To most people, the idea of having millions of people look at their Web site would be a good idea. That's because they don't have to pay for the bandwidth it would take to support millions of page views. If you're unfamiliar with how the Internet works, companies that "host" Web pages charge a premium for how much and how often your Web page is used by people. That means a ton of freebie seekers will cost you lots of money and never spend anything to support your hosting costs. That's a bad thing!



A hot niche market, on the other hand, is a small but motivated group of people that want to spend money NOW. They came online with their credit card out and in front of them, ready to type in those numbers and get what they want "ordered up and sent out". For whatever reason, these people have money that must be spent. If you have what they want - that's a good thing!

Understanding the motivations of buyers is the key to finding and exploiting a niche market. Some are desperate, with problems that make them seek out a solution with urgency and a willingness to pay extra, if that's what it takes. Some are rich and want relief from aggravation - and won't stoop to buy a "cheap" solution. Some are businesses that need a product or service for their operations, goodwill or gift giving, and have a big budget that they will spend willingly.

Deciding which type of customer you want is the toughest part of deciding on a niche market. The rest is relatively easy - the money is definitely there! All you have to do is find or create the product or service needed, drive targeted traffic to your offer and figure out ways to spend the net profit. I can't promise you that you'll become a millionaire selling to niche markets, but if you do it right and multiply your streams of revenue, I can't stop you, either!

Most marketers start by looking at the areas of interest they have, themselves. Sports, hobbies, music, collectibles and other personal interests have specific groups of people that spend freely to pursue their passion.

Golf is an "evergreen" niche, with avid golfers looking to improve their handicap, acquire memorabilia, and generally spend lots of money on clubs, accessories, etc. People who love music include collectors, musicians, fans of groups, opera lovers and all the other connected types of merchandise - high fidelity sound equipment, rock posters and so on.

Then, there are the specialized niches that have small but fanatic followers: rock climbers, dog breeders, movie memorabilia, picture postcards, luxury accessories and handbags, extreme sports and the like. A careful examination of niche magazines will reveal the type and spending habits of these loyal niche buyers. Follow up with some online research of sites that cater to these buyers and you'll have the foundation for exploiting the niche that appeals to you.

All it takes is one good niche to provide you with a sound start to marketing your product or service. Once you develop a good reputation, you'll have loyal customers driving traffic to your online store, blog or Web site. This no-cost, "viral" advertising is another benefit of finding a narrow but deep niche market.

Customers who become "evangelists" for your business can create a "buzz" on social networking sites that can bring bursts of traffic and long term profits from the comments and "tags" they post. Once you've gotten your first niche up and running, feel free to grab others that you can set up and run on autopilot. That will be a very good thing, for you!