Theme: Niche-Finding Research Software
Web Marketing Today Premium, Issue 94, Fall 2005

Dear Friend,

Doing the proper research is the best insurance I know to finding and forming a successful niche business online. Without research it's like "pin the tail on the donkey" blindfolded. Too many entrepreneurs make up their mind early and begin without research -- a fatal flaw that causes a staggering death rate of new online businesses.

I'm certainly not the first person to write about research to find online niche opportunities. But I've tried to order it in a logical way so you'll be able to sort through it quickly -- and get on with meaningful, fruitful research. I trust you'll find my 49-page Research Guide to Online Niche-Finding helpful as you think through your next online business.

If you're a current paid subscriber to Web Marketing Today Premium you can download your e-book version right now. If not, either renew your subscription or purchase a copy. $14.95 (e-book), $18.50 (printed book).

God bless you,
Dr. Ralph F. Wilson

Research Guide to Online Niche-Finding: Research Methodology and Software

How do you come up with a sure-fire, red hot, online business success? You don't -- no matter how much hype you've heard to the contrary. Internet business success is based on careful, patient, data-driven research. Even with careful research, online projects fail -- though their chance of success goes up dramatically.

Just how do you conduct research for an proposed online business? The answer sometimes seems shrouded in mystery. In this short report I'll try to peel back the layers so you can understand the process, spot the potential problems, and select research software appropriate to your needs. This book is not the most detailed research guide available, but it points the way with clarity so you can see the next step. Here are the chapters:

1. How to Discover a Promising Internet Business Niche

This chapter discusses the five key principles of niche research in some detail, with the goal of making the research task clear:

Principle 1. Make Your Knowledge and Passion Work for You

Principle 2. Identify a Niche that Is in Sufficient Demand

Principle 3. Discard Niches with Too Much Competition

Principle 4. Make Sure Your Niche Has Adequate Profit Potential. This section discusses the research goals involved in assessing potential revenue from (1) online sales of tangible products, (2) affiliate commission revenue, and (3) advertising revenue.

Principle 5. Create Your Site's Own Uniqueness and Voice

The chapter also includes two sidebars: The Myth of Online Franchises and Sidebar: Opportunities in Fads, Trends, and Opportunities. Read Chapter 1.

2. Formulas and Ratios to Judge Profitability and Potential

What do ratios and indexes really tell you about. What are the weakness and fallacies? This brief chapter discusses the R/S ration, the KEI (Keyword Effectiveness Index), the PPCEI, and various profitability ratios available with different research software programs. It also discusses the value of bid prices and number of advertisers in assessing competition and potential. Read Chapter 2.

3. Problems with Niche Research Software

A discussion, with the help of niche research pioneer Ken Evoy on the problems to watch out for in keyword and niche research software. This article focuses on terms of service violations leading to possible data feed blocking, supply calculation inaccuracies and some work-arounds, a caveat about being "number bound," and a discussion of how an emphasis on site content figures into the goal of niche research. Read Chapter 3.

4. Keyword Research and Niche-Finding Software

In this chapter you'll find names, brief descriptions, pricing, and contact information for 24 different keyword research and niche-finding software programs, both desktop (client-side) and hosted ASP (Application Service Provider model, server-side) applications. I share several of these which stand out, as well as awarding four of these the Web Marketing Today Award of Merit 2006 for Excellence in Niche Research Software. Read Chapter 4.

Reviews

Most of the keyword research software ignores profit margins that are vital to online merchants. The final three chapters are reviews of product-centered approaches designed to help online merchants determine which products to sell in their online stores.

5. Review: Market Research Wizard from WorldWide Brands

Market Research Wizard has several features that make it ideal for research potential products to sell, compared to the keyword focus of many research programs. This program produces an analysis percent, a rough estimate of how well a product or category of products is likely to sell online. Read Chapter 5.

6. Review: P.I.P.E. Product Idea Profitability Evaluator

P.I.P.E. has still another twist to research products to sell and assessing their potential profitability. It uses supply, demand, keyword PPC price, conversion rate, and average sales total to determine an Overall Profit Potential (OPP) score to compare the potential of this type of product with others. This appeared in Web Marketing Today, March 3, 2004. Read Chapter 6.

7. Review: Online Research Guide to Picking Products that Sell

This review of Matthew Hedges' Online Research Guide to Picking Products that Sell outlines his research method and the tools he uses to discover which products are likely to be profitable on the Internet. This review appeared in Web Marketing Today, 10/26/2005. Read Chapter 7.

This report won't do you research for you, but will provide an important guide to the methodology, the software, and the pitfalls involved with research to find profitable online niche business opportunities. It is my prayer that it helps guide you in particular to a profitable online business.