Niche marketing is one way to increase your business profits. If done right, it will open up a new area of products and/or services that will benefit you as well as your customers. However, before diving right in, don’t forget to do your homework.
Niche marketing seems to be the hottest topic on everyone’s lips right now. It sounds so exciting to tap into an as yet untapped market and make millions of dollars. Don’t be fooled. Someone may hit the mother lode but it is not the norm for every business. And, they didn’t do it by luck.
Researching your potential niche market gives a global picture of the chances of success for your idea. Remember that your idea could be the idea of someone halfway around the world as well. The difference will be how you go about checking out that idea and how you interpret the results.
With so many websites and new online businesses starting every day, it is a wonder that there are any new markets to tap. But, there are. Finding them is the key and this takes time and patience.
One way to see if your idea is viable is to use the Internet. We all use search engines to find what we are looking for. Search for items that fit the profile of what you want to sell. It is always practical to check out the competition.
If you get thousands of search results, this is probably too broad an idea to use. It has already been worked over by others. The chances of your business idea hitting pay dirt are not very good. However, the search results can be used to see exactly what angle they are marketing to.
When researching your niche, use as many search engines as you can. Using just one as your guiding light will give you false results. Also, you may find websites in other search engine results that you didn’t find in the first one you tried.
The idea you have chosen doesn’t have to be chucked away in the trashcan. Use it and refine it so that it zeros in on a more specific target than before. This is what research is all about. Can you imagine if you left out this step and went with your first idea? The results would probably have been mediocre to disappointing if making lots of profits was the goal.
Without the research component, starting a business in that market is like searching for a needle in a haystack. For your dollars, you want to be sure that you are hitting the target. Even if you already have a business idea and are looking for ways to expand, treat niche marketing like starting from scratch — put in the time to find out if your idea is sound.
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Really enjoyed your article and great tip on utilizing multiple search engines when researching. I look forward to reading future articles.
Matt I’m glad you found some value from the blog post. I’m looking forward to future comments.
Also, put some thought into if this market would be a subset that you would enjoy working with. Are they a group you relate to? Do you feel joy in serving them? It may be a niche, but is it a niche you will enjoy for the long haul?
Good points Wendi. Thank you.
I also liked your suggestion to use multiple search engines. But I need help figuring out which/what they are. Google and Dogpile are the only two I know. Might you suggest some others? Thanks for keeping us on the path to narrow our niche! best, Angela
Angela you may want to consider Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo and Blekko as some other general search engine options. I hope that helps.
Yes, the research must be done. And for the last 7 years of my business it is still the bane of my existence to figure out. I am tech savvy enough to run a business and use social media and my web site well, but that is about it. I need help doing the rest and making sense of the google analytics or my eyes just roll back in my head!
Good points all around, Wanda. Not only do we advise clients research their niches for business, but we tell our author clients to do this as well. Whether you’re writing fiction or non-fiction, you have to know your market AND what the competition is doing. It effects everything from your cover right down to the content inside the book.
Wanda, you are so right in saying that it takes time to suss out and determine who exactly your niche IS! And I think it also shifts a bit as we grow and learn. Great reminders, thanks!
Know your market, know your market, know your market! 🙂 Great points Wanda – I’ve never even heard of DuckDuckGo or Blekko! I’ll be checking them out!
Many great points, Wanda. Thank you.
One more suggestion is to think of all the possible questions you could ask someone who is experienced in your niche, narrow them down to the ten best, and ASK 10 people to share their experience. You can grow your business faster and save a year or two of learning by doing this.
Excellent advice Elizabeth. Thanks for your input.
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