Niche: Understanding the concept
I find that a number of individuals who are new to WA and just getting started with site development stumble on the notion of a niche. This may help put the idea of a niche in an understandable context:
1. There are so many people online who have a specific area of interest, and then there area those who don't have that same interest. For example, 100 like aviation and 5000 could care less about it. The total population is 5100, so only about 2% of the audience has an aviation interest. Those are the people who comprise your targeted marketplace. And, your product is related to the topic of AVIATION.
2. The topic of aviation can be divided up into a number of subtropics. One could be flying or being a pilot, another could be about types of aircraft (experimental, commercial, military, etc.).
3. Your niche could be "model aircraft" (as a product; collectible miniatures) or "information on how to fly a Boeing 747 jetliner" (intangible intellectual property, maybe as a newsletter or eZine).
4. Your website/blog site should be developed or designed in such a manner that it is oriented toward that 2% of the population with an aviation interest. If you are selling model aircraft, then you can expect to have a potential client base of 100 or less (given the number of people with an interest in AVIATION). However, there's another potential marketing angle: Consider that element of the population who are model collectors or enthusiasts.
5. Your "niche" is a subset of and an area of specialization within and/or related to the broader category/topic of AVIATION, but in the examples above it could also fall within the purview of "COLLECTIBLES" (your product- -model aircraft--is a niche in two broader categories, topics, marketplaces).
5. DMOZ and JAAXY can help you to get your website/Blog site visible to the greatest number of potential viewers who are most likely to wind up being your customers. They also help you to design and develop your site so as to limit the number of competitor sites that could be grabbing part of the market share. That to is a part of your "niche" -- being focused on maximizing your potential clientele as well as eliminating potential competition in getting them as customers.
Hope this is helpful for those in need of clarifications. Just a quick blog while I have nothing better to occupy my spare moments of boredom.
Recent Comments
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Really informative, thanks!