First off welcome and thank you for taking the time to read my article…
Once you understand the basic process of affiliate marketing and you’ve decided that this is the way you wish to generate an Internet Income then next on your agenda will be to choose a “niche” but first let’s find out what a niche is…
A niche is another term for a subject, there are many niches that you could find to make a start in generating an Internet Income. In affiliate and Internet marketing terms there are two niche types the first is a “main niche” the second is a “sub niche” the sub niche is related information to the main niche and both niches could be on just about any subject matter that you could possibly think of.
Let’s have a look at a main niche using an analogy of a car we would place a car under the niche of “transportation”. Transportation would then become the subject title and also the main niche, any other related information for example…
Fast cars, sports cars, European cars etc could be classed as sub niches of transportation.
Not to complicate things but in addition to what is stated above, the example of the title “cars” could also be a main niche of which anything related such as…
Cars of the eighties, sports cars and other related information could be described as sub niches. Basically you have a main niche like a subject title that all other related information (sub niches) pertains too.
Now that we’ve covered what a niche is the next part of the picture you will want to look at is what niche is the best niche for you to promote a related product/s in! Although this is slightly off topic I think it’s important that you understand that if your intention is to indeed make money from affiliate marketing that you choose the right niche to start in! How you go about doing this is actually quite simple. First off you need to ask yourself some questions such as…
What are my interests that I’m involved with on a daily or weekly basis? Examples of this could be reading, writing, dancing, crafts and anything else that you may know a little or a lot about! It could be an ongoing hobby or passion that you have had since childhood or something that is relatively new. In a nut shell choosing any niche that is related to something you are passionate about will be the very place to get started in.
Starting out as an affiliate marketer involves a number of components/actions that you will need to use and to do to make sales! But starting off by understanding the basics involved and that includes understanding what a niche is and choosing the right niche will be of most benefit to you!
Why? Because if you start off by choosing a niche that is related to your interests/hobbies and the like, then the chances are you would be far more likely to stick with what you’ve started and you will have a genuine interest and knowledge that will back up your chances of success and many other reasons as well. It just makes good sense! If you think back to your school years, what were the best marks you got? I’m betting it had something to do with something you had a genuine interest in and something you knew a little or a lot about or something you were passionate about, right?
The same can be said for affiliate marketing and choosing a good niche, so to give yourself the very head-start that you deserve, start off by following the rule above!
In my next article we will have a look at how to choose related niche products.
Thanks again for your time! All the very best with your future online success!
Kind regards,
Worral.
What if I told you there was a simple marketing strategy you could use to…
Stop prospects from price shopping Convert more prospects to customers Pre-empt your competition
You’d want to know about it right?
It gets even better. Because you don’t have to be a great writer… or even a great marketer… to put this strategy to work in your business.
Just so you know how powerful this particular strategy is, let me tell you a story…
Before I became a freelance copywriter, I was the sole copywriter and online marketer for a well-known home schooling company.
I’d been mulling over how to use this strategy in the business. One morning, it clicked.
I spent 4 hours writing 8 brief emails. I plugged them into our email system, posted the opt-in form on the web site, and waited to see what would happen.
The results?
Nearly 20,000 subscribers the first year and $115,168.09 in revenue.
The email series continued to produce revenue the second year, the third year, and on and on. All from less than a day’s work. Pretty amazing, huh?
The strategy I used is called:
“Setting the Buying Criteria”
A clearer way to say it is: setting the criteria by which your prospects make a buying decision.
In a nutshell, here is how it works. In your marketing material (emails, brochures, web sites, sales letters, etc.), you want to define what makes a good buying decision. And in your defining, you want to make sure that your company, product, or service is the only one that fits the definition.
This is setting the buying criteria.
When you set the criteria, you always want to do it in such a way that it excludes your competitors. They should not be able to qualify based on the criteria you’ve set.
This is why the criteria you use should always be exclusive to a greater or lesser degree.
Let me give you a quick example…
Assume for a moment you’re a car manufacturer who specializes in sports cars. One of your criteria might read like this:
“Whatever sports car you choose, make sure it has at least 250 horsepower. Any less and you’ll be sacrificing speed, acceleration, and performance, all of which are critical to the pleasure you’ll get from your new sports car.”
You’ll notice I set the criterion (250 horsepower) high enough that it eliminated some cars, but not so high that it eliminated all cars. No matter. The important thing is, I’ve narrowed the field.
As we move on, we layer additional buying criteria:
“Once you’ve found a sports car that has at least 250 horsepower, you’ll also want to make sure it has a 6-speed manual transmission. At least half the pleasure of a sports car is being in total control. An automatic transmission just won’t cut it.
“Rear-wheel drive is a must for a true sports car. It gives you the best cornering power possible, without feeling like you’re going to run off the road (as you might feel with a front-wheel drive vehicle).
“Also look for fully independent suspension, so you get the best road feel. Each wheel will move on its own, independent from the other wheels, giving you maximum traction and performance.
“Lastly, be picky about the kind of engine your sports car is equipped with. The best sports car engine is a boxer engine. It’s perfectly balanced and produces no vibration. You can set a quarter directly on the engine while it is running and it will not fall off. Plus, boxer engines sit low to the ground and provide a lower center of gravity. Boxer engines can be found in flat-4, flat-6, and flat-12 configurations.”
By shrewdly selecting these and possibly one or two additional criteria, I can make my sports car the only logical choice in a crowded market.
It’s the same with your product. If you shrewdly define the criteria for buying, you’ll create a scenario where your product is the only one that can possibly qualify. All competitive products will fall short.
Why Setting the Buying Criteria Works
Setting the buying criteria works for 3 powerful reasons:
1. You’re seen as someone who can be trusted.
By telling your prospects what they should look for when they make a purchase–or conversely, telling them what to watch out for–you become a trusted advisor.
Your prospects believe you have their best interests at heart (and you do), so they are more likely to buy your product instead of the competition’s.
2. You’re letting your prospects come to their own conclusions.
When you set the buying criteria, you’re not saying, “Buy my product because it’s got X, Y, and Z.”
Instead, you’re indirectly guiding your prospects to the conclusion you want them to reach. You’re saying, “When you make a purchase of this kind, make sure you get one with these things…”
Your prospects run down the checklist you’ve created and decide–on their own–that your product is the best choice.
3. You’re doing something different.
If you examine your competition, you will be lucky if you find even one business taking advantage of this strategy. That makes it easy for you to stand out.
When your prospects see that you’re looking out for them… and none of your competitors are… then it becomes exceptionally easy for you to turn them into customers. Prospects will be drawn to you, and will gladly give you their business.
More Examples To Illustrate Buying Criteria
I don’t know what your product is, so I’m going to use a few more examples to illustrate this process. So let’s assume you’re selling a high-end ski jacket.
Your criteria might look like this: zippered pockets, hood, removable liner, snow skirt, goggle pouch, season pass window, and a new proprietary waterproof/breathable fabric.
As you look at your competition, you find that nearly every single ski jacket on the market has “zippered pockets,” and yet this is a feature that many skiers are looking for. “Zippered pockets” alone will not set you apart, so you go further.
Now you add the “hood” to your buying criteria. There are fewer ski jackets with both zippered pockets and a hood, but there are still many.
As you layer each additional feature of your high-end ski jacket, you notice there are fewer and fewer jackets that meet all the criteria you’ve defined.
By the time you add your proprietary waterproof/breathable fabric to the mix, there is only one ski jacket still in the running. It just so happens that it’s the one you sell.
Is this starting to make sense?
If you run an accounting practice, your criteria may be: monthly statements (including P&L, trial balance, assets & liabilities, itemized expense reports, etc.), quarterly tax filing, daily backups to prevent lost data, and free tax planning twice a year.
If you sell a cleaning product, your criteria may be: kills bacteria in under 30 seconds, uses all-natural environmentally friendly ingredients, makes everything smell fresh, is packaged in an easy-to-use ergonomic container, and comes with a 90-day full money-back guarantee.
You may need more criteria; you may need less. Only you will know for your particular niche.
How to Define Your Buying Criteria
To begin defining your buying criteria, list all of the features of your product or service. Do it quickly without thinking too much. Simply write down all the different features that come to mind.
After you’ve captured all the features you can think of, review your list. Circle some of the core features that are always expected with a product or service like yours. Also circle the features that are the most unique.
Now you have the raw material you need to create a marketing piece that sets the buying criteria. The next step is in how you position these features–how you present them to your market.
This is a very important step. Position your criteria the wrong way and people will ignore you. Position your criteria the right way and new customers will flock to you.
How to Position Your Criteria
When you set the buying criteria, there are a number of ways to position them. How you position them is important, and one may work better than another for your business.
The email series I wrote for the home schooling company was positioned like this: “The 7 Essentials That Will Inspire Your Children to Learn.”
Many people (nearly 20,000 of them in the first year) subscribed purely out of curiosity. They wanted to know what the “7 Essentials” were.
With another client, I used a similar approach and wound up with “The 7 Essentials of Any Ecommerce System.” If you’re in the market for an ecommerce system, you’ll want to find out what the “7 Essentials” are. After you’re done reading, my client’s system will be your only choice.
With my copywriting services, I position the criteria inside the sales letter. As you scroll down the site, you’ll see a subhead that says, “The One Thing Your Copywriter Must Have.”
In this case, the one thing is so rare, I don’t feel the need to have a laundry list of criteria. Just the one is sufficient.
Another way to position your criteria is as a warning: “Don’t Even Think About Buying _______ Until You Read This…” or “How to Buy a ______ Without Losing Your Shirt.”
A warning is a more direct approach because it often acknowledges the prospects’ desire to purchase a particular item, but the approach can still work very well.
Joe Polish is famous in part for his method of setting the buying criteria in Consumer Awareness Guides. These little guides educate consumers about what they should look out for when they hire a carpet cleaner and other service professionals.
The possibilities for positioning your criteria are virtually limitless. Once you fully understand this strategy, you will begin to think of many ways to position your criteria.
But remember this: the most effective way to position your criteria will always be from an angle that educates and protects the consumer. You cannot say, “5 Reasons To Buy My Product.”
Yawn.
Your prospect doesn’t care about you or your product. At least not yet.
That’s why you need to speak to your prospects with care and concern, as a trusted advisor to a dear friend. This is how you reach them. So make sure that you position your criteria with this in mind.
Make Sure You Give a Reason Why
Before I turn you loose, I believe it’s important for you to understand one more thing… that is, the importance of giving your prospects a reason why.
When you list out your criteria and position them in way that appeals to your prospects, you still need to make sure–with each and every criterion–that you are giving your prospects a believable reason why it’s so important.
In my sports car illustration, I listed a reason why each criterion was important for the consumer to consider when choosing a sports car. I explained how the fully independent suspension was necessary for “maximum traction and performance.” I mentioned that a 6-speed manual transmission was important because it gives you “total control.”
If I had not given any reasons why these criteria are important for the consumer to consider, my case would have been very weak. The same holds true in real life. You must give your prospects a strong reason why.
Review your criteria. If you list a criterion for which there is no good reason why you’ve mentioned it, then it shouldn’t be included. Get rid of it or find another criterion to replace it with.
Evaluate Your Marketing
As you evaluate your marketing, ask yourself this question: Am I setting the criteria by which my prospects make a buying decision?
If you are not, it is time for you to seriously consider how you might use this strategy in your business. It takes very little time to do and it is highly effective.
Once you implement it, you will stop prospects from price shopping, convert more prospects to customers, and–best of all–pre-empt your competition so you become the one and only logical choice, even if you’re competing in a crowded market.
High Intensity Discharge (HID) lights are very powerful than the ordinary headlights. These days, you can see these lights in many sports cars. HID lights can enhance the looks of your car. Therefore, upgrading your car with these lights can be a good option.
Now, you can find HID lights in different attractive colors. These include purple, white, yellow and blue. You can also find varieties of HID conversion kits available in the market with warranty period. However, if you are not satisfied with your ordinary halogen headlights, then you can choose HID for better visibility.
In fact, these lights consume less power as compared to halogen bulbs. Therefore, it is essential for you to buy HID lights from reputed and genuine manufacturers. Or else, you can also purchase these accessories on the Internet. Many online stores offer these lights at affordable rates. Therefore, upgrading your car with advanced technology lights can really make a huge difference in the overall looks of your car.
HID light kit comes with two bulbs, two igniters and two ballasts. However, you can also purchase individual parts for saving your money. These are the upgraded versions of ordinary headlights. In fact, now you can find these lights in almost every sports car. In the beginning, these were normally used for driving during nights, but because of its stylish looks, they soon gain popularity.
However, these lights provide bright as well as sharp lights that help the driver to drive easily in any conditions. Now, you can also find HID Lights in different volts, which means that these can suit any type of vehicle. Moreover, these lights consume less power than the ordinary headlights. Therefore, upgrading these lights on your vehicle can really make your vehicle stand apart from others.
Now, you can find these accessories in many automobile stores. The installation of HID is very simple and you do not have to alter your car for fitting these lights.
If your desire for fun outweighs practical needs a roadster could be the car for you – with the BMW Z4 one of the most eye-catching.
The BMW Z4 is one of the more intriguing sports cars currently available. It’s known for its engaging handling and steering, thrilling inline six-cylinder engine and distinctive styling. Recent improvements have made the latest Z4 the best yet, and older models are still a very viable choice for a used sports car.
You know you like a car’s looks when you get out, take a look back, walk away, and take another look. The BMW Z4 is one of those cars. It combines classic roadster looks with contemporary angles to create a very good-looking car
We drove the Sports trim model featuring a satisfyingly substantial three-spoke steering wheel which is good to hold. The gear knob and handbrake are well positioned for the Z4′s low-down, sporty seating position. The speedometer and rev counter are easily visible through the spokes with audio and air-controls located in the neat, uncluttered central stack.
Both seats are comfortable and do not feel cramped. Cabin-space for objects is limited with meaningful storage combined to a vertical bay between the driver and passenger and small spaces behind the front seats.
BMW Z4 car is a joy to drive in town with sharp steering and a stiff chassis putting a smile on our faces within minutes of getting in the car.
BMW offers a choice of five petrol engines to power the Z4. We drove the 150bhp 2-litre model which boasts a 0-62mph time of 8.2 seconds, and a top speed of 137mph.
The Z4 achieved a four star rating following EuroNCAP tests.
The BMW Z4 can hold its head high when planted next to any roadster.
If you’re planning a wedding, a prom, or a special night on the town, chances are that you’re thinking of hiring a limousine service for transportation. Limousines are fun, and you’ll feel like a celebrity riding around town, turning heads wherever you go. The array of models available, ranging from the ultramodern to the vintage antique and everything in between, is astounding. Many limo services offer several less common vehicles, allowing you to choose something tailored precisely to your needs and budget as well as your own personal flair.
The classic stretch limo, a modified luxury sedan, is perhaps the most popular option. These cars usually have room for six passengers, while super stretch versions offer more space. While Lincoln Town Car models are quite prevalent, Chrysler 300M versions offer another elegant and readily available choice. Practically any luxury sedan you can think of has been stretched, including Infiniti, Mercedes, BMW, Bentley and many more.
SUV limousines are other frequently requested choices. Some of the ones you might encounter include the distinctive Hummer H2, roomy Lincoln Navigator or head-turning Cadillac Escalade models – all great options that often offer lots of passenger space as well as more head and leg room than sedan-based limos.
If you want something flashier, you might consider a Corvette limousine. Combining the sports car feel with incredible luxury just might make you the envy of onlookers. Other sports cars, like Prowlers and Dodge Chargers, have been converted into limos as well. When cash is no object, and you have time to look around, other exotic cars such as Ferrari and Porsche models have been modified to seat many passengers in style.
For a truly unique, vintage feel, you might opt for an antique limousine model. Some specialty companies offer carefully maintained, well preserved classic cars such as Rolls Royce, Bentley, Packard, Excalibur and others that date from the 1920s through the 60s. You may find classic cars that have been recently modified as well, creating limos with vintage style yet luxurious, modern interiors.
Do you need something even bigger than an SUV? To accommodate a large group of people, a limo bus could be the way to go. Rest assured that this is not a traditional motor coach or tour bus. These huge party buses can carry up to 40 or 50 people and typically offer all of the features of an exclusive nightclub. They often have full standup bars, luxurious lounge seats or couches and plush carpet. Some even offer room for dancing.
The custom features of today’s luxury interiors go way beyond comfortable seats and a mini bar. You can find limos with options like plasma televisions, state-of-the-art sound systems, and even fireplaces. Many limousine services offer customized options, such as top of the line audio systems, fully stocked bars, and special features like fancy lighting and glass roofs for viewing the night sky. Are you in the mood for a swim or hot tub soak as you ride around town? These features are becoming increasingly available as well.
Consider all of the options available to you when hiring a limousine service, and you’ll be sure to find the perfect luxury vehicle for your special event.