Internet Marketing - How to Find Topics For Your Articles and Some Research Basics - Internet Marketing Australia

Q: What is the biggest problem most new internet marketers face, especially article marketers?
A: What to write about and how to find the information you need to write about your topic.

First of all, if you're just beginning, you need to know how to find topics for your articles and some research basics. Let me suggest that you pick a topic you like to begin with. Then go to dmoz.org and begin digging for a niche. Here is an example of how you could do that. Start with a broad subject like Recreation. Next, let's chose a subject like Motorcycles. Ok move down to Organizations. Now click on North America. Pick a demographic area like the United States. You could narrow it down to a State if you want to however; let's stick with U.S. Military Veterans. Now you have a whole list of Bike Clubs for Veterans. Go to some of these sites and read what they are talking about. What needs or desires do they have? Can you fill these needs and desires? Yes, you can. How? Search for a product that fills the needs and desires you just read about. Now write an article about these needs and desires and the product you found that fills those needs and desires. Remember to keep your article relevant and use the proper keywords. Now when this niche market is looking to fill their needs and desires you'll be a likely source in which to buy from.

What if you have a product but not a niche? Then you need to find a niche. Try this method to find a niche market: Go to dmoz.org, amazon.com, ebay.com, or your favorite shopping place online. Now, start by going down their indexes and keep clicking until you get deep into the realm of ever-narrowing niche market. That's one method to finding your niche.

Ok, let us dig a bit deeper into the subject of how to find topics for your articles and some research basics. Actually, this may go a bit beyond research basics.

What should I do before I start? Before you begin researching the internet or library you should consider the following:

• Think about the information you are researching for.
• Would a book or other electronic source be more appropriate? Like an encyclopedia or a database of refereed journal articles.
• Would it be better to use a search engine, a subject directory, or both?
• What words would best describe your subject? Try to be as precise as possible.

To keep your research effective it is important that you consider exactly what question you are trying to answer. This is called developing a research strategy. Following the steps below will help you to simplify your question:

• What is your topic?
• What are the key concepts in your question?
• What other ways could you can express these key concepts?

When you have completed these steps you will have a list of terms with which to commence your research.

What to do when your initial research is not successful or returns too much information. Try these techniques of refining or improving your research:

• Use more search terms to get fewer, more relevant records
• Use fewer search terms to get more records
• Search for phrases by enclosing research terms in commas ("German Sheppard Training")
• Choose search engines that allow you to refine your search results
• Limit your research to sites that end with .gov .net. or a country code like .uk .au and so on
• Use Boolean operators or '+' (an essential term) and '-' symbol (for a term that should be excluded) to refine your search

That is how you can I improve your research results. Some search engines exclude some types of pages by policy. They do this to avoid cluttering up their databases with unwanted content. So, how do you dig deeper into this hidden web? Simply think "databases" and keep your eyes open. You can find searchable databases containing hidden web pages in the course of your research. Here are a couple directories of value in academic research:

• Librarians' Internet Index (lii.org)
• Infomine (infomine.ucr.edu)

Use search engines to locate searchable databases by searching a subject topic plus the word "database". If the database uses the word database in its own pages, you are likely to find it. The word "database" is also useful in searching a topic in the Google directory or the Yahoo directory, because they sometimes use the term to describe searchable databases in their listings.

Examples:
• Airplane crash database
• Languages database
• Toxic chemicals database

Remember that the hidden web exists. In addition to what you find in search engine results (including Google Scholar) and most web directories, there are other gold mines you have to search directly. This includes all of the licensed article, magazine, reference, news archives, and other research resources that libraries and some industries buy for those authorized to use them.

In conclusion, keep these key points in mind when developing your research strategy. Be as specific as possible about what you are looking for and become familiar with the phrases and concepts you're researching. Divide your question into concepts for searching and think about and look for alternative research terms. Review your strategy and your results and use what you've found to build upon what you're researching. Don't forget that libraries are filled with books that are shelved together in subject areas. This means that when you find one useful book on the shelf, there will probably be others nearby.

Now you know how to find topics for your articles and some research basics. Use these tips to get you started and let me know if you have other suggestions.