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Home » Is your website idea a "bad" idea?
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Is your website idea a "bad" idea?** SiteBuilderNews - 5/16/2002 Issue ** Helping You Build A Better Website ================================================================= In This Issue of SiteBuilderNews: => 1. Editor's Note => 2. Article: Is your website idea a "bad" idea? => 3. Site Builder Tip => 4. Sites for Site Builders => 5. Site Builder News ================================================================= SPONSOR AD: ================================================================= Your-Site: Superior, Affordable Web Hosting! * 50 MB Disk Space * 25 POP3 E-Mail Accounts * 6 Gigs Transfer * Your own cgi-bin * 24/7 FTP Access * 99.9% Guaranteed Uptime * Plus Much More! ONLY $5 PER MONTH! http://www.sitebuildernews.com/yoursite.php ================================================================= 1. Editor's Note ================================================================= Hello SiteBuilders, Have you heard yet? America Online is considering using the Netscape browser to power its internal browser, replacing the Internet Explorer which has powered it for many years. What does this mean to site builders? If it happens, you can forget about the declining market share of Netscape, and any chance of avoiding building websites for the usually less-compatible browser. Just something to think about. -- Dan Grossman edi-@sitebuildernews.com ================================================================= ================================================================= Upgrade to receive HTML version of SiteBuilderNews! Subscribe for free at mailto:sitebuildernews-@topica.com ================================================================= 2. Feature Article: ================================================================= Is your website idea a "bad" idea? by Chuck McCullough I've gotten many emails lately from people that were having trouble figuring out what topic they should develop their website around. One even stated that every time s/he came up with a great idea, then did some research on it, the topic would come up as having too much competition, or already over-populated. This is a very interesting point because everything you read tells you to find a new, un-tapped niche and become the top expert, and then dominate that niche. We are told that this is the ONLY way to make money on the Internet. Finding a niche CAN be very profitable, but it is also very difficult to discover a new niche. Why? Because it isn't as simple as just finding a topic that no one else has found yet: That topic also has to have people dedicated to it that have money to spend, that want the products that you are selling, and that are willing to buy anything to begin with. It is very difficult to find that perfect mix... especially now that there are so many other people online trying to do exactly the same thing. When I started AffiliateMatch there were already a ton of affiliate program directories. There were also several "big players" out there that dominated the market. I still managed to do the things necessary to build it into a profitable website. Did I bump any of the "big players" out of their positions? No. But I realized that I didn't have to. There are many, many, many people surfing the Internet today. And even though you may have a competitor that has better search engine positioning, or more newsletter subscribers, you can STILL reach people that have never heard of your competitors. You don't have to concentrate so much of your time and effort trying to find that undiscovered niche. If you have an idea that you like, and that you feel you would enjoy trying to make money from... go for it! Figure out if there is a way that you can do things a little better, or a little different from what your competitors are doing. Find a slightly different, more focused aspect of the subject area that want to go into. For example: Instead of tackling "Real Estate", try "Real Estate for Texans", or whatever state you live in. By narrowing your focus you can greatly decrease the number of competitors that you will have. If you can't narrow the topic down any, that's ok. As long as it is a subject you will enjoy learning more about, go ahead and do it anyway. As you learn more and get more experience you will start to see niches form that you would have never been able to spot in the beginning. Don't hold off your online business while you wait to discover the next million dollar niche. This approach is like putting off enjoying life until you have won the lottery. The problem with this is that if you never actually win the lottery, you will have missed out on some great chances to enjoy life. The Internet is the same way: Don't risk passing up great opportunities because you were on the sidelines trying to find that ONE idea that will make you rich. So, when you ask me if your website idea is a bad idea... my response is: the only bad ideas are the ones that never get acted on! -------------------------------------------------------- Chuck McCullough is the author of a new ebook titled: "Affiliate Mistakes: Maximizing Your Profits From Affiliate Programs!" Get your free Email Course at: mailto:maxim-@affmatch.com or visit http://www.affiliatemistakes.com ================================================================= Reach thousands of subscribers! For ad details and prices, email: mailto:edi-@sitebuildernews.com?subject=ad_inquiry ================================================================= 3. Site Builder Tip ================================================================= This Week's Tip: Create Your Advertising Database In one of your creative moments, try sitting down and coming up with different ads for your web site, ezine, or product(s). Brainstorm and write out as many ads as you possibly can. Vary your ads by... ° target audience ° length of ad ° focus of ad (i.e. "Free," money to be earned...) ° type of ad (i.e. classified, feature ad...) ° and anything else imaginable Done with that? Do it again with another aspect of your website, another ezine, or another product or service. Done with that, too? Now write these down somewhere. I use a database record and track the results of each ad. After doing this exercise, you will have a list of different ads to use when you are contacted for an ezine ad swap, free feature ad, or other opportunity. In this way you can respond to the opportunity immediately instead of waiting for that moment when you may (or may not) come up with that "perfect ad." ----------------------------------------------------------------- Deborah Anderson, of AndersonCreations.com, teaches web design and internet marketing in addition to publishing Webmaster Tips Weekly. Subscribe free by sending a blank email to mailto:subsc-@webmaster-tips-weekly.com http://webmaster-tips-weekly.com/webtips ================================================================= 4. Sites for Site Builders ================================================================= Choosing the right hosting service for your site Whether novice or expert, you can find some useful information in this article to learn about some of the considerations to look at when you choose a web hosting service. http://www.100mostdynamic.com/2002/guide/chooseahost.asp ================================================================= 5. Site Builder News ================================================================= NTT/VERIO Expands Dedicated Web Hosting Offerings http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38395194&e=6592 EDS Web Hosting Wins 2002 Network Computing Award http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38386650&e=6592 Digex to Host Payment Portal, Web Site http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38269041&e=6592 How Hewlett-Packard Uses Email, Online Surveys http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38255375&e=6592 VortechHosting.com Launches New Site Design http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38216016&e=6592 H-Sphere 2.1 Released on the Hosting and Reseller world http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38216010&e=6592 Sun Introduces New Network Appliance for Web Hosts, SMEs http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?e38184153&e=6592 ================================================================= ================================================================= Do you know someone who has a website or would like to create one? Forward them a copy of this eZine and urge them to subscribe! To subscribe send a blank email to: mailto:sitebuilderne-@topica.com ================================================================= ================================================================= Send suggestions and comments to: edi-@SiteBuilderNews.com Reach thousands of subscribers! For ad details and prices, visit our media kit at http://www.sitebuildernews.com/advertise.php SiteBuilderNews is © 2000-2001 Dan Grossman. All Rights Reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission. All guest articles are copyright their respective owners and are reproduced with permission. |
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