Giving Away The Farm
May 28th, 2008 | by ScottIt appears that you're new here, if you like what you read, please subscribe to the news feed or sign up for the Leap eTips news and updates email list. Thank you for visiting :)
Given the impressive results I and others have been having with the NIMS script, my associate Heather has convinced me to put together a full case study (almost an e-course you could say) on how I approach niche marketing, including how I see NIMS best fitting into what I already do.
Now, Heather thought I should put this together, package it with the NIMS script and sell the package for $49 or something close to that… I had a better idea though, I’m going to create the case study and give it away absolutely free right here to the subscribers of my eTips monthly newsletter.
Now, I know right away that some people are going to think I’m just trying to raise my subscription levels with this “ploy”. That’s absolutely not true.
Unlike a lot of mailing lists, members of mine know that I only send a single monthly mailing (I don’t abuse subscribers with tons of messages), and I almost never upsell anything at all in my newsletter. It’s all about sharing information that to be honest, I’m not always comfortable sharing openly here on the blog. I do like to keep some of my techniques and tips semi-private, and just won’t post those on an open blog, which is why I created the Leap eTips newsletter.
In fact, looking at all of the mailings I’ve sent out for 2008 so far, there hasn’t been a single affiliate product promoted in any of them and the only time I’ve included anything at all that made me money was this month when I offered my subscribers a discount deal on the NIMS script as a “thank you” for the time and attention they give me by reading my mailings.
So I hope that makes it clear that I’m not trying to raise subscription levels, since honestly I make more revenue from having people visit the pages of this blog than I do with the eTips newsletter since I just don’t use it as a sales venue.
Like I said, my reasoning is simple, there are certain techniques and resources that I use which I won’t talk about on an open blog. None of them are black-hat or dubious in any way, but they are valuable and I’ve learned in the past that when a valuable resource gets too much public attention it begins to get abused and loses value quickly. I won’t contribute to that by openly discussing certain resources.
But I will share them privately in my newsletter since I do want to help the people who are truly interested in doing better for themselves and are willing to put in the time and efforts to succeed.
Okay, enough about why I’m sharing this in the newsletter only, now on to the good stuff like what will I be covering?
Here’s The Deal
I’m going to start a new niche site from scratch. It’s going to be in a niche I’ve never worked before so I won’t have any advanced inside knowledge or presence.
Starting from scratch (not even a domain name yet), I’m going to enter a niche, create my own product for it and document the entire process from start to first sale as an informative and candid look behind the scenes for anyone who has struggled with some of these things.
I’m going to document each step of the process using a lot of video to really show what I’m doing and how:
- choosing the niche
- keyword research
- researching the market and competition
- decide what product to create and build it
- setup my niche site
- article marketing
- setup a niche funnel for building quick links and traffic (including the use of NIMS)
- monitor and tweak to first sale
Here’s what I won’t have or be using:
- any product to start with
- any email list to mail to
- PPC (pay per click) advertising
Goals I want to achieve with this:
- Enter a new niche and create a profitable product from scratch
- begin building an email subscription list for expanding in the niche later on
- make my first sale
- have the foundation for a full niche business to expand from in place
I’m going to start this whole thing this coming Monday, and my hope is that by the following Friday I’ll have my first sale recorded.
That’s starting with absolutely nothing (I don’t even know what the niche is going to be yet), no product, being completely unknown in the niche, having no email list and I won’t use any PPC (pay per click) advertising methods either.
The point to this is to show exactly how you can start with nothing and make a sale within a few days, and have the foundation for a whole business to build upon at that point.
And that’s key to know, starting out in a new niche is an “in the red” experience. You don’t hit profit with your first sale because you’re in the red from the time and labor invested to get up and running…and this case study isn’t about showing a profit–it’s about showing you exactly how I lay the groundwork for a profitable niche that once up and running, I can grow and expand upon until it’s a full-time income. That’s why I’m documenting this from start to first sale, to show the most vital early steps which properly position a niche project for that growth.
Now, I can share an inside peek right now at what you will see if you’re subscribed to the Leap eTips and watch this case study…taking action and doing the work is all it takes to succeed.
I’ve done this before, in fact I do it all the time, so I know that I should have my first sale in a new niche recorded within a couple days, but I don’t want to give the impression that this is going to show some “fast track” to easy success for you.
It isn’t, because there is none. It’s going to take a good deal of research and work to enter a niche market, create a product and set the foundation for a long-term business in that niche.
But, what this will show is that with a little commitment and effort, my mantra of “just put a desired product in-front of people who want it with an easy path to purchase” is a winning formula.
So, I believe this is going to be an informative and fun experience to share, I’m going to do my best to make it completely candid and easy to follow.
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3 Responses to “Giving Away The Farm”
By Chris Lude on May 28, 2008 | Reply
I’m really interested in hearing how this goes. I’m also interested in knowing why you think some ppc advertising wouldn’t serve as an interesting catalyst for your startup. Thanks, Chris.
By Scott on May 28, 2008 | Reply
Chris, to see how this turns out you just have to sign up for the monthly newsletter (subscription form is in the posting above).
As for why I’m not including any PPC into the case study, it’s because I’m doing this in the exact manner I use for every new niche I enter, and the fact is I never utilize PPC until after I’ve seen that the market–and product I’ve created for it–are both profitable for me.
At that point, once I make the decision to grow the niche I will certainly include some strategic (meaning sniper-like) PPC campaigns.
But, this is about setting up the foundation of a new niche, and I never spend money on PPC until after I’ve determined it’s a viable market for me AND have a sense of what keywords are performers already.
I know some marketers like to start with PPC to judge a market because they’d rather spend money over time seeing if it’s profitable, but since I do this in large part because I love the process, I tend to take the opposite approach and start with seeing if I can convert from free and organic traffic before investing in PPC.
Luckily, since a lot of my readers are folks just starting out who don’t have a lot of money to “test” on PPC results, I think the methods I use will be more beneficial for them than a lot of existing similar examples where PPC or other paid marketing was a major factor.
Those examples are great for those of us who can spend the money to test if we want, but are of little value to the average Joe who is starting out on a tight budget.
By Bryan on Oct 17, 2008 | Reply
I signed up to see the videos. Where do I find them? Thanks!