You might have heard the cliché “The Riches are in the Niches.”  It is definitely something you are hearing if you are thinking about starting a business these days. It doesn’t matter if you are looking at an online or brick and mortar business. And it doesn’t matter if it is offering a product or a service.

It doesn’t matter how often you have heard it and been told by mentors and coaches you highly respect, it still feels counterintuitive, doesn’t it?! Your inner voice is telling you that you need to have a little bit of everything for anyone that might come into your business. You sure don’t want anyone to walk out without buying something, right?

There are a few reasons why you want a narrow niche and why they will help your business in ways you never thought of. The first step is to get a clear picture of who your “ideal customer” is. This alone tells you that everyone is NOT your customer. So, when you know who the perfect customer for your business is, everything will start to fall in place. Now let’s start there.

Just Who is Your Ideal Customer?

If you had to write a description of who this person is, how much could you say about them? Are they male or female? Are they  married or single? Do they have children? How educated are they? How much money do they make? What social media platform are they on most? How do they prefer to shop- online or in person?

Depending on the kind of business you are thinking about there could be other ways to describe them. If you are in a creative business, you will want to focus in on the things that matter to them specifically.

Do yourself a favor and take a few minutes to see what you come up with. Why? Because it will help you narrow your focus to the customers who matter most to your business.

What are the benefits of narrowing your niche?

1. When you have a really clear picture on your ideal customer you will be able to talk their language in your marketing pieces and social media. This is important even in how you interact with them in person or online.
2. You will know the problem they have that you can solve. What keeps them up at night? What do they struggle finding? Once you know that you can show how your products or services can solve their problems.
3. You’ll also gain insight into the things that bring them pleasure. We know that there are two things that motivate action the most: things that cause us pain and things that cause of pleasure. If you have something that can create that sense of pleasure, in their mind or in reality, you can let them know about it.
4. This can work for you in two ways. First, you to reduce the number of SKU’s that you have to order and inventory and display. This, in turn, could allow you to deal with fewer vendors. It could do is provide you with the opportunity to go deeper in the product variety that you are offering. Your targeted market will have a wider selection to choose from.
5. Finally, when you have a clear picture of your ideal customer, you can focus your marketing and social media to exactly where they are at. No longer will you feel like you must post on every social media platform and attend events or place ads in places where they are not at.
6. You will find your business runs smoother. You will be able to track your sales and profit margin. Because of this you should also have more time to do what is important to you.

Maybe the most important reason why the Riches is in the Niches?

You become known for something. You become top of mind in your customers eyes. More importantly, you will be seen as the expert, and that can be what sets you apart from your competition.

 One last thing

The good news is that narrowing your niche does not mean that you can never offer other products or services. What it means is that once you stabilize that niche, if you choose to test another niche, you will be positioned to do that. You will know what to look for and how to launch that effectively. Yes, the riches is in the niches but it does not mean that you will be limited to just one!