The big buzz-phrase at the beginning of 2006 is 'Niche Marketing'. If you find your niche and market it like crazy, the gurus cry, you can be a zillionaire by March. Great. So where is this niche, and how will you recognize it when you stumble into it?

Many expensive courses are offered teaching Internet Marketing, and most have some important links missing. How does the average person find their niche, without a background in marketing? As a beginner, you may just want to supplement your current income, and hopefully, eventually, quit your day job. The very average advice offered for hundreds of dollars is 'find your passion, research on the internet and Clickbank, develop your own product, and there you go. So let's help you expand this into a sensible plan.

Grab a pen and paper, and try some new ideas. What did you want to be when you grew up? If you really are a fireman or train engineer, you have an excellent niche, with a lot of information and stories to tell. If you aren't what you planned to be when you were twelve, take it up again now, study your dream occupation, and become an armchair expert.

Do you have a hobby you are passionate about? Not everyone does, and passion means different things to different people. What subject do you love to talk about that no-one else you know will join you in? What are you willing to keep talking about even when no-one else is willing to listen? These favourite subjects of yours show the basis of passion. The internet is the new galaxy here on earth, and there's bound to be people outside your little sphere who want to hear what you have to say, and might be willing to pay for that opportunity.

Take notes the next time you go to a magazine rack. What are the first three magazines that grab your attention? Each could be your general niche to start with. Look through your book collection at home, and find a common theme that is obvious, or have someone else do that for you.

A niche can be defined as 'a position particularly well suited to the person who occupies it'. Where you see yourself fitting in the best might be your niche.

If the place that suits you best is not the number one hot topic on the internet today, that's ok. Start with one subject that you feel eager to work with, and build a working knowledge that you can develop into an information project. The practice you gain can be used to make a second niche for yourself, and a second on-line business.

There are many other ways to find your little piece of the net, and I've found an extremely valuable resource with three free ebooks and several hours of video that will help you generate more ideas than you will be able to deal with in a lifetime. All you need really is sitting in your head right now, you just need the keys to unlock it.

Kelly Archibald