Outsourcing market & content research?
Submitted by CT on Mon, 05/12/2008 - 15:11.
A friend of mine had been raving about Tim Ferriss's The 4-hour workweek for a while and actually putting it into practice for his own business (bricks and mortal, not online). (I had a hard time contacting him recently as he has been in Bangkok, Vietnam, Australia, etc.) I decided finally to get the book when Jeremy mentioned it somewhere in twitter.
The best part is outsourcing (outsource your apology to wife? no problem) . You can outsource, probably even market & content research for gadget you want to sell as affiliate...or can you?
The example used in Black Ink Project is ultra portable notebook, a gadget. I am not a gadget fan. I have no interest in researching pros and cons of any of handphones, camera, PCs, etc.
I followed my friend when I bought my digital SLR. He had done the research. I trusted his opinion. I can call him up and ask the functionalities of the SLR since we now use the same brand and model, and he is happy to share. :-)
I followed my wife when I got my handphone. She had tried this nokia 6120 as one of the best with 3G, web access, music, etc. I just followed and happy about this phone.
With this kind attitude toward gadgets, can I succeed in trying gadget niche? Or I can outsource the market and content research part and to find the usp?
Had anyone tried this? :-)
Hi CT,
With this kind attitude toward gadgets, can I succeed in trying gadget niche? Or I can outsource the market and content research part and to find the usp?
I'd be cautious about both trying to promote a niche you're not a fan of AND outsource it at the same time.
I have found that outsourcing, while a great way to leverage your time, is difficult if you don't at least have a very clear idea of where you want to go. For example: Telling a vendor, "Hey, I need some content that will sell gadgets" vs "Hi copywriting vendor. I need 15 articles that highlight the use of ultra portable computers for business use specifically. Please focus on weight, screen resolution, processing speed, screen brightness, and the mindset and use of these devices. Focus on the value proposition (USP) of..."
I think any of us is going to be much better off really understanding the mindset, needs, and profile in general of the people we're selling to. After you are in that "head space" it would be effective to outsource whatever you can clearly convey to your outsourced vendor.
I hope this helps.
I agree. I think you either need to be someone utilizing a product and understand it or have a passion on it. Even with research, you still have to write about the product and your lack of enthusiasm will show in your writing.
I tend to agree with both Mark and tealcool. I don't believe you can make it work if you personally don't have the passion and do the research and writing yourself. You can outsource some of it, but you better know exactly what you want from that person and how to get it across to them. In my opinion, you can't do that if you're not 100% into it.
Chuck
"One's only security in life comes from doing something uncommonly well."
-- Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States
CT, all you need is one friend (with appliance) for every product you want to promote. then call up the friend, ask their opinion of the product, record, translate to web format, and watch the dollars roll in :)
Stephen Carter
creator of Review Foundry
Hey, thanks for everyone's input...
I have about three seemingly viable niche ideas, one of them is gadget. I will just give it a try...as I have certain level of interest and understanding in using the gadget. (while oblivious of the pros and cons and competing brands, etc.)
I will see if I can give this niche a try....
CT
https://twitter.com/ct2008