Niche Focus vs. Broad Reach

“What does it mean to ‘niche your way’ to online business success?”

I was asked by a lady subscriber that had decided to operate a home-based business, what it meant to “niche your way” to a business fortune.

I didn’t ask her where she picked up that phrase, but I have a good idea it was something said in an ad or a “how to” article somewhere online associated with running a business in today’s environment.

It’s a pretty trite expression these days, but the concept is still relevant and should be the basis of most every solo information business, in my opinion.

This subscriber’s question took me back a bit – I guess I just assumed that everyone knew what a niche business was and that it was pretty much a “given” for today’s highly segmented business market.

The fact that this soon-to-be new business owner didn’t understand the concept (or at least didn’t know what the phrase referred to) got me thinking that she really needed some help quick.

I asked her what her business was going to sell and how she was going to generate income.

She had a plan to sell some of her family favorite “hand me down” recipes and she figured she’d do that by marketing a cookbook (it sounded more like a simple recipe directory of instructions to me) on eBay and from her own web site.

She further confided that the recipes were so good it would be impossible for her book to not be a hit.

OK.  She didn’t ask for my continued help or advice, so I simply answered her question (at that point) about the term “niche business” and suggested she continue to visit this blog for further DIY help in her new business.

Now I don’t know what your reaction to this lady’s plan or product is, but mine was one of wonder. I wondered how she had decided to go into business in the first place, and how she would do in the very competitive and segmented “cooking” and recipe environment online.

One of the most difficult lessons to learn as an entrepreneur is that there are very few perfect customers for your business. This woman felt that “everyone” would want what she was offering.

I have noticed that some markets are difficult to monetize and recipe sales was one of them.  That’s not saying it can’t be done, but with all the social sharing and free sites handing out recipes right and left, it seemed to me she would have a real uphill battle to sell  her recipes for any significant income.  Maybe I’m wrong … it wouldn’t be the first time!

She had a “shotgun” mindset that she would just blast away without much thought of aiming at a very select or specific target group of customers.  Nor did she seem to go after any particular sub-category of recipes … a big mistake most likely.

Online, there is no greater flaw to a business approach than to try to sell something to everyone.

Very few entrepreneurs, in my experience, ever go deep enough in their niche to become really successful. There is a natural tendency to want to keep your prospect pool as large as possible.

But believe me, it is possible to make a good living on just a few loyal and passionate customers willing to pay a healthy amount for your products and/or services.  Additionally, most of us marketers underestimate the global reach of the Internet and the fact that new prospects are coming online every day.

By focusing on the narrowest of market segments, you increase your probability of success since you are:

• identifying very exactly whom you will best be able to match your products or services to,
• reducing the number of “tire kickers” and marginally interested prospects as you hone in on the “ready, willing, and able” buyers in your specific targeted market,
• providing a very specialized offering, one that is tailor-made for your prospective customers,
• reducing the amount of work you’ll have to do in keeping track of your prospects, answering customer questions, and following up on concerns. You will have more time available to do marketing and create new products if you spend less time on customer support since there are fewer customers to begin with and they are more apt to be satisfied with your product.
• focusing on the few places these perfect customers can be found online. The more specialized and targeted your audience, the easier it will be to locate them and subsequently make contact with them.
• confining your efforts to mostly unique and very specific products. You won’t have to satisfy everyone with a product offering, but can concentrate on developing something that is specific to just a certain narrow audience.

So my advice to any new entrepreneur is to get as specific and narrow in on your business niche as much as you possibly can. Considering the reach and global nature of the Internet, there will still be more than enough prospects for you to sell.

Here’s one more reason to drill down into a niche that many have not considered:  you will eliminate the “heavy hitters” in your marketplace that thrive of selling to the masses!  The Amazon’s and Walmart’s of the world won’t be your direct competition because you will have very specialized (and most likely “custom”) products that are very specific.  Solo entrepreneurs need to pick their battles and not try to compete with the heavy hitters who “stack it deep and sell it cheap!”

To your online business success,

Steve Browne

www.SteveBrowneDirect.com