Niche Markts.... Revisited

[iTri]

This is a copy of my recent blog post.

Let me preface this discussion by saying I have the utmost respect for Mike Mindel and I am thankful for all that he is doing to help us with the 30D challenge.

This post was written to help clear up some confusion and generate discussion. thoughts?!

Like tension, you can cut the confusion in the forum with a knife! The idea of niche markets is a confusing but valuable concept. Therefore I think it is worth revisiting.

Mike Mindel posted a fantasitic explanation, including examples on his blog. However, you must ignore the spreadsheet examples (more on this later). The example he uses of "property buyers of unusual property in England" is a great example. Utilizing the concepts in Day 3, he would simply do a keyword search for those unusual properties in England to find out how many people are looking for lighthouses, churches, houseboats, etc.

The part where he goes too far in his spreadsheet is:


When he combines the niche and the market he is creating products. The actual niche market is "property buyers of unusual property in England" the product is showing them how to buy. He explains that the ebook, hardcopy, video or DVD is the actual product however, the service of "showing them how to buy" is the actual product.

I love dictionary.com and wikipedia:
From Dictionary.com
Main Entry: niche market
Part of Speech: n
Definition: a specialised and profitable part of a commercial market; a narrowly targeted market

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A niche market is a focused, targetable portion (subset) of a market sector.

Niche market simply means a smaller subset of a large market that is not being addressed by mainstream providers.

Let's look at some examples:
Market **** Niche **** Micro-Niche
Reading **** Speed Reading
Reading **** Children's Books **** Children's Non-Fiction
Singles **** Internet Dating **** Jewish Internet Dating
Cars **** Car Racing **** American Muscle Car Racing
Cooking **** Sausage Making **** Polish Sausage Making
Pets **** Dog Training **** Clicker Training
Marketing **** Internet Marketing **** Affiliate Marketing


Notice that in each of the niches and micro-niches there is no product or service. It is simply a group of people with shared behaviors, experiences or interests.

So what is all the fuss.... By not defining the product, utilizing the techniques in day 3 we can start to identify what that niche wants. What better way to develop a product than to identify a market, find an under served niche within that market and fulfill its needs. I assume that is where the 30-Day challenge is taking us.

It hit me like a ton of bricks when Ed said, "are there real people selling real stuff to real enthusiasts for money" When you look at the example of speed reading, there were lots of affiliates selling stuff to real people for money but very few real people selling stuff. That is because that market is over saturated, the real people have long since moved on to new projects while their affiliates sell their products for them.

The ideal market is one where there is an interest from a small but sizable group of individuals (niche market) and no one is fulfilling their needs. And while we joke around about Sausage Making, it may prove to be a great niche *wink*

Mike

[kooza]

Let's look at some examples:
Market **** Niche **** Micro-Niche
Reading **** Speed Reading
Reading **** Children's Books **** Children's Non-Fiction
Singles **** Internet Dating **** Jewish Internet Dating
Cars **** Car Racing **** American Muscle Car Racing
Cooking **** Sausage Making **** Polish Sausage Making
Pets **** Dog Training **** Clicker Training
Marketing **** Internet Marketing **** Affiliate Marketing

Thats exactly how I would describe it. Initially we are only looking at niche ideas then after some keyword research we can uncover sub niches which are what we want to target.

[Caro]

Thank you Mike (all these Mike's - lol) - I think that explains it very well.

It is important not to attach a product to the idea as yet.

And if we can keep it as simple as possible the better - both what is going on in your brains and also what we output

For some people's minds it suits them to go into the detail that Mike M has.

Which ever way your mind works: when doing the initial keyword research you do want to put in a simple keyword phrase - this should be whatever comes to mind first if you where the person looking for say, unusual properties to buy - that would be my keyword phrase I'd first type in: "unusual properties to buy" (remember my target's the US - so I might add the word US to that phrase. Initially though I'd keep it as simple as possible - later on I can look at States etc.)

Same with the example's Mike also offers above - you'd just type in those phrases: Jewish Internet Dating, Clicker Training etc

When we get into the next stage there is a process of refinement with keywords phrases as Koosa refers to - so stay tuned

Caro

[mikemindel]

Originally Posted by iTri

This is a copy of my recent blog post.
When he combines the niche and the market he is creating products. The actual niche market is "property buyers of unusual property in England" the product is showing them how to buy. He explains that the ebook, hardcopy, video or DVD is the actual product however, the service of "showing them how to buy" is the actual product.

Yeh. You're right. A few of the examples of niche markets on the spreadsheet started looking like products & services.

Even I am not immune at 3am!

Thanks for the clarification.

I've updated the article with your specific point about combining a market with a niche in the hope of finding a market that is not being addressed by mainstream providers.

I have also updated the spreadsheet to make it clearer.

Cheers,

-Mike

[iTri]

By the way, I LOVE your blog! Thank you very much for your hardwork.

Mike

[mikemindel]

Cheers.

I thought your insight was quite illuminating actually. Keep them coming.

Mike

[BethAgnew]

And THAT, folks, is what you call synergy. I am learning so much, and as everyone shares their knowledge and points of view, we all get so enriched. Thanks to all the Mikes, and the everyone elses. Much appreciated!!!

[Ed]

Just one thing....

An oversturated market where the "big players" have moved on (which I might add in Speed reading they haven't) may be a perfect minor league market for a 30DC'er to cut there teeth in (aka learn to swing the bat, kick the football type thing)

We are all about noticing at the moment - Judging will be "handed down" (vomit) starting Day 6

By the way - another brilliant thread. There are so many ways to skinning this Internet marketing cat. We are going to learn just one of them!

Keep it up

Ed

[mikemindel]

Originally Posted by Ed

Just one thing....
An oversturated market where the "big players" have moved on (which I might add in Speed reading they haven't) may be a perfect minor league market for a 30DC'er to cut there teeth in (aka learn to swing the bat, kick the football type thing)

You know. I never thought of that. That's brilliant.

The market has long since stabilised so there's room for improvements.

-Mike

[Omar05]

Thanks guys for clearing up some confusing..

greg