Sub-Niches are also competitive.
Micro-Niches are the new Sub-Niche.
They should be easy to target, have a specific market, and can provide growth both horizontally (different skews) and vertically (different ways to achieve similar results.)
What is a Micro Niche?
Do a search on Google for "micro niche" and you will see a bewildering array of results claiming that micro-niche sites are dead, or that they are alive and well, or that the term is no longer useful...
Here's the latest: a micro-niche is just a multi-product skew on a sub-niche within which you can create authority. Authority is important as it will get you back-links and prove to the search engines that your site is valuable to the target market.
For those following on from Steps 1 and 2, your choice of micro-niche depends on your aim:
If you’ve got a specific product in mind, then your journey may well start with that. This is a product-first rather than a market-first approach. Normally, it's not something I would advice, but it can be easier for first-time niche bloggers.
For example, the best selling Health product on Amazon.co.uk as I type happens to be Raspberry Ketone Supplements (despite them being prohibited from sale in the UK as supplements, and having only the status of novel foods. Source: Food Standards Agency)
If I were to choose that as a micro-niche subject, I would then need to niche up to Supplements, then to Diet, and finally Health, giving me opportunities within my web of content to niche horizontally (other ketone based supplements) as well as vertically (diet plans including supplements, for example), depending on my research.- affiliate marketers - find a product/range with the sub-niche;
- information product creators - think of a micro-niche that is broad enough for 5 or 6 topics;
- niche bloggers - think of the market, and select a a micro-niche that has a following...
If you’ve got a specific product in mind, then your journey may well start with that. This is a product-first rather than a market-first approach. Normally, it's not something I would advice, but it can be easier for first-time niche bloggers.
For example, the best selling Health product on Amazon.co.uk as I type happens to be Raspberry Ketone Supplements (despite them being prohibited from sale in the UK as supplements, and having only the status of novel foods. Source: Food Standards Agency)
The micro niche would be represented by the hierarchy:
- Health->Diet->Supplements->Raspberry Ketone Supplements
However you arrive at your micro-niche, make a note of it, and any others that come to mind; there's nothing wrong with having choice!
Mind-mapping allows you to create a hierarchy of bubbles that are linked by lines, and is a good way to arrange your thoughts in an as-you-have-them way.
Your first bubble would be your niche, then sub-niches connect to that, and each sub-niche then has a range of micro-niches attached to it!
Once you have determined your Micro-Niche, it's time for Step 4: Testing the Traffic.
