Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog

belgirl · 07-20-2009, 05:27 PM

Hi all-
My boyfriend and I are thinking of starting an Amazon.com Niche blog. He loves the outdoors and camping, so we are thinking of using that as our niche. I have done some research using Google Keyword tracker and Google trends and I have narrowed down some possibilities.

Gerber Knives - Gets on average 74,000 monthly searches and there are 583,000 competing pages. gerberhuntingknives.com domain name is available. Google trends show steady traffic sometimes up and sometimes down. Traffic seems to be mainly from the USA. Amazon.com does sell Gerber knives for a variety of prices.

Camping Stove - Gets on average 135,000 monthly searches and there are 788,000 competing pages. outdoorcampingstoves.com is available. Google trends shows that traffic in 2009 has gradually increased quite a bit. Traffic seems to be mainly from the UK.

So I guess my question is: Do you think these are good niches to pursue? What else do I need to research? Any pitfalls or negatives you can see with either one of these? Suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!

Philipc · 07-20-2009, 06:26 PM

Gerber knives is probably a good one. Is that search "in quotes" or just a broad match? Do you have any ideas as to the PR value of the pages that are 1,2 and 3 when that search is entered into google? Camping stove it too broad. I think you'd be served better by narrowing it down to say "coleman camping stove" or some such brand.

belgirl · 07-20-2009, 06:50 PM

Just a broad match. The top 3 in google for this keyword term are:

Gerber Gear PR 5
Gerber Store PR 3
Gerber Tools PR 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by Philipc

Gerber knives is probably a good one. Is that search "in quotes" or just a broad match? Do you have any ideas as to the PR value of the pages that are 1,2 and 3 when that search is entered into google? Camping stove it too broad. I think you'd be served better by narrowing it down to say "coleman camping stove" or some such brand.

Philipc · 07-20-2009, 07:01 PM

That might be a bit hard to beat with a blog. Hard, not impossible. The in-quote search is better for results.

I don't know how much Amazon pays, but it may not be worth your time with the small % commission. Anyway, just a thought?

belgirl · 07-21-2009, 10:16 AM

Yeah, I wondered about that. I guess it just depends if you sell alot of volume or not.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Philipc

That might be a bit hard to beat with a blog. Hard, not impossible. The in-quote search is better for results.

I don't know how much Amazon pays, but it may not be worth your time with the small % commission. Anyway, just a thought?

radio · 07-21-2009, 10:38 AM

The percentage might be small, but with volume you can do okay. Amazon isn't the only game in town either. eBay has lots of items in those niches and the nice thing about eBay is their 7 day cookie. With both programs you get a commission off anything the visitor buys while your cookie is active - that can add up as well. Don't put all your eggs in one basket and look at some of the aff networks to see if there is a program specific (or complimentary) to what you are promoting. (camping, travel, books, etc.)

Tip: don't give all your niche secrets away and don't post domains that are available if you are seriously thinking about picking it up (as it probably won't be available much longer after posting it!) it's good when starting out to get some feedback, but keeping your niches secret helps you avoid unnecessary competition.

Philipc · 07-22-2009, 11:29 PM

Good point.

Although i know that it's hard to be specific and not be specific - if you know what i mean.

wwesley · 07-23-2009, 09:09 AM

the think to make money with amazon is volume. you know that they can tons of volume and the branding is there. however personally i wouldn't pursue these niches as i think there might be more valuable ones. another thing is, did you check whether any authority sites have dominated those keywords? if amazon is there, it will be a lot of work to displace them

Lisa Gergets · 07-23-2009, 09:15 AM

You'll want your domain name to be exactly the same as your niche phrase that you've searched. Don't add any words. This is the key to people finding your blog.

So for instance, if you searched the phrase "camping stove", you'll want your domain name to be campingstove.com, .net or .org or camping-stove.com, .net or .org, but not campingstovesupplies or greatcampingstoves...

belgirl · 07-23-2009, 10:51 AM

The problem is the popular keywords are already domain names. It's the long tail keywords that are available as domain names--but don't have alot of searches.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TinkerAndPo

You'll want your domain name to be exactly the same as your niche phrase that you've searched. Don't add any words. This is the key to people finding your blog.

So for instance, if you searched the phrase "camping stove", you'll want your domain name to be campingstove.com, .net or .org or camping-stove.com, .net or .org, but not campingstovesupplies or greatcampingstoves...

belgirl · 07-23-2009, 10:53 AM

Good thoughts. Is it possible to combine products from ebay, amazon and other affiliate programs into one store?

Quote:

Originally Posted by radio

The percentage might be small, but with volume you can do okay. Amazon isn't the only game in town either. eBay has lots of items in those niches and the nice thing about eBay is their 7 day cookie. With both programs you get a commission off anything the visitor buys while your cookie is active - that can add up as well. Don't put all your eggs in one basket and look at some of the aff networks to see if there is a program specific (or complimentary) to what you are promoting. (camping, travel, books, etc.)

Tip: don't give all your niche secrets away and don't post domains that are available if you are seriously thinking about picking it up (as it probably won't be available much longer after posting it!) it's good when starting out to get some feedback, but keeping your niches secret helps you avoid unnecessary competition.

Holland · 07-28-2009, 04:45 AM

HI,

The main term gerber knives looks a bit to difficult to start with. The competing sites are numerous. The keywords associated with it like
gerber hunting knives
gerber folding knives
gerber pocket knives
and the singual versions look much more doable. But the downside is that the number of searches are in the 700 - 1000 range instead of the many thousands the word gerber knives gets.

My criteria I look for are words with a competition in Google search with quotes at below 50,000 (people don't search with quotes but it gives you an indication of how much competetion you have for the words) and exact match in Google adword tool with above 1500 for local search.

HtH
Angela

radio · 07-28-2009, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by belgirl

Good thoughts. Is it possible to combine products from ebay, amazon and other affiliate programs into one store?

Yes. Absolutely! You just need to be members of each of the different company's affiliate program. eBay, Amazon, CJ for example are great places to start. Then you can manually add links, images, etc. or look for a combination of plugins to assist.

belgirl · 07-29-2009, 11:47 AM

Thanks everyone. I think I have found 2 niches. My lips are sealed until the sites are up!

07-20-2009, 05:27 PM	#1
belgirl Banned War Room Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 349 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 20 Thanked 28 Times in 17 Posts	Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog Hi all- My boyfriend and I are thinking of starting an Amazon.com Niche blog. He loves the outdoors and camping, so we are thinking of using that as our niche. I have done some research using Google Keyword tracker and Google trends and I have narrowed down some possibilities. Gerber Knives - Gets on average 74,000 monthly searches and there are 583,000 competing pages. gerberhuntingknives.com domain name is available. Google trends show steady traffic sometimes up and sometimes down. Traffic seems to be mainly from the USA. Amazon.com does sell Gerber knives for a variety of prices. Camping Stove - Gets on average 135,000 monthly searches and there are 788,000 competing pages. outdoorcampingstoves.com is available. Google trends shows that traffic in 2009 has gradually increased quite a bit. Traffic seems to be mainly from the UK. So I guess my question is: Do you think these are good niches to pursue? What else do I need to research? Any pitfalls or negatives you can see with either one of these? Suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!

07-20-2009, 06:26 PM	#2
Philipc Active Warrior Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 32 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog Gerber knives is probably a good one. Is that search "in quotes" or just a broad match? Do you have any ideas as to the PR value of the pages that are 1,2 and 3 when that search is entered into google? Camping stove it too broad. I think you'd be served better by narrowing it down to say "coleman camping stove" or some such brand.
	Does Niche Blogging Work? Of Course! Find out here! THE solution to your traffic problems. Don't believe me? See the video here!

07-20-2009, 07:01 PM	#4
Philipc Active Warrior Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 32 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog That might be a bit hard to beat with a blog. Hard, not impossible. The in-quote search is better for results. I don't know how much Amazon pays, but it may not be worth your time with the small % commission. Anyway, just a thought?
	Does Niche Blogging Work? Of Course! Find out here! THE solution to your traffic problems. Don't believe me? See the video here!

07-21-2009, 10:38 AM	#6
radio HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 118 Blog Entries: 3 Thanks: 1 Thanked 16 Times in 11 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog The percentage might be small, but with volume you can do okay. Amazon isn't the only game in town either. eBay has lots of items in those niches and the nice thing about eBay is their 7 day cookie. With both programs you get a commission off anything the visitor buys while your cookie is active - that can add up as well. Don't put all your eggs in one basket and look at some of the aff networks to see if there is a program specific (or complimentary) to what you are promoting. (camping, travel, books, etc.) Tip: don't give all your niche secrets away and don't post domains that are available if you are seriously thinking about picking it up (as it probably won't be available much longer after posting it!) it's good when starting out to get some feedback, but keeping your niches secret helps you avoid unnecessary competition.
	Automate Wordpress and eBay: Earning Commissions with eBay has never been easier! WSO: Check out the auction2post WSO! \| auction2post video demonstration: Watch a site go from no content to full content in minutes! A to Z Tutorial! Unlimited Domains! Not in ePN? NO PROBLEM!

07-22-2009, 11:29 PM	#7
Philipc Active Warrior Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 32 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog Good point. Although i know that it's hard to be specific and not be specific - if you know what i mean.
	Does Niche Blogging Work? Of Course! Find out here! THE solution to your traffic problems. Don't believe me? See the video here!

07-23-2009, 09:09 AM	#8
wwesley HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: , , . Posts: 160 Thanks: 1 Thanked 6 Times in 6 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog the think to make money with amazon is volume. you know that they can tons of volume and the branding is there. however personally i wouldn't pursue these niches as i think there might be more valuable ones. another thing is, did you check whether any authority sites have dominated those keywords? if amazon is there, it will be a lot of work to displace them

07-23-2009, 09:15 AM	#9
Lisa Gergets Your Anti-Guru Girl War Room Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Iona Farm, Wisconsin Posts: 2,056 Thanks: 1,334 Thanked 725 Times in 350 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog You'll want your domain name to be exactly the same as your niche phrase that you've searched. Don't add any words. This is the key to people finding your blog. So for instance, if you searched the phrase "camping stove", you'll want your domain name to be campingstove.com, .net or .org or camping-stove.com, .net or .org, but not campingstovesupplies or greatcampingstoves...
	WP Amaz-One total revamp - coming SOON! "See A Need, Fill A Need!" ~~Bigweld

07-28-2009, 04:45 AM	#12
Holland HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: London, UK Posts: 161 Thanks: 1 Thanked 270 Times in 14 Posts Social Networking	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog HI, The main term gerber knives looks a bit to difficult to start with. The competing sites are numerous. The keywords associated with it like gerber hunting knives gerber folding knives gerber pocket knives and the singual versions look much more doable. But the downside is that the number of searches are in the 700 - 1000 range instead of the many thousands the word gerber knives gets. My criteria I look for are words with a competition in Google search with quotes at below 50,000 (people don't search with quotes but it gives you an indication of how much competetion you have for the words) and exact match in Google adword tool with above 1500 for local search. HtH Angela

07-29-2009, 11:47 AM	#14
belgirl Banned War Room Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 349 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 20 Thanked 28 Times in 17 Posts	Re: Need tips for starting an Amazon Niche Blog Thanks everyone. I think I have found 2 niches. My lips are sealed until the sites are up!