A global niche market – is that a contradiction in terms? Not any more. All over the world entrepreneurs are able to sell their products to niche markets using search engine marketing – Google and Yahoo! predominantly. This is known as 7 sigma marketing, targeting the “tail end” of a market.Specializing in a niche market was once uneconomical as distribution channels were rigidly defined – manufacturer to the wholesaler to the retailer to the consumer. While many claim that the internet has opened up an alternative global distribution channel to consumers – that is only part of the story. Search engines companies, such as Google and Yahoo! were able to filter the vast amount of information on the web and present it to the user. People searching for information on medicines, cars, duck shaped soaps, vespa coffee mugs, calendars from the Vatican or anything were presented with ads that matched their search requests. This allowed niche players in the market to efficiently target a global audience in a cost-effective way.

While this all sounds good in theory how can you get your product out on the global market? Here’s a rundown on how to get started with Google and Yahoo!

How cost-per-click advertising works

When a customer clicks on an online ad (which directs the customer to the advertisers webpage), the advertiser is charged by the website owner. The amount that is charged can range from a few cents to tens, even hundreds of dollars. The main benefit of this sort of advertising over traditional advertising is that you can efficiently target your niche market plus be able to track your return on investment on your ad campaign.

Where does your ad get shown?

All of your ads will be associated with a particular keyword. So when a user types in your keyword in a search engine (eg. Google or Yahoo!), your ad appears. Larger search engine companies also have vast affiliate networks – so your ad may appear on other websites too!

Advertising on Google

I have taken the liberty of using Google’s generic step-by-step guide and adding a few tips along the way.

1. Choose your target customers.

Google allows you to target specific countries and languages.

TIP: Make sure you have the ability to deliver your products/services to these markets and have an understanding of local taxes, currencies and postage costs. Plus think about creating a website in other languages to capture more markets!

2. Write your ad copy.

Since Google ads are all text-based, you need to come up with a short concise description of your product/service.

TIP: Be as specific as you can. If you have more than one product to sell, create separate ads for separate products with separate keyword (see step 4) – don’t create an all encompassing generic ad.

3. Put in your website link.

This is where the customer will land when they click on your ad.
TIP: Make sure you link directly to the product information page not your generic home page. Customers expect to get to information quickly! So don’t direct them to a page where they then have to search around to find further details about your product.

4. Assign Keywords to your ad.

When a Google user types in a keyword in the search engine, your ad will be displayed on the right-hand side of the search results.

TIP: This is a critical step. Spend some time putting yourself in your customers shoes – what does your product or service solve? What type of information might your customer is looking for that relates to your product? What type of words would they enter? Be as specific as possible – you will get better, more cost-effective results.

Choose your currency that you want to pay Google with.
TIP: You can’t change your currency once it has been set.

5. Set a maximum cost-per-click.

The maximum cost-per-click is the maximum amount that you want to pay when somebody clicks your ad. In general, the higher you are willing to pay, the higher position your ad will be on the search results page.

TIP: use the Google “View Traffic Estimator” it will give you a good idea where your ad will be positioned and the likely cost-per-click. Use this to fine tune your keywords and ad budget.

6. Set your daily budget.

So that your online ad budget does not get out of control. You can set a daily budget. Once your daily budget has been reached your ad will not be displayed until the following day.
TIP: Keep track of your daily budget. If you keep hitting your daily budget – think about raising it to capture more clicks to your website

7. Monitor.

It’s unlikely that you will get all of your keywords, costs, budgets etc right the first time around. Google allows you to monitor the performance of your ad campaigns online and allows you to make adjustments as necessary.

TIP: Pay particular attention to underperforming keywords – try to choose specific rather than general keywords.

Advertising on Yahoo!

This time I have used Yahoo! UK’s step-by-step guide. Yahoo!’s process for setting up advertising is quite simlar to that of Google’s. I personally find Google’s process much more user friendly, but Yahoo! have actual human editorial staff that go through your ad and can make suggestions to you to improve your ad’s effectiveness. The other great thing about Yahoo! is that your ads will also appear throughout Miscrosoft’s MSN web portals.

1. Select your keywords.

Choose your keywords. Yahoo has a Keyword Assistant Tool to help you out if you get stuck.

2. Write descriptions with keywords.

TIP: Keywords in your description will mean a better click through rate to your website!

3. Create your budget and payment plan.

Yahoo! utilises a pure auction bidding system. You can see a list of your competitors bidding for your keywords. You can then decide how high you wish to bid – the higher you bid the higher your position! You can also set up the maximum daily budget so that you can effectively control your online ad spend.

4. Editorial review.

Once you have submitted your ads a Yahoo! editorial team will go though your ad and make recommendations. This is a great service, especially for novices.

TIP: Take their advice!

5. Monitor.

As with Google, Yahoo! allows you to monitor your ad effectiveness online. Keep track of your ads and keywords, particularly underperforming ones!

Conclusion

By adopting a two pronged strategy using Google and Yahoo! online advertising you can develop a 7 sigma marketing strategy.

Good luck getting your niche global!

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