subject: How Affiliate Marketing Can Make You Rich - Part 2. Brainstorming. [print this page] When starting out on the road to determining whether a particular topic is suitable and potentially profitable, there are a number of questions you need to ask first:-
"Does this niche have a large market?
"Are there relevant products/services to promote within this market?
"What topics am I most interested in?
"Is there a future for my topic?
"What competition will I have?
"What is the profit potential?
The most important factor that you need to take into account, is your own level of interest and knowledge about the topic of your choice, because as you would expect, it is not easy to write about something of which you know nothing or very little. As a result, affiliates who chase the money, so to speak, tend to use the same worn out old articles and sales copy that all of the other affiliates have also used. Of course what happens then is any visitors to your site with duplicated content don't hang around long enough to spend any money, and lets not forget good old Google who is constantly penalising those sites with this duplicated content.
It does take time and energy to create content rich material, but the credibility you can gain with your visitors and the obvious effect on your Google rankings definitely makes it all worthwhile.
The first thing you need to ask yourself is this "Am I really interested in this topic?" In addition to this, you should be able to answer yes to one or both of the next questions :- "Do I have sufficient knowledge about the subject now" or " If not, am I willing to put the effort in to learn about the subject?" When you produce articles around a topic about which you are ( or at least appear to be ) knowledgeable to some degree, the result is 2 fold, more traffic to your website and more sales.
1. Brainstorming Ideas for Your Articles.
Consider the following questions and ideas to produce a list of possible topics, make a list of those topics for each question and identify the ones in which you have the most interest/passion.
"Do you have a passion for a particular subject?
"Is there a subject for which you would consider yourself an expert?
"Do you have a hobby?
"Do you partake in a particular sport?
"Do you like to read about a particular topic?
"Do you collect anything?
"Do you have any particular skillsets or knowledge pertaining to your current or previous employment?
By the way, at this point, you do not have to worry whether or not there is demand for your topic yet, I will cover that point in another article at a later date.
Now, in addition to subjects, a good idea is to think about related products that you may like to use, or have used in the past. Name as many subjects as you can think of, but try to come up with at least 10. As an example I have produced the following:-
"Parenting
"Soccer
"Running
"Cars
"Hiking
"Vacations/holidays
"Garden Gnomes
"Fishing
"Making money
"Keeping fit
Also, try to think of other specific products that are sold online as well, that may be related to your list topics and make a note of these. Keep your lists for future reference. After you have built your first website, you can return to your lists for new ideas for your next one.
You Don't Have to be an Expert:
Let's assume you are a keen gardener, with a knack for successfully growing plants indoors. You discover that "growing indoor plants" is a popular subject online, with plenty of monthly searches telling you that there may be potential for setting up a successful web based Indoor Gardening Business.
So you need to do some research to gather some good quality information for your content, the first steps you can take are:-
"Find at least 5 books on Amazon.com. Read the comments section and recommendations for more ideas
"Buy a book written by an expert on the subject and read it thoroughly.
"Search on "Google" for some online forums in your subject to find out what problems are being faced by people within your chosen niche.
"Search on "Google" for Articles already written on "Growing Indoor Plants".
Using the ideas above , you can quickly unearth some valuable content for your website or blog.
Remember visitors are looking for quality information that will help them solve their problems, and your going to give them that information. You may also find some new ideas related to your product/topic that up until now had not even crossed your mind.
Finally, just to reiterate, do not let the fact that you are not an expert in any particular field, deter you from becoming an affiliate.
