In the small business world, finding a niche has become quite a talking point, with many business owners spending countless hours, researching and developing their business strategy in order to create their own niche, one that is not only in line with the company goals, but one that can also help reach the targeted audience.
But what is a niche?
A niche is a focused, targeted segment of the market, perfect for businesses who are providing specialist products or knowledge, that cater to a specific need and can’t often be addressed by more mainstream businesses. A niche website or niche business often caters to a much more specific audience and while this often gains minimal exposure, niche businesses can be highly profitable.
Understanding the niche allows business owners to identify the needs of their potential audience or target audience, helping them generate new ideas and new products, as well as allowing them to develop tailor their communication with audiences to increase engagement.
What is niche marketing?
Niche marketing is defined as:
“A targeted marketing plan that focuses on one particular section of the market that has high potential to connect with a product or service.”
The Advantages Of Niche Marketing
There are plenty of advantages of niche marketing, many of which can help small and niche businesses a number of opportunities to take themselves to the next level, let’s take a look at the biggest advantages.
Less Competition
The more specific or specialist a product or service, the less competition is likely to be out there, making it easier to create a targeted marketing strategy. If you’re looking to sell a product such as trainers, which takes up a larger percentage of the market you’ll struggle against major players, however, a more specific product will need less effort to market since it’s likely competing against fewer companies.
Brand Loyalty
With less competition available, audiences are more likely to choose a brand that offers the products or services they require and stick with that brand, depending on how great their experience is with that brand of course. After searching through mainstream companies and general products having found a relevant service, this encourages brand loyalty, ensuring audiences will continue to come back time and time again.
Spending Less On Marketing
As businesses are aiming at a smaller, more specific section of the market, they don’t have to invest as much of their budget into marketing products or services. With more general products or services, it’s likely that businesses will invest more money which doesn’t guarantee results, however with niche marketing brands are likely to invest less, yet reach an audience who will respond and even convert, offering cost-effective marketing and a higher ROI.
The Disadvantages Of Niche Marketing
For the most part, niche marketing is very advantageous, however, there are a few downsides, let’s take a look at them,
Limited Growth
Unfortunately, due to the very definition of a niche, niche marketing can be limiting and too defined, which can affect how many opportunities there are for businesses to grow. Depending on how specific a niche business is, it can be hard to reach out to new audiences or larger audiences, ultimately impacting how you grow.
Competition Can Be Ruthless
While there is likely less competition, the competition that does exist is much more ruthless and it can become a little bit too competitive out there, especially for those who lack the experience and skills needed to successfully market their niche business. It’s good to be cautious when dealing with niche marketing and even better to speak to an expert if possible in order to stop you from getting too frustrated with the results.
Niche marketing isn’t fixed so it’s important to keep aware of the possible opportunities that present themselves when creating your niche marketing strategy.
If you need a little extra help with promoting your niche business or with your niche marketing, contact our team today!
