Protect Your Niche When Outsourcing

Protect Your Niche When Outsourcing

In the world of Internet niche marketing, the greatest asset is often the chosen niche. Many marketers spend a great deal of time, energy, and resources selecting a niche that they believe is going to be profitable. There are certainly no guarantees a particular niche will be profitable but there are certain strategies for choosing a niche that has a high probability of success. 

One popular strategy for selecting a niche involves employing a principle similar to the concept of supply and demand. Statistical information supplied by search engines is used to determine the popularity of certain search terms. This information is significant because terms that are being searched frequently are terms that have a large audience of Internet users looking for more information on the niche subject. These are terms that are in high demand. From this statistical information, you can build a list of potential niches. Once this list is compiled, it is time to begin researching the competition in each of these niches. Ideally the niche you select will have a large audience and not much competition. These are niches that are in low supply. 

Choose the Type of Work You Outsource Carefully

One way to protect your niche is to be selective about the type of work you outsource to others. Many Internet niche marketers are comfortable outsourcing their copywriting and their website design. However, they are more protective about outsourcing tasks such as marketing, niche selection, and keyword development. This is because although copywriting and website design both involve optimization for keywords the strategies for doing so are readily available on the Internet. However, many marketers have specific methods for marketing and developing a niche and keywords and are not willing to outsource this work because it will likely involve sharing secret strategies. 

Share Keywords via Email

Developing related keywords for the niche is a very important part of the success of an Internet niche marketing campaign. Keywords are critical and conventional wisdom holds that an extensive list of keywords should be developed for a particular niche to be successful. Some in the industry recommend developing approximately 200 keywords for each niche. 

There is a great amount of effort put into the process of selecting keywords and those who are savvy do not want to make it possible for others to find their list of keywords on the Internet. Including a list of keywords on an advertisement seeking a copywriter or website designer will be searchable by others in the industry. For this reason, it is not wise to post keyword lists where others have free access to the keywords. This may sound overly paranoid but it is commonly known that Internet marketers often make the mistake of posting their keywords on job boards and those who are interested in harvesting these keywords visit these websites frequently to gather information. Transmitting the keywords through a protected email account or via telephone is a better way to protect the work you have put into developing your niche.

Use a Non Disclosure Agreement

Finally, a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) is one way for the marketer to protect his niche when he is outsourcing. An NDA is essentially a document specifying the rights of the employer and employee regarding sensitive materials. The NDA can be drafted to include any terms the client sees fit. Some examples of the restrictions the contractor may agree to by signing an NDA are:

* A definition of which materials are sensitive

* Restrictions on how materials can be transmitted

* A stipulation precluding the contractor from competing in the niche during a given period

* A duration of time for which the contract is binding

In protecting a niche market the above terms can be used when outsourcing. The client may specify the sensitive materials to be the niche and the related keywords as well as any information regarding marketing strategy. The client may limit the methods in which the sensitive materials can be transmitted to secure emails and telephone conversations. The duration of time for which the contract is binding is up to the client. Common timeframes include the duration of the project or a set number of days, weeks, months, or years. In niche marketing, a timeframe of at least one year after the project is completed is recommended to prevent the contractors from entering the same niche immediately after the project ends.