The truth about niching down
6-figure agency owner spills the tea.
Introduction
Ever feel like you’re shouting into a void?
Whatever you do, you just can’t seem to reach your target clients.
You’re not alone, my friend. Every other hustler with a dream and Wi-Fi seems to be doing the same.
And here’s the kicker: most are going about it all wrong.
Let’s talk about that golden ticket in business — finding your niche.
The Whole “Niching Down” Business
A niche is a segment of the market that your product or service is intended for.
But how does segmentation work?
Well, that’s the ambiguous part.
It can be by industry, by size, by gender, etc.
The reason why everyone on the internet asks you to niche down is because it helps you to speak to your intended customers.
When you try to speak to everyone, you speak to no one.
So yes, having a niche helps when you’re relatively unknown and you don’t have deep pockets for marketing.
Sharpen the axe before you chop a tree.
When Niching Down Goes Wrong
Niching down goes wrong for a couple of reasons:
- You randomly chose a niche
- You chose a subjective niche
- You don’t have a reason why you chose that niche
Many people fail after niching down because they don’t know what to do after choosing a niche.
And that’s not your fault.
As I said earlier, the definition of a niche is ambiguous to begin with.
My Niche Saga
When I first started my web design agency, I had trouble finding clients.
And like everyone, I heard the advice of niching down.
So I did.
I decided to do branding and web design for the food & beverage industry because I love food.
I struggled to getclients for a very long time.
And I learned a couple of lessons.
First of all, the food & beverage industry was huge.
What I meant was restaurants, cafés, and bars. Not seafood suppliers or retail snacks.
So I made a fool out of myself on a couple of sales calls to learn that lesson.
Next, restaurant owners are incredibly busy.
They are often looking for people to hire, taste the food, improve the menu, or manage multiple chains at once.
They don’t spend a lot of time on social media, not even LinkedIn.
So I had no idea how to market to them.
Lastly, I had no proof or unfair advantage as to why I could help them solve restaurant-related problems with my branding and web design skills.
The competition was extremely high as there were so many freelancers and agencies around.
Ultimately, I chose to exit the niche.
How to Niche Down
Be Specific
A subjective niche will not be effective.
For example, you might be a life coach for busy founders.
The term ‘busy’ is subjective. Everyone thinks that they’re busy.
And the term ‘founders’ can refer to start-up founders, corporate founders, small agency founders, etc.
They are very different.
They face different challenges and have different lifestyles despite all of them being identified as founders.
Consider being more specific.
For example, life coaching for SaaS start-up founders.
Consider the Persona
There’s no point in choosing a particular niche if you don’t understand the buyer persona.
Say you’ve selected an industry as your niche.
For example, you want to build websites for tourism and hospitality businesses.
Who is the buyer persona in this case?
Is it the CEO, CMO, founder, or general manager?
How would you make sure that your marketing message reaches them?
If you don’t have a solid answer, then you might want to reconsider your niche.
Have Proof
This is, in my opinion, the best way to determine niche fit.
If you have proof that you have solved a problem for a niche, then you can safely say that you have a suitable niche.
For example, say you are a video editor.
But your strength shines through when you work with long-form content creators who want to expand to short-form platforms.
For instance, they want to expand from Medium to X or from YouTube to TikTok.
And you’re awesome at snipping and stitching parts of their long-form content together, getting them great results on the short-form platforms.
That’s a really niche problem which you have proof of solving.
You’ve found your niche.
Unfair Advantage
An unfair advantage is something that we all have but it’s a topic that’s not talked about enough.
Here’s an example to illustrate what an unfair advantage is.
I know a brand designer who used to work as a skincare sales promoter at a large departmental store.
His unfair advantage is that he had countless firsthand conversations with the customers.
He knows what types of packaging and branding impact sales.
By doubling down on the skincare niche, he can use his unfair advantage to strengthen his offer.
This is extremely powerful.
So take some time to think of your unfair advantages.
Conclusion
Picking a niche is simple, but not easy.
Keep it simple, keep it real, and keep your ears open to the feedback.
Don’t be afraid to acknowledge that you’re in the wrong niche.
Go with your entrepreneurial gut.
And in this big, big world, the right niche can feel like coming home.
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