How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche

by Jimi Jones

As a blogger I am always open to answering questions from readers and subscribers. In fact one of my goals for 2010 and beyond is to do more of this in an open forum so that others can benefit from the information provided.

I received this question from one of the members via email a couple of days ago, and wanted to share this with you as well.

“I’m new to blogging and like much but not sure what to blog about. I have many thoughts but need to see if they are good thoughts for subject. How can I see if this is good ideas?”

I have responded to the questioner and in fact, we had a great chat via Gmail and got to know one another fairly well. They are aware of this post, but I will only include someone’s name if they request it.

Anyhow, what they were trying to do was identify a means of finding a niche without having to buy a tool or software. They wanted something that would be fun and easy, so I immediately thought about Google’s Wonder Wheel. This tool was released in May of 09, so it is not totally new, but certainly worth a look.

Now to explain how to use this free tool in a blog post using only text, would make for a really long post. So I located a great video by Zeb Olsen that explains this very nicely.

Before viewing this 7:30 video, I encourage you to ask any blogging related questions you may have as well by leaving them in the comment section below or utilizing the Contact Form of this blog at any time. There is no such thing as a “dumb question” so don’t handcuff yourself in that regard. :-)

Now on to the video.

As you can see, the free tool that Google has made available is very powerful. There is no sign-up or anything to use it, just go to Google’s search page and enter a word or term then select “show options”. You will find the wonder wheel link in the left navigation column. This is a really great way to perform some market research and all for free.

Enjoy!

Image: Flickr Creative Commons : Troy McCullough

  • http://www.freemanlegacyllc.com/ Ms. Freeman

    I’ve seen this thing and always wondered what the heck it was and what it was good for.

    Wonder Wheel the title sure makes sense.
    .-= Ms. Freeman´s last blog ..Get Paid Writing for eHow =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi Ms. Freeman.
    It’s a pretty cool tool. Take it for a spin sometime, it provides a lot of data. Good for keyword research as well.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.freemanlegacyllc.com Ms. Freeman

    I’ve seen this thing and always wondered what the heck it was and what it was good for.

    Wonder Wheel the title sure makes sense.
    .-= Ms. Freeman´s last blog ..Get Paid Writing for eHow =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi Ms. Freeman.
    It’s a pretty cool tool. Take it for a spin sometime, it provides a lot of data. Good for keyword research as well.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://pkphotography.us/ Patty Reiser

    The Wonder Wheel is indeed a useful tool. Good tutorial Jimi!
    .-= Patty Reiser´s last blog ..Digital Tutorial: Traditional Elements into Digital Scrapbook Projects =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi, Patty.
    Thanks for visiting. That Wonder Wheel has produced some ideas for me on occasion.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://pkphotography.us Patty Reiser

    The Wonder Wheel is indeed a useful tool. Good tutorial Jimi!
    .-= Patty Reiser´s last blog ..Digital Tutorial: Traditional Elements into Digital Scrapbook Projects =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi, Patty.
    Thanks for visiting. That Wonder Wheel has produced some ideas for me on occasion.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://msileanesblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/video-podcast-tutorials-ms-ileane.html Ileane

    Jimi,
    It’s great that you are sticking to your goals, it’s so easy to get off track.

    The wonder wheel is neat I hope and it’s real easy to use. Thanks for the video.
    @Ileane
    .-= Ileane´s last blog ..Build an Online Profile for Your Blog with Retaggr =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Ileane.
    You are so right about that easy to get off track. It’s a constant challenge.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://msileanesblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/video-podcast-tutorials-ms-ileane.html Ileane

    Jimi,
    It’s great that you are sticking to your goals, it’s so easy to get off track.

    The wonder wheel is neat I hope and it’s real easy to use. Thanks for the video.
    @Ileane
    .-= Ileane´s last blog ..Build an Online Profile for Your Blog with Retaggr =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Ileane.
    You are so right about that easy to get off track. It’s a constant challenge.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://justinsbrainpan.com/ Justin Matthews

    This is a cool. I found my next blog post idea on one of the spokes…This will help in so many ways, and being graphical is easy to narrow down.
    thanks for telling us about it!
    Justin
    .-= Justin Matthews´s last blog ..Seeking out the flash we want instead of the stuff we need =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Justin,
    generating some ideas for blog post from that is great.
    Blog on brother. :-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://justinsbrainpan.com Justin Matthews

    This is a cool. I found my next blog post idea on one of the spokes…This will help in so many ways, and being graphical is easy to narrow down.
    thanks for telling us about it!
    Justin
    .-= Justin Matthews´s last blog ..Seeking out the flash we want instead of the stuff we need =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Justin,
    generating some ideas for blog post from that is great.
    Blog on brother. :-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.sociatic.com/ Kwame@Sociatic

    Highly informative post Jimi. I have heard of Google Wonder wheel but never tried using it. Now I think I have to try it. Thanks for the great read. I am also considering adding Video tuts to my blog posts. It’s a good idea :) .

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Kwame, how are you friend?
    I think you will like the Wonder Wheel.
    Video tutorials are really good for detailed info and for those who learn graphically. They are also easy to assemble. ;-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.sociatic.com Kwame@Sociatic

    Highly informative post Jimi. I have heard of Google Wonder wheel but never tried using it. Now I think I have to try it. Thanks for the great read. I am also considering adding Video tuts to my blog posts. It’s a good idea :) .

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hey Kwame, how are you friend?
    I think you will like the Wonder Wheel.
    Video tutorials are really good for detailed info and for those who learn graphically. They are also easy to assemble. ;-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..How To Use Google’s Wonder Wheel to Find a Niche =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://discoveringpurpose.co.uk/ ayo

    hi jimi,
    how are you?
    thanks for this tip on the wonder wheel. i am off to fiddle with it for the next few minutes.
    i also have a few questions but I will send an email to you shortly.
    Take care
    .-= ayo´s last blog ..Useful Ways To Become DAFT!!! =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://discoveringpurpose.co.uk ayo

    hi jimi,
    how are you?
    thanks for this tip on the wonder wheel. i am off to fiddle with it for the next few minutes.
    i also have a few questions but I will send an email to you shortly.
    Take care
    .-= ayo´s last blog ..Useful Ways To Become DAFT!!! =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.theinfopreneur.net TheInfoPreneur

    Really handy post this one, linking it to my new post for you brother
    .-= TheInfoPreneur´s last blog ..Why You Need To Work With Someone Stronger Than You =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    My man!
    Appreciate the lookout, James. :-)

    [Reply]

  • http://www.theinfopreneur.net/ TheInfoPreneur

    Really handy post this one, linking it to my new post for you brother
    .-= TheInfoPreneur´s last blog ..Why You Need To Work With Someone Stronger Than You =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    My man!
    Appreciate the lookout, James. :-)

    [Reply]

  • http://leesdykstuff.blogspot.com/ Lees Shizzle

    cool Jimi I didn’t know this existed. I will definitely be doing some interations with it today to gain some more from it. It really does seem awesome. I wonder how much it will change the way searches are done in the future and if it’ll affect rankings and crawls..

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Glad you find this useful.
    I don’t know that this will have any effect on how searches are done, but this is handy for finding spin-off niches and keywords. I’ve also gotten a few blog post ideas while using the tool as well.

    Swing back and let me know your experiences with it.
    Thanks for visiting!
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..What’s Your Take on Google Buzz? =-.

    [Reply]

    Lees Shizzle Reply:

    Just spent the last two hours or thereabouts using it to research an upcoming blog post. I found it very useful. I forsee it as very helpful and , WOW may never use google search the same especially when researching articles and keywords for post. Don’t mean to over dramatize it but for me it’s Excellent. thanks again, see ya around Jimi.
    Your in the forum aren’t you? I thought I seen you there.
    Lee

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi, Lee.
    That’s great news, man. :-)
    I’m glad you found it a plus for your work. It does change the way you search for keywords and ideas.

    Yep, I’ll see you around the forum and other spots. I move around quite a bit. ;-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..What’s Your Take on Google Buzz? =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://leesdykstuff.blogspot.com Lees Shizzle

    cool Jimi I didn’t know this existed. I will definitely be doing some interations with it today to gain some more from it. It really does seem awesome. I wonder how much it will change the way searches are done in the future and if it’ll affect rankings and crawls..

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Glad you find this useful.
    I don’t know that this will have any effect on how searches are done, but this is handy for finding spin-off niches and keywords. I’ve also gotten a few blog post ideas while using the tool as well.

    Swing back and let me know your experiences with it.
    Thanks for visiting!
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..What’s Your Take on Google Buzz? =-.

    [Reply]

    Lees Shizzle Reply:

    Just spent the last two hours or thereabouts using it to research an upcoming blog post. I found it very useful. I forsee it as very helpful and , WOW may never use google search the same especially when researching articles and keywords for post. Don’t mean to over dramatize it but for me it’s Excellent. thanks again, see ya around Jimi.
    Your in the forum aren’t you? I thought I seen you there.
    Lee

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi, Lee.
    That’s great news, man. :-)
    I’m glad you found it a plus for your work. It does change the way you search for keywords and ideas.

    Yep, I’ll see you around the forum and other spots. I move around quite a bit. ;-)
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..What’s Your Take on Google Buzz? =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.giveabrick.com/ Eleanor Edwards

    Thanks for the heads up Jimmi. I’ll have to watch the vid later as I’m reading via phone right now. I’d seen some tweets about this (maybe they were links to this tutorial?!) but had no clue what it was until today.

    Many thanks again,
    Eleanor
    .-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..Are They Using This Weapon On Your 4 Year Old? =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi Eleanor.
    Thanks for checking in via mobile. Be sure to try the wonder wheel when time allows, I think you’ll find it useful for your blogging activities.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..Branding Strategy – Why You Need One and What It Can Do For You =-.

    [Reply]

  • http://www.giveabrick.com Eleanor Edwards

    Thanks for the heads up Jimmi. I’ll have to watch the vid later as I’m reading via phone right now. I’d seen some tweets about this (maybe they were links to this tutorial?!) but had no clue what it was until today.

    Many thanks again,
    Eleanor
    .-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..Are They Using This Weapon On Your 4 Year Old? =-.

    [Reply]

    Jimi Jones Reply:

    Hi Eleanor.
    Thanks for checking in via mobile. Be sure to try the wonder wheel when time allows, I think you’ll find it useful for your blogging activities.
    .-= Jimi Jones´s last blog ..Branding Strategy – Why You Need One and What It Can Do For You =-.

    [Reply]

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