SEM Tycoon

**taoski** · 01-02-2007, 09:41 AM

I have been loosing sleep mulling over a few ideas for a new Adsense/Contextual ad based site and am trying to stick with things that I know and subjects I enjoy.

The problem is, as a professional techie, a "technology type site" is probably best suited to me.

Do people think that this is a dead idea now? With sites like Engadget etc taking the majority of the readers?

I know finding the niche within that market is the key, but I am struggling to think of anything that has not been covered as yet!

**handsome rob** · 01-02-2007, 11:02 AM

I have the same problem. Tech is one of the topics that I'd be best suited to write about. I had a tech blog for a while that got pretty good traffic, some of my posts were picked up by the largest tech blogs out there (including engadget and gadgetspy). Despite its popularity though, it had a horrible CTR and the ads paid very little. I had no interest in trying to sell ad space (although i did have offers) so I simply ended up dropping the blog. I absolutely love blogging but i cant do it without a partner because its too time consuming for someone who works a 9-10 hour day.

**Will.Spencer** · 01-02-2007, 11:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taoski

I know finding the niche within that market is the key, but I am struggling to think of anything that has not been covered as yet!

You could pick a few niches that have not emerged yet, become an early adopter, and hope that one of them becomes mainstream.

Stuff like NAND drives and direct methanol fuel cell batteries are still future enough not to have decent niche coverage yet.

**imported_mattd** · 01-02-2007, 01:01 PM

The trouble with tech sites are the readers really - in my opinion a person reading a "technical" site is probably the sort of person who uses the net a lot, i.e. someone who is pretty clued up on the net in general and who has been using it for a long time.

I dont think it is these people who tend to click on adverts! My busiest site is "technical" just because its more or less my own random site to play with just for my own personal fun rather than as a revenue site. It gets loads of traffic but the CTR is pretty low compared to the other more general-appeal sites.

**taoski** · 01-04-2007, 12:59 PM

I agree that techies are far too aware of any advertising.

I was thinking of a slightly different market on the same theme though...

Thanks for the comments chaps! I'll let you know if I get anywhere with my idea!

**GeorgeB** · 01-04-2007, 01:19 PM

Listen to Will Spencer for he speaks the truth.

Find a niche within the tech genre. General tech sites are indeed done to death but with new technologies emerging weekly, the possibilities are endless. Just depends on which technology you adopt earliest and that interests you the most. For me, it's media player gadgets

**NBF** · 01-04-2007, 02:16 PM

Tech readers are not ad clickers, but they ARE buyers...

There is a HUGE difference there.

**taoski** · 01-04-2007, 06:22 PM

Ahh..

Thanks for that little gem Laura! I will take that into consideration.

**micahsc** · 01-05-2007, 04:42 AM

It really comes down to targetting ads to your demographic.

As Laura said, most techie readers are not ad clickers but they are buyers. Just as we became blind to banners, we have become blind to blocks of adsense.

I have a tech blogs that does just fine for income. It's in a very specific niche. Overture tells me the topic has only 700 searches a month but I get 6,000 visitors a month just from Google. Adsense gave me a little income but links to real products on Amazon generated ten times as much in affiliate commissions.

There are still plenty of micro-niches in the tech field. They won't make you rich but can still generate $300-$400 a month.

**NBF** · 01-05-2007, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taoski

Ahh..

Thanks for that little gem Laura! I will take that into consideration.

Techies are just a little more challenging, but that doesn't mean that there isn't money to be made. You just need to be more creative in your advertising. It's all about relevancy and delivery. If you are blogging about a specific item, don't litter the page with Adsense and CPM crap - feed THAT product through an affiliate link (image, price, etc.) and be vey detailed in your review/description/whatever you are saying. You have to deliver something highly relevant to what your reader is looking at in that very moment. There are so many tools to do this with automated affiliate feeds and whatnot.

Yes, CPM works once you have the pageviews, but what REALLY works is when you think outside the little box of Adsense and banners. It's all about precise relevancy. It's about creating a higher quality experience where you really match the user with the advertising in a way that makes advertising actually *useful* to them.

I hope to ditch banners entirely soon because they aren't worth it (to me) for the distraction. They are, however, a very consistent producer.

**Bmc** · 01-08-2007, 02:54 AM

You should try to stick with a niche that you know a lot about. There are always readers out there, if you have a quality site - always. Try some unconventional traffic generation, then find a way to capture visitors information (incentivized newsletter, etc..), stay in contact and eventually will build a reading base.

**Moelman** · 01-08-2007, 05:46 PM

Finding a niche within technology that hasn't been "done to death" would be the way to go, I agree.

**business ideas** · 01-08-2007, 06:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NBF

Tech readers are not ad clickers, but they ARE buyers...

There is a HUGE difference there.

That's very true. My clickthrough rate for my tech sites is extremely low.

**jesterx** · 01-15-2007, 06:02 AM

one of the most important thing looked over today with this is not making sure there is a huge demand first...i.e. why would you sell tonka toy trucks if no little boys wanted them

make sure you have a hungry market and can be reached and marketed to properly. also test to make sure you are getting your audience the most efficient way. that way your not waisting your time.

**buildblue** · 01-20-2007, 04:20 PM

If you can provide exclusive pictures/news or reviews of upcoming products then you will do well. Unfortunately it is hard to get to the stage where companies will send you the info/products first over the big guys. You will have to work solidly for a full year to get anywhere. Trust me.. i know.