Website Entrepreneurship and Investment Strategies feat. Azedine Djedid
In this insightful conversation with Azedine Djedid, we delve into the world of website entrepreneurship and investments. Azedine shares his unique approach to finding new niches, partnering with writers, creators, and building a successful online business. Join us as we uncover the secrets of his success or just watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzLull-PQKA
About Azedine Djedid
I met Azedine during SEO Mastery Summit in Saigon in 2023. Azedine Djedid stands out in the world of website entrepreneurship with his unique approach to working with people. Unlike many in the affiliate industry who may have a more transactional relationship with their team, Azedine believes in a partnership built on trust and mutual growth. He’s known to be generous with his collaborators, often engaging in 50-50 partnerships where profits are equally shared. This win-win philosophy extends to his mentoring and encouragement of team members to start their own websites and grow within the industry. His emotional connection with his team, his willingness to invest in people, and his desire to see others succeed sets him apart in a competitive field. Whether it’s helping a Venezuelan journalist find a new career path in the U.S. or pushing his account manager to start her own website, Azedine’s approach is about more than just business; it’s about human connection and shared success.
Investing in Real Estate vs Websites: A Strategic Approach
Investing isn’t confined to just one area. While many might focus on websites, there’s a broader perspective that includes real estate. Real estate is considered a stable market, and even if there’s a crash, patience can lead back to success. On the other hand, investing in websites is a more complex and riskier venture. It requires smart planning and strategic thinking.
One approach is to clone websites, especially within the same niche. By creating a duplicate structure, it’s possible to play around with keywords for both sites. Interestingly, the same article might yield different data from Google Search Console. This cloning method can gather more data than other tools can provide, offering unique insights into the market.
Building a Team: Partnership over Employment
Having a team is essential, but the relationship doesn’t have to be a traditional employer-employee one. It can be more of a partnership, where collaboration and mutual growth are at the forefront. Even writers can be part of this partnership, working together to create content and grow the business.
The fear that a writer or team member might take over the business is unfounded. They would have to learn and reach a certain level to do so, making it more beneficial for them to partner and grow together. This approach has led to a diverse team spread across countries like Spain, Italy, and France, numbering over 25 people.
Building Relationships: Beyond Business
The relationship with team members doesn’t have to be confined to work. Meeting up, sharing meals, and building personal connections can foster a more cohesive and motivated team. Whether it’s enjoying Italian lasagna with a writer or visiting team members in Spain, these connections go beyond mere business transactions.
It’s not just about money or business; it’s about building a community and a relationship that transcends the workplace. This approach not only creates a more harmonious working environment but also leads to more creativity and collaboration.
Building and Flipping Websites: A Domain-Centric Approach
Unlike many investors who buy websites, the focus here is on buying domains and building sites based on those domains. Flipping them is part of the strategy, but buying actual websites isn’t.
Choosing the Right Domain to Invest In
The decision-making process for investing in a domain doesn’t have to be complicated. Focusing on niches that are always evolving, such as the beauty and fitness sectors, can be a smart move. The beauty niche, for example, is always introducing new products like perfumes and makeup. However, it requires a lot of work to keep up with the constant changes. The key is to stick with what you know and understand the profitability of the niche.
Collaborating with Companies and Earning Commissions
Building a site can lead to requests from private companies wanting to promote their products. These companies often sell their products on Amazon, and agreements can be made to keep the Amazon commission and get an additional percentage from the company. This can lead to a total commission of 20 to 25%, plus the actual product to enhance the experience and make it more legitimate. This win-win situation can be replicated in various places, not just Amazon.
Selecting and Promoting Products
When promoting products, it’s essential to believe in them and ensure they fit the website. Some products are even tried in reality to ensure their quality. For those starting without the credibility to get products from providers, the recommendation is to start small. Buy one affordable product to review, then gradually increase as revenue grows.
Researching Products and Finding Writers
Researching products isn’t just about Google. Facebook groups and other community platforms can be goldmines for information. Engaging with these communities can lead to discovering new brands and even finding experienced writers willing to review products. If budget is a constraint, creative solutions like paying for product pictures or gathering detailed reviews from passionate users can be explored.
Expanding Content Reach: YouTube and Beyond
While Google is essential for researching content, expanding content reach requires looking beyond it. Utilizing platforms like YouTube, especially YouTube shorts, can be effective. Though these shorts are growing and converting subscribers, they haven’t shown significant signs of driving traffic to websites yet. Other platforms like TikTok are on the horizon, but careful planning is needed to separate personal and business accounts and align with each website’s unique needs.
Selecting the Right Domain for Your Portfolio
When it comes to adding a domain to your portfolio, the selection process is crucial. Here’s a look at how to pick the right domain and what to consider in the process.
Choosing the Domain: Age, Trends, and Branding
The preference is often for aged domains that are not expired, unless they are being tested for specific purposes like building PBNs. Before selecting a domain, it’s essential to look at the trend or niche to determine if it’s worth pursuing. Sometimes, a domain may catch your eye because of strong backlinks or branding potential.
Lately, a focus on branding has become more noticeable. If you check a well-performing website that hasn’t been hit by Google, you’ll often find that the backlink profile is more about branding rather than keywords. This strong signal may indicate that Google sees it as a brand, not just an affiliate site. Therefore, buying a domain based on branding is a key consideration.
Other factors to look at include whether the domain is indexed and if it has a couple of live pages on Google. Buying a domain with just one page on Google may be seen as less secure and is generally avoided.
Simple Yet Effective Approach
While the process may seem straightforward, the most simple things are often the most effective. The approach to selecting a domain is not necessarily sophisticated but is based on the specific niche you want to tackle.
Mitigating Risks in Domain Investment
When investing in domains and building new websites, treating the domains as a business rather than a hobby can help mitigate risks. Thinking every day that your business could be gone the next day pushes you to put more focus and effort into it. Especially with the increasing frequency of Google updates that can wipe out traffic overnight, treating it as a serious business is vital.
By putting time and focus into your website or niche site, you can create a more protected and risk-resistant business. The mindset of treating it as a business and being aware of the potential risks helps in building a more robust and resilient portfolio.
Dealing with Stagnant Sites and Exploring Digital Products
In the world of domain investment and website growth, not every project is destined for success. What do you do when a site is not growing, and how can you expand into areas like digital products? Here’s a look at these aspects.
When a Site is Not Growing
It’s a common scenario: you’ve bought a domain, invested time and effort, but the site simply isn’t growing. What’s the next step?
The approach here is often to leave it alone. If a domain is stuck and Google doesn’t seem to favor it, sometimes the best course of action is to move on. Even after waiting for months for Google to start crawling and sending traffic, a domain might just not work out.
While some time can be spent researching why the site isn’t growing, there are instances where the reason remains elusive. In such cases, it might be more beneficial to put that time into growing another site rather than dwelling on one that’s not working.
Creating and Selling Digital Products
One of the favorite techniques in this space is creating and selling digital products. This isn’t limited to just eBooks but extends to courses as well. For example, in a makeup niche, you might create courses on becoming a professional makeup artist. By getting into agreements with companies or local businesses that want to sell these courses, you can refer customers to them.
The approach works in various niches, such as music, where courses on playing instruments like the guitar can be sold. While you might not sell a lot, selling a few courses a month, coupled with affiliate commissions, can be a viable strategy.
Selling Templates
Another avenue to explore is selling templates. This idea was inspired by individuals who create and sell templates on platforms like Etsy. For instance, if you have a website teaching how to use Excel, you can create Excel sheet templates and sell them through an Etsy store.
Investing in Domains, Digital Products, and People
On Creating Personal Courses
When it comes to creating personal courses with one’s face on it, the decision might not always be about time but rather personal preference. Some individuals may choose not to create or sell personal courses for various reasons. For example, the investment of money in things like Starbucks and Netflix might be seen as a waste compared to investing in domains or YouTube channels. However, the lack of interest or effort from potential learners can be discouraging.
Recommended Courses and the Importance of Videos
If someone is looking to learn about creating niche websites, one recommended course might be from Matt Diggity. It’s considered valuable for teaching beginners step by step. Azedine’s personal emphasis is shifting towards videos. Whether it’s YouTube, TikTok, or other platforms, building an audience through visual content is becoming essential. Content alone might not be foolproof anymore.
SEO Audits and Core Web Vitals
Monthly SEO audits, including checking Core Web Vitals, are part of maintaining a website. While some SEOs might not regard Core Web Vitals as essential, they are vital for speed optimization. Slow-loading websites can lead to users leaving, which sends a negative signal to Google. It’s not just about pleasing Google but ensuring a good user experience. Regular checks on technical aspects like schema and speed are crucial. It relates a lot to what Alan Bleiweiss told me when I interviewed him about SEO Audits, and he mentioned CWV as well. Check it out here.
Diversifying Investments and Forecasting
Investing in different markets, niches, and countries can be a way to mitigate risks. By diversifying, if one website gets hit in a particular region, others in different areas might still be profitable. Investing offline, such as in real estate, can also be a way to protect money. In some regions, like Canada, real estate investment can be highly profitable.
Investing in People and the Creator Economy
Investing in people, especially those with potential but lacking funds, can be a rewarding strategy. Whether it’s a business related to interior design with a significant following on Instagram or partnering with small YouTube channels, investing in individuals can be a way to make money. The belief in the expansion and growth of the creator economy is strong, and investing in people who have the skills but need financial support can be a win-win situation.
Uncovering Hidden Opportunities with Wikipedia
By analyzing data from Wikipedia, including daily average views and page views, it’s possible to spot trends and opportunities that might be overlooked. One example given was the niche of “fast hiking,” a sub-niche with little competition in the English and US markets. Tools like Ahrefs can be used to explore these niches further, finding areas where there’s room to grow.
A Fair Approach to Collaboration
The idea of a 50-50 partnership, where both parties share equally in the profits and responsibilities, was emphasized. This approach fosters trust and leads to strong relationships with team members, including writers and account managers. Encouraging them to grow and even start their own websites creates a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Conclusion
Throughout our extensive conversation with Azedine Djedid, a multitude of insights were shared that shed light on various aspects of the online business world. From the importance of understanding and adapting to Google’s algorithms to the value of diversifying investments across different markets, Azedine’s experience and wisdom were evident.
A recurring theme was the significance of relationships and ethical collaboration. Whether it was a 50-50 partnership with writers or investing in people who have the potential but lack the funds, Azedine’s approach emphasizes trust, fairness, and mutual growth.
His innovative use of data, such as Wikipedia’s daily average views, to uncover hidden opportunities in niche markets, offers a unique perspective on how to stay ahead in a competitive landscape.
Furthermore, Azedine’s insights into SEO, core web vitals, and the importance of video content provide valuable guidance for anyone looking to grow a website or online presence.
His personal stories, such as helping a Venezuelan journalist grow and succeed, add a human touch to the conversation and underscore the joy of seeing others thrive.
Azedine’s multifaceted approach to business, his generosity in sharing knowledge, and his commitment to ethical practices make this conversation a rich source of inspiration and guidance for entrepreneurs, content creators, and anyone interested in the dynamic world of online business.
