In case you haven’t heard it enough from me, niches work! A niche – a group of prospects within a common demographic – has common needs. When you know the needs of a specific niche, it becomes easier to market to them instead of spreading yourself too thin to meet the needs of every potential prospect.
As well, niches can mean more business because “birds of a feather flock together.” People hang out with others just like themselves so if you become the “go-to” person who markets to (for example) spanish-speaking Americans over 60, then there’s a good chance you can get MORE customers by limiting your prospect base. (The thinking goes, when one person in your niche asks another, “where can I get this widget?” your happy customer says, “XYZ Widgets sells really good ones specifically to people like us.”).
Here are 5 niches that can make you money if you can understand that niche’s needs and find the right products to meet those needs.
1. Women. Women are gaining ground every day by shattering the glass ceiling that (unfortunately) still exists in corporate America. Even though they haven’t yet overcome all of the obstacles, they’re making headway. At the same time they are responsible for the majority of the family’s purchases: The reality is that most women are still shopping for groceries and are partners with their spouse in the decision-making on major purchases (like a house or car). Women have more money than ever before and more buying power. If you are looking for a direction to take in your niche marketing, consider slicing your niche in half and marketing only to women.
2. Pet Owners. Pet owners spend an unbelievable amount of money on their pets: from gourmet food for kitty to doggie-bed and breakfasts, pets have their owner’s wallet on a leash. Sites like http://www.barkavenuejewelry.com prove that people are willing to spend their money on the four-legged member of their family. There are plenty of businesses that can – with some modification – market themselves to the owners of pets in order to get a loyal following.
3. Disabled Persons. Attitudes are changing about people with disabilities. They are a tight community and many have money to spend. They want the same things as everyone else and because they sometimes have to work harder to get them, you can be sure that this niche is loyal and highly referring. Offline stores can offer their products to people with disabilities with convenient, accessible parking and wheelchair ramps. Online stores can create sites that are friendly to visually-impaired customers with larger font options or a talking head from a site like www.sitepal.com.
4. Native Americans. Native Americans are a huge niche unto themselves and they are building businesses and enjoying success like never before. If you’d like to narrow your niche even further, consider marketing to Native American business owners’ who (according to a government poll in 1997, found at www.census.gov/prod/ec97/e97cs-6.pdf ), own 197,000 businesses and generated over 34 billion dollars in revenue.
5. Eastern Europeans. Eastern Europe has long been ignored by businesses for a variety of reasons. The Cold War, major neighbors (Russia, the EU, and the Middle East) who seem to eclipse them, and political upheaval, has left Eastern Europe off the entrepreneur’s horizon. However, economists put Eastern Europe right after India and China in terms of growing economies worth investing in. Problem is, everyone’s rushing to India and China and that leaves a big gaping hole for a bright business to fill. Is it you?
