One of the pieces that affiliate marketers seem to be grappling with the most is choosing a niche.

We have a whole bunch of posts related to the subject of choosing a niche. Please check them out:

What is generally referred to as a niche has historically been referred to as a target market, but now the two words tend to be somewhat synonymous between affiliate marketers. Before we can have a substantive discussion on the topic, we should make a clear distinction.

In this article, we’re going to explain that a niche is the company’s side. Rather than a particular “community of people” you’re trying to reach with your ads. 

Do Micro Niche Affiliate Sites Still Work

For example: suppose you’re an activewear company. In that case, your micro niche could be middle-aged women’s activewear – and your target market is middle-aged women who want to remain fit.

So, to put it plainly:

  • Niche = what you’re selling.
  • Target Market = who you are selling it to.

There are several claims that the target market is broad, and the niche is very specific. Still, the target market can be as broad or as narrow as possible.

Now that we have defined the difference let’s talk about the three main elements of selecting an affiliate marketing niche.

1. Passion for affiliate marketing niche

Despite what some internet marketers claim, affiliate marketing is not an easy-to-use tactic or a hands-off type of passive revenue. 

3 Key Factors For Choosing An Affiliate Marketing Niche - affiliate marketing niche

In fact, affiliate marketing takes a lot of dedication if you want the results to be truly worthwhile. That’s why the element of excitement is so significant.

But when I say “passion,” I imply a few things:

  • What you’re interested in
  • What you are good at
  • What you’re not wasting your time on
  • Where is your experience and expertise?

Passion may also mean a hobby in this sense.

The reasoning is as follows:

The affiliate niche you select should be something you instinctively want to spend your time and effort on.

This isn’t just because designing an affiliate website or an affiliate landing page is a lot more fun when you enjoy the subject. It’s also because you’re going to have a lot easier time coming up with content and selling your affiliate goods if you’re dealing with topics that naturally interest you.

Either do what you love or do what you already do – either way, this can be converted into affiliate marketing!

Questions to be answered:

  • What are your new hobbies, interests, and passions? In which areas do you have the experience or authority of the industry?
  • Which of those topics would you really like to build content around?
  • Have you already created content such as blog posts, videos, or podcasts that address a particular niche?
  • Do you have a current audience or social media base that you can use for affiliate marketing?
3 Key Factors For Choosing An Affiliate Marketing Niche - affiliate marketing niche

Of course, you don’t have to factor enthusiasm into the equation. Many affiliate marketers simply pick a niche based on their own earning potential – and there’s nothing wrong with that.

However, in general, enthusiasm adds an extra dimension to your affiliate marketing activities that make the whole process more enjoyable (and rewarding) from start to finish.

2. Performance of this affiliate marketing niche

While finding a niche that you’re really interested in is vital, profitability is still a key factor – that is, if you really want to make money!

The Ultimate 100 Profitable Affiliate Marketing Niches for 2021

Determining the viability of an affiliate marketing niche requires determining two things:

Competition and desire for it.

  • How saturated is the niche you’re thinking about? 
  • Are there a lot of other affiliates competing for the same audience? 

If you choose a wide niche with a lot of competition, it can be very difficult to gain traction.

Read our blog post about – why you need a micro niche.

On the other hand, if you pick a market with very little competition, it doesn’t necessarily lead to success if the demand isn’t hot.

So how are you going to find this out?

  • Are people looking for niche-related topics? 
  • Is there really an audience for what you want to promote?

You can find out by searching for question-and-answer sites like Quora to see if people are looking for information about your future niche. You may also use the Google Keyword Planner to investigate such topics as the total number of monthly searches, or competition level (high to low), and the recommended bid (cost per click).

You can take it from there:

  • How much traffic a certain keyword produces?
  • How difficult would it be to actually rank for that keyword in the search results?

The value of the keyword in general.

Suppose you have entered an affiliate marketing network like ClickBank. In that case, you can even look at the average sale prices of particular niche goods to see how well they are selling.

3 Key Factors For Choosing An Affiliate Marketing Niche - affiliate marketing niche

All this gives you enough information to decide whether or not a given niche is lucrative enough to be worth your time!

Roughly speaking, low-to-medium competition and high demand (traffic) is perfect.

3. Longevity of the niche

A niche’s longevity is a crucial factor for many affiliates who put together blogs, websites, and other content. After all, who wants to do a lot of work to build content to get a website up and running for a niche that’s here today and will be gone tomorrow?

Certain niches are ripe for purely short-term (or periodic) gains – just think about trendy or seasonal goods, for example.

Holiday promotions maybe some of the most lucrative opportunities out there that operate well within very short timeframes. Other time-sensitive products, such as event merchandise, appear to lose their allure after events have passed.

When deciding which niche is right for you, it’s helpful to have an idea of the approach you want to use. Alternatively, your enthusiasm for a particular affiliate marketing niche can determine if you take a short-term or long-term approach.

Often a niche is long-lived simply because it makes space for versatility. For example, choosing a niche that has countless themes to write about can be more advantageous than choosing a high-performance but very limited niche that brings traffic from a single source. More variety can improve your content’s overall value and give you access to a broader audience.

A broader niche also has the potential to dilute the effectiveness of your marketing activities. That’s why it’s so important to do your profitability research, no matter which route you choose.

Conclusion

So, in this blog post, you have learned how to choose a niche for affiliate marketing. Your goal is to choose the perfect affiliate marketing niche – the one that you’re genuinely passionate about, that has the right balance of competition and demand, and that provides the sustainability you’re looking for. This is one of the most critical aspects of developing a career in affiliate marketing.

Remember to ask yourself the following:

  • What kind of niche (or niches) are you passionate about?
  • How profitable is this niche in terms of competition, demand, and overall performance?
  • Will the niche have a long-lasting power? (If not, are you satisfied with your short-term or periodic earnings?)

Finding the sweet spot can be magical, but making the right choice doesn’t happen without some deep and careful analysis. Be mindful that some work is needed before to get you the best results. Making a mistake at first is fine too, no one hits it right the first time around. Good luck!

Last Updated on December 14, 2020

Author

Elizabeth is a Senior Content Manager at Scaleo. Currently enjoying the life in Prague and sharing professional affiliate marketing tips. She's been in the online marketing business since 2006 and gladly shares all her insights and ideas on this blog.