Evaluate whether a keyword/topic is a profitable KDP publishing niche. Based on the 3-step validation framework from Sean Dollwet, Dale Roberts, and Dave Chesson (175 episodes distilled in Kings of Kindle).
Usage
/niche-scout beekeeping for beginners
/niche-scout "anxiety management"
/niche-scout claude code AI coding assistant
Workflow
Step 1: Amazon Keyword Volume (DataForSEO)
Run the keyword volume script to get Amazon search volume and related keywords:
python3 ~/.claude/skills/niche-scout/scripts/keyword-volume.py "$ARGUMENTS"
This returns:
- Amazon search volume for the seed keyword + 9 variations
- Related keywords with volume (up to 20)
- Use these to assess demand and identify series potential (10-keyword strategy)
Demand threshold: Seed keyword should have 200+ monthly Amazon searches. Related keywords reveal series opportunities.
Step 2: BSR Analysis (Apify Amazon Scraper)
Run the BSR scraper to get Best Seller Rank for top books:
python3 ~/.claude/skills/niche-scout/scripts/bsr-scraper.py "$ARGUMENTS"
This runs two Apify calls:
- Search results — gets titles, prices, ratings, ASINs for top 20 books
- Product details — gets BSR, publisher, categories for top 10
Wait for both to complete (typically 30-90 seconds each).
Step 3: Score the Niche
Apply Sean Dollwet's BSR benchmarks to the scraped data:
| Metric | Target | Scoring |
|---|---|---|
| Books under 5,000 BSR | No more than 5 of top 20 | >5 = too competitive |
| Books under 30,000 BSR | Most or all of top 20 | Sweet spot for new publishers |
| Books under 100,000 BSR | At least 7 of 10 | Minimum viable demand |
| Self-published on page 1 | At least 2-3 | Proves indie can compete |
| Search results count | Under 3,000 | Lower = easier to rank |
Self-published detection signals:
- Publisher = "Independently published" or "Independently Published"
- Price $2.99-$4.99 range
- Keyword-heavy title (exact match of search term)
- Stock/template cover design
Step 4: Check All Three Platforms
A keyword that's weak on Kindle might be strong on paperback or audiobook:
| Platform | Good BSR | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Kindle eBooks | Under 50,000 | Most competitive; most publishers start here |
| Paperback | Under 100,000 | Higher royalties; reference/cookbooks do better |
| Audiobook (Audible) | Under 100 search results | Least competitive; under-served in most niches |
Step 5: Generate the Report
Output a structured niche report with:
- Keyword volume table — seed + related keywords with Amazon search volume
- BSR table — top 10 books sorted by BSR with publisher, self-pub flag
- Benchmark scorecard — pass/fail on each Dollwet criterion
- Estimated daily sales — using BSR-to-sales conversion (see reference/bsr-sales-table.md)
- Competition signals — weak covers, bad titles, low reviews = beatable
- Series potential — can you find 5-10 related keywords for a book series?
- Verdict — VIABLE / BORDERLINE / TOO COMPETITIVE / DEAD
Step 6: Hot vs Evergreen Assessment
Classify the niche:
- Hot topic: Trending, short window, fast cash if you move quickly
- Evergreen: Steady demand year-round, compounds over time
- Seasonal: Predictable spikes (gardening in spring, etc.)
The ideal portfolio mixes both. Check Google Trends for seasonality patterns.
Niche Selection Checklist (from Ch 2)
Before committing to a niche, ALL boxes must check:
- Demand confirmed: Multiple books in top results have BSR under 100,000
- BSR sweet spot: Most of the top 20 books fall between 10,000 and 30,000
- Competition beatable: No more than 5 books under 5,000 BSR in top 20
- Self-published proof: At least 2-3 self-published books selling well on page 1
- Weak spots visible: You can identify covers, titles, or descriptions you can beat
- Multi-platform potential: Checked Kindle, paperback, and audiobook
- Search results count: Under 3,000 (lower = better)
- Series potential: Can identify 5-10 related keyword variations
- No trademark issues: Keywords don't include trademarked terms
Reference Files
- For BSR-to-sales conversion: see reference/bsr-sales-table.md
- For tool comparison: see reference/tools.md
- For the full keyword workflow: use
/keyword-fillafter niche is validated
Tool Dependencies
- DataForSEO — Amazon keyword volume + related keywords (credentials in ~/.zshrc or hardcoded)
- Apify — Amazon product scraping for BSR, publisher, categories (APIFY_TOKEN in env)
- Python 3 with
requestslibrary
Related Skills
- keyword-fill — Fill the 7 Amazon keyword boxes (run AFTER niche is validated)
- book-architect — Generate outline + title/subtitle (run AFTER niche + keywords)
- listing-optimizer — Write description + select categories
- deep-research — For deeper market analysis on borderline niches
- seomachine — For Google keyword data (complements Amazon data)