The Secret to Finding Your Niche for Your Online Business
When you start a new business, one of the first things on your list should be to find your niche by deciding what you want to sell or offer.
However, it's not enough just to decide that. You need to find a niche that works for both you and your business.
It might seem like this is a straightforward process but here's the thing: there are lots of niches out there!
So how do you narrow down which ones are actually worth pursuing?
I'm here today to tell you about some steps you can take when choosing your niche so that your business can thrive (and make money!) in this competitive world.
Decide what you want to sell or offer.
Once you’ve decided what type of online business you want to have—a blog or an online store, for instance—you need to decide what you want to sell.
The most important thing is that whatever it is, it needs to be something that you are passionate about. If a niche idea doesn’t excite you, there’s no way anyone else will find it exciting either!
The next step in finding your niche, is to look at the competition in your chosen market and see if there are gaps in terms of what they offer and/or their prices.
You can also look at other types of businesses in this industry that have been successful before and ask yourself why they were able to succeed while others didn't (there's a good chance it had something do with the niche).
Finally, think about whether or not customers would buy from someone like yourself rather than from another similar website/business. If so, then congratulations: Your business has found its first niche!
Consider where your passions lie.
When you're considering where your passions lie, it's important to think about what you actually enjoy doing. You may have always dreamed of being a travel blogger and sharing all of your adventures with the world, but if you're not actually a fan of traveling then that might not be the best way for you to go about making money online.
You don't want to force yourself into something that doesn't work for who you are as an individual. Instead, try thinking about what activities bring joy into your life—both past and present—and see if there are any ways they could translate over into creating value in an online community or market segment.
For example: If one of your favorite hobbies is cooking food from around the world (or even just experimenting at home), this could make a great niche topic because it falls directly within both "passions" categories—food and travel (two things we know people love).
Think about gaps in the market.
If you're going to be a successful online entrepreneur, then it's important that you find a niche that has some demand in it. If no one is buying your products or services, then there's probably a reason for it—and that reason is most likely that there isn't enough demand for your product or service.
It's also important to consider whether the market for your product or service exists in the first place. A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that simply because they have an idea for something new and unique, their business will take off when they release it into the wild.
However, if no one buys what you're selling—even if what you're selling fills a gap in the market—then chances are good that there wasn't much demand for whatever it was anyway.
You can take inspiration from other businesses as well.
You don't have to come up with the next big thing all on your own, nor does it mean you should copy someone else's idea exactly. But if you have an idea for a product or service, it will be helpful to see what has worked for others before you start building something from scratch.
The best place to look is online, where there are plenty of places that review potential niches and give them scores based on how many people are in that niche and how profitable they are.
For example, AMZ Scout gives a score between 0-100 based on their estimate of how much money can be made in each one (and their algorithm factors in things like competition).
Demographics also play a role here—for example, if there aren’t enough people who would want your product or service then it won’t matter how profitable it might be because there won’t be enough demand!
Don't bite off more than you can chew.
The best way to pick a niche for your business is by not picking one at all. That's right: don't choose a niche. Instead, try not worrying about it entirely!
The next time you're sitting down to brainstorm ideas for your new business, make sure you understand that there are no wrong answers. There are no right ones either (except "pick your own niche").
If you keep this in mind while thinking through your challenges and choices, then it will be easier for you to stay open-minded and flexible as well as make decisions with confidence instead of stress or worry that they'll be wrong somehow.
This will prevent burnout before it even starts
Conduct some market research.
If you're not sure where to start, it's time to look at the internet. The first step in picking a niche is figuring out what people are looking for online. It's easy enough to do this with online searches, but if you'd like a more hands-on approach, our friends over at HUBSPOT have put together an excellent guide on how to conduct market research using the Google Keyword Tool.
In addition to using tools like Google Adwords' Keyword Planner or crowdsourced keyword databases such SEMrush (or other paid services), another great way of finding out what people are searching for is simply asking them! You can invite friends and family over for dinner parties where all attendees write down their top three interests/passions/hobbies and then read them aloud.
This will give everyone insight into what other people are interested in without having to ask them directly which might make them feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about what they've chosen as their favorite pastime or passion (for example: "I love cleaning bathrooms").
Finally it's important not only that there be demand for your product or service but also that there be competition within your given niche market so that means looking at who else is selling similar products/services within this space—you'll need some tough competitors if you want yours stand out among all other options available on offer!
Who are your competitors in this niche?
Your next step is to figure out who you are up against when it comes to selling your product or service.
It's important not only that there be demand for your product or service but also that there be competition within your given niche market. So that means looking at who else is selling similar products/services within this space—you'll need some tough competitors if you want yours stand out among all other options available on offer!
Here are some questions to ask yourself when assessing your competition:
Who are the other brands that sell similar products/services in this space?
What do their websites look like? What features do they offer and how do they position themselves? How can I differentiate myself from them?
How are these brands different from each other, and how does that affect my approach to the market?
What do they do well and what don’t they do well?
What is their USP (unique selling proposition)?
Where are their weaknesses?
Where can you improve on the weaknesses of your competitors
With the answers to these questions you'll have a clearer idea of how to approach the market.
Do people actually want what you're selling?
To find out whether or not people actually want what you’re selling, there are a few questions to ask yourself:
Do you have a product that is in demand?
Is your product unique?
Is your product affordable?
How easy is it to use?
And finally…
Does this align with your core values?
Knowing these things will help you determine whether or not your product will be a success.
What is your own USP for this niche? Your unique selling proposition? What makes your business stand out from the competition?
It's important to decide what your USP is before you choose a niche. Your USP is the one main thing about your business that makes it stand out from the competition. So why should someone choose you over other businesses in your niche?
It can be almost anything: high quality, great customer service, competitive prices and so on. It can also be more intangible than this - for example if you're an online shop then maybe it's because people like that they don't have to go into town and pay parking fees too!
You need something that truly sets you apart from others in order for people to want to use or buy from you rather than just going with their regular option (such as Amazon or eBay).
Pick a niche that works for you and your business, but one that also has demand in the market.
There are many things to take into consideration when picking a niche. You want to ensure that you have the skills, resources and financial backing needed to run your business in this niche.
You also want to make sure you have some sort of unique selling point (USP) that sets your business apart from others in the same field. And finally, make sure there is enough demand for the product or service you are offering in order to ensure profitability.
I know what you're thinking: "That's an awful lot of work! Isn't there an easier way?" Well yes, there is—and it's called hiring someone else who knows how do all those things better than yourself so that all you need do is sit back and reap the rewards of their hard work!
Conclusion
You've done the hard work of picking a niche and finding out if it's viable. Now you've got to get started. So there you have it: a simple, straightforward guide to finding your niche and finding out if it's viable.
That's just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what you need to know and do before starting your own business. Hopefully you feel more confident about the prospect of making money from home and will be able to make the right choices for yourself.
If you feel you're ready but need some training to get started, then take a look at my blog. It's packed full of useful tips and advice for anyone who wants to make money from home. Or, click here for some 1:1 training and setup for your business.