The world of business has changed and evolved over the years as technology has created new ways for advertisements to reach customers. The end result is hopefully increased profits for the business owner, since the main goal of business hasn’t changed.
Marketing strategies have grown more sophisticated as well. Every business is in search of the right customer for their product. Large companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars each year developing new products and conducting market research.
Small businesses also need to know where to market their products or services. With considerably less money than a big corporation, successful marketing strategies can mean the difference between staying afloat and taking a nose dive.
One tool in the marketing arsenal is niche marketing. The principle strategies of this tool make niche marketing adaptable to the small business owner looking to turn a profit and the larger corporation that wants to increase their market share. Every customer is looking for something and the trick is to find out what that is and provide the product or service for them. In today’s economy, no one wants to waste their money. But, they will spend money for the items they want and need.
What is a Niche Market?
Have you ever perused a store looking for something to solve a problem? It could have been a stubborn stain in your carpet or a bothersome cold. You know what you need but have a hard time finding it. Sometimes you simply wish someone would create exactly what you are looking for. You’d even invent it yourself if you could. That is where niche marketing can be of great help to the customer. What if someone were to provide what you needed?
A niche market is a smaller group of individuals that have a specific need for a product or service that hasn’t been met. To take advantage of the opportunity to reach this specialized group of customers is the goal of niche marketing. But, you must identify what the group needs before you can strive to provide it.
While there are many niches that remain untapped, all of them are not profitable. You can promote a stain remover for stubborn carpet stains but if only 100 people need that remover, you won’t make much money. So, simply identifying the niche is not the end, but the beginning. Studying its viability is also important.
This group of individuals can be linked in many ways. How they are linked is the key to discovering a new niche market. The want of the product is not the niche but social class, race, economic level, background, gender and religion to name a few.
Once you have found the customers, it is your job to provide a quality product or service to them. Meet their expectations and you’ll begin building a solid customer base. What any business wants are customers who will stick with them through thick and thin. A loyal customer is a customer for life.
Why do niche markets go untapped? Part of the reason has to do with perception. Niche markets are small and well defined. When most business owners think of small they envision shrinking profits and that is not the way they want to go.
The thought here is akin to how old fashioned fishing boats would cast their nets. If you cast a large net over a wide enough space, you have the opportunity to catch more fish. A product that appeals to a broad market is more feasible than putting time and effort into pinpointing the exact location of one school of fish. Do you get the idea?
A larger business might not see the logic of going after a more specialized market. That is great news for you as a small business owner because what falls through the net is free for the taking. A small business owner could do quite nicely on a million in sales from a newly discovered niche market.