What methods do you use to search for "niche" affiliate programs... meaning little competition, good amount of searches and good money per sale. For a long time I just thought of any and every product I could, checked the allinanchor in google, if that wasn't really high I'd check the searches/day.. if that looked promising I'd search for an affiliate program for it.
I do it the otherway round: pick out several affiliate programs, then check the competition and see if anyone is worth promoting
Andy William's http://niche-blueprints.com/ * is very helpful - each month he releases two reports containing lists of keywords (with KEI & count), suggested affiliates, and suggested "niche within a niche" for niches. He limits each report to 100 sales. It costs $50, but it will show you one man's thinking process for this. *not an affiliate link
well you should always with keyword search first. Pick an offer of interest and do keyword search. Find the volume and look at the competition and go form there.
the only time i run an offer via search engines is one when i get a heavy keyword for the niche that "one track of thought affiliates" aren't using. I then bank on that keyword until I kill the offer then move on.
Check out www.marketleverage.com (aff. link in my sig. if you're feeling generous) and once you're approved have a chat to your Publisher Manager. They are sure to point you in the right direction.