One of the reasons so many niche marketers struggle in what they think is a saturated market is that they really only focus on what they want to do and what they think will work. However, they could just as easily be wrong as they could be right. That is why keeping up with the latest trends is important.
Where To Track The Latest Trends?
By tracking bestsellers at Amazon, reading forums and discussion boards, and visiting top blogs in your niche, you should be able to start making a list of the hottest items in your niche and what people are willing to pay for them. Surveys can help, as we have mentioned. So can allowing niche prospects to ask you questions. If the same questions keep coming up over and over again, chances are that is a good topic for a free or paid product.
What are the top websites in your niche? Do they allow comments? Visit these sites regularly to read breaking news and join in the conversation. Blogging, guest blogging, and being helpful on forums and social networks can soon position you as a person in the know within your niche.
Another great way to stay current on the latest trends is to use Google alerts. If you have a free Gmail account, set one or more alerts related to your niche, such as Android phones or Android apps. Set the alerts in digest form, and you will receive one email each day with any breaking news about your niche.
One of the main reasons for keeping up to date with your niche is that they are not stationary, but ever-changing. What is hot one day may be gone the next. On the other hand, if you can make money from the hot item, especially around the end of year selling season (Christmas and so on), it can be well worth it. You will also look like an expert in the know, which you will be, putting you way ahead of most of your competitors.
You may be new to your niche and not even have a product of your own, but you can still sell well through accessing great products as an affiliate marketer. You can sell digital products through Clickbank and JV Zoo and tangible products through CJ.com, LinkShare and ShareASale.
These affiliate marketplaces offer a range of niche-related product you can sell at your site, in your emails, and more. You can also become an affiliate at Amazon. Once you have signed up for an affiliate program, you will create a link for each product you wish to sell. Each link will have a special code. If anyone clicks on your link and makes a purchase, you will be paid a commission. Track to see what products are most popular. Then push them harder, while you work on creating a similar product you can sell in order to keep 100% of the profits.
Affiliate marketing may not earn you huge amounts of money to start with, but it can give you an excellent education in reference to the trends in your niche. Once you know the trends, you can definitely start to position yourself or your brand as worth paying attention to.
Also check out crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe, Kickstarter and Indiegogo to see what projects related to your niche are trying to get funding or have succeeded in doing so, and for how much. Review the incentives they offer to those who fund them. You can find all new sources of inspiration for your products, services and freebies to make your brand even stronger and more relevant.
Finally, check Google AdWords’ keyword tool. What are people searching for, how many each month, and what are the exact words and phrases they are using? Add 1 or 2 of these to every piece of content your produce online, for free traffic and potential customers.