Online Business 101 - Create a Niche

online business

Many people start a business with the fun part - logo, brand colors, website.

But it's a huge waste of time and money if you don't have a business blueprint first. Your business blueprint is what will help you make all your future decisions. To create a blueprint, you need to know your niche and understand your ideal audience. Today is Online Business 101 - Create a Niche.

Your niche includes your specialty, focus, topic, or expertise. But, it also includes the way you differentiate yourself from others with similar expertise. It includes the problem you solve and your unique approach to solving it.

Your Niche = Your Specialty + the Problem you Solve + How you Solve it

For example:

Specialty - I'm an online business strategist. So are a ton of other people.
The problem I solve - Working moms who want to prioritize their family have little time to start a business. They already feel overwhelmed, overworked, and stressed. But they know that an online business would give them the freedom they want, if only they could get it started.
My unique approach - I help working not just learn how to start a business, but to actually start a business, step-by-step, in about an hour a day. This saves them a ton of time because they don't have to watch videos to learn and then figure out how to implement it in a way that works for them. There's no trial and error needed.
Niche statement: I help working moms start an online business that allows them to prioritize their family. I do this by walking them through, step-by-step, starting their online digital product business.

By including the problem you solve and how you solve it along with your specialty, people know right away if your offer is meant for them or not.

When you can share your passion, priorities, opinions, values, beliefs, personality, point of view, stories, ideas, and unique voice in your niche, you'll stand out from others who do what you do and get the attention of your ideal customer.

Think of a niche like a cozy little nook.

The best nook is a little space where you can relax and be comfortable. It's supposed to be small, cozy, and personalized with things you like:

Meaningful pictures, sayings, or quotes
Books or magazines you enjoy
Your favorite colors and scents
Comfy pillows, blankets, plants, lighting, etc

That’s what your niche should feel like too. It's your cozy little nook on the internet.

You don't need everyone to like you or your product. You just need people who have the problem you solve, and believe in the way you solve it.

Do I Need a Niche?

Yes. You definitely need a niche.

I created a really busy job for myself, not a business… twice. The main 2 things I did wrong were not niching down enough and choosing to offer only services (no other income stream).

I was able to grow both businesses. But I failed miserably at creating the life I wanted and spent a lot of time clarifying what I did for people it wasn’t meant for.

Let me explain...

Business attempt #1: Issue - no niche and no market research

I started a family photography business in 2009. My dream was to stop feeling like I was missing out on my life and leave my demanding job by creating something more flexible for myself.

I thought I chose a niche: family photography.

Wow... was I wrong.

"Family photography" isn't a niche. It’s just a focus. I attracted the wrong people because I lacked a niche.

I didn't include 2 statements in my marketing, and it would have changed everything:

1. The problem I solved for my ideal customers (the problem they told me themselves was that they wanted to have photos on the wall of their family, not just on their phones)
2. How I did it differently than other family photographers (I observed the family interacting and told the story of their relationships through photos by capturing candid moments)

In my head, this is the family photography business I dreamed of creating:

“Those baby days fly by so fast. You want to capture the age your kids are right now and remember for a lifetime how you felt the moment they reached up for your hand. I love capturing moments of your relationship with each family member, the candid moments. So you can look at how your children looked at you, the faces they made, and how excited and fun they were at this age. I want to help sentimental, nostalgic moms, like you, get pictures on the walls so the whole family can enjoy those memories."

My website, marketing materials, and Facebook ads said:

“Outdoor family photography in the DC area. All digitals provided.”

Ugh! I know... right? What was I thinking?

I still shake my head every time I read that.

I did have a niche in my head. I just didn’t know how to communicate it. I didn’t tell them how I was different. I didn't identify my ideal customer or do any research to find out what problem I could solve for them or what they wanted that I could offer.

I operated that first business like a people pleaser, not like a business owner with something really valuable to offer.

I didn’t attract my ideal customer. I tried to adapt to the style I thought they wanted. I drove all over the DC area, to the location of their choice. I offered all the digitals instead of the storytelling wall galleries I enjoyed creating.

So, what should my niche have been?

Storytelling family photography for the nostalgic mom who wants her family story on her wall.

Business attempt #2: Issue - no niche & ideal customer market not narrow enough

In 2015, I left my day job of 9 years to start a custom training company. We developed training for the military and first responders. From 2008-2015, I created a mobile learning community to get training onto phones and tablets so the users didn't have to be out of the field to access training or carry tons of guidebooks with them.

I didn't leverage that knowledge, expertise, or network when I started my own business. I was afraid if I niched down too much, I wouldn't have enough business.

Even though my small team and I knew how to develop different kinds of training, I spread the team too thin by not niching down. I could have stood out from the crowd and niched down, but instead, I was working around the clock multi-tasking on 3 different kinds of projects. Again, I was people-pleasing, doing what I thought customers wanted. No one even knew I had the skills and expertise to create mobile learning anymore.

Only 2 years into it, I was overwhelmed and exhausted...

I went in search of how to become less of a generalist again. That search led me to learn about and implement online marketing for that business. It finally figured out that it all starts right here with creating a niche.

Niching down would’ve changed everything for me…. twice.

**Your Niche Isn't About You**

Don't get me wrong, yes, your specialty is about you and your strengths. But the rest of it - the problem and the solution part - that's about your ideal customer.

There are a lot of people out there doing what you want to do. They may have the same knowledge and expertise as you. Don’t let that scare you. That's how you know there’s a market for what you want to do.

You’ll enjoy your business more when you work with people who love what you’re doing. Your customers will get better results if they have a connection with you (that your niche creates).

To do that, talk to people to find out what their problems are, solutions they've tried, how they make decisions about solving the problem, etc. Your ideal customers will tell you what they need and want, as it relates to what you want to do. Get to know them.

Life is too short to do things you don't love!

Don’t try to be everything to everyone. Create a niche instead.

How I can help:
- Ready to embark on your exciting entrepreneurial journey?
  Start by taking my free quiz to discover the Best Online Business Type for You.
- Kickstart your online business with confidence:
  Join my Start an Online Business 5-Day Challenge. During this transformative experience, you'll develop your niche, handpick your ideal customers, and conduct market research to create a blueprint for your online digital product business. By the end of the challenge, you'll have invaluable insights and a robust database to guide you as you lay the foundation for your thriving online empire.
- Want to keep reading first? Here are some other helpful posts:

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Erin Gibbens

Online Business & Marketing Strategist

I was an overworked, busy mom 🤹‍♀️ who wanted more time with my kids when they were little. It took years of trial and error to find the right business model for the flexibility I wanted, but I didn't give up. If you want to start an online business and prioritize your life much faster, you're in the right place. I'll show you exactly how to do it without all the trial and error. NO HUSTLE needed.

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