Using a YouTube Channel for Market Research

By Robin A. Brown

One of the advantages of social video sharing sites is the feedback you can get from your niche market. An easy way to get feedback is to first do some keyword research just as you would for your website or ppc campaign. Make some videos based around those keywords, especially the "how-to" sorts, upload them to your dedicated YouTube channel, and post them to your video blog.

Feedback from channel viewers often includes requests for another topic for a new video. Keep note of these in a spreadsheet or notepad, and watch what happens when you upload a video of content that's been requested. Remember, if one person asked specifically, chances are good that there are other visitors that are interested in the same, but more shy about posting comments.
Classic direct marketing tactics include market research. This is accomplished often by a poll, where you ask your niche market what they want, how hard it is to find it, how much they'd pay for it, and how original they perceive it. The feedback you get on a YouTube channel will often give you exactly that information!

For instance, you'll get comments telling you whether your content is interesting, helpful, and whether it's perceived as better than your competition. You should watch videos that rank well for your niche or keyword set. By favoriting those videos, you increase the value of you channel for your channel viewers. Your favorites become a value added part of your channel, and your visitors can even subscribe to your favorites.

When you get a request for new content, do a quick keyword search to look at the best way of incorporating the keywords into your title and tags. You'll be pleasantly surprised at how quickly your views will rise when you provide content that viewers have told you they want. In direct marketing it's called "shooting fish in a barrel".

Be sure to brand your video with your logo, your site URL, and some good stock music or an intro music bite. As you provide content that is in demand, each view will build your brand with your target audience. This is a great way to build a relationship with your target niche audience.
There are so many ways of using video marketing today. The social sharing aspect of YouTube is just one of them. Use it to find out more about what people in your niche want to see!

Robin Brown is a Singer sewing machine fan. She sews regularly for her family and for fun.
Visit http://www.SewSing.com for video tutorials on using a mechanical Singer sewing machine.

Beth has co-authored an ebook on Video Marketing that targets marketers rather than the viral goal. Afterall, it's not the size of your traffic, but what you do with it that counts.

Visit her blog at http://www.creativesolutionspress.com/ for creative solutions, plus plenty of entries on video marketing.

Her Video Marketing ebook is available on http://www.videomarketingsuccessbook.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Robin_A._Brown

The Surefire Way To Make Instant Cash In Niche Markets

By Pluxedo Hondeuos

The experts teach you about various ways to make money online using the power of niche marketing. In this article I will tell you about one cool way to make money in niche markets that I bet no one has told you about.

As more and more people hit the internet in the hope of making it big online, the demand for web hosting is getting bigger and bigger. And web hosting packages are also getting cheaper and cheaper. However, there is one big problem that is faced by most webmasters.

Most web hosting companies don't offer the quality service that customers are promised. Yes, while the price for the hosting packages are quite cheap, most web hosting companies don't even offer the basic amenities that come with a standard hosting package. Customer support is yet another problem. Most web hosting companies don't offer quality customer support so their customer retention rate is low. Here is your chance to cash in!

So try out this option and see if it works. If you are very happy and satisfied with the services offered by your current host, why not see if they offer an affiliate program that you can participate in and earn some quick cash by telling others how good your host is? This is also one of the best ways to get your hosting package for free - instead of you paying them, make them pay you cash every month. You don't even have to go overboard in promoting your host. The process can be as easy as putting a small "powered by" or "hosted by" link at the bottom of your page and you are already in an affiliate business. You can also promote the web hosting company in niche markets and make some easy cash that way.

There are a lot of niche markets out there just waiting for the right affiliate to penetrate through them and make that 'dollars dream' come true. Knowing which one to get into is like being confident enough of your potentials and the good results you will be getting.

While the web hosting market is in itself a bit competitive, no one has been able to market web hosting services the proper way. If you can do that, you will be well ahead of your competition. In my opinion, this is the perfect way to make truckloads of money in niche markets.

Want more such tips? Subscribe to JFA Newszine and get HOT tips like this every week! Visit my blog at:http://news.jobs4all.biz/Subscribe to my newsletter at:http://newszine.jobs4all.biz/

How To Sell Your House in Today's Market

By Sally O'Boyle

If your market is anything like the Key West market, you are sitting on your property, waiting for your flush buyer. And you have been for some time. Frustration has probably set in. You need to sell before actual panic takes hold.

There is hope. The formula is ancient: product and price. Sellers who really want to sell, need to lower prices till they generate activity (i.e., phone calls and showings) and keep lowering till they generate action (i.e., offers).

It is now officially a Buyer's market and this is true in all but a very few U.S. markets. In a Buyer's market, the good deals sell first. The formula we have used successfully for getting showings and offers on a stagnant property is to: 1. Lower the price 10% at a time until the phone starts ringing = ACTIVITY. 2. Keep lowering the price 10% at a time until you get offers = ACTION.

How often? Every 2 weeks is not too often to lower the price, but timing is dependent on time of year and seller's motivation. In your busiest season, when you have the most activity, every two weeks might not be fast enough! You will know you are close when the phone starts ringing.
You'll know you are really close when you get offers. You'll know you are there when you have a signed contract.

To get from contract to closing, be willing to negotiate. Fix anything the buyer needs to have fixed to have a safe home (termite treatment, upgrade electric, plumbing repairs, sound roof, dead trees limbs down.) Remain calm.

In a Seller's market, sellers are insulted by offers lower than 5% off the asking price. In today's market, you will definitely get offers lower than this. If you are insulted by any offers, you need attitude adjustment. Nobody cares if you are insulted.

There are buyers in our market right now and they want to buy. The hold up is price. Sellers are still in denial about the direction of the market - they can't let go of the big number and they think any minute this baby is going to turn around.

Unfortunately, this ship is too big and wieldy. And it's run into an iceberg called Subprime Mortgages. It's just not going to be able to bounce back. Last I looked in our MLS, there was a four year inventory on the market... Usually, we have four to six months. And with so many
Fortunately, REALTORs I've spoken with lately are coming to grips with reality. No paycheck will do that to a person. Trust me, I have first-hand knowledge of this. Before I left Key West for Costa Rica in January '06, my income was down 90%. Twenty months later, my brethren back home are starting to realize this is more than a slow patch. Much more. As REALTORs stop cheer-leading, reality will spread.

Reality is the only hope for a turnaround in this market. Inventory has to clear out. A lot of it will clear out via foreclosure. That's a fact. If you are a seller who can still avoid foreclosure, take the money you can get and move on.

Today, the price has to make sense to the buyer. For sellers stuck in 2004's market when seller's ruled, today's price will NOT make sense to you. It will be shocking. But for sellers who really want to sell, it's time to bite the bullet. It's not your market anymore.

Sally O'Boyle, Recovering REALTOR®, packed up her family and 30 years of a life in Key West on basically a whim and a prayer and moved to Costa Rica for a year. It's been almost two and they can't leave. Life in Costa Rica is something... breathtaking, frustrating, hilarious. Details here: http://www.abroadincostarica.com

Still watching and working the Key West market, mostly from afar, occasionally on the ground, Sally reports on that market's ups and downs at http://www.so-real.com

Create A Blog To Market You

By Christopher Kyalo

Despite the sheer power blogs have as marketing tools that have the potential to create an endless stream of traffic and quality leads for any site, many webmasters and site owners are yet to wake up to this great opportunity.

It is truly amazing how so many folks spend most of their time agonizing over the low, mostly useless, traffic trickling in at their sites or even blogs and yet the answer is so obvious. All they need to do is write keyword rich articles and post them at high traffic article directories with links pointing to a blog created for the sole purpose of marketing their product or site. It is really that simple.

Personally I am able to market all my online businesses using only blogs. I don't own a single site and to be honest I am not even interested. Why should I take on the extra baggage of maintaining a web site when I can easily attract hundreds of thousands of hits to my string of free blogs? And the good news is that anybody can do it.

How do I do it? I create quality keyword rich content regularly and post it to my blogs. At the same time, I also generate content for posting in leading high traffic article directories with links pointing to my blog. That's it. What happens is that my articles in leading article directories usually get re-posted all over the place with links intact meaning that the number of links pointing to my blog virally multiply which naturally increases traffic.

Then there is this thing with blogs where linking to one another is the most natural thing. So the more posts and pages I create in my blogs, the more the number of links pointing at my sites virally multiply.

This may sound like a lot of writing to you, however with a simple program to produce a few at a time, you will be amazed at how quickly the cumulative effect of our efforts will kick in. Besides you can always take advantage of the quality affordable content providers who still offer SEO (search engine optimized) articles at dirt-cheap rates.

You can get somebody to help you create a blog to market your site or product at a rate you will not believe. And don't miss this other fascinating article that explores how blogs can market any site.

How to Get a Jewelry Rep to Market Your Handmade Jewelry

By Kristie Leong

Are you a jewelry maker or designer looking for new ways to market your jewelry? There's no doubt about it! A jewelry design business takes time especially if you exhibit at craft and jewelry shows which require preparation and travel. This can take precious time away from jewelry design and production. Your first love is jewelry design and you'd like to spend more time designing and less time focused on jewelry marketing. Is there a solution?

For some jewelry makers and designers, the answer is to enlist the services of a sales rep. A jewelry sales rep is a traveling sales person who carries several independent lines of jewelry that he or she markets to various boutiques and galleries. The sales rep is paid a commission by the jewelry designer of between 10% to 20% of the wholesale price. For example, if a bracelet sells for a retail price of $100, the store pays $50.00 for the item. Out of that $50.00 you pay the rep $7.50, assuming a commission rate of 15%. This may sound like a lot, but you have to consider the cost savings of not traveling as well as the time savings of being able to spend more time in your studio producing jewelry.

A sales rep can also help you reach a national audience by exhibiting your designs at trade shows in large cities. This can be a very rewarding arrangement for you as the jewelry designer. Your jewelry is marketed in a professional manner and you never have to leave your studio.

An additional benefit of having a rep is that a rep can keep you abreast of jewelry design trends and give you updates on what's selling and what's not. A jewelry rep can also suggest potential modifications to your jewelry line based on her experience in the marketplace. This may result in increased sales for you.

In order to successfully sell your jewelry through a sales rep, you'll need:

Price lists for your jewelry neatly printed up to give to the rep. Actual catalogue sheets are usually unnecessary since the rep will have samples of your individual jewelry pieces.

A statement of your terms of sale including your return policy. Clarification of your shipping terms. Which carrier will ship your jewelry and any special shipping bonuses such as free shipping with a minimum purchase. You should also make a statement about when items will be shipped. i.e. within 3 days etc.

A brief biography of your jewelry design experience that the rep can use to promote your work. Consider including a photo on your bio to personalize it.

Representative samples of your jewelry line for the rep to show retailers. An accurate record should be kept of what samples were given to the rep as well as when they should be returned and what is owed in the event that samples are lost. (which hopefully won't happen!)

Once you've determined you'd like to work with a rep, how do you go about locating one? Here are some suggestions:

1. Check the classified sections of various jewelry and gift trade journals. Jewelry reps often advertise here when they're seeking new accounts. Try checking the classified section of Lapidary Journal. Another good source is Accessories Magazine, a specialized trade journal for the jewelry and accessories business.

2. Attend jewelry trade shows in large cities such as New York, Boston, and Chicago. Jewelry reps exhibit their lines at these trade shows in order to attract new boutique accounts. Walk through the show and find reps who are displaying lines of jewelry that are somewhat similar to your own in price and style. When you find one, take a business card so you can contact the rep later to discuss carrying your line of jewelry. Important! These shows are for the trade only so you'll probably be asked to show your credentials.

3. Visit jewelry marts and showrooms in New York City where reps display. Again, get their contact information.

4. Find retailers in your area who carry jewelry similar to yours. Ask if they have a rep who calls upon them. See if you can get their contact information.

5. Network with other jewelry artisans who market their jewelry through reps.

6. Advertise for a rep through one of the jewelry trade journals.

7. Contact The United Association Manufacturers' Representatives who will help you locate a rep for a fee.

Once you've found a rep you'd like to work with, be sure to get answers to the following questions:

How long have you been in the business?

How many jewelry lines do you carry?

What is your commission rate?

Do you have a list of references? (request to see them)

What territory do you cover?

How many accounts do you service?

You also want to make sure you have a rep that carries lines of jewelry similar to yours in style and price range. If you sell high end artisan jewelry, you don't want to enlist the services of a jewelry rep who carries lower end, mass produced jewelry. It's also important that you feel comfortable with the rep you're dealing with and have a good line of communication.

Jewelry marketing through a rep can be a profitable and satisfying means of bringing your designs to the public. Plus, it can free up your time to be a more creative and productive jewelry designer. Why not see if a jewelry rep would be right for your jewelry business?

Kristie Leong M.D. specializes in helping handmade jewelry designers find new markets for their jewelry. She publishes a blog and has website full of information on jewelry marketing at http://www.jewelry-marketing.com