The Official Home Of James Watson » Niche Marketing

From Bath Farmers Market to Starting a R.I.O.T…

James — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 23:58:25 +0000

While wandering about dodging the hordes following their usual frantic Saturday routine (and wondering why I was joining in…), I thought I’d show you a place that is quite close to my heart in many ways, the weekly Farmers Market here in the city of Bath.

You see it was here in 2005 that my wife Licia and I started our journey – with much uncertainty and a fair few nerves – along the road to running our first ever business. My Italian wife Licia was an ‘aspiring’ chef at the time and she wanted to try her hand at selling her home-produced, Italian-inspired food.

Needless to say, she was a great success at the Farmers Market, which then led us on to setting up our very first cafe/deli also in Bath. The point I want to underline, however, is just how much HARD WORK was involved for very little relative reward.

My business partner Daniel likes to compare what he can earn now online to his ‘pizza days’, when he would work a full day for Dominos with only £50 to show at the end of the day for his time and labour.

For us, working on the market felt a bit like working 2 or 3 pizza days to perhaps earn a ‘net’ £50 profit. The hours were long, often all-night leading up to Saturday, and of course there was a lot of shifting and carrying of tables, fridges (yes, we were crazy…) and other equipment as well as the food itself.

I will always remember coming back home about 2pm on Saturday after the market was finished, eating (very good), counting the takings (even better) and then sleeping for hours to recover. So much for a relaxing day off (I was working my corporate job Monday-Friday, of course…)

What a contrast, then to the world I now inhabit. That is, full-time internet marketer, teaching people the very best knowledge, information and tips I learn as my journey develops. Although we’ve just started to produce physical products (a monthly newsletter, audio CD and data DVD) for the members of ‘Your Internet Buddies’, its still a world away from the production of low-cost, perishable produce. At least our CDs don’t have expiry dates on them…

In my corporate job, selling specialist software solutions to schools to help children with their learning, many of my colleagues had to sell physical products like computers or networks. Now, although there was no expiry on these either, the profit margins were thin to non-existent. And a Million-pound order isn’t very cool if your overall production costs are £1,000,001…

In contrast, selling software was much like selling information products. The cost of production is low, but the sale price can still be high, therefore with MUCH higher profit margins.

However, software is complex to produce, and has implications for technical supports and updates, so the clear winner of the three businesses, for me, is to package and sell ‘information’.

Information is a strange commodity. It can vary in price from free to multiple millions, and can be presented and shared in many different formats and situations. For example, a $17 ebook can have the EXACT same information as a $97 DVD, or a $497 seminar.

Unlike many other markets, however, the demand for information is only INCREASING each day. We live today in a specialized world of micro-niches, with a million TV channels rather than just 3 (yes, I’m old enough to remember that…), and that’s because technology has made things a lot cheaper, simpler and faster to deliver ‘tailored’ information that cater for people’s specific needs.

The internet offers us endless virtual real estate to create publishing empires and all for free or insanely low-cost (who would have ever imagined that I could publish a video, with an article, to a worldwide audience, all for the cost of some shared web-hosting…).

Internet search engines like Google allow us to get ‘inside the mind’ of someone surfing the web, and actually present our opportunity ONLY to those people who have clearly expressed their interest in the same thing. The potential is mind-boggling…

What strikes me most, however, is when I see people of all ages, even octogenarians, actually learning the basic skills of writing a blog, creating an ebook or even recording a video, and then promoting their website to prospective customers via Google Adwords. They can do this, and do it well, because the basic skills of internet marketing are… shock.. really very SIMPLE! Anyone who routinely uses email can learn pretty quickly how to get a blog set up – and even create a video on YouTube…

Obviously, there real learning occurs if you’ve never run any kind of business before, or had any experience of the world of ‘profit and loss’. If you have, you’re already several steps ahead of the rest, otherwise be prepared to learn from people with experience, who you know, like and trust. I can promise you that working this stuff out on your own is not so much fun. Yes, I’ve been there…

So, if you’re interested to learn more about how YOU could transform your passions and knowledge into profit online, and you’re the kind of person who likes to learn face-to-face, or as part of a group dynamic, then Daniel and I are putting on a very special one-day event in London on February 13th called R.I.O.T 2010 – (R.I.O.T = Recurring Income Online today)

Basically, one member of the audience, picked at random, will have a group of Internet Marketing experts literally BUILD them an online business on the SAME day! We’re going to demonstrate just how literally anyone can get started online – and fast…

When we ran a similar workshop last summer, we took one young student’s idea about creating a fashion tips business, created a site and a product for her, and drive traffic to the site, even making a sale on the same day!

Even if you’re not the lucky person who gets their business built in a day, however, you’ll still get a first-hand chance to learn all the steps of the process, so you can do it for yourself.

So, if you’d like to find out more about RIOT2010 – and also secure some highly-discounted early-bird seats before they sell-out, then check out our special PREVIEW webinar at http://YourInternetBuddies.com/webinar and find out all about it…

But whether we meet there on the day or not, be sure you ask yourself one question… Is your income currently generated ‘pizza-day’ style?

And if so, do you really want to ignore the income-potential generated by a world-wide, 24/7, Internet Marketing business?

How To Use Survey Monkey

James — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:05:34 +0000

This is a guest post from Daniel Wagner of DanielWagner.com [by the way... he's also the laid-back guy on the left hand side of our brand new website banner...]

Whether you have 300 people on your list or 30,000, surveys are an incredible tool to find out what it is that your subscribers are exactly after.

This is very powerful as you can use this information to create more targeted products for your audience. You can’t get more targeted then to ask somebody exactly what they want, and then sell it to them.

What you will do is create a survey and through that you will ask your list a series of multiple-choice questions.

Now creating a survey is very easy. I use a company called Survey Monkey. All you do is choose the design and create the questions and they collate the responses, give you the most popular answers and essentially tell you what it is that your list wants, according to the answers they have selected.

At the time of this writing, SurveyMonkey charge around $19.95/month …but what I usually do is pay for one month, gather the responses and then cancel the following month. (Remember, you just want the data).

I usually create around 10-12 multiple choice questions. The questions you should ask really depend on the market or niche you’re in.

For example, I’m in the songwriting niche. I’d like to ask my list questions like:
• How old are you? (it’s good to know if you have more children or adults on your list)
• Are you working or a student? (this gives me an idea as to if they have any money to spend, and can help determine a price point for a current or future product)
• Are you serious about songwriting? (gives me an indication as to if it’s a hobby or a passion)
• Which instrument do you play? (perhaps I can send out a product offer relating to that particular instrument)

You can see how this information is very powerful as your subscribers are literally telling you what they want!

When you have all their responses (usually it takes around a few days depending on the size of your list) you can then create a product, such as an ebook, an audio item or a video course. Or you could even find and promote an affiliate product that suits their needs.

Creating Surveys To Make Money Almost Instantly

Here is a method that will make you money pretty much straight away – again, as long as you have a list of some sort. Of course the more subscribers the better, but in reality you can do this with even a small list and you should get a good response.

I always advise my students that they should create products and/or services based around the answers they receive from their lists. But you can actually make money with surveys as soon as the subscriber completes the survey!

So here how it goes:

• You send out an email to your list asking them to complete the survey
• They go though the survey and complete it as you requested
• They click a link at the bottom of the email to upon finishing it, and this link redirects them to a page where you sell a product (either your own or an affiliate product relating to the survey that you’ve created).

This works VERY well.

There is a strange hidden psychological trigger that occurs when you fill out a survey. If you think about it carefully, if YOU filled out a survey that agitated the problems in your mind, and then you were presented with a product that contained the solutions straight after, wouldn’t you be more inclined to buy it? Of course you would.

This works especially well if you have you own a digital product, and you offer the product at half price straight after they have completed the survey. The way you do this, is you tell them that the half-price offer is a way of saying ‘thank you’ for completing the survey and that the offer will be pulled down within 48 hours.

With this tactic you are doing two things. One, you are showing reciprocity. You ask them for a favour (i.e. completing the short survey), they complete it, you then say ‘thank you’. Believe it or not, when you say ‘thank you’, you are looking like a humble and trusted advisor.

Two, you are creating scarcity. When you go to the shops and they are selling “62 inch plasma televisions for £100 for only 4 more days”, you will probably rush off your feet and grab one while you can.

The same thing applies for your product online. If you specify a ‘cut-off’ time for your offer, you will greatly increase your conversions.

You should try to get into the habit of surveying your list every 3 – 4 months. You will not only keep abreast of their needs, but you will also make some cash in the process.

Are you struggling to get clients? Then you need to read this!

James — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:45:15 +0000

Do you find it difficult to get clients that are willing to pay you what you’re worth for the advice and help you can offer?

Then you need to read this article from start to finish…

Find your coaching niche if you want more clients

Recently I received a message from a coach wanting advice about how to develop her website to promote her coaching services. She wanted to know what I suggest she should do next.

So, what was my answer?

To forget about websites until you have chosen your niche!

You see, coaches who do not focus on helping specific people with specific problems will always struggle to find clients. Nobody wants coaching, they only want solutions to their problems.

So the most important thing to do if you’re a generic coach or life coach is to decide on your very own area of specialism!

You know you have a niche when you can answer the question ‘who is the person’ and ‘what is their problem’ I will help them solve? For example, helping mothers lose weight, or helping career women deal with stress at work. Niches are very specific.

When you have a niche it is much easier to find your ideal client. Plus, when you become a ‘specialist’ in one area, people are much more interested in having you help them. People always prefer specialists to generalists. They want to be reassured that this person is an expert in helping them with their specific problem.

So if you don’t yet know your niche, this is really where you need to make your first decision. Just what is your niche going to be? Only once you know your focus should you start learning about how to sell your services via websites etc.

How To Find Your Coaching Niche

James — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 06:45:15 +0000

Find your coaching niche if you want more clients

Do you find it difficult to get clients that are willing to pay you what you’re worth for the advice and help you can offer?

Then you need to read this article from start to finish…

Recently I received a message from a coach wanting advice about how to develop her website to promote her coaching services. She wanted to know what I suggest she should do next.

So, what was my answer?

To forget about websites until you have chosen your niche!

You see, coaches who do not focus on helping specific people with specific problems will always struggle to find clients. Nobody wants coaching, they only want solutions to their problems.

How to find your coaching niche… and a special offer

The good news is that there is an opportunity coming very soon to help you take a huge shortcut in finding your niche and learning how to market your coaching services. It is the Coaches and Consultants Top Gun Superconference on April 25/26/27 in London.

I will be speaking at this event about how to create simple, easy-to-edit websites that will bring you clients and earn you money. However, there will also be a dozen or so other speakers from all around the world including Jairek Robbins – Tony’s son – who will be giving phenomenal advice about all the areas of developing a hugely successful coaching business.

Not only is the ticket price heavily reduced, but if you know of another coach who would benefit from attending then you can take them with you for free as your guest, effectively halving the ticket price for you both! Plus, if you really feel that the event hasn’t massively helped you, Dan Bradbury will even give you 100% of your money back. So really you have nothing to lose!

Just come along to the event and meet all the very successful coaches who’ll be there in person. Discover the secrets to their success… and lay the foundations of your own.

Special Bonus

Because I know how valuable this event will be, I’m even prepared to offer a highly valuable bonus of my very own to anyone who signs up via my affiliate link.

If you sign-up via this link then I will give you a 1:1 private consultation at the event, worth £147, absolutely free! Just contact me via this website and let me know that you’ve placed your order and you’d like to reserve your consultation.

As I’ll be speaking at the event my time will be limited so I can only offer this bonus to the first 5 people who sign up and get in touch.