Struggling to find a niche?
Don’t worry, we’ve all been there.
It’s a huge factor in determining whether you will be successful or not, so I’m glad you’re here.
My guide for beginners will make sure you start your new business on the right path.
I’ll explain the best approach for those who are starting their first affiliate marketing business.
If you’re a professional marketer already, then this guide might spark some ideas for your next big project.
Update: Here is my full video tutorial on this topic:
Exclusive Bonus: Get access to the 5 Step Blueprint for Beginners which outlines all the steps you need to build a successful affiliate marketing business. Get access to free training videos and a full 30 page PDF report you can print and read later. Download and get started here.
My General Thoughts on Choosing a Niche
I’m not going to lie:
Choosing a niche is hard.
It’s hard for beginners, and it’s hard for advanced marketers too.
This might not be the first guide you’ve come across about choosing a niche... The reason is that there isn't a ton of great resources out there, so you continue to search.
The reason there isn’t good information available is because it’s hard to explain.
There isn’t a special formula which you can run to get a profitable niche.
There are a bunch of factors in place, so it’s a bit of a complex issue.
If after running through this guide you still need help, I would recommend you join my Private Facebook Group where you can ask me questions and get some feedback.
I would be happy to help you find a good niche. Join the Facebook Group here.
Passion vs. Business - The Best Advice for Beginners
When choosing a topic for an online business, there are two lines of thought which seem to come up often:
Should you build a business based on something you’re passionate about, or something that has the best potential for profits?
Obviously you want both, but for beginners, I would definitely say that passion and interest is more important than potential profits.
Consider this:
My next affiliate business is going to be my best.
I've built several affiliate marketing businesses, but the next project always seems to be the biggest and has the most potential. Sure not every venture will work out, but here's what I'm getting at:
As a BEGINNER you need to be successful in learning, but you don't need to hit a home run in terms of profits.
Think of your first business as a learning experience which has the potential to pay you a lot of money. When you learn affiliate marketing, you will probably start several new businesses in the future which may have more potential for profits.
My next business is always my best, because I keep learning and getting better. As a beginner, you need to learn as you build your first online business.
So here's the bottom line:
Beginners should be passionate about their niche, or at least have some interest in it.
If you’re just starting out, there are a bunch of things you need to learn.
There’s also a lot of work that you will probably do yourself.
So if you choose a niche that you have zero interest in, but has good potential for profits, you probably won’t stick around long enough to make it work.
Trust me, I’ve been there.
As a beginner, it’s tough to work on a business that’s super boring for you. Mainly because you're learning as you build.
For example, say you stubble on a profitable niche like Debt Consolidation. Someone tells you that this niche is super profitable so you decide to take it on, even though you don’t know anything about it, and you find it boring as hell.
As a beginner, I can almost guarantee that you won’t be successful with it.
Now, if you’re an advanced affiliate marketer and you have already been successful in the past, then you have a way better chance with this niche.
The reason is that you don’t need to learn anything, and you can basically outsource a lot of the work if you want.
So if you’re a beginner, I would strongly recommend that you build your first business about something you’re passionate about!
What Are You Passionate About?
The topic that you choose for your affiliate marketing business should be about something you like.
But it’s important that it also ticks off a few boxes related to profitability.
You don’t want to build a business about something which has no potential to make you money. Those aren’t the results you’re after!
So this is why I would recommend you not rush this step.
I know you want to launch a website and design a logo, but before you do any of that, you need a solid business concept.
Don't feel you need to figure this out in one day. Take your time.
Make a List of Topics You Like
You need to start brainstorming some ideas.
So what is something you love? What are you passionate about?
Is there something that you love to talk about with your friends?
Is there a topic that you read a lot of books about?
Start creating a list based on these questions.
Looking back, my first topic was about something I was passionate about. Back in college I was really into fitness and bodybuilding.
This naturally lead me to choose a topic about health supplements, and I built my first website about something I really liked.
What about you?
Do you have a hobby? Are you naturally talented in anything?
Sometimes you can find a niche based on what you currently do:
Are you a mom with experience in raising children? Do you work in finance and you’re good with numbers? Are you a contractor who knows a lot about construction tools?
Think about it:
You might be very knowledgeable about something which other people will find valuable.
Start adding these ideas to your list!
Here's a list to help you spark some ideas:
Broad topics:
- Artificial Intelligence
- Astronomy
- Baking
- Beauty
- Books
- Branded Products
- Business
- Calligraphy
- Celebrity
- Clothing
- Cooking
- Comedy
- Computers
- Culture
- Design Tutorials
- Discovery
- DIY Crafts
- Electronics
- Energy
- Entertainment
- Entrepreneurship
- Environment
- Fashion
- Fine Dining
- Fitness / Bodybuilding
- Food Culture
- Food Discovery
- Food Photography / Food Videography
- Frugal Living
- Games
- Geography
- Health
- Human Resources
- Investing
- Magic
- Makeup
- Marketing
- Movies
- Music
- Nutrition
- Painting
- Parenting / Mom or Dad
- Personal Development
- Photography
- Physics
- Politics
- Professional Development
- Recipes
- Relationship Advice
- Religion
- Restaurant Reviews
- Robotics
- Sales
- Science
- Sewing / Knitting
- Sports
- Tech / Gadgets
- Tech Support
- Technology
- Theater
- Travel
- Tutorials
- TV Shows
- Vehicles
- Videography
- Virtual Reality
- Watercolor
- Wine
- Woodworking
Important Things to Keep in Mind
In almost all cases, when you pick a topic, you will want to “niche down”.
So here are a list of topics which are way too broad, along with a more focused topic (niched down) which is more appropriate:
- Golf > Golf Gear Reviews
- Cooking > Crockpot Meals
- Music > Trumpets > Trumpet Buying Guide
- Nutrition > Healthy Kids Lunches
Topics I Would Recommend You Avoid
There are two areas where I would recommend you steer clear of:
- Super competitive niches
- YMYL (Your Money Your Life)
Sometimes figuring out if a niche is too competitive requires a bit of digging.
But as a general rule, if your topic is too broad, it's often too competitive. There are also topics like "make money online", "general health advice", "investing", "insurance", "recipes" and others which are very competitive and should probably be avoided.
Some of these can be good topics, but you really need to niche down.
There are also some topics which Google calls YMYL which stands for Your Money Your Life.
Generally, the quality guidelines for topics associated with this acronym are very high.
For example, if you have a business about giving people specific medical advice, you better be qualified to do so.
Or if you have a business about taxation or investing, generally you will want to have some real expertise in this area.
So topics that directly affect someone's financial situation or health (medical advice) are not good choices for beginners.
Before Moving Forward
After finding a potential niche (you should have a few ideas), you will need to see if it's worth starting.
This is done by analyzing the competition, and analyzing the potential for profits.
Important:
You don't want to build a business in a super competitive niche, and you don't want to build a business which won't make you any money.
Here's Your Next Step:
Download the 5 Step Blueprint for Beginners.
This is a blueprint on how you can actually get started right now.
It will explain the easiest way for beginners to make money with affiliate marketing.
I would also encourage you to join my Private Facebook Group.
You can ask any questions you want and I'll be happy to help you out there. Join the Affiliate Marketing That WORKS Private Facebook Group here.
