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But how do you find that niche market? It’s not always clear where these opportunities exist. Sometimes it takes a long, hard search to discover them. This article makes this task easier. Here, we’ll lay out the steps you can take to find a niche that you’ll thrive in, financially speaking. But first, let’s explain what a niche is.
What Is A Niche?
A niche is a segment of a market or industry. It’s a defined space within a larger market with its unique qualities, which you could operate in by providing the needs that are in demand within it. Men’s fashion is a niche within the fashion industry. So is corporate wear. Men’s corporate wear is a sub-niche of both these niches. Women’s makeup is a niche within the beauty and personal care market.Steps To Finding A Profitable Niche Market
Here are the steps to finding a niche market that’ll give you decent returns on your investment.Know What You’re Passionate About
Whatever you’re going to do, you have to be passionate about it. That’s the only way you’re going to get through the tough times if or when they come. Also, think about the things you’re skilled at. The intersection of your passion, skills, and experience should give you a narrow enough field within which your preferred niche can be found.Look For Growing Markets
There are probably going to be a few options within the intersection we mentioned in step one. Find out which ones are growing markets. Look at the past and present trends within them. Sometimes there will be data that you can refer to. Often, your best bet will be to speak with people who are in these niches.Identify The Problem
If you’ve found a growing market, the next thing to do will be to find out what problems exist in that space. It could be that the existing products aren’t adequate for customer’s needs, or that a large portion of the market is still underserved. These loopholes are important because they’re the points at which you can enter the market.Sign up to the Connect Nigeria daily newsletter
Establish That Customers Are Willing To Pay
So there’s a problem. Are potential customers willing and able to pay for the solution? Parts of the answer will lie in the demand for existing products. The reviews on those products may also reveal whether people will want to buy the improvements you’ll offer them.Examine Existing Competitors
It’s a good idea to look at what the competition is doing. If you follow the steps we’ve laid out thus far, you’ll already have been doing this earlier on. The point of this is to find out their strengths and weaknesses, know their reach, see how the market responds to specific moves, and know-how to supersede their offerings.Define The Solution
When you’ve found out what the existing problem is (or problems are), your next move should be to come up with a solution. Design a product or service that meets unmet demand in that niche. This is often a long, painstaking process. But at this stage, what you’ll want to do is build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that works. Here’s how to do that.Test Your Pick
Finding the best features for a Minimum Viable Product may take a while. Your aim here is to create something that solves the problem you’ve identified. But even after you have your first product out, you’ll still want to watch the market reaction to it and make improvements based on feedback. It’s a crucial part of the journey to building a winning product.Final Words
There’s no guarantee that your first few attempts at discovering a profitable niche will be successful. But the steps we’ve laid out here will increase your chances of success early on. Stay with the process, and you’ll eventually come up with something that works. Featured Image Source: ScaleoGot a suggestion? Contact us: editor@connectnigeria.com
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