One of the key factors every affiliate needs to focus on is finding the right niches to work with. A single wrong step and you could end up selecting a niche that’s not at all viable.
Even though there are a number of ways to research niches as an affiliate, not many get it right. And the reason for that is simple: they depend more on guesswork than doing the work that it takes.
Here are 4 useful ideas to help you research your affiliate niches effectively:
1) Get out there in the open. Hit the field. Don’t limit your approach when it comes to researching affiliate niches. One of the most effective ways to do this is to go through websites and browse around looking for specific offers.
If you’re looking for a targeted niche then Google relevant sites and look out for ads to see what kind of offers are running. If you want to check out what the big guys are up to, you can browse through high traffic sites that are relevant.
Your basic aim here is to get a fair idea on what kind of sub-niches exist in your target market. By going through offers run by other advertisers, you’ll come across many profitable niches that are great for running affiliate offers.
2) Heard about networking? Yes, it can prove to be a great way to tap into niches that are not only profitable, but are also less competitive. You don’t have to have a lot of friends in the industry to find the right offers. Even affiliate managers come in your network, and they are a free  resource.
The good thing about the affiliate marketing industry is that the networks have a healthy competition with each other. They’re always trying to get that extra edge, and affiliate managers happen to be their secret weapons.
Not all affiliate managers turn out to be resourceful, but most of them are smart enough to help you get your job done. What you want to find out from your affiliate manager is the kind of offers that are working and are generating the most traffic. This will give you a lead on the niches that are currently profitable.
3) Keep an eye on the trends. Besides trying to gauge what others are doing, take your research to the next level by being creative and churning out your own ideas. This can be easily done by analyzing the social/search trends. You can use Google trends to track what people are searching for – once you get a hang of it, you can find some really cool niches.
And as far as the social trends are concerned, look at what’s trending on Twitter. You can stumble upon really nice and profitable niches by simply leveraging Twitter. You can also discover untapped traffic sources using these trends. However, you do have to think out of the box to make the most out of the trending topic. So that it allows you to spin offers on them.
4) Amazon and eBay are goldmines when it comes to finding little known niches. The best part about leveraging them is that all the homework is done for you. The only thing you need to do is drill down deep enough.
Since both of these sites have a feedback system built in, you can go through customer reviews and find ideas for niches that are rare to find. It does take dedicated research on your part, but the results can be worthwhile.
The only thing you need to keep in mind is to not waste too much of your time in one area. The key is to learn, discover and move on. The broader your approach, the more niches you’ll discover.
Do you have any unique ideas when it comes to researching affiliate niches? Do share them with us in the comments section below!
