Who’s Afraid of Competition?
Written by enetwal on January 12, 2010 – 1:34 am -We have run into a number of competitors during our niche market research process. Â Hopefully made some notes about them along the way.
While the initial inclination is to be discouraged by the competitors, the truth is that for the most part, they are a good sign. One you should be grateful for, because their presence in the market indicates that people are willing to spend money in your niche. Thus when you get your product(s) out there you should have a good shot at making money.
If there are a lot of competitors, that means a lot of people are making money.
What you want to do is subscribe to their mailing lists, and analyze their follow-up emails. You want to go to their web sites and make a copy of their sales pages and analyze them as well.
Make note of the commissions they pay, the % of payout etc. Figure out how long they have been around. Do they frequently update their web pages? Do they offer bonuses. What types of free offers do they use? And what type of up-sells do they present? What are their price points?
You want to make a study of the major competitors and then you want to explore what they don’t offer. What could they do better?
You want to do a SWOT analysis. Swot stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
For each of your top competitors, identify what their strength is, Where are they weak, how can you turn it into an advantage for you, and what will be most difficult to overcome.
Odds are you won’t become the dominant force in your niche overnight. But you can find a toe hold and build from there. Find an angle of attack keeping in mind everything you have learned during your market research. And then don’t over analyze.
While it’s vitally important to research your niche don’t get stuck in the process. Get it done, and create a plan and take action.
You have picked a niche, you have researched it and determined that it is vital. You have identified the types of problems people in the niche are looking for solutions on, and have a good idea of who those people are.
Now it’s time to create a product or find one of more products you can represent as an affiliate.
Tags: competition, Market Research, niche market research, niche marketing, SWOT, SWOT Analysis
Posted in Market Research | 7 Comments »
Says:
January 12th, 2010 at 9:37 pm
Great post. Analyzing your competition is a great way to find hidden keywords. Also using resell rights products will help speed up the process of creating and selling your own ebook. I see you have Traffic Travis advertised on your site. Everyone should click that ad and use that software. That little guy is very powerful!
.-= Jonathan´s last blog ..Facebook Toolbar – Social Mini =-.
Says:
January 12th, 2010 at 9:38 pm
Some great points. You do want to make sure there is competition in the niche market you choose since most of the markets have been discovered and if there is no competition, that’s a good sign that the niche can’t be monetized.
Keep up the good work.
.-= Ron Barrett´s last blog ..Easy Video Player – Video Marketing Profits Without The Hassle =-.
Says:
January 16th, 2010 at 7:48 am
Some really good tips in here Earl. No you should not be afraid of the competition. Better to know you have some competitors in the marketplace. At least you will know that people are interested.
Says:
January 16th, 2010 at 11:59 am
Good post. Sounds like you are suggesting that we really check out any competitors that we find. I think that it is always a good idea to study your major competitors. Learning is always important in this business.
.-= Lonnie Minton´s last blog ..Learn Affiliate Marketing – Getting Started =-.
January 17th, 2010 at 3:59 pm
I agree, I have used Traffic Travis to help me evaluate a number of my clients web sites. It’s quick and easy and very powerful.
Says:
January 23rd, 2010 at 1:08 pm
I agree that competition is good. I guess the difference I would have to point out would be where you are in your market. If you are the only one that has widget A and people all want or NEED widget A then you probably don’t want competition since you have your niche cornered. Competition will only bite into your bottom line.
If you are looking for niche products then obviously you would want to identify a high yield product that is in demand with the least amount of competition. The first thing you would want to do is an analysis on their marketing techniques and do your homework.
I live in a small town. We have one, count them one, grocery store. We are 100 miles, literally, from the next closest point of civilization. That store owner does not want competition as it will only cut into his bottom line. He makes it clear he does not want competition by filing injunctions against any new businesses that could adversely affect his bottom line like McDonald’s and Family Dollar. He lost both but he is not afraid to try to squash competition before it ever gets started.
Unfortunately, not all of us are lucky enough to inherit a family dynasty like this or find products that nobody else has so you have to do your homework. This is the key to online sales in my opinion. Online marketing is hard, patience testing and time consuming work. getting rich overnight sometimes takes months or even years of preparation.
.-= Richard Perkins´s last blog ..Newest AJAX Powered Traffic Exchange =-.
February 11th, 2010 at 2:40 am
Yes we should not be afraid of the competition.Having some competitors in the market is good because it encourage to work hard .
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john
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