In this time of economic uncertainty, all eyes are on the stock market and one thing we hear constantly is the advice to diversify. That's because you're less likely to lose all of your money if you invest in multiple stocks as opposed to investing all of your money in one stock only. If that one stock bottoms out, you're broke! In the same way, niche marketers should not depend on just one method of making money online. In the following paragraphs, we'll look at ways the niche marketer can diversify his or her income.
Affiliate Marketing
Many niche marketers use affiliate marketing as a way to earn money on their blogs or websites. Yet it's easy to promote the same products without venturing out to see what else is available. However, not all affiliate programs are as widely known as Amazon or the affiliate network ClickBank, which provides digital products for promotion. The fact is, many of the retail stores in cities all across the United States have their own affiliate programs, which you can find on their websites. Take PetSmart, for instance. If you have a blog or a website dedicated to pets, there is nothing wrong with promoting the most popular affiliate programs. But also look around at others to see if there is something unique you can offer.
You might eventually join several affiliate programs but don't clutter your blogs or websites with each one on every site. Choose the most appropriate products and programs for each of your sites and before long, you will have several different streams of income instead of just promoting one or two products.
Article Marketing
While article marketing is not exactly an income stream of its own, it will help drive traffic to your site, which will increase your profits. When you use article marketing, you write articles and submit them to article directories. Most of these directories allow you to post a short bio and a link to your site underneath your article in what is commonly referred to as a resource box. If you can write helpful and informative articles that leave your readers wanting to know more, you will drive additional traffic to your site.
It's easy to get discouraged when we think we have hit on a great idea for a hot new niche and then discover that it has already been done over and over again. That's when many would be niche marketers give up in frustration. Although there is such a thing as market saturation, don't give up just because you have competition.
Study Your Competition
Once you have discovered your competition, study them. Evaluate the site for both visual affect and content. Before you take too much time to look around a site, ask yourself what your first impression is. Does the site appeal to you? Why or why not? Are there so many graphics that it takes too long to load? What about the content? Do you immediately see a laundry list of ads or do you notice the ads after you begin reading? Ask some friends or family members to look at some of these sites with you to get a feel for what appeals to them and what it is that makes them want to leave a site.
What is Your Competition doing Wrong?
Make a note of the types of things you feel your competition is doing wrong. This could be anything from the fact that the site is overall boring, or it could be multiple spelling and grammatical errors, too many ads, not enough content or a number of other things. You don't have to be an expert on niche marketing to see what it is about a site that turns you off. After all, you will be marketing to people just like you; consumers.
What is Your Competition doing Right?
In the same way, make a note of what you think your competition is doing right. Did you get so caught up in reading or perusing the site that you forgot you were doing research? If so, that's a good sign that your competition is doing something right. How is the site laid out? Is it visually pleasing? Do the ads seem to blend seamlessly into the site? What about the content? Is it new, fresh, and interesting? While you never, ever, want to copy anything you find online, doing this type of research will ensure you avoid making some of the most common mistakes beginning niche marketers make. It will also give you an idea of the kinds of things that will attract visitors to your sites.
Check out the Affiliate Products
What products are your competition promoting? Do they seem to go well with the niche? Which companies are these products affiliated with? Just because your competition is promoting these products doesn't mean they are good products or that your competition is having any success promoting them but it will give you an idea of what other blogs and websites in your niche are selling.
As you can see, you can learn a tremendous amount of information from studying the competition. You may find that the market is saturated within a certain niche. You may also find that there are not enough quality websites or blogs in that niche and realize that yours is sorely needed.
This website uses cookies that are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the privacy policy. By accepting this OR scrolling this page OR continuing to browse, you agree to our Privacy Policy