by Bill Hibbler
Have you been watching American Idol?
( http://www.idolonfox.com )
The former music executive in me comes out when my wife and
I tune in every Tuesday and Wednesday night. If you haven't
seen Idol, it's essentially a nation-wide talent show for
young pop singers. The winner gets a recording contract and
is almost assured pop stardom.
What's this got to do with Internet marketing? Stay with me,
I'll tie it in shortly.
This week, eight singers competed on the show in front of a
live audience. The two that get the most votes from the
public move on to the next round, the others go home.
All eight were decent singers but two stood out for me.
Seattle's Leah LaBelle is a very pretty 17 year-old whose
mother is a former pop star in her native Bulgaria. The
camera loves Leah and she caught my eye early in the
auditions. She chose Whitney Houston's 'I want to dance with
somebody', a song that automatically invites comparisons to
Whitney's version. While she has a good voice, Leah's not in
Whitney's league.
Latoya London (gee, I wonder if these are stage names) is a
shy 25 year-old from Oakland, California. While not
unattractive, Latoya will never turn heads like Leah. I
hadn't noticed her during the audition rounds partially
because the Idol's producers hadn't either. She'd gotten
zero face time during the audition rounds.
Latoya performed All By Myself, a big hit from Eric Carmen
in 1975 and again when added to the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack
in 1987. Eric Carmen performed in a soft distinct voice and
is more well-known for his songwriting than his singing
ability. Latoya started off slowly but then revealed a very
powerful voice. And she blew both the crowd and the judges
away.
Last night when the votes were in, Latoya pulled something
like 32% of the audience but Leah was beat out by Cyndi
Lauper wanna-be Amy Adams. Leah shed a lot of tears
on-camera but she could have easily advanced to the next
round had she chosen a different song.
Both chose songs that were #1 hits in the past. Latoya chose
a hit where people remember the song but Leah chose a song
where people remember the performance. In a singing
competition, I'd much rather compete against Eric Carmen
than Whitney Houston.
So how does all this tie into Internet marketing? Good
question. When choosing a niche, are you making the same
mistake as Leah? If you're targeting the 'how to make money
on the Internet' market, that's exactly what you're doing.
Marketers warn us about this all the time but do we listen?
After all, isn't it a bit hypocritical for them to tell us
that when they're going after that market themselves? Well,
in a way, yeah. But they also have a valid point.
Choosing to market to Internet marketers means you're
inviting comparisons to Corey Rudl, Marlon Sanders, Terry
Dean, Alex Mandossian, Joe Vitale, Armand Morin and dozens
of other top marketers. If you think you're as good or
better than these superstars, then go for it. If not, then
I'd pick another niche, at least for your first project.
Choosing the right niche is like choosing the right song.
You want hit potential and a hungry audience but in a market
that's not crowded with superstars.
And who knows, you may not be on television but you could be
the next Internet Marketing Idol.
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Bill Hibbler, has been marketing online since 1995 and has
tried and tested hundreds of Internet marketing courses,
ebooks, software and other products. To get weekly tips,
tricks and brutally-honest product reviews, sign up for his
complimentary ezine at http://www.ecommerceconfidential.com.
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