Research your market

Groups and forums

When dealing with groups and forums, the worst thing you can do is join up and immediately post a message asking people to buy your product. For internet group members, this is like having a salesperson show up uninvited at the front door of their house. At best your message will be ignored; at worst, you may find yourself banned from the group before you get started. When you find groups or forums relating to your topic, sign up and spend some time looking around, posting introductory messages and reading what the other members have to say. Reply to some posts and get to know some of them first. Then when you’re ready to start talking about your product, you’ll have a more receptive audience. During this time, do your research: notice what the group likes and dislikes, the things that interest them enough to spark long discussions. Pay attention to the general demographics of the group as well. What is an “average member” like? This will help you hone in further on your target market.

Here are some places to get started finding groups and forums:

1. Yahoo! Groups: A directory of online groups and forums hosted by Yahoo, searchable by category or keyword. Yahoo! is one of the most popular providers of free group sites—you might even consider starting your own free group so you can get to know your target market better.
   
   
2. Google group search: The search engine giant maintains separate engine listings for web sites, images, and groups. Just plug in your topic or keywords to find groups all over the internet related to your subject. You can also create your own free groups through Google.
   
   
3. MSN Groups: Another online community of groups and forums, with a handy by-subject index and a search box. MSN has free group and chat room creation as well.
   
   
4. Delphi Forums: A directory of internet forums, also searchable by keyword or topic and allowing free creation of your own forum for discussion.

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