Niche Marketing

This marketing method is an intelligent approach to exploring and strategizing to a specific target market with the products your company is marketing. Niche marketing also indicates that you will have the possibility of getting 20% of customers giving 80% of your business volume.

Niche marketing requires you to really focus on your customer’s needs. You are required to listen and offer high value services to them. Service above anything else is crucial approach in niche marketing. I have met many companies who have a good product line to reach their target customers, but failed miserably with their poor after sales services. That alone was enough for the end-users to have a poor opinion of your organization.

Research is crucial. Comparative analysis with existing products in the market will allow in-depth review of your marketing strategies. The question here is, how are you going to show to the customer that you are able to provide a value-benefit sales and support services to which the customer will take interest in your products?

Pricing your products lower than your competitors is not a solution to niche marketing. It can in fact be detrimental as it eats up your net profit margin that you have projected in your business plan and annual budgeting.

Product awareness between you and your competitors is essential. What gives your products the advantage when they have quite a lot of similarities in return? How reliable are the products? What is the standard factory warranty and extended local warranty that you are offering to your clients?

Most commonly sighted are companies offering basic warranty and decline to provide after sales services, if the product fails within the warranty period or after. They point the fingers to the original manufacturer, claiming that the products are no longer under warranty and as such, they also cannot offer a solution to the client. You just dug your own hole deep enough, that you can bury yourself in the process. Welcome to false marketing! You are not a reliable organization to begin with. Be constructive and come up with a workable solution.

If you are a sole-distributor, regional or appointed agent, for example, you need to make sure your principals are equally reliable. Some major principals have a high degree of arrogance in them, where they demand that the customer sticks to their decision to ‘take it or leave it policy’ . If you have any principals like that, I ask you to review your business arrangements with them too. Don’t fall for the saying, “My principals knows better ”. They don’t! The reason why they are now finding local representatives in a specific area, is for them to use your organization to build up their business structure and market penetration.

At some point or another, some principals will decide, once their brand name is well established, to open up their own office in the local region. In some instances, merger and acquisitions with larger companies will see that your principal is bought up by another larger organization. You might just lose your local distributor rights, as larger organization already have their existing distributors in your region.

Do not be surprised, if they did not have the courtesy to ask, if you wish to continue representing them. Ironically, they may even ask you to provide a detailed list of your customers that you have sold your products over the years. This expedites their interest to quickly redirect business to their existing distributors, leaving you high and dry. It is a windfall for some, and downfall for the rest.

The cruelty of this truth has been experienced by many companies, being part and parcel of representing mainly overseas principals. So, be warned. When you are establishing such relationships, you need back-up plans within your organization. Both your clients and your company will need to know that in any absence of your principals, you are still able to provide your commitment and reliable service continuity. Otherwise, you may just need to wrap up your business.

Never bad mouth anyone in business.
It may one day come back to haunt you.
Maximus @ MaximusPrimo.com

Principals can provide you with false promises and at the end, you will end up getting the brunt end of the stick from clients who will distrust your future approaches. Clients will not hesitate to inform what was the pertaining issues of distrust and why they are upset about it. This is your advantage point; investigate with empathy, but do not bad mouth your competitors.

Always be professional with your work ethics. You may have had some bad experiences with some companies and if anyone asks you for reference, you can advise politely your personal experience. Keep it simple and genuine. No exaggerations necessary. Leave the dramas for Bollywood movies!

At this juncture, if you are a manufacturer of your own products or a local service provider, you have another great advantage indeed in providing an excellent service opportunity to your clients. Maximize this benefit. It is very rewarding.

Being emphatical with your clients is a turning point for them. If you are a good listener, you will take note of the issues they are facing. In fact, there is a high possibility they will even say that they are willing to pay more as long as the problem is resolved. Now, do not go with the mentality to overcharge your clients unjustly. Transparency in business negotiation has been a tool I have used with my clients to inform them the cost ratio and benefits attained by them whilst not having to compromise in our services.

When you are doing costing, draft out an example document that you can share with your client. I am not saying your general quotation document with pricing, but a breakdown reference for the client to view. At your preliminary meeting, you will show the client highlights that you have identified per their request. You then proceed to other areas, that come to attention for which you find them equally important, based on your analysis. You revert to your clients with an offer of a detailed cost-benefit proposal.

Again, listen carefully to your client’s comments. Do not go into defensive mode, if the client objects to your proposals. This may also mean that the client is not clearly visualizing what you have proposed or just wanting a ridiculous discount.

To get a win-win approach in your negotiations, you must be good in constructing solutions. For example, you design your proposals so that the client is able to see a start-up cost, progressive cost and final cost. If they do not have a comprehensive budget to include all related items from your proposal, staggered options will allow them to initiate sequential-budgets. They can start with a lower capital expense budget, whilst having the option of using some of the operational expense budget in return to fulfill their needs.

Alternatively, based on your proposal, they will start up with an allocated budget, then apply for additional cost in their next progressive budget, to which you can continuously provide your services without fail. As I said, “ What are the value-benefits you are providing to your clients? ”. This is essential in niche marketing.

One of the common issues brought to my attention, is after sales services that are poorly managed by many companies. Your company’s ability to support after sales services will be a great tool to gain clients’ confidence. It is absolutely true! Your failure to comply with this requirement, boots you out of the chain of reliable suppliers or service providers.

This is my personal opinion and you have the option to agree to disagree. Please do not go around bribing clients to secure business deals. In doing so, you will be only be seen for illegal financial rewards to the clients but not the business value and validity of your organization. There is an ethical sense of doing business and bribery is not one of them. If you decide that this comment is not in favor to you, not to worry, as you have your own approach in securing your business deals by illegally enticing your customers.

Bribery is a crime, just for your info.
Maximus @ MaximusPrimo.com

This is why, I am always in favor of Good-Sales-Tax (GST) approach by any government. It will make it nearly impossible to play around with your company’s financial records, as it will require transparencies against input and output tax registry. You cannot claim thousands of dollars under your personal expenses without valid and traceable invoices, can you?

With all that is said in this blog, I would like to end with one other essential tool in niche marketing. Can you guess? No? It’s Customer Service and Communication !

Your receptionist, if you have one, is essential to answer phone calls professionally. It is the same with everyone within your organization. Phone ethics and conversational skills are essential indeed. What would your opinion be when someone answer, “ Hello, yes, what you want? ”. You cannot give an excuse that your employees need to improve on their soft skills. No, they don’t.

Have a very clear and firm Standard Operational Procedure (SOP) in answering phone calls within your organization. It is essential that, ‘every employee represents the company’s image and clients perception of professionalism’. However busy you are, start with a smile when you pick up the phone and by saying, for example, “ Hello, good morning. How can I help you? ”

The written communication via email is also considered official correspondence. Write with clarity, address with respect and watch your grammar. It is now common to be using social media applications as part of business communication, but do not fail to realize that some documentations are still needed to be sent via email. I personally find this a more professional approach as you have detailed records of your communication.

If someone sends you an update via email, SMS or social media application, do not forget to say ” Thank you “, and wish them, ” Have a great day “. That is an example of being polite and professional, not surprisingly, also an essential communicative tool to niche marketing.

I hope, with the above revelations, you are able to foresee the essential needs of niche marketing. If you enhance these tools effectively, the returns are ‘Customer Loyalty and Company Recognition’. Your principals may change, but your clients remain with you. It will be your success story!