The Importance of Having a Niche

Something we realised…

Is that we ALL think differently. In an online workshop earlier this week Vic and I asked attendees to describe what ‘niche’ means to them. We got wildly different answers from each person - including interpretations that differ to our thinking. ‘The niche’ even ranged from a market perspective (the problem side of the business equation), to the proposition offered (the solution side).

And that’s the crux of it: there are myriad ways to describe the same thing and therefore myriad ways to open one’s mind and see it from a fresh perspective.

“Be sure the product is different and better - and that the market actually wants it” Alan Sugar, British businessman and The Apprentice boss

So here’s a question: if you’re an SME and building a niche offer, how do you know it’s the right niche? Even more confusing: is describing a niche a Catch-22 situation? Should you know your own niche before identifying your market or the other way around? Our workshop made clear one crucial point: that many minds will inevitably shape the niche from both perspectives. The task, then, lies in clearly communicating the right message to the right people about the right aspect of your business. That’s that sorted, then!

Alan Sugar's finger of disappointment is ever present over our heads. Niche!

Something I’d forgotten…

I updated my CV this week in readiness for a tender opportunity.  It was a chance to showcase my experience, show that I have the ideal credentials, demonstrate how I’m a perfect fit (in a niching kind of way).

Updating the ol’ CV is not a thing I do often so it came as a surprise to remind myself of past accomplishments, cool project involvements and outright team successes over the years. I’d all but erased from memory my work in Japan! And how could I forget the Oslo gig, which received accolades from the City’s politicians? It also reminded me where my essential strengths lay, where my real niche offer resides. It also reminded me of my inner passion of working on and delivering those projects. In doing so, I rediscovered that finding where your passion lies is crucial in defining your niche.

It’s hard to read the label from inside the bottle. It’s hard to see the picture when you’re in the frame.

Something I wondered…

Do bigger companies always know their own niche? And how often do we see fantastic and curious solutions with no actual market? Think Private Eye’s spoof Christmas adverts or Billy Connolly describing actual newspaper ads selling ‘Bowler hat with sleeves’, ‘Matching trench coat and sofa cushion set’ or the classic: ‘Perfectly round eggs’. Woah - they must have literally rolled off the shelves! (Okay, okay - I’ll get me coat… with its matching sofa cushions).

So how do solopreneurs and SMEs find the balance inherent in defining their niche and landing their market audience? It’s a bit tricky to seek this perfect balance when you don’t have teams of people supporting you in the journey; when you have to iterate and reiterate, over and over.

Ultimately, how can you uncover your niche with clarity and without exhausting yourself and running in circles? Ta-da! Put your niche to the test in front of other like-minded business folk and get that 360-degree perspective and feedback. At IMPROV Inc., we call it a ‘sense check’; through applied improvisation techniques and activities you really can uncover whether your audience actually perceives what you think you’re offering.

#AppliedImprovisation #YesAnd #BusinessSkills #ProfessionalMobility #HR #LeadershipandDevelopment #LnD #Niche #Niching