Niche

When we entrepreneurs talk about niche and market we’re really referring to the same thing, right? However, I think niche can really mean a few things that are related. Niche can be an occupation that you’re particularly suited for doing well. It also of course refers to honing in on a particular part of a market to target. Merriam-Webster defines it as, “the situation in which a business’s products or services can succeed by being sold to a particular kind or group of people.” And niches can change. Take for instance Facebook. Their initial niche was a social platform for students at Harvard, until they opened it up to other Ivy League schools, then all colleges/universities, and ultimately to the world.

Regardless, whenever I’ve started a new business or moved our family’s company in a new direction, I always like to ask myself if I like the direction we’re heading and how well I know the people we’ll be serving. I think it’s important to like what you do and who you serve. Don’t you agree? I like money of course and all that it provides, but I don’t love it and I don’t serve it. I work for money, but I never serve money…I serve people.

Niche is also the particular activity you’re doing. You can serve people in a variety of ways. Facebook’s niche was a social platform for students. It could have been a job board for students, but it of course wasn’t. If you’re one of the many SMMA’s out there, then you know you could focus on Facebook marketing, Instagram marketing, Google ads, or a number of other niche services. You could even decide not to offer a traditional service, but consulting in the form of a “done with you service.”

Don’t get to worked up about picking your niche. Remember that you can always change it or pivot slightly to something that suites you better.