Research Joys, Part 2
Soccer, dinner, and the obligatory soft ice cream run taken care of. Now where was I?
Oh yes, I was doing my thing, happily drilling down into the dating niche--thinking of all the great content I could write blog upon blog about dating for the first time after 40. (Monetized most likely with ads for some cool, niche-y dating sites) Tips on being a halfway decent conversationalist...and how to write a killer dating profile. And how to gracefully wriggle out of the date from hell before the tiramisu arrives.
All of which sounds very, very fun. And I may just indulge myself in trying that at some point. But today I had one of those intuitive "yes" moments. It didn't come from any methodical drilling down. It came from a list of writing assignments.
I belong to several sites that allow authors to "claim" assignments based on interest. So, in an average day, I get a nice peek at a bajillion things that eHow, LiveStrong, AnswerBag, and random web entrepreneurs are eager to have written.
Today I noticed a request for an in-depth article on a technology I hadn't heard much about before. Basically, it's the next-generation of wireless. WiMax The kind that can blanket a whole town instead of just emanating from little localized spots. I read just a little bit and then put some feelers out on Facebook to all my tech-geek friends, former students, old classmates.
I got some very interesting responses. One high school classmate is in sales in this area. Can't tell you a whole lot now, she wrote--but I will after my training next week.
A former student--geek extraordinaire--said much the same thing. "I'm in the midst of learning about this now. But it's definitely going to become the industry standard."
I made some calls to some former AOL'ers I know who have since founded tech companies of their own. "Yup, it's coming. Too bad it's not in Northern Virginia yet."
I'm not a techie, per se--but I am an expert at becoming an expert. And I am good at explaining tech stuff in simple terms. I immediately sank my teeth into all the articles I could find on WiMax. Oooooooh, this is good stuff. And yes, there are some lovely affiliate opportunities.
I did some research in Market Samurai and on Google, found some exciting keyword phrases, saw the upward trend in almost everything relating to the technology, and grabbed myself three nice, keywordiful (my new word) domain names.
Ever read the book Blink by Malcolm Gladwell? I do think there are times when that instantaneous reaction--that uh-huh that comes from the gut--can be exactly the right thing.
So, I'm plunging in. We'll see how it goes. I'll keep documenting--and if it turns out I'm all wrong about WiMax, I can certainly have a good time promoting edgy, urban dating sites and writing "10 Tips for Reeling in the Good Ones" type articles.
Oh, I am having waaaaaaaayy too much fun. Can't wait to set up my Wordpress site.