Numbers First, Keywords Second

Usually you need to think of a keyword first. You enter it into a keyword search tool to see if it has potential. You’re then looking for numbers for how often people search the term and how many page results make up the competition. My experience is usually…nope…zip…shoot, I thought that’d be a good one…fuddy duddy…. Until I run out of ideas.

With Gimme a Niche!, you instead first set the desired numbers for search volume and search results. When you run the program, you get keywords that fit within the ranges you selected for volume and results. All of the keywords you get should have high search demand compared to low volume of page results.

Search that Keyword

There is a handy Google search box at the bottom of the tool. Use it to check page results. I did notice some inaccuracy with the search volume and page results for a keyword or two. For instance the keyword “rottweiler puppies for sale” said it “gets 2300 monthly searches, and returns 0 search results.” Upon testing the search, there were actually 979,000 Google page results.

Be suspicious of a keyword that says there are “0 search results.” It’s obviously a glitch. However, most of the keywords I randomly selected to test with a Google search resulted in a number of page results close to what the tool stated.

Gimme a Niche! Jogs New Ideas

Not all of the keywords that come up are so hot. Most of them are brand names or names of a business location. But if you keep clicking on the “Gimme a Keyword!” button, you will discover keywords that jog your thinking.

For instance, when “Preparation H for wrinkles” popped up, I smiled. (I’ve always wondered if that was true.) Why not buy a tube? Give it a fair trial (find a suitable subject, as I certainly have no wrinkles…ha, ha). Do a lit review and…voilà! Create a website on the topic.

Google Adwords Keyword Tool confirmed that search and results numbers for “Prep…H…” fit in the range of a potentially good keyword niche. I wondered, what other health-related topics might be fodder for niche sites that search engines favor?

Therein lies the greatest strength of Gimme a Keyword. It helps you think outside the box when your cognitive wheels are stuck in a rut.

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For example, I want to attract traffic to my niche blog, àlaFurBabies, which is about pets. So I created a sub-niche Squidoo lens about a popular dog breed, the Bichon Frise, that links back to àlaFurBabies.

Theory Behind Traffic Driving with Mini-Blogs

In theory, A sub-niche mini-blog that reaches a narrow (but avid) audience will rank higher in search engine results because there is less competition. In my example, there are fewer sites devoted to “Bichon Frise” than there are for “Pets.” My Bichon mini-blog still needs to compete for search engine results (there’s always that caveat), but among far fewer competing sites.

The mini-blog that ranks is in position to link interested visitors to the main website. You can create numerous mini-blogs on different topics that all relate to the main website topic, thereby driving targeted traffic to the main site from many sources that you control. Remember, regardless of the competitive standing of your mini-blogs, they are providing topic-related back links to your main site.

Is this traffic-building method effective? I don’t know. I’m experimenting! Undoubtedly, there are many factors involved.

Creating Back Links

With a mini-blog you create a back link for your main site, improving search engine results. Because the back link from the mini-blog is topic-related to your main site, it’s a more valuable link in the estimation of search engines.

In addition, your mini-blog has a different IP address from your main blog. This is important for those of you who have a paid hosting service that allows you to have several blogs, and who might be considering linking from one to another. If all your blogs on the hosting service have a shared IP address, the back links are less impressive to search engines.

By the way, don’t link from your main site to the mini-blog. Cross-linking looks like swapped links to search engines, and reduces the credence they give your back link. Just use your mini-blog to link to your main site, and leave it at that.

More Blogs to Manage

What are the drawbacks with this method? First, you need to create and maintain another blog. Secondly, you now have two blogs to which you’re trying to drive traffic. (Sounds crazy, heh?) If you create multiple mini-blogs, there is even more work to manage.

What’s the up-side? Mini-blogs are relatively fast and easy to set up. Nor do they require rigorous maintenance.

With time being a precious commodity, how frequently should you update a mini-blog? At the beginning you must update often, so that search engines will notice it. Once the back link to your main site is established, you can ease up a bit. TIP: Choose a mini-blog topic that is easy for you to update!

Belong to a Blogging Community

Once you create a mini-blog, such as a Squidoo lens, you belong to a blogging community. The more involved you are, the more attention you can attract to your site. There are always interesting benefits in community, but it does require more of your time and energy to contribute in a meaningfully way.

Many Choices for Mini-Blogging

If you like the idea of mini-blogging, Squidoo is good place to begin. There is a helpful “Health” assessment system that alerts you to pitfalls as you create a lens. You can click the “Health” tab, for instance, to see if the tags you entered for your lens are search engine friendly or if they need to be improved.

But there are plenty of others to check out: Tumblr, Posterous, HubPages, and Vox, to name a few. Each try to offer something unique. Tumblr has a tremendous array of themes from which to choose. Several allow you to post via email. A lot of them let you share in advertising revenue.

Some people create hundreds of HubPages and Squidoo lens. Find the super bloggers at these services and study them. Aside from the benefit of creating back links and driving traffic to your main site, reportedly there is money to make on the mini-blogs themselves from advertising!

Are You Into Mini-Blogging?

If you’re already into mini-blogs, what has been your experience? Do you utilize them to direct traffic to another site? Which services do you use? Have you earned advertising revenue? What’s your best mini-blogging tip?

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Enter video posting. It fits the bill on all three points.

Fast Post Production

With a cool video, you can whip up a post fast and easy. Write a brief paragraph or two, ask a question related to the video content, and voilà! You have an original short post accompanied by an entertaining video, which may spark commentary.

Tools for Video Post Workflow

I like collecting videos with VodPod. The basic service is free. You can use the VodPod browser button to save a video from most video services, and write a blurb for it while it’s fresh in your mind – all in one easy step. Granted, the blurb may be too long for a video player caption, but it’s saved safely in your VodPod library where you can access it later to copy/paste it into a video post.

There are several VodPod video plugins that vary from page galleries to post embeds. VodPod provides gallery and video sidebar widgets.

But the simple way to insert a video into a post is to copy the embed code and paste it into the HTML tab while editing. No plugin required!

Ease Burden of Frequent Publication

Whatever services or tools used, video posting eases the burden of frequent publishing for webmasters. At the same time, it offers readers something quick and visual to enjoy.

I will probably use video posts often at àlaFurBabies. They’re especially fitting for a niche blog targeting pet-lovers. Pet videos are abundant, and people love to watch them. If you like, take a look at the first video post at àlaFurBabies. It’s about an amazing cat who plays the piano. (Really!)

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Developing a Niche Blog Community

Every niche blog needs a community. Since people like to talk about what they love (especially pet owners!), I want àlaFurBabies to be the perfect spot for readers to submit stories about their very own pets. Do you think proud pet owners will generate a little extra site traffic by telling their friends to read abouttheir pet online at àlaFurBabies?

Pet Story Submissions

Before I even had a proper Pet Story Submission Form set up, a pet-loving reader contacted me regarding an article posted at àlaFurBabies. One thing led to another. A great dog story about her FlossyBoots was submitted by Lindy, from Australia. It was published 5 minutes ago.

A Snowball Effect

Lindy is really into pets. She suggested that pet book reviews would interest àlaFurBabies readers, and offered to submit some!

Lindy also wants to develop her own online presence. She owns a commercial website, and hopes her byline at the bottom of stories and reviews will drive some traffic to her eStore.

Blogging is Synergy

Blogging is all about synergy. I’m so happy if posting at àlaFurBabies helps to drive traffic Lindy’s way. She has certainly submitted a wonderful pet story that I’m delighted to feature on the home page.

For those of you who are following the àlaFurBabies niche blog experiment, I promised to share what I’m trying over there. When you check it out, please leave a helpful comment or suggestion. Better yet, why not submit your own pet story?

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Choosing a Niche Blog Topic

Choosing the subject for a niche blog is tricky. Everyone says to do a keyword search first. I will do that later, and utilize the best keyword phrases throughout the content. However, I’m listening to my intuition, which says this experimental niche blog should be about a topic for which I feel great passion. That would be pets. I adore them.

Additionally, there are several logical reasons that support my choice of Fur Babies as the blog topic. It seems to me they ought to be important contributing factors to successful niche blogging.

High Original Content Potential

I have so many personal pet stories, I will never run out of original content. Hopefully, other people will want to share their pet stories, too.

Should that fail, I can resort to fiction. My dogs would make great characters in a novel, published in installments. Hmmm…maybe an ebook….

Niche Topic Is Newsworthy

A lot of genuine news about pets and animals is produced. The close relationship between domesticated animals and humans not only puts pets squarely in the news on a daily basis, but generates a significant amount of scientific research. There is always an abundance of fresh pet news for content research.

A Personal Passionate Interest

As I said, pets are a passionate interest of mine. Passion gives you energy and drive, which is necessary for maintaining a blog. Passion also connects you with your creativity, making the blogging process flow with ease and pleasure.

Other People Are Interested In Topic

When you think about it, isn’t living and communicating with another species incredibly awesome? The bond between people and their pets is profound; full of wonder and mystery (and comical misunderstandings). It’s little surprise that people are absolutely fascinated with, and entertained by, pets and animals.

Off-the-cuff comparative market research indicates that “Pets” is a more popular niche topic than, say, “Blogging.” For instance, the mere mention of àlaBuzz (about blogging) makes the eyes of my real-life friends glaze over. Yet it is common for these same friends to email me (unsolicited!) photos of their Fur Babies.

Controversial Niche Topic

As harmless as the love of pets may seem, it is actually a controversial topic. Ask yourself: Do animals have intrinsic rights? How much money should be spent on pets? Are pets substitutes for children? Do domesticated pets have cognitions and feelings similar to humans? These are questions that evoke strong opinions.

Good Niche for Related Advertising

The pet industry is huge. America spends over $40 billion annually on pets. Will àlaFurBabies visitors be willing to click on ad links? I hope so.

Is It Needed?

Sorry. I am unable to come up with an original niche idea, that is needed. When it comes down to it, we really need very little.

However, even the most simple lifestyle often includes the companionship of pets. My hypothesis is that àlaFurBabies will primarily fulfill an emotional need. On a secondary basis, it will provide useful pet news and information.

Let the experiment begin!

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