Choosing my niche market?

[jim6]

I'm really stuck on this one.  I've taken the tact of Something I am Passionate About, but there does not seem to be much, if anything, available.  For example, I tried "surfboards" - a niche, to be sure, but not miniscule.  There were no matches at all in ClickBank, ClickBooth, and PepperJamNetwork.  Should I be looking for something larger? Looking someplace else?  For something more popular? I know I don't want to be selling diets, dating, or money-making.

Thanks,
Jim

What is currently selling well in the surfboards niche?

Look outside the box and explore how established marketers in that niche are doing.
Is there a market for lead generation in that niche?
If so, what would they pay for a legitimate surf lead?

I'm not a surfer but I can imagine that between gear and travel there is probably several possibilities hiding in that market.

Or what about surfing art, posters and prints?
Don't expect to find all of your answers on the cpa networks.
There are great opportunities outside the box as well.

Not only that but even developing your OWN product is a GREAT idea.

[jim6]

Don't expect to find all of your answers on the cpa networks.
There are great opportunities outside the box as well.

I'm an outside-the-box kind of guy, but I'm still working on understand what is IN the PPC box

Everything I've read/watched/listened from you guys to has been talking about cpa networks - or have I missed something here?

I'd like to have the ground under my feet feel a little firmer before I move away from (what I understand is) the core of your success in this business.

Thanks,
Jim

[SOFTWARESAVER]

Jim6 Hi 

You say have I missed anything here?
Well not missed thats for sure but I think you may have taken some of things a little too literally.
Yes CPA is a frequent and common area of promotion item.
Most cpa tend to be very Mass Appeal type items common to many esp Women and Mothers etc
Such as Get FREE Baby this or Baby that, get FREE Ladies whats nots!

When cpa items are more directly related to the actual sale of a product then they again have a fairly broad appeal BUT tend
to be within specific markets and larger niches.

The point here is that CPA is just ae item type for promotion and it has its own good and bad points for each marketer and his reasons for promotion.
For me CPA has never really been an item I enjoy promoting, I have done it but always feel I am working harder than I need to on an ongoing basis with it.

I tend to prefere promotion of items that are 'common' but also physical in a lot of cases.
The markets at times I choose are small but high payers with high need and (This is important) are often markets that online
tend to be missed and or under serviced.

Your Surfe Market may well be just like that?

The tools here in Hexatrack and (from what I understand) the tools to come :-) are just that...They are tools we can use to market 'any product' or promotion and they give us an edge when we use PPC to drive the 'targetted' traffic to those offers we choose.

Do not make the mistake of seeing PPC and Hexatrack Tools being only related to CPa or one or two other comon promotion types.
That would be very silly, understandable but silly ok.

Most common types of item promotion are only common because they sit and are found 'within networks. that bring them all together in one place.
This way they attract the product merchants and attract the product marketers aka ppc, site sellers and others.
Hence they become common and almost the defacto avenue for finding and organizing an item for promotion.

They are good and they have a high place in ppc BUT they are only one of many avenues! :-)

Here is the important part for you.........................

Read the Hexatrack stuff and other marketing related info here but relate it to 'Product' product full stop.
Any product ok.  PPC is simply a means of 'Finding' and 'Driving' Targetted traffic to an offer you have.
The techniques are the same what ever the product. They may change and you may adapt how you handle the person once they click your ppc ad but the
other stuff prior to the click is the same.


So with your possible niche area being Surfing, rather than looking for product first and then promotion of it why not try and do it the other way round.

Use some good keywotd tools Jim and find as many related keywords as you possibly can. Make them product related to any degreee from say 50% to 100% related.
Example a surf board name would be 100% surfboard type wouild be say around 60% related to an actual prouct.
and use other key words not directly product related but may be words items people would search on just priior to a product purchase.

Get as many as you can then....put all of them into lists and put ALL THOSE  KEYWORDS into your Hexatrack system.
use all 16 of the projects if you can! Big Smile :-)

Do a 14 Day on them.
Any that sit for 76% or more of the time are starting to look good.
Cull the others out put some more in and again do 14 days.
repeat again.

You will end up with keywords that are being used well on the ppc arena in google.

ok still with me?

Now follow all the 75% and more ads through the click.
Where do they take you? make a note.
What product is being sold?
Make a note
Follow those through as possible leads for you to find product merchants to promote Jim.
Do a little work in hunting and then negotiating the availablity of product by following those  'working ppc ads' Jim.

Now if you follow those ad links through you can then make notes on what product and what price.
Use that info to try and create a more palatable and better offers!
If you see a board for $800.00 being sold...see if you can get a better deal / promotion where you can sell the board
via ppc for $650.00 you now have a working keyword, a viable product and a compatative edge!!!

Do that for the next couple of weeks ie your 14 days.
Let us know on the board what you found, what your thinking.
We can all learn that way but importanly we can 'all' (Pro Membership Mostly) help you as you work through it ok.

Is that a deal? :-)

Software Saver.

[jim6]

That was an awesome reply, dude! [sticking with the surfer theme...]

There are a couple of things you said that are exactly what I have been looking for.  One of the most important things for us new guys is the experience you've built up but now take for granted, like all the numbers: put the keywords in for 14 days, keep those that stick around 75% of the time, do this 3-4 times, etc.

The second thing was doing it "the other way 'round", i.e. starting with AdTracker and keywords to find products instead of starting with products.  I kept thinking that sure seemed more logical, but no where in the videos, blogs, etc. have I seen that mentioned explicitly.  And since the rest of the world "starts" with products, it needed to be explicit, (at least for me).

(And you got a deal - I will definitely be giving this a try)

I'm still on the free version - I need to get these last parts of the puzzle together before forking out for the Pro version, although I'm thinking maybe I need to do that the other way 'round, also.

Thanks,
Jim

[SOFTWARESAVER]

Good Jim glad that was some help for you.
Regards working back from keywords then product in this case ie yours yes I think thats a good way.
Regards your comment on Pro membership all I can say is I am 110% happy with my membership.
Its as cheap as chips the value is outstanding!

If your looking at doing some ppc and working things then I have no doubt at all you will gain greatly
from Pro. Right now there are things you are not seeing on this forum but pro's get access to.

The value alone from us on the forum is worth the monthly fee and 'just a hint' if you are considering pro
then 'right now' do not take your time joining or you will miss out on some very good things indeed that are about to arrive
and honestly you wish you had not missed them / it at the current pro membership fees :-)

Software Saver.