bank as an affiliate i have attach hoplinks now what?i seem to have all the pieces but i don’t know how to put it together,i’m afarid that the light at the end of this tunnel is a train.
Hello Gordon,
Here are some troubleshooting tips that should help the videos to play properly for you:
Hello Robert,
Have you tried out Eric’s free Writing Cash Program?
http://www.writingcash.com/
This will show you how to use your affiliate links, and much more!
Great lesson! This was very helpful, exciting to know stuff . The hardest part for me is getting a good niche. I have been struggling, and these techniques will help me. I have downloaded “How to have your own Information Product in 30 Days” …Thanks again for giving such good advice.
Spyfu doesn’t have a free option anymore… Is there a free alternative you know of?
Thanks!
Hi Eric
Thanks for your very informative lessons.Unfortunately your lesson No 20 stops playing after 8mins34secs and won’t continue. Can you olease resend to me.
Thank you.