Even if you decide you don’t want to build a list of contacts, selling on the Internet (or anywhere else) is impossible without traffic. For all practical purposes, you cannot generate traffic but you can direct it. To do this you need to get in front of people and once you’re there, you need to provide them with a link to your landing page.

That landing page may be a sales page if you are intending to sell them something immediately or a squeeze page if you want to collect their contact details. Whatever the purpose of your landing page, the best traffic is the type that is targeted to your particular offering.

There are many ways to drive traffic to a landing page, some rely on harnessing the power of search engines and search engine optimization (SEO) while others are more direct. The tips listed here include both methods but they aim to direct targeted traffic to your site.

1. Use an Email Signature

One of the simplest and most effective techniques for driving traffic to a particular Web page is to simply include a link to it in your email signature.

Apart from being very easy to set up it is absolutely free and just keeps going until you decide to stop or change the link to promote a different page. An added bonus is that in addition to the primary audience, the people you send emails to directly, this method can potentially drive more visitors from a secondary audience if those emails are forwarded to others.

2. Become a Guest Blogger

Running your own blog is a great way of interacting with your audience and adding new content to your site which is useful for search engine optimization (SEO).

However, posting as a guest blogger on other blog sites is also an excellent way to drive traffic to your site as it extends your reach to a wider audience. Apart from presenting your content and getting your name out there, you can also add a link back to your own Website or squeeze page. When readers click those links you can benefit by adding targeted traffic as well as a potential boost in SEO through the link juice.

The important thing to remember is that other blog sites will only be interested in publishing your content if it is valuable and appropriate to their audience. You may have to build a trusting relationship and demonstrate what’s in it for them before they feature your content. One way to do this is to regularly post worthwhile content in the comments section on their blog. It may also possible to include your link here as well, before you become a featured guest.

3. Publish Articles

Another way to extend your reach to a wider audience is to write and publish articles in article directories such as EzineArticles and GoArticles. These directories publish your content in a searchable database on their sites and allow you to create a signature that can include a link back to your Website.

Using directories, your content is potentially exposed to a much larger audience and you may also benefit from improved SEO due to the backlinks that are created. This method of driving traffic is known as article marketing and you really need to publish your articles with several directories to extend your reach as far as possible.

Apart from the obvious requirement for quality, it should be noted that each of the directories have their own rules and publishing criteria regarding content, suitability and classification etc. To avoid wasting time by trying to publish inappropriate content, you need to be aware of the relevant criteria for each directory.

4. Social Bookmarking

If we know anything about the closely guarded algorithms search engines use to identify and return search results, it is that they love content and backlinks. We also know they hate squeeze pages and for that reason they never appear in the top results of any search, unless someone happens to type the complete URL into the engine’s search field.

You therefore need to be more subtle in promoting your page if you want to benefit from search engine traffic. This often entails producing some content that search engines will be interested in but includes a link to your landing page.

Social bookmarking is a very useful and simple way to let the search engines know that you’ve have made some content available while creating backlinks to your page. The first thing is to select an appropriate piece of content, such as an article that you have published on EzineArticles. Then create an account with a social bookmarking site and submit a link to the content.

By using the popular social bookmarking sites like Digg.com, Reddit.com, Stumbleupon.com, Del.icio.us etc. you also benefit from some additional credibility because the search engines seem to value and trust these sites and often display their content on the first of the search results pages.

5. Post Video Responses

Video has not just become very popular as a medium to use on the Web, it is now almost expected. One of the reasons for this is because it is now so easy to produce.

This technique aims to drive traffic to your Website by using the video response function on Youtube.

You need to find a popular video on Youtube that is related to your own video, either in terms of content or subject matter. For example, if your video is about sailing, then you need to find a video that has lots of views that is somehow relevant to the subject of boats or sailing.

On the Youtube Web page, below the video screen there is a text box that says Respond to this video… If you click in the box it is possible to post a comment and attach a video. You need to be logged in to your Youtube account to do this.

Each time a Youtube visitor chooses to watch this popular video, they will be presented with your own video in the video responses section. With the thousands of views, popular videos receive on Youtube, the potential traffic to your site can be significant even if just a small percentage decide to watch your video response.

6. Produce and Repurpose an eBook

Whether you are intending to give away an eBook for free or sell it they are an excellent method for promoting your site and provide a demonstration of your knowledge and content quality.

Obviously you will need to include a link back to your site, preferably in the footer so that it is included in every page. This way, as you encourage readers to take a look at what else you have to offer, they can easily click through to your landing page.

Producing an eBook tends to require a significant amount of content and effort so you should think about how it can be repurposed. There are many ways valuable content can be repurposed and redistributed to attract more traffic. For example, it could be broken down into an article or newsletter series; you could turn it into a video or simply record it as an audio file.

7. Invest in Pay Per Click (PPC)

Pay per Click (PPC) is a method for directing traffic to your site either by advertising on other Websites or by your Web page showing up as a sponsored result on search engine results pages (SERPS).

There are numerous PPC Ad Networks to choose from but the biggest and probably the most well-known is Google Adwords.

The way it works is your advertisement is published on Websites who rent space to the Google Ad Network or it appears as a sponsored result on Google’s search results pages. As an advertiser you only pay if somebody clicks on your advertisement and is passed through to your landing page – hence, pay per click.

To appear in the search results you will have to bid on the search term (keywords) that were used by the person performing the search. The effectiveness of the search term and whether the person clicks on your advertisement will depend on your choice of keywords and ad copy so these require careful research and testing.

Basically, PPC can deliver huge volumes of traffic to your landing page but it costs money so you need to be sure you are achieving a return on your investment to make it worthwhile.

8. Advertise in the Classifieds

Another source that requires payment is to advertise your product and landing page in the classified section on sites such as Craigslist. The cost for this type of advertising is comparatively low and unlike PPC it is fixed so it is relatively easy to budget.

Usually the content is categorized geographically, by service and product type so it is relatively easy to select the appropriate category for your particular offering.

There are rules regarding the nature and purpose of content so be sure to read them before placing your advertisement. You will have to come up with a persuasive heading and a compelling reason for people to read your advertisement and visit your site, but this is another way to potentially deliver large volumes of traffic at low cost.

Once again, it will require research and testing to hone your advertising copy to achieve the best results and this is critical in terms of return on investment.

9. Join a Forum

Forum marketing is an excellent way to find out what people want and offer them the solution. This strategy is great for building a list of subscribers because it drives highly targeted traffic to your site.

The key is to become an active member of the forum as this helps to ensure you are in tune with the membership and understand what they are trying to accomplish. With this understanding you can add real value by offering them what they really need and in turn this builds trust and helps to establish you as a valuable participant.

Once you have built that trust people will want to know more about what you have to offer and you can direct them to your squeeze page by including a link in your signature.

10. Become an Expert

Everyone wants to hear what experts have to say about their particular interest and the Internet offers several potential channels to do this.

The way it works is that in exchange for providing your valuable content and expertise to the owners of these channels, you are provided access to their visitors and contacts.

Examples of these channels and your involvement could be an expert guest on a radio show or webinar series. We have already discussed publishing articles in ezines and posting comments on blogs but in addition there are opportunities to write for web-based publications such as review sites, how-to sites and many others. Membership sites are often looking for content and giveaways to keep their members engaged and these can also be an excellent source of traffic.

Finding a channel and format that suites you and your audience may take time and you will certainly have to provide value if you want people to follow you but the extended reach can drive large volumes of traffic very quickly.

So you’ve decided you want to be an Internet Marketer and make money on the Web – well now what?

You’ll need a product or service to sell in an existing (or emerging) market and where you can compete with the offerings that are already out there. For most new businesses that means identifying a niche – that’s a place in the market where there’s room for another supplier.

Focusing on a small area of a large market may allow you to become a key player and helps to avoid the situation where you have to compete with the established players head on. It’s usually easier for a start-up business to gain success as a specialist in a segment, rather than spread their limited resources in an attempt to be represented across the whole market.

Popular products and huge markets do not necessarily represent the best new business opportunities, particularly for new businesses. For example, you might think anyone involved in selling a product like the Apple® iPod couldn’t fail to be successful. In truth, the market for selling iPods is incredibly aggressive, with many large and recognized sellers competing for business. In addition, the barriers to entry for new businesses in the market are high because it requires significant investment and an appropriate resume to become an Apple® authorized dealer.

Selecting a viable niche is not just important, it is an absolutely critical decision for any business if it is to survive. Even if you already have a definite idea about the niche you want to exploit, your chances of success will be greatly improved by performing adequate due diligence.

In addition, by researching the market properly it is possible to find out who your competition may be, what your potential customers really want, how you can hone your unique selling proposition (USP), and shape your offering for the best possible success.

Identifying and selecting a profitable niche, really is the starting point for any successful business so it is important to make the right decision. However, many first-time business owners are so scared of making the wrong decision they never get their ideas off the ground.

Remember: The secret is to make a decision based on all the available facts and if it doesn’t work, use that information to make a better decision. Learn from mistakes – the biggest successes often come from earlier failures.

The entries in this category are aimed at helping you make the right decisions about selecting a niche by offering ideas on how to perform effective research and due diligence.

While it is possible to make money on the Internet without necessarily owning a Website, for most online businesses their site is an essential tool. Once you have decided that a Website is necessary the next step is usually to figure out where you can host it.

1. Cost

Often, a primary concern for sourcing most products and services is cost. While this is probably the case with web hosting there are two facts worth mentioning. The first is that the cost of web hosting has generally fallen and it is now possible to obtain supported hosting for a few dollars a month depending on specific requirements.

Secondly, if bought wisely, you tend to get what you pay for. Consequently, if you choose one of the cheap or free providers, it is unlikely you will receive best-quality service.

The remaining criteria are a consideration of what good-quality service is but it should be noted that for hosting one website it is now possible to obtain these service levels for less than five dollars per month.

2. Reliability

Reliability or ‘Up-time’ refers to the Web hosting company’s service level regarding their ability to provide uninterrupted service. This is often expressed as a percentage such as 99% or 99.9% etc. This is a critical metric since it is pointless deploying a website if it is unavailable to your customers and potential customers.

To ensure reliability hosting companies have what is known as redundant infrastructure. This means that if there is a problem with their web servers or they need to carry out maintenance they can switch to alternative machines to maintain service. Information about access to this infrastructure and Up-time is therefore important when selecting a web hosting company.

3. Technical Support

A critical question to ask a potential web host is: will they be around to assist if you have problems? They may advertise 99.9% Up-time but that is only relevant if they provide technical support 24/7 to deal with issues for individual clients.

It is vital that if your website is ‘down’ or some critical function is not working, the person that manages the website will be able to communicate directly with someone at the hosting company who can help.

4. Bandwidth and Disk Space

Web hosting companies provide access to computers known as web servers that are connected permanently to the internet. Like any computer, a key variable is memory or disk space, which is the physical amount of space being rented on the web server’s hard disk.

Bandwidth is another variable when selecting a web host or hosting package. This is simply the amount of data that is transferred between the website and its visitors. Therefore, if high levels of traffic and/or data transfer are expected it is important to select an appropriate level of service to avoid visitor access problems.

5. Add-ons and Plug-ins

Hosting companies offering better value tend to provide access to a range of utilities and plug-ins that can make the construction and management of their clients’ websites much easier.

These add-ons range from complete templates for building websites to scripts and databases for adding blogs or other functionality to a site.

When selecting a web hosting company it is necessary to consider which criteria are the most important for you and your online presence. You may have to compromise on one factor to obtain the service level you require on another.

6. Management and Admin Interface

An intuitive management is interface is important to ensure admin tasks can be carried out quickly and easily, particularly for those who manage their own sites but are not full-time web developers.

While a learning curve is expected when working with new systems and processes this can be alleviated if the interface is well designed and if appropriate help resources are readily available. Some of the more established hosting companies provide comprehensive libraries of video tutorials to assist their users.

7. Security

There are several facets to web security and your hosting company should be equipped to help with each of them. At the highest level the host’s web servers have to be secure from unauthorized access and hackers using appropriate security protocols and firewalls.

From a website management perspective the host should offer secure file transfer protocol (SFTP) to ensure that files being transferred to the site cannot be intercepted or corrupted by an outsider.

In addition, the host must offer a secure socket layers (SSL) to encrypt information being passed to and from the website. This is crucial for any website that is intending to gather sensitive information such as visitors’ credit card and contact details. To do this the host either issues an SSL certificate or is able to install a certificate from a third party supplier.

8. Scripts and Services

Many websites are built using scripts such as WordPress and Joomla that enable users to manage the site’s content quickly and easily. Downloading, installing and configuring these scripts can be a lengthy and complicated process but some web hosting companies offer automated script installation tools.

The best of these tools are wizard-based, often using single-click functionality. However, it should be noted that while the installation tools are very useful, they can only install the versions of the script that the web host has preloaded so it is necessary to verify if it is the latest version by checking with the script’s developer.

9. Email

While all web hosting companies tend to offer email services with each of their hosting plans, not all of them provide a range of additional tools and services that can be used to manage email.

Tools such as auto-responders, mail forwarders, and email list managers can be very useful, particularly for website owners who intend using domain-based email.

While email clients such as Microsoft Outlook offer these functions and many more, they have to be configured to send and receive messages via the web host’s mail server. To assist users some web hosts provide tools that automatically configure email clients with a single click.

10. Reviews

Selecting a Web host is pretty much the same as selecting any other product or service. Once you have carried out some basic research on the type of service you need and perhaps selected a list of potential suppliers, it’s worth performing some due diligence.

This can be done in various ways such as asking the potential web host for testimonials from existing customers or by talking to other website owners to see what they think of their supplier.

Probably the most effective method is to use a search engine such as Google and simple use search terms such as ‘Web Hosting Reviews’ which return a multitude of review sites.

Choosing a domain name is important for any Web based business because it provides potential customers with the means to find the company’s Website. While there are many facets to conducting business on the Web, for most businesses choosing and registering a domain name is the first step in controlling their online presence.

For this reason, I have prepared the Ten Killer Tips for choosing a domain name.

1. Optimized or Branded

Whether a domain name is to be optimized or branded is a critical decision because it strongly influences the way a Website is promoted and consequently the methods potential visitors may use to find it.

Optimized domain names require keywords so that search engines may find them. Optimized is simply a contraction of the phrase search engine optimized. If you are in the business of selling women’s shoes then an optimized domain name would probably include the words women and shoes in an attempt to be searchable.

Quite often, the challenge with optimized names is to make them concise and memorable.
For example www.greatvaluedesignershoesforprofessionalwomen.com may be well optimized but it is very long and not easy to memorize.

Branded domain names are usually a single word that is easy to remember (and type) but they may be abstract and do not necessarily describe the content of the Website. Instead, the owners of the site spend time and effort promoting the name through advertising and other marketing activities.

Probably the best example of a branded domain name is www.Google.com. Google is an abstraction of the word googolplex which is actually a large number (10 to the 100th power). Before 1997 the word Google didn’t mean anything until it was registered as a domain name for what has subsequently become the fantastically successful search engine. As a result of the Website’s success the word Google has fallen into everyday language both as a noun and a verb.

2. Top Level Domains

The ability to be found is critical to the success of any Website and the businesses that rely on them. Apart from the actual domain name, it is important to consider the top level domain (TLD) which is often known as the domain name’s extension or suffix.

There are numerous top level domains such as .com, .net, .org, .edu, .gov as well as country or national suffixes and different types of organizations prefer particular extensions. For example, non-profit organizations tend to use .org; government agencies use .gov while schools and colleges favor .edu.

It is fair to say that for most businesses and commercial operations .com has become the convention and consequently the most popular. However, I would not rule out other extensions as they can be a real advantage for some sites with certain types of service offering. Nevertheless, for most commercial Website owners it makes good business sense to register your domain name with a .com suffix if possible.

3. Long Names or Short Names

Domain names can be up to sixty-seven characters long so it is actually possible to use a meaningful phrase instead of just one or two words to name your Website.

However, there is an argument for shorter domain names in that they are easier to remember and this is obviously an advantage, particularly if you want people to return to your site. Also, there may be less opportunity for error when typing shorter domain names. Quite often, site owners use abbreviations or obscure acronyms to keep domain names concise but these can be unintuitive and as difficult as long names to remember.

On balance, selecting a domain name that is both meaningful and succinct is probably ideal but these days you will have to be creative and lucky to find such a name that has not already been registered. The criteria for selecting a domain name may therefore have to rely on other factors such as promotion and branding.

4. Multiple Domain Names

With most Web hosting accounts it is possible to use more than one domain name for a single Website. While the site will have a primary domain name it is possible to ‘park’ additional domains using the Domain Name Server via the hosting account’s administration panel.

An example of this is the Website for the New York Times. It is possible to get to the Website using several domains names such as www.NewYorkTimes.com, www.NYTimes.com, and www.nyt.com. The Web marketing department at the New York Times has anticipated that potential visitors may try various domain names to find the site. To avoid the possibility of missing any visitors they have registered and deployed multiple domain names that visitors might decide to use.

Another advantage of doing this is that it is possible to use different spellings or alternative constructions of your domain name. For example I own a site called www.skiplunch-buildawebsite.com and while this seems to work, based on the healthy number of visitors to the site, I have also registered and parked www.skiplunchbuildawebsite.com on the same hosting account so that visitors who mistype or forget the hyphen can still find the site.

As a footnote, for this reason I tend to avoid the use of hyphens unless I can register the non-hyphenated version of the name as well.

5. Avoid Confusion

Domain names are primarily used as the means to find particular Websites on the Internet. Much of the time domain names are presented to visitors on screen in a visual text format. However, while this is probably the optimum method for viewing and using domain names, it is not necessarily the only way they are used.

Therefore it is important to think about how the name is formed and how it sounds if you have to tell someone what the domain name is. Clever wordplays such as substituting words with numbers (E.g. www.website4shoes.com) and visual tricks like repeating letters to emphasize a point (E.g. www.craaazysaaaving.com) are probably fine in the visual medium but are unintuitive and often difficult to convey verbally.

So avoid potential confusion by using real words and correct phrasing where possible and save your potential visitors the frustration of figuring out how to find your site.

6. Identity-Matched Domains

While attempting to be concise, brandable, searchable, memorable or any of the other desirable attributes for domain names, it is important to keep in mind the organization’s identity and the nature of the business. Ideally, the domain name should be a logical extension of that identity.

For example www.clownsrus.com may be a great domain name for a group of professional clowns but it is unlikely to be effective for a firm of lawyers.

7. Used and Pre-owned Domains

Pre-owned domains can be very useful for attracting visitors to a Website from the get-go. If the previous owner has spent time and resources promoting the domain name it may be possible to benefit from search engine optimization due to those efforts.

However, it is also possible that a pre-owned domain was dumped by the previous owner because of search engine infractions or other mismanagement. For example, it is possible to buy a pre-owned domain that has been used by a serial spammer or has been linked to other sites that have been involved in illegal or immoral activity. If this is the case it is highly likely that the search engines will have blocked the name so that it will not show up in searches regardless of new ownership and revised content.

It possible to see how a domain name has been previously used by going to www.archive.org and use the ‘Wayback Machine’ to research the domain name’s past. While residual traffic may be useful, you do not want to carry someone else’s old baggage and create problems for yourself.

8. Premium Domains

Premium domain names are considered desirable either because they are clean pre-owned names that have residual traffic and/or they are made up of valuable search words. If you have done your marketing homework and come across a perfect domain that is already registered, you may be able to negotiate with the current owner to buy it.

From experience, premium domains that are advertised with mainstream registrars often sell for about 70 percent of the asking price. Private negotiations, with the actual owner of the domain may yield even better results if you can get access to them. My advice is to proceed carefully as you would in any other negotiation. Don’t get too excited, don’t appear desperate, let it be known you have alternatives.

If you can’t reach a deal, there are usually other options if you can think outside of the box. Stretch your imagination and think of other domain names if you can’t afford or obtain the one you want.

9. Use the ‘Whois’ Database

The ‘Whois’ database can be found at www.whois.com and provides registration details for specified domain names. This may be useful if your preferred domain name is already registered.

If the person who registered the domain name (the registrant) has not elected to keep their details private it may be possible to contact them directly as the contact details that were submitted the last time the domain name was registered will be published in the database.

If the registrant has opted to keep their contact details private, the ‘Whois’ database provides the registration renewal date and the company name of the registrar. It should then be possible to contact the registrant through the registrar to see if the name can be bought.

Alternatively, it is possible to register the name on back-order so that if the current registrant fails to renew their registration the registrar will make the name available to you.

10. Feedback and 3rd Party Input

Many established businesses simply use their company name as their domain name provided it is available. This obviously makes sense as they have probably already spent time and resources promoting that name and nurturing the reputation it represents.

For those whose businesses are not yet established or who are still deciding on a name for the business, choosing a domain name is potentially a great marketing opportunity. The business and all of its marketing materials can be constructed around the domain name and the Website associated with it.

This opportunity can be maximized by research and obtaining relevant feedback. A starting point for this is to talk to the various stakeholders involved in the business as well as friends, colleagues, and even other internet marketers.

Creating content for a Website is an investment and it usually needs to generate a return. However, even if you just want to voice your opinions and a return on investment is not critical, it should still be well produced. If content is worth publishing it follows that it should be worth reading… otherwise, why bother?

1. Make it Valuable

Attracting visitors to your Website requires an effort but if you don’t have anything useful to say they just won’t hang around.

One way to produce useful content is to consider the questions your customers frequently ask. This content is interesting to the people you really want to target and helps you become a valuable resource.

If you are lacking customers or if you don’t have enough questions to write about, visit forums related to your niche to see what people are talking about and what problems they are trying to solve.

2. Keep it Relevant

To keep content relevant put yourself in the reader’s position. Think about the information they want. When you are confident about the requirements, simply deliver it in a clear and concise form.

Content that wanders off the subject, drags out the answer or is poorly organized is tiresome to read and frustrating to navigate. Visitors seldom give you a second chance if you fail to engage them the first time so focus on the point and keep it there.

3. Make it Unique

Coming up with original content is a constant challenge for anyone who relies on it to engage in a dialogue with their customers. But unless you have something new to say or have innovative ideas to solve their problems, it is unlikely your readers will take any notice.

Producing totally original content may not be possible, particularly on an ongoing basis, but you should be able to give additional or alternative perspectives on well-known subjects.

4. Keep it Concise

Regardless of the format, nobody wants to trudge through excessive blabber and filler. Be pleased that someone has taken the time and effort to find out what you have to say and return the compliment by saying it concisely.

Rambling content is boring and difficult to get through and it’s your job to keep your visitor engaged. So don’t waffle, write 300 great words rather than 1000 average ones.

5. Update it Regularly

Published web content is comparatively easier to alter than print. Regular website visitors may expect certain information to remain static and in the same location but they also need additional information and resources so they maintain their perceived value.

Keep content fresh by reviewing it regularly and ensure subject matter and data are up to date. By constantly adding and adapting content visitors have a reason to return and search engines tend to take more notice.

6. Use Alternative Media

As the web has matured, user-experience and expectations have increased so it is important to think about alternative media. While some content tends to be delivered in a specific medium, such as an eBook, other media are often more appropriate and compelling. These days it is very easy to create audio and video files using low-cost or even free software tools.

People learn and communicate in different ways so offering content in various forms will ensure the message reaches the whole audience. Additionally, by using different media it is possible to re-purpose content. For example, a short report can be recorded and made available as an MP3 audio file. An eBook can be turned into a series of short video presentations using screen-capture software.

7. Use Others for Inspiration

Producing content can be a lonely business, particularly for sole Website owners. It’s very easy to become immersed in the production and ignore what else is out there.

It is important to be aware of other players and competitors in your niche and their output can often be used to inspire and encourage your own work. Sometimes all you need is a little nudge to start you off and the creative process starts to flow.

However, while inspiration and even good ideas often come from other people; ensure your offering is original, do not plagiarize, and reference the work of others where necessary.

8. Use Headlines

The obvious use of headlines is to grab a reader’s attention and draw them into to the rest of the subject matter. But headlines are also an excellent production tool and a way for you to structure your content.

Headlines help you to think about the key components of your subject and organize them in a logical way while presenting content in manageable chunks that alert readers to what is being offered.

In addition, using headlines will force you to use paragraphs and sub-sections which tend to make textual content more attractive and compelling.

9. Use Keywords

The use of keywords in web content helps to make it searchable. Using appropriate keywords conveys the subject so the content can be found and categorized by search engines. Individuals performing searches using those keywords may then be directed to your content.

But be careful, over-stuffing with keywords has several drawbacks. Search engines use automated programs called ‘crawlers’ to explore the Web and catalog content. If these crawlers consider the keyword density is too heavy or artificial they may ignore it completely. Also, keyword-heavy content is usually boring and difficult for human visitors to read.

10. Make it Easy to Navigate

Help your visitors find the resources they need by making your content easy to navigate. While using headlines makes individual articles more intuitive and easier to read, the same principle applies to the way your whole Website is structured and laid out.

Put yourself in the position of someone who is visiting your site for the first time and they have limited time to find what they want. Think about grouping similar or associated resources in the same area and use well-labeled tabs that are easily identified.

Provide a search facility at the top of the page to help visitors find what they are looking for. Also, think about using some sort of content management system, particularly as there as so many free ones to choose from such as WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal etc.

Before we consider the ten tips it may help if I explain what is meant by the phrase ‘viable niche’. To get a reliable picture of any niche it is usually necessary to undertake some research and to look at four key metrics.

The size of a niche is important as it needs to be large enough to support your business as it grows but not so large that it attracts lots of big and well established competitors.

Competition is always present in viable niches. Beware a gap in the market where there is no competition – there probably won’t be any customers either. Competition can therefore be regarded as a positive so long as you are confident, willing and able to compete effectively.

There are plenty of niches with lots of activity but they are not all profitable. There is simply no point in making sales if they are not profitable. All too often, new business owners think they can undercut established competition by selling the same products for less money. It is a fact that the market tends to set prices and being the cheapest does not guarantee success.

Some niches have high barriers to entry often because the product supply is restricted. This may be due to availability of materials, cost, qualifications and criteria set out by legislation or the manufacturer. Whatever the reason, there is no point wasting time trying to exploit a niche if your operation simply does not meet the basic criteria for access.

With these four key metrics in mind let us have a look at the ten tips for identifying a viable niche.

1. Interests and Hobbies

For many entrepreneurs this is a logical method for selecting a niche. There is obviously a degree of comfort in making a business out of a hobby or interest because we probably have a good command of the subject-matter. In addition, the prospect of making a living doing something we enjoy has a strong attraction for many people.

There is also a good argument for suggesting that our passion for a subject will drive success and will keep us going if and when times get tough.

Each of these is a valid reason for using a personal interest to select a business niche. However, it is vital to carry out research that ensures this personal interest is shared by enough people with requirements for products and services to support a business.

Just because you may be passionate about a particular subject that is no guarantee others will be, or that they have any requirements to be fulfilled, or that they are willing to spend money.

2. Forums

Many people who share hobbies and interests join clubs and online forums where they can discuss the subject and access various resources. One way to get a measure of how much interest there is in a given subject and what problems people are trying to solve in that area is to monitor these online forums.

In fact, simply monitoring doesn’t go far enough and it is much more effective if you join a forum, become active and really get a feel for its pulse and the requirements of the members. By being aware of how busy (or quiet) a forum is you may be able to estimate the size of the niche. Also, since entries tend to be dated you can estimate current interest levels. For example if there are multiple entries on a daily basis you can be confident that current interest is strong. However, if the most recent entry is dated six months ago you will have to figure out if that is due to lack of interest in the subject or the particular forum.

Knowing more about the members, the issues they are facing and how important they perceive them to be will help you mold your offering and give you an idea of what to charge.

3. Keyword Search

A good way to judge a topic’s popularity is to see how many Internet searches are carried out on a regular basis using relevant keywords. A tool I often use to do this is available at www.wordtracker.com and the really good news is you can try it for free.

Simply enter a search keyword or phrase and the tool will provide details on how many Internet searches, that included this search word or phrase, were completed in the last year. The data is drawn using the main search engines. The information is also broken down so that you can see the top 100 search terms that included the search keyword or phrase.

This information tells you how popular a search term may be but it doesn’t give any insight into how viable a particular niche may be. For example, I ran a report using the search time “Obama”. There were over 115,000 searches in the top 100 searches that included the word “Obama”. It’s hardly surprising, “Obama” is a very popular search term, but without further research I have no idea where those searches lead or if anyone managed to monetize them.

4. Google Advertising

Another useful method for researching niches using keyword search is to go directly to Google. Enter the keyword search term in the search engine and have a look at the results.

It is possible to buy advertising from Google using a system called Google Ad-words. Google set a cost rate for a given keyword search term and whenever that term is used by a Google visitor the advertiser’s website is included in the sponsored links on the search results page(s).

If a search term is popular more advertisers will want to use it to promote their sites and Google will set a higher rate for that particular search keyword.

When interpreting the search results, consider how many sponsored results (advertisements) appear on the results page. If there are lots then it is probably fair to assume that the keyword search term reflects not just a popular niche but also a profitable one, since advertisers are willing to pay to get their sites included in the search results.

5. Shopping Sites

A very effective way to find out what shoppers are looking for and what they are actually buying is to examine the data provided by the large online shopping sites.

Ebay Pulse provides current data on what is most popular in the Ebay marketplace. The information covers most popular searches, stores, products and the most watched items that are offered for sale. The lists are created dynamically and can also be broken down into product categories so it is possible to get a very good picture of what people are looking for, what they’re buying and who they’re buying it from on Ebay.

Amazon offers data on their Best Sellers, Hot New Releases, Most Gifted and Most Wished For products. It is possible to drill into the data by selecting a product category to get a clear view of what is going on in a particular market or niche.

6. Affiliate Marketing Sites

Sites such as ClickBank and Commission Junction offer products (usually digital and information products) on behalf of the owner to affiliate marketers.

For example, if wanted to write and sell an eBook on selecting a viable niche I could advertise and promote it on my Website and hopefully I would make some sales. However, if I could find several Website owners who were in a similar niche (affiliate marketers) and were willing to sell my eBook for a commission, then I would potentially make even more sales and more income. The affiliate marketing sites would help to connect me with the relevant marketers by listing my eBook.

Using ClickBank as an example it is possible to access their marketplace and select a range of potential affiliate products using keyword search in a particular product category. The results show how many products are available, the selling price and rate of commission, and most importantly they show how successful the product has been in terms of actual sales activity.

I use the ClickBank marketplace as a method for researching specific niches by examining how many products are available, their success regarding sales volume, and the number and type of marketers who are actively involved in supplying products.

7. Market Research Survey

One of the most reliable ways to find out what the hot topics are in a niche, the problems people are trying to solve and the type of solutions they are looking for is to ask them. While this may seem obvious, the actual method to gather the data needs to be carefully planned.

For the survey data to be relevant it needs to be aimed at the right audience – the potential customers in your niche. This means you will have to find a way to get your survey in front of them. Each of the following methods is effective, although there are costs attached to each, either for access to an appropriate list or an incentive for survey respondents.

Advertising your survey using Google Ad-words is one possible way of gathering responses. Obviously there is a cost for doing this but apart from collecting valuable data, the added bonus is you will be collecting names and email addresses for your marketing list.

Another method is to partner with someone who already owns a list of potential respondents who fit the profile you are looking for. This type of arrangement, known as a joint venture (JV), has become very popular in the Internet Marketing community. The list owner will obviously want some kind of compensation for their help and this is often achieved by the survey owner offering a free gift or some other incentive to the respondents.

If you have already started investigating your niche by joining a forum, it may be possible to place a link to your survey in a forum post. Again, this can be very effective because you already know the respondents are interested in the niche but it may still be necessary to offer some sort of incentive.

8. Products and Services

I noted earlier that huge markets and the most popular products do not necessarily represent the best opportunities for new businesses. However, if you can find a way to exploit a niche within a large market the rewards can be excellent.

For example, the market for mobile telephones is incredibly competitive with large, well-established players commanding significant market-shares. Trying to play them at their own game is a quick way to go broke for most new businesses, since these big suppliers enjoy economies of scale with better buying-power and superior supply chains. However, for the most part, they only want to sell the large volume, hot-products and are not interested in the niche end of the market because it just doesn’t fit their business model.

This means there may be an opportunity for a smaller, more specialized supplier to sell mobile phone accessories or perhaps older model telephones which are no longer sold by the large mainstream suppliers.

These types of niches tend to be short-lived so its necessary to keep researching the market and be ready to move into another product area if necessary.

9. Repeat and Supplementary Business

Selling on the Internet is similar to selling off-line in as much as it is much easier and less expensive to sell to existing customers than to keep finding new ones. With this in mind it is important that any niche offers the capacity to sell a range of products and perhaps supplementary products.

Supplementary products are items that support and augment other products. For example, imagine that you have produced a report on the important subject of backing-up computer data. It may be that you have been selling the report for a while, or perhaps even giving it away to generate interest and to quickly build a marketing list.

Once you have built a list of readers who, by now, have confirmed they are interested in the subject of backing-up their computer data, you are well placed to start marketing a range of back-up software and hardware products to them.

An ongoing relationship with customers is good for both you and them. They are able to buy products and services from a trusted source while you benefit by having a database of people who have demonstrated their interest in a particular niche, without the usual costs attached to building a marketing list.

10. Research the Competition

I have already noted that a viable niche is likely to have at least some competition and there is a positive aspect to this. Apart from demonstrating that the niche is potentially profitable, the competition can also help your research in terms of what sells and how to sell it.

Have a look at the competitor Websites in your proposed niche. You can do this using keyword search in Google as previously discussed. Note how many sites there are and how many of them are sponsored (paid advertisements). You can even use an online service called Spyfu to find out how much they are paying for the Ad-words, and their average daily spend. This is a good indication of how good a niche is at generating sales revenue.

Also, compare the sponsored sites with the top non-sponsored sites to see what they are doing that makes them so popular.

Then, figure out how all of these sites are monetized, what products and services they are selling and at what price. When you have a good picture of what the competition is doing and what is working for them, think about what you can do better and how you can differentiate yourself from them.

Running any business is a challenge and while there are some obvious advantages to running a business from home, the basic requirements tend to be the same but there can be additional problems.

Common issues for many home-based businesses are around resources and ensuring the operation has some formal procedures. After the initial enthusiasm of starting a business, hard work and solid processes are required to maintain the momentum to grow it.

The following tips are relevant for any home-based business as they encourage a business-focused approach.

1. Make a Plan

This may be a home-based business but you need to plan it like any other business if it is to succeed. You will have to select a viable niche and come up with a product or service. Then you will need to think about how you going to market those products – just because you have good products and a decent Website does not mean customers will simply seek you out and buy from you.

Even if you don’t intend borrowing money to get the business off the ground, it still makes good sense to write a business plan which will include cash flow statements, backup plans, and force you to think about and source appropriate infrastructure etc.

Most businesses falter or simply fail to launch because not enough thought or planning went into their preparation. Help yourself to success by not falling into the trap of being unprepared.

Make a plan and stick to it… until it needs revising!

2. Present a Professional Picture

Most people are happy to receive goods and services at the lowest available cost and many of us, particularly those who run businesses, go out of our way to research and ensure we are buying at optimum prices. However, not everyone is comfortable spending their money with small or home-based businesses because they have concerns over reliability, guarantees, and service.

The Internet has been a great leveler as far as the perception between large and small businesses because anyone with the right resources can put up a great looking Website and present themselves as they want to be seen.

You know you are running a home based business but your customers don’t need to know. You have to present a thoroughly professional picture to customers and potential customers. This means not just promising good products and great service but also ensuring they are provided.

Promise much and deliver more… the result is satisfied customers.

3. Drive Revenue

The big advantage of running a business from your home is the potential cost savings. Also, for many people it may offer an opportunity for them to dip their toe in and see if the business works before they leave their job and try to support themselves. For some it may be the chance to turn a hobby into a living and working from home allows them to transition from one to the other.

The simple truth is that while there are advantages and potential savings it certainly costs money to run a business from home, even if it’s only the extra electricity for running the computer for a little longer.

This means that if you are really intent on running a business from home you have to drive revenue to make it worthwhile.

Without revenue all you have is a more expensive hobby.

4. Barter Goods and Services

Bartering has become a staple of modern business and there are numerous commercial bartering networks that boast large corporate companies among their clients.

Therefore bartering goods and services is good for any business but as a small home-based business it can offer important benefits, particularly if you are providing services to other companies. Cash flow is nearly always an issue for small and growing businesses but often home-based businesses are ideally placed and agile enough to make good use of bartering opportunities within their own stakeholder networks.

Think about the goods and services you have to physically pay for and consider how you might barter with some of those vendors. It can even be advantageous to find a vendor who may be more expensive but who is ready and willing to barter.

A dollar saved is a dollar earned.

5. Separate Your Work Resources

Obviously one of the main advantages for running a home-based business is the potential cost saving by sharing common resources such as the telephone etc.

However, separating business and personal resources makes it easier to calculate business costs which you may then be able to claim for tax purposes. Just as important, these resources are often mission-critical for operating the business and separating them helps to ensure their availability when you need them. Not everyone has two phone lines but…

do you really want to share a computer with the kids?

6. Set a Work Schedule

One of the attractions of working from home for many people is they do not have to clock on and off. But working from home requires self-discipline and the problem can be that some people never get going and others never stop.

It may be that your business requires you to work long hours and there are probably busier times than others but setting out a work schedule is a good way to plan work and ensure it gets completed, even if you have to allocate more time to it.

It will also help to instill discipline for those who need it and most importantly it will help you to judge whether you are earning enough for amount of time you are investing.

7. Allocate Space

There can be lots of distractions working from home so it is important to allocate some work space and get it organized. Ideally, you will have enough space that can be permanently assigned and you can leave everything set up for when you need it.

However, even if you have to work on the kitchen table and pack everything into boxes when your work is done, it is important that the space is made available and nobody else has access to the boxes.

Having a place where you can work and where you can focus on the jobs that need to be done to develop the business is very important. Also, like any job there are times when you may need to get away from it.

8. Apply Yourself

It is quite likely that you may be the only person working from your home, even though several other people may live there. This may cause problems since when they are at home they are, by definition, not working. This is when you need to muster all of your self-discipline and be protective of your work schedule and resources.

Others need to understand that you have work to do and you are not simply hanging out at home. Unless you have scheduled some time out you need to keep working.

It can’t be a day off just because the kids happen to be home.

9. Work on Your Work

Working for yourself seems to be a never ending task of looking for customers, selling to customers, servicing customers, collecting their money and much more. The point is that there is always something that needs to be done when you’re running a business, particularly if youhttp://tenkillertips.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=106&action=edit&message=10’re working alone from home.

It is therefore important that you work and make sure you are working on the tasks that support the business. Household tasks are important but they have to take place in the order of priorities. When you are supposed to be working on your business you are not the maid or the housekeeper so don’t be distracted.

Vacuuming, loading laundry and going to the store aren’t running a business.

10. Get Your ‘Game Face’ On

While having a work schedule is a way of planning your tasks, getting yourself ready for work is a way to make sure you complete them. It is very easy to make phone calls, open the mail and send email messages while dressed in pajamas and suddenly realize you have to be somewhere but you’re not ready.

Working from home and being successful at it takes as much, if not more, discipline than working for someone else. So start the day by getting ready to work as you would if you were commuting. Have a shower and get dressed and then you can even go to Starbucks to pick up a coffee…

if that’s how you usually start your working day.

The activities for driving traffic to a squeeze page and building an email list should be linked to make the process effective. Once you get people to your page you have to capture their details, unless you are intending to send them directly to a sales page.

In addition, while driving traffic can be useful in terms of registering hits on your site, which may help with search engine optimization, the visitors you really want are those who are willing to leave their contact details because they are interested in your offer. These contacts are particularly valuable because they are targeted subscribers.

No matter what, driving traffic to a particular Web page requires effort and resources so collecting contact details for a marketing list is a way to make it worthwhile.

The following tips include some tools and techniques for collecting contact details to build your list.

1. Use an Auto-responder

Unless you have a reliable method for collecting and storing email addresses as well as being able to contact them en masse, any efforts to build a marketing list will be wasted.

Autoresponder software is designed to automatically send appropriate, predetermined email responses to subscribers on an email list. While it is possible to install an autoresponder on your own server, it is usually more convenient to use out-sourced service providers who charge a monthly fee.

These providers tend to offer additional services such as online databases for storing and managing your list and providing statistical information as well as templates for designing emails and sign-up forms.

In addition, the better providers help to ensure your messages get through by setting quality guidelines in terms of content and a recipient’s status regarding opt-in etc. This is important if you are to avoid your marketing messages being reported as spam.

2. Build a Squeeze Page

A squeeze page is a Web landing page. In other words, it is the page where you direct new visitors (sales prospects) to your Website and it has just one purpose. It should be designed to get visitors to opt-in to your marketing list by submitting details such as their name and email address. To do this consistently, the squeeze page relies on several basic components.

Like any other Web page or marketing material, the squeeze page has to grab the visitor’s attention. There has to be a reason for them to stay and read the rest of the page to see what the offering is, so the page needs a strong headline.

Next, they need to be told or shown what the benefits of your offering will be and how it will help them by using benefit statements. You have to give a compelling reason for them to opt-in to your list by giving you their contact details.

They also have to be told what they have to do to receive these benefits. This is known as a call to action and it basically tells them to register their contact details to receive your offer. It may be necessary to repeat this call to action several times throughout the squeeze page, possibly after each benefit statement, to encourage your visitors to subscribe.

Finally, the squeeze page has to include an opt-in form so that visitors can enter their contact details. From experience, forms that require the least information are the most effective at encouraging opt-ins and at this stage, for most Web-based offerings, just a name and email address is enough. This form should also be linked to your autoresponder so that sign-ups are processed quickly and efficiently.

3. Give Valuable Gifts

As you have seen it is usually necessary to offer visitors an incentive to encourage them to opt-in to your email list. The nature of that incentive can take different forms but it has to be truly valuable and offer real benefits if it is to be effective.

The incentive can be a free gift or perhaps a trial offer but ideally it should be associated with your main offering. It has to be an indication of the quality a subscriber can expect from you in the future and demonstrate your expertise in the area. In other words, give them a taste of your best work and they will hopefully come back for more.

Some ideas for information product giveaways are articles, reports, eBooks and videos. Valuable products tend to solve a problem or add to enjoyment so think about what your product does and use your incentive giveaway as a means to really help your subscriber.

If you don’t have a product to give away or you are not sure how to create one, it may be possible to offer someone else’s product using a private label rights (PLR) item. This is a product produced by a third party that they are willing to sell (and sometimes give away) along with certain ownership rights. These products can be offered by others as if it was their own work. However, the rights for specific PLR products tend to be different so ensure you are not infringing any rights before you offer them.

4. Use Post-Sale Opt-in

Some Internet marketers simply advertise their products and send their prospects to a sales page where they can order and pay for the product. In other words, they don’t bother building a list for future marketing activity; they just process each prospect and then continue to look for more new customers.

This approach may actually be necessary for some products but it is far more difficult (and expensive) to attract and convert new customers than to remarket and sell to existing customers. It may require you to extend your product offering so that you may benefit from repeat sales.

However, even if you are not sure about offering further products, and you just want to sell to your first-time visitors, it makes good business sense to collect their contact details after you have made the sale. There may well be a time when the ideal opportunity and product presents itself and you will have a readymade marketing list.

As a point of protocol, customers are often not willing to provide their contact details before they make their purchase and may even be upset and abandon the sale if they are pressed. So it is better to leave the opt-in stage until after the sale is complete.

5. Use Coupons and Directories

Traditionally, coupons have been used as a means to get new customers to try a product by offering them an introductory discount and also as a method to keep customers by offering loyalty bonuses. Both of these methods have been used to good effect for a very long time in both online and off-line businesses.

For online businesses, coupons can be used in several other ways to increase the number of visitors to the Website, to build an email list and to ultimately grow sales. Coupons can be advertised to drive visitors to your squeeze page where they can opt-in. In exchange for their contact details, they receive a coupon by email that can be used for one of your products. This is similar to any of the other free giveaways that were discussed above.

In addition, your coupons can be registered with coupon directories that promote coupons for multiple businesses. This method has several advantages. Apart from offering an additional source to promote your business, the directories also create backlinks to your Website. These backlinks are an excellent method to increase search engine optimization (SEO), which is an additional method of driving traffic to your site.

6. Use Ad-swaps & JV Giveaways

These methods usually require that you have already grown your list to at least four or five hundred contacts but it is very useful for adding hundreds more very quickly.

The way it works is two marketers swap advertising lists. In other words, they agree to mail an offer from the other to their respective lists and consequently expand their contacts by gaining access to each other’s contact lists.

The joint venture (JV) giveaway is a similar process but instead of two marketers swapping lists, a group of marketers join forces to promote the giveaway and consequently there are more lists and greater potential exposure.

Both of these methods can be very effective, particularly if the products being offered are appropriate and relevant to the contacts on the lists. In addition, if there is a high degree of trust between the customers on the list and the list owner, they are probably more likely to react in a positive manner. That relationship will depend on whether previous offerings have always been good quality and supported by excellent customer service.

7. Host a JV Giveaway

Hosting a joint venture (JV) giveaway simply means you organize the event for other contributors to promote their offers.

This usually requires more than the five hundred names or so expected for an ad swap and consequently a JV giveaway is probably more appropriate when you have built your email list to several thousand contacts. You then have a compelling reason for other contributors to work with you. Also, you should be able to attract more contributors with better quality offers which means you benefit from more exposure and your prospects enjoy superior products so the whole process is enhanced.

The same basic rules apply with an individual ad swap in terms of the nature of the offers and the relationship the other contributors have had with their contacts. For that reason, it is important that you carry out due diligence to ensure the quality of those contributors and the nature of that relationship.

8. Organize Contests

Many Internet marketers use blog sites to promote and run their online presence. Provided you have something to say this is a great way of interacting with your customers and potential customers. Using your blog to promote a contest is also a great way to grow your marketing list.

This works by offering a prize or several prizes that your audience will find useful and valuable. The idea is to get them to promote your squeeze page to their own contacts or a wider audience by explaining and selling the benefits of your offer. This encourages their contacts to opt-in to your list.

To ensure you cover several channels you can offer prizes for the best blog post, the best Youtube video and the best promotional article. Apart from the interest these activities will generate, you can also get them to post a comment on your blog with a link to their entry (blog post, Youtube video, article etc).

This technique can be very powerful and is particularly useful if you only have a small list or audience to begin with as it provides an opportunity for the contest to become viral.

9. Buy Pre-owned Websites

For various reasons there are lots of existing Websites for sale. Some of them may be very successful and already have a range of profitable products and well established email lists supporting them. As going concerns these sites obviously tend to be the most expensive.

However, there are plenty of sites that have either peaked and now need revitalizing with some fresh ideas and content or sites that just never really made it for various reasons. These sites can be a great way to build a successful online business, either by relaunching them, capitalizing on their content by repurposing it or by using their limited traffic and email lists as a seeding point to grow your own list.

A good starting point is to look for sites that are for sale in your own niche as any latent traffic and prospects they may have will be more relevant.

10. Use a Facebook Fan Page

Many businesses are using Facebook as a means to interact with their customers and prospects to promote their company Websites. In fact, Facebook and other social networking sites offer great opportunities to promote or work in conjunction with many, if not all, of the other list building techniques discussed above.

Ideally, your page should be visually appealing and interactive as this helps to attract more fans. It is also possible to make the page interactive using Facebook’s Application Directory or possibly even develop an application yourself.

Because the page resides inside Facebook it has huge potential exposure while its purpose is to provide an additional channel for promoting your main Website and more importantly driving traffic to your squeeze page. Therefore, don’t skip on its design and construction as it can be a vitally important source of prospective customers.