Let me ask you a ridiculous question. Can you make a hole in a wall using only light? You might be surprised to know that the answer is yes, but this is not a normal light. It is only when the light is focused into a laser beam that it will enable you to punch a hole in the wall. This idea illuminates the principle of marketing to niche areas.
Generally accepted wisdom would be in agreement with the statement that ‘anybody can be a customer’. Essentially the wider the customer base, the more chance you give your business. I often hear companies say something along these lines: “We don’t have any particular sector that we operate in because anybody can buy our product.” Through years of attending networking groups and witnessing the result of direct mail campaigns, I can tell you that, perhaps surprisingly, as widely accepted as this idea is, in fact the opposite is the case.
If you are able to focus your marketing activities on one very specific niche area that you know has a real need for your product and you spell out the specific benefits of your product to businesses or people within that area, your marketing efforts will have a dramatically better effect than if you spray-market large areas.
The most effective place to start is to look at where your customers currently are and then to create a series of different messages specific to each of those major – profitable – sectors. By doing this one thing, you will discover a dramatic improvement in your response rates.
The reason that this idea works so well is that you have now created a product that, as far as they are concerned, has been developed to specifically fit their needs. Previously it felt as though you were writing to them as part of the crowd and then they had to work out a couple of steps for themselves about how that product could be adapted for them. Now you’re doing the thinking for them and this time you have actually created something for their sector, so they can instantly see how they or their company will benefit from what you’re offering.
I have seen this used in so many different sectors and I know that it works in every case. Think about your own niche in the market and work out the pain that people in that sector are currently suffering to see how your product can help overcome that problem. Now market directly to them, emphasising the specifics rather than the general benefits you product has to offer.
For more information on how to target your niche markets or advice on how to improve your response rate, call The Ideal Marketing Company on 01858 374 170 or email us at info@idealmarketingcompany.com
