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Helpful Questions and Tips on Niche Marketing
by Molly Gordon, MCC
My clients and Authentic Promotion(tm) students are surprised and delighted
to discover that a refined niche marketing strategy not only attracts
significantly more business but also provides richer opportunities for
self expression. To help you discern your own market niche, try using
"where" and "who" questions like the following:
"Where" Questions
Where do you consistently find kindred spirits?
Where are you most credible?
Where is there the greatest need coupled with the greatest appreciation
for your work?
Where do the people who need your work most often have breakdowns that
would cause them to hire you?
"Who" Questions
Who is naturally drawn to you and to your work?
To whom are the things that seem obvious to you a revelation?
Who is traveling a path that you have successfully walked yourself?
Whose language do you speak?
Whose concerns can you reliably anticipate and address?
Whom is it easy for you to serve?
Knowing and working from your strengths are essential parts of developing
your niche marketing strategy
There are probably several ways in which your strengths can add value
in the marketplace. Therefore, developing a niche is a process of exploring
several possibilities and gradually refining them.
You might think about developing a market niche as akin to planting a
garden. You start by planting lots of seeds rather close together. As
these germinate, you keep the strongest sprouts and remove the others.
As your garden grows, you will continue to thin and prune until only the
strongest and healthiest plants remain. Along the way you give away or
compost the seedlings and trimmings; nothing is lost.
As you refine your niche marketing strategy, you'll grow in integrity
and confidence. With time, you'll know with certainty which customers
are right for you, and you'll attract more of them.
Are You Afraid of Using Niche Marketing Because it May Turn Away Business?
As you refine your market niche, you may experience some anxiety that focusing
on your niche will deprive you of needed business. What do you do if
someone outside of your niche wants to hire you?
Talk to them. See how well you fit. There is nothing about a focused niche
that says you cannot work with a variety of clients. The point of a niche is
not to confine you, but to create the healthiest ecosystem for your business.
Focusing your market niche is like focusing a great searchlight that can be seen for
miles around. Your searchlight may attract people from beyond your niche
precisely because you have defined that niche.
While you always have the option of working with anyone who is attracted
by your focused niche, do beware of trying to be all things to all people. Not
only are you likely to fail at this, but you run an increased risk of coming
across as inauthentic and insincere. The cost of not
applying a niche marketing strategy is not being recognized for the offer
that you are and not having a fulcrum from which to leverage that offer for
increased effectiveness, service, and prosperity. The longer you persist in
marketing to everyone and anyone who could conceivably hire you, the
more certain it is that you will burn out, leaving yourself and your clients
or customers dissatisfied. In order to make a compelling declaration of
what you are up to, you must be willing to say "no" to those clients, projects,
and possibilities that are not well within the scope of your passion and your expertise.
It is important to look to the market to see what your prospective customers
and clients want. But look with a keen eye for how the needs and desires
of the market match your strengths, talents, and passions. Say "no"
to the opportunities that are a poor match, so that your vision and resources
can be focused on the projects and relationships that are most likely
to succeed.
About the author:
Molly Gordon, MCC, is a leading figure in business
coaching, writer, workshop leader, frequent presenter at live and
virtual events worldwide, and an acknowledged expert on niche
marketing. Join 12,000 readers of her Authentic Promotion® ezine,
an invaluable self
promotion and small business marketing resource, to grow your strong
business while you feed your soul.
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© Molly Gordon, 2006. If you'd like to republish the above article,
please read our simple reprint terms.
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Niche Marketing Index
|| Declaring an Authentic
Niche Market || Differentiating
Market Niche and Offer || Focus
on Your Niche Market Audio || Niche
Marketing Resources || Reprint
Terms for Niche Marketing Articles from AP.com
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Contact an acknowledged expert
on niche marketing Molly Gordon at:
Shaboom Inc. Life could be a dream…
PO Box 195
Suquamish, WA 98392-0195
mgordon@authenticpromotion.com
As a business coach and small
business marketing consultant, Molly Gordon, MCC, is available in Greater
Seattle Area and internationally
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