Growing Your Online Business Using Niches

We have discussed starting an online business using niches that are basically holes in the market that are not covered.  But you do not have to limit using niches just to start a Detroit business consulting services.  Even if you have an already established online business, you can use niches in the market to make your business grow.

Think about your business and the customers that you service.  Is there a common complaint that the customers have?  Is another company servicing them better or are all of the customers in the same boat? 

You can pull ahead of your competition if you manage to isolate a need that customers who support your business have and then cater to that need.  When you do this, you are carving out a niche for yourself and your business in the market.  Your business will stand a bit above the rest because you are doing something that other businesses are not doing. 

As you continue to offer additional service for your existing and new customers, your business competition will most likely catch on to what you are doing and then start doing the same thing.  There are many things that you can copy and patent, but ideas do not count.  You can have an idea, be the first to implement it, but that does not stop your competitors from also doing the same thing for their customers. 

The trick to growing your business using niches is to stay one step ahead of the competition.  Never let your business grow stale.  Always be in tune with what your customers want from your business and think of different ways that you can cater to their needs. 

McDonald’s Corporation is a good example of a business that has used niches to continue to expand.  They could have stayed in business making hamburgers and fries, as this was what they were known for.  But they continued to watch trends and soon found that some people preferred to eat chicken rather than red meat.  They began making different types of chicken sandwiches and nuggets to appease their customers.  They carved out a niche in the burger industry that was soon copied by other fast food restaurants. 

Today, McDonald’s sells more chicken than KFC - quite a feat, especially when the chicken aspect of their business was merely just an example of them filing in a niche to continue to grow. 

You may not be on the same business level as McDonald’s but you have the same opportunities to allow your business to grow by following trends and looking for niches in which to further develop your business.  Do not be afraid of failing.  McDonald’s lost millions of dollars in failed marketing products that they tried in different niches, but they continue to remain the fast food giant today.  

A Niche Market Vs. A Broad Market

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So which is better?  A market that appeals to only  few people but one in which you can easily dominate, or a market that appeals to the masses but one where you are a small fish in a big sea?

The answer to this question lies in your talents and abilities.  Much has to do with what you really enjoy doing and whether or not you want to just make money or also introduce a new product to the public.

Imagine if everyone felt that it was safer to stick with tried and true marketing plans and products.  We wouldn’t have most of the products that we have now.  It is important to be diverse, have an open mind and be able to use your imagination to try different things. 

Those who are conservative when it comes to matters of business, which encompasses most of the people in the world, will most likely choose to stick with a business plan that has been proven through the ages.  They will want to sell a certain type of widget that has a good track record with regard to sales and will not be that much of a leap of faith. 

Those who are more innovative might be more inclined to sell a product that is very different and specialized.  They may not be able to reach the masses, but because their product is unique and not that many people will be selling the product, they may have a better chance of being able to market the product to their  target market.  In order to really succeed in a niche market business, you have to do the following:

·       Understand your target market

·       Understand how to reach your target market

·       Stick with the target market when starting out your business

·       Develop your brand

We can break these down one at a time so that it can be easier for anyone just starting out in such a business to understand:

Understand your target market

When you have a broad market business, your target market encompasses just about everyone.  If you have a gift basket business, for example, you have a broad target market.  Just about everyone gives gifts to people once in a while, at both the personal and business level. 

If you sell only baskets for the terminally ill, your target market is significantly reduced.  You are only interested in targeting people who have a relative or friend who is very sick and for whom they wish to purchase a gift.   You have created a niche in the market.  While anyone who sells gift baskets can make them up for someone who is sick, you have a specialty businesses that only makes up gift baskets for the terminally ill.  This will induce customers to come to you because they will believe that you can do something for them that other gift basket designers cannot.  You are a specialist in this field.  You have created a niche. 

Naturally, your target market is significantly smaller than those who would order gift baskets for any occasion.  But because you are able to concentrate on your niche, you will be able to give better service and use better marketing techniques for your target market.  In other words, you would not contact one of your customers with “exciting new and fun gift baskets.”  You would be more sedate, more sympathetic and your gifts would be more of a somber nature, as would your advertising.  This enables you to reach out to your target market in a more effective way than if you were just selling gift baskets. 

Understand how to reach your target market

While it is imperative that you know your target market, this information is useless if you do not know how to reach them.  You will have to find places where people in your target market are more likely to find you.  In the case with the gift baskets, you may discover some online sites where people are discussing how to cope with ill loved ones.  Naturally you will want to be tactful and sedate when you approach such individuals as this is a very delicate subject matter. 

No matter what your niche market, you can probably find a website that is devoted to it.  There is a website for just about everything in the world and everyone.  Do you remember the “Professor” from Gilligan’s Island?  There is a website devoted to him.  If you look hard enough, you will find probably more than one website that is dedicated to your niche market product or service. 

By joining such a website, you can then be privy to others who are more likely to be interested in what you are selling.  Take the Gilligan’s Island website, for example.  Suppose you sell stills from television shows and have a bunch of memorabilia from this television program. Going to such a site would be a better way to sell the memorabilia than to auction it on eBay, where you will have to pay a fee.  You can go right to your target market and lead them to your website.  Chances are that if they are that obsessed with Gilligan’s Island, they may be obsessed with other television series from that era, of which you can also find websites to match. 

Take a look online for websites that are devoted to something similar to what you are selling in your niche market and join the site.  You can introduce your products and your website in the forum and go right to the source.  This is one way to find your target market. 

Stick with your target market

You may be tempted, after carving out a niche, to start going into different directions.  After all, you may feel that you are missing out on some opportunities to make more money if you are only concentrating on your niche. 

The way to be successful in niche marketing online is to stick with the product or service that you are offering.  This is not to say that you can never allow your business to grow.  To the contrary, you will want your business to grow.  But you want to first establish yourself and your business firmly in your niche before you start branching off into different areas.

An example of this is the Chia Pet.  Everyone in the United States knows the Chia Pet.  It is a clay pot shaped like an animal that you spread seeds on and water.  The seeds grow and give the pot the appearance of being a wooly animal.  This kitschy gift was and still is a popular favorite around the holiday season.

The Chia Pet was introduced about 30 years ago.  It became a staple in American tradition.  Just about everyone had a Chia Pet.  It was one of the most, if not the most, useless items on the market.  The seeds grew weeds and the “pet” had to be watered.  More often than not, the item was tossed out after the weeds started dying and falling all over the place, creating a mess. 

The Chia Pet soon became an annual tradition for some folks around the holidays, creating a unique niche market.  

As the years progressed, the Chia Pet soon began to develop into different products, including the Chia Head. This was a unique niche market that did not go too far from the original market but was able to branch out.  Because of clever niche marketing, the Chia Pet continues to thrive as a favorite gift around the holidays. 

Develop your brand

You have to be able to develop your brand when you are marketing anything and this is especially true in niche marketing.  When you are developing a niche market, you will want to build a brand.  A brand similar to a trademark.  It is a special service or product that you provide and that people associate with your company. 

When you develop a niche market, you should think of how you would like the market to produce in the future. Of course your objective will be to grow the market - as it should be with any good business.  But you want to be able to grow the business in a certain direction.   You do not want to go willy nilly in every different type of direction or else you will end up just chasing your tail. 

Starting out your business is exciting, but you should also have a goal in mind when you begin.  Having a goal is an important step towards building a reliable brand.  Each step that you take in the direction of growth with your business should be one towards continuing to build upon your brand. 

Remember when you are creating a niche market that you want to stay true to your original intent for being in business.  If you are choosing a niche market, you are choosing to specialize in a certain field.  Do not be swayed into going into a different business that is more popular with the public.   Continue to persevere in the niche market and seek out your target market so that you can become a success in what you are doing. More information can be found at http://biztechmgt.com

Using Video For Your Niche Marketing

Another way that you can advertise your product online for free is to take advantage of modern technology, especially the camcorder technology and post your video on You Tube.  With a little imagination, you can create a commercial that will advertise your product an upload it onto this free internet viewing site.  You Tube is free to use and free for anyone to view. 

There are forums, ratings and a community on the You Tube site.  The same way that you can create a buzz about your business using different personas on the social networking sites, you can do the same regarding your video on You Tube.  The more people who see the video, the better off for your business.  If you have a truly unique niche market, you are bound to attract more people to your video. 

People are naturally curious about Business Management Detroit and new ideas, so they will most likely click on to the video so they can see what all the fuss is about.  Once you learn the concept of using the bandwagon marketing technique, you can create a buzz about your business just about anywhere.  The more people think that others are interested in what you are doing, the more they will be interested in it themselves.  People do not like to be left out and are quick to hop along a bandwagon.  Use this to your advantage whenever you are marketing a product, especially in a niche market. 

You Tube can be more effective than MySpace because the videos, if they are clever enough, are often e-mailed to friends and family.  Do you know those e-mails that you get that are e-mailed to 100s of people and contain the same jokes that you’ve heard since grammar school?  You can get the same effect with You Tube only your product will be something fresh and new. 

In addition to using your video on You Tube, you can also post it on your website.  Make sure that your website is exciting, fresh and that it always changes so that you can continue to keep it updated in the search engines. 

Coming Up With Niche Marketing Products For Your Online Business

If you want to have a successful online business, you should come up with some products or services that are not offered by everyone online.  By marketing these products or services, you will have carved out a niche in the online business world.  This is a recipe for a successful online business.

In order to figure out what you should sell online for your online business, you should first take a look at what is currently selling and do a study of the needs of individuals.  What are some of the products that people are selling online?  What are some of the needs for the everyday person?  How can you help them with their business?  What type of product or service would enable them to sell more or make their business run more efficiently.

One way to be successful in business is to think about the other person before you think about yourself.  If you think about how you can help other individuals, you will most likely come up with a good plan for your own internet business.  This is an old concept of thinking which still rings true today.  Think about how you can help others and your business plan will fall into place for you. 

A typical case of someone who came up with a niche business in this manner is the real estate guru.  Twenty years ago, no one knew what a real estate guru was or cared.  Today, we hear this term very often. 

A real estate guru is someone who, allegedly, has had vast experience in buying and selling real estate and in teal estate investing.  They have made their fortune in this market and now feel compelled to share their secrets with you.  For only $1,000 and up.  To understand how this is a niche market (and a very profitable one at that) you should examine the concept of this plan:

·       The internet business plan is cheap to start up.  Printing brochures and creating DVDS and audio versions of the “courses”  is simple to do and has nominal costs.  This is why we have Kinkos. 

·       The niche marketing plan targets individuals who want to get rich and quick  - using a tried and true strategy coined by Circus huckster PT Barnum

·       The concept was relatively new - teaching someone to invest in real estate?  Giving secrets of how to invest without money?  Unheard of before the 1990s.

·       Using tried and true marketing plans (the bandwagon strategy was very popular) with testimonials of those people who were down and out until they found these tapes and became millionaires overnight.  

The real estate investment guru marketing plan became a huge success overnight.   People were shelling out thousands of dollars for “investment packages” that promised them that they, too, could make a fortune overnight in the real estate market.  As a matter of fact, so many people got into the investment market that they actually created a false demand for the housing market that was contributory for the bubble bursting. 

The real estate investment niche was a valuable internet business when the internet first became popular with consumers.  But, like every other market, it soon became saturated with other real estate gurus who were also selling their ideas on how to make money in the real estate market.  Pretty soon, everywhere you turned there was someone trying to break into this market.  The real estate investment market is no longer a niche market.  Too many people are involved.  A niche market has to be something special.

Another aspect of the niche market is that it only appeals to a small segment of the population.  If you are selling how to kits on refurbishing antique automobiles, this would be considered a niche market.  It would meet all of the criteria because it only appeals to a certain segment of the population and you do not see a lot of people who are selling such kits online.  As a matter of fact, the information in this area is very limited.  Anyone who knows something about cars can find a good niche marketing business online if they put together a guide on how to fix your own car.

The two main aspects of creating a niche market business is to find something that you know quite a bit about and then sell it to those who would like to know more about the product or service. 

Niche marketing does not have to only be products that are being sold.  You can also sell services.  The real estate investing products are also a service as they teach someone how to do something that they would not otherwise know how to do. 

If you have a special service - whether it is technical or creative, you can find a niche marketing opportunity online.  A special service is anything that is above and beyond the ordinary.  If you are a traveling pet doctor, for example, this would be an example of a special service that not everyone offers.  You would want to get the word out about your traveling pet service to as many people as possible. 

Suppose you make up gift baskets for people who are terminally ill.  Not a pleasant type of business but one that is necessary and would be of use to a certain segment of the population.  Most people have no idea how to talk to someone who is terminally ill or what to give them as a gift.  Yet they obviously want to make their last days as comfortable as ever. 

Making up gift baskets for the terminally ill is a very viable niche market business.  This is not something that many people do for a career and can be a good internet business because there are not too many people doing this type of service.  Yet there is a need. 

Whenever there is a need for a service and a void in fulfilling the service, you have a niche.  It is up to you to find that niche and use it to prosper.  Again, if you concentrate on helping other people instead of just making money, you will find a better way to market your product and a more viable niche in the market as well. 

Coming up with niche products or services to sell in today’s internet market is not difficult if you exercise a little imagination and are very much in tune with what is going on in the world today.  Before you come up with an idea, take a look around and see what the current needs are in the market.  See who is fulfilling the needs (if anyone) and try to figure out a way that you can fulfill those needs for individuals.  When you think about the internet business as a way to help others , you will have more success in the niche market or any other type of market than if you just think about ways to help yourself.

Use your imagination as well as your natural talents to see what you an do to help others with their businesses or products online.  Do you have a marketing plan that is unique and where you can promise to reach more people than ever?  Are you tech savvy and understand how to incorporate codes into products to make them more marketable?  Do you know how to write copy for press releases or other types of marketing vehicles?  Are you familiar with trends to the point where you an offer consulting services?  All of these can be considered niche markets. 

In order to understand niche markets, you have to have a good handle on the market today.  Once you are aware of the current internet market situation, you can speculate on where it is going and where it is likely to be in the future.  This is when you can create a successful niche market for yourself. 

There is nothing more rewarding than working for yourself.  It is more than just not having someone to answer to - as a matter of fact, that assumption is false - you always have someone to answer to if you are a good business person - your customers.  It is more about the idea of being able to be financially rewarded for your own ideas and hard work.  In order to create a successful internet business, look into yourself for your talents and strengths and seek to carve out a successful niche market for yourself.   We also provide Detroit Business consulting services on discounted prices.