We talk to entrepreneurs every day who have the widest possible range of business ideas.  Some are exceptional, some are imaginative (in the extreme).

We don’t shy away from exotic ideas.  After all, you never know what might become a trend until you put it out there.

But one thing we are cautious about is “me too” offerings, which are product lines where there is already a great deal of competition.  We often have to curb expectations for people who think they’re going to compete with Amazon or Apple.  Your custom printed t-shirts may be pretty cool, but let’s face it:  there are a lot of t-shirts for sale out there.

“Me too” offerings are missing the quality of having a niche.  A marketing niche means that you have a specialized offering that’s targeting a specific audience.  It also means you have a value proposition that clearly distinguishes you from your competition.

Our marketing consultants use the word niche a lot – and with good reason.  Having a niche product/market is one of the keys to marketing, particularly with eCommerce.  In certain verticals, you must have a niche to have any chance of success.

The right niche lends itself to better content and sales copy, easier audience targeting, and more customer loyalty.  Then, as you delight people, word spreads.  Your market share grows.

Case Study:  Spray Tan Business in California

Marketing 360® has a spray tan client that is a great example of a niche offering.

She offers:

• All natural, organic spray tans that are the safest way to achieve a glowing, tanned look.
• A fragrance, oil, and alcohol-free product.
• Mobile service so you can get your spray tan at home.

Sunless tanning is more popular today because of skin cancer fears, but this is still a niche audience.

One area where niches are advantageous is keyword targeting for search marketing.  This business focuses its keyword targeting on two words:  “spray” + “tan”.

When you target your keywords that specifically, it’s much easier to reach the right audience.

Niche products also lend themselves much better to content creation.  Take, for example, this superb headline:

With a niche product, you get stronger word choice that connects to the benefits of the product.  Often, “me too” offerings are awash in wimpy generalizations and overused cliches.

A niche offer, by its nature, does something the competition doesn’t.  This spray tan business offers the unique value of being mobile so her clients can get their spray tan done in privacy.   That’s a nice offer which is clearly working for her.

The Marketing Executive, Natalie, loves working with her because niche offerings with a crisp value proposition make her job easier.

This spray tan business is now ready to hire more people and get a physical location.  Word has spread and they’re not quite so niche anymore, but that’s perfect because they have the best position in the market.

Minimum Viable Audience

Most people new to marketing think they want to reach the maximum audience.  They want to be seen by millions, make a big splash, and earn tons of money.

But when you start out trying to reach a mass audience, you have to dumb down your message.  You’re forced into average.  By trying to please everyone, you delight no one.

It seems counter-intuitive, but when you have a niche offer you’re actually seeking out the smallest viable audience possible.  This is the smallest audience that can sustain you and that you can serve well.  You want to target the people who will really love your product – like our spray tan business.

Then the magic happens.  People start posting about you on Facebook and Instagram.  Their clients get compliments on their healthy glow, and they let their friends in on their secret.

You build a small but loyal customer base that are true fans of your product.  Eventually, you may start to move into a bigger market space.  But since you created it, you can control it.

Niche marketing lets you control your message and ensure high-quality delivery of your product to the people who will love it the most.

It’s where most major brands started.  Start from the ground up, and build it to last.

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*Results are based on past client performance. Individual account performance may vary. Results are not guaranteed.