This question is asked frequently according to research conducted on my favourite Keyword Research Tool. It is possible this is the question you typed into Google, or perhaps you typed in “What Is A Niche Website?” Let’s address that question first. A niche site or website is simply a website or blog which addresses a specific subject or topic. That is the short answer to What Is A Niche Website About? I encourage you to keep on reading though, as there is so much more to it, if you were interested before, stick with me, this is going to really give you food for thought!
Table of Contents
What Is A Niche Website About?
As I said, a Niche Website is simply a website or blog which addresses a specific subject or topic. So, how does the writer go about building this kind of website?
Just to expand it a bit more, a niche is your target market or a group of people interested in the same topic. The website is the place where you will provide quality content (great articles) that addresses questions, solves problems and offers solutions and information about products pertaining to your target market and niche.
Without a doubt, the most important part of building your Niche Website is to create enough quality content that you generate as much organic (or free) traffic as possible. There is a formula for this and it involves getting your posts ranked by Google. To give you a clue, I started this article by carrying out some research – this is the first step and is critical to your success. I came up with quite a few keywords, and selected “What Is A Niche Website About?” from them for more than one reason, the biggest reason is that it scored highly, these are the scores:
- Average Searches per month at 369
- Traffic per day at 63
- Only 5 competing websites
- An SEO score of 91.
You will also notice that other’s scored highly and in a sense I am taking advantage of those too. Let’s focus on just one for the purposes of this article though Have a look here for a nip of the results, important: these are not all the results, just the ones I selected (you will notice that I have used my favourite Keyword Research Tool, you can too – even for free, click through here to find out more) :
So, that is a little about how you find keywords to create the quality content that your target market will be interested in. How do we know the target market is interested? The research tells us so. If you look at the above list of keywords, these came up in response to my search because they are being searched online already – this is not guess work. I am sure you can imagine typing in the above words to find the information you are reading about right here.
Choosing Your Niche
For me, choosing a niche has been challenging because I can think of so many that I could be really passionate about and absolutely love working on! For others, more commonly actually, it is a challenge because they just do not have a clue where to start. This is OK, it is very normal actually (I think I am a bit abnormal when it comes to this).
In the incredible training I am receiving (I say receiving because there will always be something new to learn about), we are advised to consider starting a niche in an area we are already excited about, this could be a hobby or interest and perhaps even something you are especially knowledgeable about. If you aren’t, don’t stress, you can become knowledgeable through research – if it is something you are interested in, that is a bonus because the likelihood is slim that you will be come disinterested or bored. Should you struggle to find a niche, you can go to somewhere like Amazon and have a little look at the categories and sub categories listed there. I guarantee, there will be information there you hadn’t even dreamed about before!
Let’s keep it a bit simple though and have a look a Men’s Athletic Shoes. I did mean it tongue-in-cheek when I said “keep it simple”. Have a look at what came up. There are Men’s Athletic Shoes for a range of different sports – so the shoes could be a sub niche of a sport which could be a sub niche of fitness, or health, or weight loss … I am sure you can see, the list can grow substantially!
So let’s say that your interests are in the area of Fitness or Health (which are highly competitive fields, just incidentally), and you have a specific interest in Tennis. You could write articles about the different Tennis Shoes and sell the shoes through your website (you would sign up as an Amazon Affiliate to sell from Amazon of course). There could be lots of really interesting content you could write for a topic like this – I am using my imagination now, because this is how I would think. How about which shoes are worn by which top players. How the top players are scoring in the different grand slams, which racquets they use, which clothing they wear, do they wear Fitbits, etc. There is a lot of very interesting and exciting information just within that one sport – Tennis.
I hope this little example has given you a frame of reference for what constitutes a Niche or Sub Niche even. There is huge potential out there!
SEO or Search Engine Optimization
You’ll notice in the beginning paragraphs I referred to SEO when discussing the research results. This is very important. SEO is where your keywords play a huge role. When we use the right keywords (those that are searched for in decent numbers with little competition in terms of the competitor’s website numbers) we get good Google rankings. That means that when you use the commonly searched keywords, your article will be noticed and ranked. The best approach to add into the mix is to keep your keywords specific to your niche instead of using general keywords. The possibility may be that these keywords will have less traffic, the advantage will be less competition too though. It’s a bit of a balancing act. You can learn more about how to do this best through my number one recommendation. Read more about it in my review here too.
One Last Thing On SEO
Thinking about the tennis shoes niche. When people search for tennis shoes, they are probably at the beginning stages of their search, they have a need but not exact specifications yet.
Once they start searching for Men’s ASICs tennis shoes, you know they have narrowed it down and know exactly what it is they are looking for. So on a website about Tennis (your Niche), doing reviews on the different brands of Tennis shoes (your Sub Niche) will attract some very targeted traffic – we know they are looking to buy and that they know exactly what they are looking for.
In other words, the folk searching for Tennis shoes are still browsing (you do want their interest in your site) and the folk searching for Men’s ASIC’s tennis shoes are looking to purchase now – your sale is imminent!
Are There Different Types Of Niche Sites?
Oh yes, you will be sure to find different types of niche sties, they mostly range in size from just a few pages to hundreds of pages and posts.
Micro-Niche These sites are quick and pretty easy to build. Consisting of just a few pages and posts, maybe 4 or 5, plus an about page, privacy policy and affiliate disclaimer pages. These sites, as you can imagine, really are very focused on just one, maybe two products. Google does not favour these sites though because of the search engine algorithms. Micro-Niche sites really will need to be products with very little to no competition at all. These little sites are a challenge, the biggest deal being ranking – no ranking, no traffic; no traffic, no sales.
Niche-Site You can expect to put in a lot more hard work on a Niche Site as the more pages and posts, the better. This is not set in stone of course but you can expect up to 200 pages to be normal. Naturally, the niche you select and your expectations for the site will dictate just how much content needs to be included. Bear in mind, there are different ways to make money with a Niche-Site, for example choosing to be an Affiliate Marketing (selling affiliate products) or sell your own products.
Authority Site
There difference between a Niche Site and an Authority Site is that the goal of the latter is to become the best place to go for that topic. In other words, the Authority Site is the “One Stop Shop” where readers will expect to find everything they want to know about a specific topic in that one website.
This kind of site builds relationships of trust with its readings by virtue of the high-quality content, plus a pleasurable user experience. The authority site builds its reputation by helping people solve their problems. As you can imagine, once you have been successfully assisted at a particular website, you will want to go back there for more information in the future.
Authority Sites really are those that promote products that the website owners use themselves.
Let’s Look At Building Your Niche Website
Stay with me here, it really is so much easier than you would expect! I am not rushing you into anything, I promise! Having said that, you really can build your own Niche Website in less than 60 seconds. Have a look at that article I wrote about exactly that. Once you are in the training though, you will see that the timing is less than 30 seconds – I increased it to 60 because I was feeling generous. Seriously, you really can build your Niche Website in less than 60 (or 30) seconds. Have a look at how, right here.
There are a range of different site builders available such as WordPress and Wix (to name just two). I use WordPress as I find it versatile, has great functionality and I have total control of my website. Having said that, whilst my site is a WordPress site, it is hosted through My Number One Recommendation. Also known as Site Rubix, here is what you can expect :
1. A Website Platform which you and your site can grow and develop with
2. More than 3000 beautiful website designs to choose from
3. Website Feature ‘Add Ons’ – more than 41,900 of them!
4. Site Domains – literally the worlds only all-inclusive domain platform
5. SiteSpeed – allows you the opportunity to amplify your Website Speed
6. SiteProtect – Increased Spam Protection with SiteProtect
7. SiteHealth Platform – gives an analysis of the health of your site
8. SiteComments – a feature which gives you the advantage of increased website engagement (great for SEO)
9. SiteFeedback – a valuable opportunity for others to give you input about your site
10. Website Training – to an Advanced level
11. SiteSSL – Free SSL certification, or free site health
Domain Names
How to choose your Domain Name can be a tricky think, I will give you a short run-down on what to keep in mind, but you can read about this in more detail here – How To Find The Best Domain Name.
- Short site names are best (yeah, I didn’t do so well on that score, but I do love being Late Bloomer)
- .com is your best bet, alternatively .org or .net
- Make it a name that is easily understood and can be pronounced with ease too
- There will probably be an option to use numerics and hyphens, I recommend avoiding those
- Having a keyword in your domain name can help those looking with an idea of what your site is about, it is possible that it will also assist with SEO. A strong brand is a strong brand though, think of Coca-Cola or Nike.
Website Hosting and Installation of WordPress
Once your domain name has been decided on, you will need to look at hosting. There are free options for hosting but they are quite restrictive. Paid hosting is inexpensive, you are looking at anywhere between R8 and $13 monthly.
Then comes WordPress installation. This is pretty easy and there are instructions to assist you each step of the way. Personally, I am very happy with hosting where I am, there is none of this to take into account and I get to grow and develop as a result of the awesome training and incredible community, it is so much more than hosting. You are welcome to consider that as an option too:
Selecting A Theme
There are literally thousands of free themes to choose from. So many truly beautiful themes! What this means is the look or design of your site. WordPress offers the advantage that you can change the theme of your site whenever you want. This helps as your site evolves. As soon as you have selected and installed your theme, you are ready to start building your site with valuable content.
PlugIns
There will be a need to install some plugins – these protect your site from spam and prepare your site for the search engines. PlugIns are amazing tools that give your website added functions, such as the social click throughs like Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter etc. Fortunately, many of them are free too. These can be added as and when you need them.
Structuring Your Website
It is important to give your website a bit of thought at the outset. Think about the number of pages you may want to include and how you could break it up into categories. If we look at the example given in the beginning, Men’s Athletic Shoes, you could have different categories for the different sports shoes, I.e. Tennis, Squash, Cross Training, Trail Running etc. This would be done by separating them into different pages and then having menus on your site where it is easy to select and click through to the relevant page.
High value content is also very important of course. One could write reviews on the different types of sport shoes and maybe include testimonials of top athletes in that sport for example.
There are many options and ways to write content that is high value.
Selecting The Right Keywords
Each and every article written for your site should be researched for optimal keywords. It is vital that the time is put into research so that you are not using a “spray and pray” method but one that you know is effective. Again, making use of a Keyword Tool is particularly important. Have a look at the gift I have for you here: A Free Keyword Research Tool. Oh yes, I am spoiling you right here! Go ahead and enjoy it!
Content
Content is King – you may or may not have heard that expression before. Trust me on this, it is 100% true! Here are some ideas of what you can include on your Niche Website:
- Tutorials
- How-to articles
- Product Reviews
- Top 3, or Top 5 or Top 10 – giving literally the top however many benefits
Ensure that your articles are unique, you can research and gather ideas from other sites but whatever you do, do not copy – this will work against you in more ways than one!
It is ideal to have lots of short paragraphs and headings because people tend to skim-read when they are online. It is important to make it as punchy as possible.
Pages To Include
I would definitely include the following pages in my site
- About Page
- Privacy Policy
- Affiliate Disclaimer
Many other sites include a Contact Page, I haven’t done mine yet, but it is probably best to do so.
Vitally Important – Call To Action
This is what will make or break a sale on your site. Your posts needs to include Call To Actions, that is an image, line of text or button that your readers are encouraged to click on. An example of this is if you want your visitors to click to other pages within your site, that way you can keep them on your site longer and, all going well, get them to register with you, purchase through your site or the like.
Something to bear in mind – you are building a relationship of trust with your visitors so it is also good to have some content which does not contain a CTA or sales pitch.
Making Money From Your Niche Website
Also known as monetizing, there is more than one way to do this:
- Sell your own products: anything from an online course or membership site, a digital product such as an eBook, online coaching etc., Another option here would be to create and sell your own physical products within your niche.
- Google AdSense – this involves display ads from Google AdSense network on your website. You get to choose where the ads are placed and which are relevant to your niche. Earning vary from cents to a few dollars. It is likely that you will earn a few cents per click, so making money this way really does require a lot of traffic.
- Affiliate Marketing: My Number One Recommendation. Why do I like this? well, you promote products and get paid a commission when someone purchases the product by clicking on your affiliate link. This is recommended to beginners in online marketing but not only that, this business models means you do not have any of the product responsibilities – all you need to do is promote. The owner of the product does all the product development and branding, manufacturing, warehousing and storage, deliveries, quality control etc. Your job is simple, and you can earn handsomely from it too! I have come across many people who are not familiar with Affiliate Marketing and for that reason I wrote an article titled What Is Internet Affiliate Marketing? Click on that link and have a read if you fancy.
- Sales of Advertising Space: When your site has a decent amount of traffic, you may find businesses related to your niche who would be keen on buying advertising on your site. How cool!
Pros and Cons Of Creating A Niche Website
PROS
1. It is pretty simple: once you have learned the ropes, it truly is pretty simple. You write articles and reviews which are pertinent to your niche, include links to the products and “Bob’s your Auntie” as they say. The areas of training which will definitely assist you are: Setting up your site; Developing and writing content; Adding CTA’s (yes, you are a fast learner, Calls to Action!); Choosing your Niche (we should probably start there) and Keyword research
2. Minimal Start Up Costs: compared to a brick and mortar business, the start up costs are extremely low (unless you are planning to product and market your own products of course. The things you absolutely have to have are: A Keyword Tool, some people don’t think this is essential, my experience is that life is so much better and easier with one. This has been a steep learning curve for me, that just took some weight off for me. You can go with a free website theme, once you’re making money, you could consider buying a premium theme. Like I said, I have been on a steep learning curve, so, if you are a beginner, I recommend you take a close look at my Number 1 Recommended Program. What does it include (in brief): exceptional training; hosting, keyword research tool and fabulous support from a range of community members who have varying levels of experience. Two things they have in common – absolute passion for the industry and two incredible generosity with their knowledge and expertise. You get to test drive this for FREE though, so don’t just take my word – sign up (no credit card details required) and take it for a FREE spin!
3. Great Income Potential
Let me start with a caveat here, this is not a get-rich-quick scheme, you will be building an online business and it takes time to build your site with quality content and really get to know what you are doing. To be clear, it is possible to earn within a few months, probably not fortunes but certainly some commission. A niche site will work to your advantage with this too, you will enjoy quicker results within a niche rather than a general website or blog.
4. Passive Income
Having said that this does take a lot of work, it is also possible to get your niche website to the point where you are earning a passive income. Basically a passive income is an income you can earn whilst putting in little work to keep in going. So once you have your website up and running, it can continue to generate an income without any additional input from you. Uber cool!
CONS
1. This is not a get-rich-quick scheme!
If you are looking to make money overnight, this is definitely not for you. However, if you are looking for a sustainable and exciting online business opportunity, you are in the right place. It takes time and effort to build a niche website. You will need to be determined and have the stamina to keep going even when things don’t go your way. Google can delay things for you because of the ranking system. That is unless your keyword competition is very low of course. The content of your site has to be of high value, this is without a doubt the most important aspect of your website. Meaning, you will need the ability to write – not necessarily the best seller author level but you will need decent grammar and spelling. Of course the likes of Spell Check and Grammarly can help you here too.
2. Search Engines Rule
Niche website are very dependent on the search engines, they are what rank your site which is what drives traffic to your site. Unfortunately though, they could change their algorithm and the result of that may be a loss of rank and traffic. It is important to use only ethical SEO, that way you will likely avoid any search engine penalties. In my humble opinion, it is vital to actively work on other sources of traffic – Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn etc – plus referrals and ensure you build yourself an email list to keep contact with your followers, no matter what happens with the search engines and their algorithms.
What Will it Cost To Build Your Niche Website?
As you saw earlier, one of the biggest advantages of a Niche Website is the low start-up cost. Let’s re-look what you can expect:
- Domain Name between $10 – $15 per annum
- Website hosting between $8 and $10 per month
- Keyword tool, a good one that will truly make your life easier is $19-$25 per month
- TOTAL R350 per annum, give your take
I have another option for you, which just happens to be my Number One Recommendation. What will you get here?
- Superb training
- Website Hosting
- Fabulous keyword research tool (yes, the very one you saw me use earlier)
- Excellent support (website and community)
What does this cost? Well, the pricing is quite incredible really. You have options as follows:
- Monthly Payment : $49 per month, which is $588 per annum.
- 6 Months: $234 for the 6-month period and equates to $39 per month (20% off)
- Yearly: $359 for the year and translates into $29.92 per month! 39% off and massive saving of $229!
This offer also includes hosting for up to 25 of your domains! Talk about value! But you don’t have to rush in head first with your credit card waving in the area, there is the FREE STARTER option which I mentioned earlier! Give it a whirl, you have everything to gain (training, exposure to the community, website hosting, an opportunity to check out the site support – literally everything on offer at Premium level!).
Conclusion
This has been quite a marathon to write – I hope you have gained some valuable insight into exactly what a Niche Website is. As mentioned earlier, it is not a get-rich-quick scheme, you can make some serious money with a successful website and enjoy the benefit of passive income in time to come. With this opportunity it is highly possible to replace the income you earn from your employer, even earn more than that!
It is important to start with a focused Niche Website and over time build the site up. Writing loads of quality content giving useful and interesting information is key. When you solve the problems or answer questions readers have, this will lead you to success. Remember, no matter how tempting it is, write what your readers want to know about, avoid writing for the search engines only. Pay attention to the SEO work you do. With these things in place, there is no reason for you to do badly. It just takes persistence, consistency and determination added to the quality content.
So here it is again, my Number 1 Recommendation where you can learn how to build your successful Niche Website under the training of highly successful online entrepreneurs and within an awesome community of like-minded people. You won’t look back!
You are welcome to share this post on your social networks too – remember: sharing is caring. I am sure others are asking What Is A Niche Website About? too – help them find the answers.
It has been wonderful to spend this time with you, I am very happy that you have stayed with me to the end! If you have any questions at all, please pop me a mail (latebloomerwa@icloud.com) or a message at the bottom of this article.
See you on the inside!
Blessings
