A jack-of-all-trades is a master of none.
Have you ever heard this phrase before?
Small businesses frequently hear the advice that they should “niche down” and specialize in one product or service or one target market versus offering a wide array to an ocean of people.
This popular opinion is based on several benefits of niching down like:
- Being able to be a true specialist in one thing
- Streamline your marketing message
- Make your internal systems and processes more efficient
- Be more cost-effective with your customer acquisition expenses
- Set yourself apart from your competition
Niching down certainly isn’t for everyone, though, especially new entrepreneurs who are still identifying what they are best at and who they want to serve.
But for those of you who have found your sweet spot, I’m here to give you some unique strategies to market to your niche audience.
Ready for some actionable ideas to get you in front of your ideal client? Let’s dive in.
What is a Niche Marketing Strategy?
First of all, what is a Niche?
A niche is a particular audience where you offer a specific product or service for that segment of the market.
For example, a good niche for a mortgage lender might be VA loans serving the veteran community. Another example might be a chiropractor niching down to exclusively serve athletes.
Niche marketing is where you channel all your efforts to sell to that particular group of customers.
When you market towards a broad audience, you might have multiple tactics, messages, and strategies to speak to multiple customer groups. You are only speaking to one group of people at a time with niche marketing. Now you can be more specific with your marketing strategy and message.
An effective niche marketing strategy involves being present where your target audience spends their time, and having an attuned message to capture their attention. You want your target audience to know that you serve them and serve them exclusively.
5 Niche Marketing Examples
This is easier said then done, though, right?
That’s why I’ve prepared 5 unique marketing strategies to get you in front of your target niche customer. As a bonus, several of these ideas give you multiple pieces of marketing material. These can benefit your overall online presence and search engine optimization.
1. Attend Trade Shows and Conferences
If you want to get in front of a specific group of people, what better way than to meet a large group of them, all in the same place, all at the same time? Attending industry-specific trade shows can be an excellent marketing tactic to stage an introduction and shake hands with your next customer. Secure a booth at the event and make sure you have awesome swag, appealing banners, a way to get them on your email list, and plenty of business cards to pass around. You can also strategically attend the event and network with the community during lunches, afterparties, or in between activities.
2. Create Value-Based Content Marketing
Create content that your audience will care about. List problems they may have. What are trending topics they want to know about in their space? Do you have advice do you have to share, given your experience serving their market?
Generate some ideas and turn those into blog posts, email newsletters, social media posts, and even lead magnets.
Creating an eBook or downloadable PDF with value-filled ideas that will help your client succeed in their space can be incredibly persuasive for your target audience to sign up for. Once they provide you their email address, you can then continue to nurture them via email marketing.
This specific content will not only speak directly to your target audience, but it will also give you plenty of material to market organically on social media for example. Also, if you optimize your blog posts for SEO, that can be valuable content to help your site rank on search engines.
3. Write Guest Articles in Industry-Specific Publications
Don’t just save all the great content for your own platforms–pitch your content to industry-specific publications and magazines that your target audience reads. For example, if you serve business owners, perhaps they read magazines like Entrepreneur or Harvard Business Review. If you serve moms, target blogs and magazines that serve the same audience.
This is a unique PR marketing strategy and will take a very specific approach to get featured in prominent publications. You may want to target easier publications first to build up a report, then go after the big fish.
This marketing strategy is also fantastic for SEO, as you can often acquire backlinks by getting featured in a variety of places. Not to mention, you are positioning yourself as an expert and authority in your space. Google cares heavily about expertise and authority when deciding how to rank websites online.
4. Be a Guest On Industry-Specific Podcasts
Following the same PR thought process, you can also pitch yourself to be a guest on industry-specific podcasts or radio shows. Research some platforms that speak to the same audience and offer your expertise to be a guest on their show. For example, if you serve the health and wellness community, find shows that discuss healthy living lifestyles, nutrition, fitness, mindset, etc.
On your episode, share a valuable tip or perspective, then at the end, most hosts will allow you to plug your business name and information into the episode or the show notes.
After you’re done, you not only have had an opportunity to speak directly to your niche customer, but you now have a pretty cool piece of marketing material.
5. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
SEM is a mix of organic search engine optimization and paid ads. For some industries, search engine marketing can be INCREDIBLY effective in getting niche traffic to your website. If your customer is searching in Google, and you show up on page 1 in the organic search results and in a paid ad spot, your customer will likely click on your site and start the buyer journey.
This strategy, however, depends on one thing above all: people searching. If you have a super niche product or service that people don’t know about, then they won’t be searching online for it. You always want to check things like keyword volume when you are thinking about this strategy. This makes sure that there are people searching for you, and that this is a viable marketing strategy.
What You Need In Place If You Want to Niche Down
Now that we reviewed several ways that you can market to your niche audience, there are a few very important things you need to have in place if you want to get more sales. These marketing strategies will not be as successful if you don’t have the following.
A Deep Understanding of Your Target Audience
First, you must have a truly deep understanding of who your target customer is. This foundational understanding will tell you where to market, how to market, and to whom you are serving.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Who are they?
- What do they care about?
- What keeps them up at night?
- Why does your service or product make their life better?
- Where do they spend their time?
The answers to these questions will let you start to figure out which publications you want to be featured as a guest author in. You’ll also see which marketing platforms you should be spending your time on, and how to structure your marketing message so that it persuades your customer to buy.
Strong Brand Identity
If you have declared your niche, DECLARE YOUR NICHE. Say it loud and say it proud. Make sure your customers KNOW that you serve them. Check that you have a strong business name, logo, tagline, and overall brand identity that captures who you are and who you serve.
Consistent Online Presence & Marketing Message
Finally, make sure that your online presence is cohesive with your niche market and your brand identity. Make sure your website is up to date and optimized for conversions. Confirm you have persuasive copy throughout your marketing. Check that you have the same fundamental feeling and message across everything you do. So no matter if your target client meets you at a trade show, reads your blog post, or finds your website, they can recognize your brand voice.
Successful Niche Marketing Strategies
Marketing looks different for every small business, and even more so if you’ve niched down and serve a unique group of customers. Take these niche marketing ideas and see what works for you! You can even do competitor research to see if your competitors are following suit.
If you want more ideas on how to market your business, be sure to subscribe to this podcast.
Until next time, keep succeeding small.
