Over-Saturated Niche Decisions
aka: What do we do with all of these over-saturated niches?
We’ve come to a crossroads in a few topics of discussion and feel that bringing it to you will aid us in making the right decision. We are extremely grateful for your continued support and we continue to take actions daily based on your recommendations and the discussions in this Blog.
Today’s topic warrants collaborative discussion since the decisions we’re about to make won’t be easy. Before you respond or comment, we ask that you read all of the recommendations, weigh the pros and cons of each and offer your thoughts based on the totality of the information and the impact any decision will cause in each niche.
The following niche areas are the point of this discussion:
- Penis Enlargement
- Get Your Ex Back
- Acai Berry
- Reverse Cell Phone Lookup
- Credit Card Debt Relief
- Male Enhancement Pill
- TV for PC
Truth be told, all of these markets are saturated. There are penalties that come with market saturation of articles: 1) They all have a higher potential as being flagged as spammy, 2) They undoubtedly contain a high volume of derivative content, and 3) Because of their popularity, you can almost guarantee that many are spun (created with article spinning software).
However, there are many Expert Authors who add a tremendous amount of value in these niches. Their articles are educational, assist in life changes and allow for increased awareness. These are all very positive attributes.
HERE ARE THE OPTIONS:
- We apply a blanket ruling that prevents the admittance of any future articles on any topic listed above. You’re in agreement that the market(s) are too saturated and we should not allow any more articles in any or all of the niches.
PRO’s: This ruling is easy. From now on we stop these articles at the door and we don’t discuss it anymore. If you don’t write in these niches, you feel you now have a level playing field because the noise level just lowered significantly. It also means that authors who write in the same categories, with all-together different niches, are not competing with these subjects.
CON: We disqualify even the educational articles that provide REAL value (there is value to be had in all them).
- We implement a lottery system. We systematically allow only so many articles per month on these topics. Any articles that exceed that number will be rejected at the door.
PRO’s: It’s a lottery, which is easy enough to implement. Not everyone may get the opportunity to publish, but we are not closing all opportunities. This helps with market saturation.
CON: There is difficulty in finding a balance in quality and quantity. Just because the article is the first one to be received doesn’t mean it is the best one. We could close the door on some GREAT articles.
- We develop guidelines on trending topics. Trends come and go. We’ll allow these for a set period of time until the pool is full based on several factors such as complaint volume and then stop accepting them. It also means that we’ll review the relevancy of the niches over their life span. If we feel the market is overwhelmed, articles in that particular niche will no longer be accepted.
PRO: All areas will be permitted to have their spotlight. We agree that not one topic is better than another and everyone deserves their chance (while the market is in demand).CON’s: Authors will feel slapped when we shut the door. Great articles by legitimate authors who deserve to be heard will never be published. The decision for when we pull the plug will be a difficult one. When do we do we say enough is enough? Or doesn’t that matter? Are the markets listed too saturated already?
If this option were taken, we’d make decisions on whether or not these trending topics have over-stayed their welcome and move on to option #1 moving forward.
Care to weigh in on this topic? Please leave a comment below.
2, 3, and 5 at least have SOME merit – but ya; 1, 4, and 6 are sure subjective.
March 2, 2011 at 5:42 PM[Reply]