Create the community first or Sell a Product first?... a debate

2 replies
I'm looking to get more involved in the dating niche (fairly competitive) and while I created 2 products in this niche, there is something that was recently brought to my attention which I may have overlooked (and others may have overlooked as well)...

A good friend of mine, who is also an internet marketer, mentioned that there aren't many who do well in the dating niche and it's important to first build the community and then sell them a product(s).

After looking at a number of sites in the same niche (markmanson.net, rsdnation.com, taoofbadass.com, DYD), I noticed that each of them have some type of community built around them - whether it's in the form of a forum or through email marketing or both.

I'm curious to know those who are breaking in a new niche or who have experienced this if they think that building the community first is more important than trying to sell a product right away?
#community #create #debate #product #sell
  • Profile picture of the author agmccall
    I do both at the same time

    al
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    "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." Thomas Edison

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  • Profile picture of the author DirtyCopywriter
    Originally Posted by Innovator3 View Post

    I'm looking to get more involved in the dating niche (fairly competitive) and while I created 2 products in this niche, there is something that was recently brought to my attention which I may have overlooked (and others may have overlooked as well)...

    A good friend of mine, who is also an internet marketer, mentioned that there aren't many who do well in the dating niche and it's important to first build the community and then sell them a product(s).

    After looking at a number of sites in the same niche (markmanson.net, rsdnation.com, taoofbadass.com, DYD), I noticed that each of them have some type of community built around them - whether it's in the form of a forum or through email marketing or both.

    I'm curious to know those who are breaking in a new niche or who have experienced this if they think that building the community first is more important than trying to sell a product right away?
    I'll be blunt.

    Unless you have outsourcers and a company, it's going to be hard to keep up with the publishing demands.

    If you wish to take a slice, start up a small blog for the sole purpose of getting readers and potential prospects. But you're going to need an especially strong hook and angle. That's where copywriting comes in - you will need a copywriter to get a fresh hook on the market. You're still going to need to sell a product.

    Dating is a market which is extremely saturated - you need to have a marketing angle to compete against giants. Otherwise, specialize in a sub-niche and work your way up.

    You can't start a community without customer evangelists. I'd rather you keep the forum separate, yet "private" for the moment. Direct buyers to your forum, so you can have fresh content moving.

    Winston,
    Dirty Copywriter
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