When
it comes to website content, choosing a topic you know would
be a huge plus. You can easily read up on everything that is
available online or at the local library, and then write from
that knowledge/experience. If it was something you could do
hands-on (such as growing roses, planting a vegetable garden,
extreme sports, etc) then you could also take pictures and keep
a journal which would make for great original
content.
But
when it comes to 'stuffy' stuff, things you really know nothing
about but believe would be good money makers... you can simply
re-print articles on the topic that you find in any of the major
article banks. Another good source to consider is Public
Domain content.
You
can also locate the experts in any given field and offer them
the feature spot in that category or on that page of your site
(the one that is most relevant to what they do/offer). They
can write up a unique article for your site, and in exchange
you post their photo and link along with a brief bio.
The Easy
Way to Create an Endless Stream of Income-Generating
Websites in MINUTES -- not days or weeks... Check
it Out!
Content
sites are great, but dont overlook the concept of a basic online
store - there are plenty of them out there that are very profitable.
If
I were going to sell sporting goods and apparel, I would simply
set up an online store instead of a content-based site. You
can easily optimize store/sales pages just as well as informational
pages. Karon Thackston has some really good information specifically
on this topic:
Karon
Thackston's Step-by-Step Copywriting Course
Her
special report:
How
to Increase Keyword Saturation Without Destroying the Flow of
Your Copy
It's
in that 2nd link, her Keyword Density report, that she gives
some great steps for optimizing your "online store"
pages. This was one of my favorite "quick reads" when
it comes to on-the-page optimization... but you can also get
it as part of a package deal if you buy her Course (which covers
SEO Copywriting - the combination of both skills - in great
depth). Good stuff!
Back
to locating niches and developing content: you can basically
pick a topic off the top of your head and then research it from
various angles at WordTracker
(they offer an unlimited free trial). This will give you an
idea of the 'demand' for that market, as they show the approximate
number of daily searches for any given keyword or phrase. (note:
look at the "Predict" column for this number)
It
helps if you know the topic, or are passionate enough about
it to learn everything you could ever need to know and continue
working in that market. If it's something way out of your range,
you'll quickly become bored or burned out with it. This is the
reason people say "go with your passion" or "start
with what you know".
Most
people also advise you to go with something that isnt competitive
(sometimes called "micro niche marketing"). But you
can easily hit a very broad & competitive market and then
break down your site by categories and sub-categories that are
"micro niches" within that market. Each page of your
site can be optimized to rank well for it's specific Primary
Keyword Phrase, so the more 'depth' you have to your site, the
more opportunities you have to capitalize on a whole slew of
"micro niche markets" under the umbrella of a broad
and competitive topic.