How to Develop a Niche Marketing Strategy that Drives Growth

As of March 2020, over 804,390 companies in the U.S. were less than a year old. Combine that with the 31.7 million small businesses vying for customers and the competition seems to be even tougher. So how can you develop a marketing strategy that gets noticed? Immersing yourself in a specific niche is the way to make your business stand out from the rest.

Before we go through the steps to crafting your own growth strategy, let’s see how a handful of companies are using niche marketing to their advantage.

5 examples of a niche marketing strategy

1. Flylow equipment

With 9.2 million skiers and snowboarders in the US, the pool of potential customers seems large enough to be shared by everyone. However, popular brands like Patagonia and The North Face can be found in almost every sports store, making it difficult to convince customers to look for smaller brands with fewer offers.

Flylow Gear figured out how to fight your way through the noise. Rather than targeting all customers interested in winter gear, their niche marketing strategy focuses on backcountry skiers looking for no-nonsense, quality gear. Their products are featured in the right places – like Powder Magazine – to reach their ideal buyers. Even their confirmation emails say they are a small, dedicated crew of dedicated skiers.

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2. Octavia Elizabeth jewelry

For ethical consumers looking for jewelry, the most important factor is knowledge of raw material sourcing and product development. That’s because this $ 300 billion industry has come under fire for using child labor and causing significant environmental damage.

Octavia Elizabeth understands the need for responsible jewelry. The company’s commitment to fair working conditions, legitimate living wages and ethical manufacturing is clearly expressed on its website.

Not only has Octavia Elizabeth focused on customers looking for sustainable, handcrafted jewelry that is willing to pay a higher price, but the brand has also expanded its niche offering by partnering with celebrity customers.

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3. Natural Dog Company

Research suggests that Americans will spend $ 99 billion on their pets in 2020 alone. How can a pet-focused company stand out from the thousands of memory foam beds, custom carry-on bags, and dog-friendly ice creams that saturate the market?

The Natural Dog Company caters to a very specific breed of pet owner: the environmentally conscious consumer who pampers their pooch. By naming their organic and natural skin care products like PAWdicure Pack and offering discount codes on free dog food, they put puppies first – which is exactly what their customers do.

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4. Pimsleur

Learning a new language can be difficult, and the opportunities to do so are definitely overwhelming. Do you really speak like a Parisian after spending $ 1,000 on a program?

Rather than promising perfect grammar and flawless accents, Pimsleur focuses on learners who need to improve their speaking and listening skills. The program includes a 30-minute audio lesson each day, with each conversation building on the previous one. Audio-first, while not the most innovative language learning app, is great for customers looking to improve their conversation skills.

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5. Photographers without limits

Getting people to buy a product is one thing, but attracting donors to charitable organizations is another thing. While this type of organization may not lend itself to a niche marketing strategy, it is essential for bringing in donations and volunteers.

Photographers Without Borders has partnered with major organizations like Adobe, Sony, and Patagonia to develop a specific marketing technique: storytelling.

By prioritizing ethical storytelling, be it in a social media post, email newsletter, or online webinar, the organization has built a reputation for producing high quality work that meets the 17 UN goals for sustainable development and UNDRIP are taken into account. In addition, their code of ethics makes it clear what kind of community members and partners they want to attract.

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Development of a niche marketing strategy

Now that you better understand how brands from all industries are creating strategies that drive growth, it’s time to craft your own.

Step 1: know your competition.

Developing a niche marketing strategy is impossible without knocking out your competition. That’s because it’s important to understand your unique selling proposition – what you do differently so that customers will choose your company over another.

Maybe you’re designing ceramic tableware that can’t be found anywhere else, or you’ve developed a tool that makes it easy for marketers to send emails. Whatever it is, find your specialty and make up a story around it.

Step 2: Narrow Your Niche Market.

Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky is famous for saying, “Build something 100 people love, not something 1 million people like.” Simply put, it’s better to reach a small group of people who praises your business than a large group who thinks it’s okay.

You can do this by focusing on the right niche market for your business. While this takes time and thought, it pays off to find loyal customers that you will be happy to choose over competitors.

For example, Thirdlove is the first underwear company to offer bras in half-size cups. With their extensive size options and emphasis on body diversity, they have built a loyal community of over 327,000 Instagram followers.

Step 3: Go Where Your Buyers Are.

If your ideal customer is browsing Facebook all the time, it doesn’t make sense to develop a niche marketing strategy for email campaigns. Provide market research.

You already know who your buyers are, but research will help you dig deeper to find out where they shop, how to find products, and what drives their buying decisions. Once you have this information, you will get the highest return on your marketing dollars.

Step 4: hear the word on the street.

Everyone has problems that need solutions. Listening to people’s thoughts about a particular product or service can help you find ways to fill the gaps.

David Barnett did just that when he came up with a solution to constantly confused headphones. What started as two buttons on the back of a phone case quickly grew into Popsockets, a company that had sales of $ 169 million just seven years after it was founded.

Step 5: create a unique brand.

After you’ve defined your unique selling proposition, outlined your buyer personality, figured out where to reach them, and listened to their issues, all that’s left to do is build a brand identity. A well-defined brand will help you develop a niche marketing strategy that is authentic for you and attracts ideal customers.

For example, Etsy’s position as the marketplace for independent artists has attracted more than 138 million buyers. In a 2020 television commercial, the brand addressed the pandemic and used emotional marketing tactics to encourage support for small businesses selling through the platform.

Creating a niche marketing strategy that will help your business grow is more than creating a social media ad or sending out a weekly email advertisement. Taking the time to get to know your customers and differentiate your brand can help you develop a strategy that will attract the right buyers and help you meet your growth goals.