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Standing Room Only - Should You Steer Clear of Crowded Niches?
| Guest post by: Traci Hayner Vanover |
Article Overview: The key to surviving in a crowded niche is focus. You need to focus on a particular portion of the niche. Maybe there is an area where your competitors are lacking. Focus on identifying the weaknesses in your competition, and make them your strengths.
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Free Download - Developing Marketing Street Cred Part 8: The Right Tools for the Job By Traci Hayner Vanover |
Standing Room Only - Should You Steer Clear of Crowded Niches?
Repeat after me, "Lots of competitors means lots of money." Now, repeat it again. I really want to drive this point home.
Still don't believe me? I'll give you an example.
Tennis shoes, athletic sneakers, cross-trainers...whatever you want to call them. There is often an entire wall devoted to the selections at most department stores - and even more options if you check out one of the large sporting goods chains. You could quite easily go into option overload while pondering the choices.
Even so, there are more superstar athletes hawking brands all the time, and all of the major brands crank out new styles several times a year. Is the LeBron James shoe really better than the Tony Romo shoe? Probably not - but they aren't going after the same customer anyway.
Crowded market? Absolutely. Room for strong players? You bet!
The key to surviving in a crowded niche is focus. You need to focus on a particular portion of the niche. Maybe there is an area where your competitors are lacking. Focus on identifying the weaknesses in your competition, and make them your strengths.
Let's look at another example - the chocolate bar. Reese's® built their reputation on the peanut butter cup. They could have easily become a one-hit wonder, but you know what? They took that strong foundation, and they built an empire on it. Survey your local supermarket's check out line and you'll see that Reese's has quite a few selections that have spun off from the humble peanut butter cup.
Reese's® didn't try to become all things chocolate. They remained true to their niche (folks who love chocolate and peanut butter), and they built upon it. So whether it's Easter, Halloween, Christmas or the second Tuesday in August - there is a Reese's® product that is just perfect for that occasion. It wasn't rocket science, just clever marketing. The holiday versions of their peanut butter cup aren't different - they're just turned into holiday-specific shapes, and packaged in colorful and festive wrappers.
So, what does all this mean to you? Well, it's simple, really.
First, do your niche research. When the choice is between standing room only or an empty coliseum, the choice is simple. And second, always remember this simple truth - within that stadium there are lots of feet, and lots of hungry mouths to feed.
Related ArticlesStill don't believe me? I'll give you an example.
Tennis shoes, athletic sneakers, cross-trainers...whatever you want to call them. There is often an entire wall devoted to the selections at most department stores - and even more options if you check out one of the large sporting goods chains. You could quite easily go into option overload while pondering the choices.
Even so, there are more superstar athletes hawking brands all the time, and all of the major brands crank out new styles several times a year. Is the LeBron James shoe really better than the Tony Romo shoe? Probably not - but they aren't going after the same customer anyway.
Crowded market? Absolutely. Room for strong players? You bet!
The key to surviving in a crowded niche is focus. You need to focus on a particular portion of the niche. Maybe there is an area where your competitors are lacking. Focus on identifying the weaknesses in your competition, and make them your strengths.
Let's look at another example - the chocolate bar. Reese's® built their reputation on the peanut butter cup. They could have easily become a one-hit wonder, but you know what? They took that strong foundation, and they built an empire on it. Survey your local supermarket's check out line and you'll see that Reese's has quite a few selections that have spun off from the humble peanut butter cup.
Reese's® didn't try to become all things chocolate. They remained true to their niche (folks who love chocolate and peanut butter), and they built upon it. So whether it's Easter, Halloween, Christmas or the second Tuesday in August - there is a Reese's® product that is just perfect for that occasion. It wasn't rocket science, just clever marketing. The holiday versions of their peanut butter cup aren't different - they're just turned into holiday-specific shapes, and packaged in colorful and festive wrappers.
So, what does all this mean to you? Well, it's simple, really.
First, do your niche research. When the choice is between standing room only or an empty coliseum, the choice is simple. And second, always remember this simple truth - within that stadium there are lots of feet, and lots of hungry mouths to feed.
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About the Author: Traci Hayner Vanover RSS for Traci Hayner's articles - Visit Traci Hayner's website Click here to visit Traci Hayner's website   Grassroots Marketing is Dandy News is a FourLetter Word Success Something To Chew On Developing Marketing Street Cred Part 9 Putting it All Together Profit Building Strategies Leveraging Testimonials |
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