Successful Blog

What Narrow Niche Already Loves What You Do?

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Recently at SOBCon NW, I had a familiar conversation with someone trying to start a business of her own. We talked about her skills, her past successes, and the people she liked working with with. I asked her what she was thinking about building about business around. She told me her concept.

It was huge.

The territory she was trying to cover was way too wide for a first step. Because the content base was so huge the audience would include almost every person from 21 to 65 near the idea of business, social media, or tech in any place in the world.

It’s no wonder she didn’t feel qualified to be an expert. Who would?
No one can be an expert of everything for everyone in the world.

I asked her one question … Who already loves what you do?

What Narrow Niche Already Loves What You Do?

Ever tried to read all of Wikipedia? It’s hard to keep all of that knowledge connected and meaningful without a reality to hang it on. Ever tried to learn a new vocabulary word a day? If the words don’t relate to each other, they fade away as fast as they came. Put a narrow context around a vocabulary you want to learn or an idea you want to explore and suddenly you’re making traction.

It’s the narrow context that allows us to see relationships and apply what we know to the next new thing we learn.
Here’s a few ways that narrowing your niche can build your expertise:

  • When we choose a narrow niche, we can go deeply vertical. We get to know one certain group of people very well. We know who we’re talking to. We know which words are their vocabulary, which metaphors are theirs, which ideas get them to move.
  • When we choose a narrow niche, we “get” the world of that customer group. We can predict the ways they make decisions. We can imagine what they worry about. We decide what features and benefits serve them well and what will be just so much more noise to what they’re trying to do without.
  • When we choose a narrow niche, we can closely study the specific problems of that singular customer group. We get to know what frustrates them, what they yearn for, wish for, and which they never saw again. We have special insight into their view.

      • And as a result of narrowing our niche, they quickly recognize that we “get” them, that we’ve built a product or service that was made for them, and they become our fans. Then convince their friends to become our fans too.

      And narrowing your niche can build your business as well because …

  • When we choose a narrow niche, it’s easy for others to see who we serve. People look who we work with and the commonalities show. All of Mike’s clients are families with small children. All of Britta’s clients are tech CEOs. Marti specializes in launch stage startups.
  • When we choose a narrow niche, people within that niche tell each other about us. Soon enough folks outside the niche ask if we can do it for them too.
  • When we choose a narrow niche, it’s easy for people to share what we do with their friends. When we we’re one thing, they think of us when they meet anyone who has that need. We’re shareable.

It’s true that you can’t be expert at everything for everyone. But who’d want to?
Make a decision to be irresistible to one specific group. Then we can move out slowly to the group that stands right next to them.

Who already loves what you do? Be an expert to them first.

Who is that group for you?

Be irresistible

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Beach Notes: Are You Creating and Seeing?

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by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh

“5 White Shore Birds” by Adriaan Vanderlugt, 2009: beachside park, Rainbow Bay, Gold Coast, Australia – public sculpture courtesy of Gold Coast City Council.

This work reminds me every time I see it of what delight can be provided by a combination of creative imagination and skill with materials. When you look at the pieces in this composition up close, they are basically a set of bent and twisted square metal rods with a small flat metal piece bolted on at the tip of each. When you stand back and allow your imagination to take over, they are birds. Magic!

What magic are you creating, or seeing, today?.

Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

Thanks to Week 312 SOBs

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Successful and Outstanding Bloggers

Let me introduce the bloggers
who have earned this official badge of achievement,

and the right to call themselves
Successful Blog SOBs.

I invite them to take a badge home to display on their blogs.

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They take the conversation to their readers,
contribute great ideas, challenge us, make us better, and make our businesses stronger.

I thank all of our SOBs for thinking what we say is worth passing on.
Good conversation shared can only improve the blogging community.

Should anyone question this SOB button’s validity, send him or her to me. Thie award carries a “Liz said so” guarantee, is endorsed by Kings of the Hemispheres, Martin and Michael, and is backed by my brothers, Angelo and Pasquale.

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Want to become an SOB?

If you’re an SO-Wanna-B, you can see the whole list of SOBs and learn how to be one by visiting the SOB Hall of Fame– A-Z Directory . Click the link or visit the What IS an SOB?! page in the sidebar.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Finding a Job After College: What They Don’t Tell You In School

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A Guest Post by
Amy

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Tons of Jobs Out There for Me?

Last year, I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with distinction and a 3.8 GPA. As a marketing major, I was always told that there were “tons of jobs out there for me” and that employers were “looking for my set of skills” so I wasn’t very concerned about the job hunt ahead of me.

I started looking for a job during my final semester, and when no offers for interviews came I figured it was because I wasn’t available yet and I would have to graduate first.

After graduation, I moved to a larger city and started to focus solely on my job hunt. I would apply for 10 to 15 jobs each day, but many came back with a rejection email because I didn’t quite fit the skill set needed. Most of my applications went without a response at all. I started to feel discouraged after a few weeks thinking that I wouldn’t be able to find employment. After all, the unemployment rate is rising, and I had much less experience than others in my field.

After a while, I finally got my first interview request. I was completely myself and felt comfortable during the first round, which resulted in a request for a second interview. However, I got nervous during that second interview and got a rejection email the next day.

In my second job interview, I decided not to let anything keep me from being myself. I got through both rounds of interviews with flying colors and was offered the job. However, the hours were long, the pay was low, and I would be knocking on doors selling a product. While those qualities may have been alright for someone else, I wanted something a little different. After careful consideration, I turned down that job.

On my way to my third interview, I was already planning on where I would drop off more resumes on my way home. I knew very little about the company and it was impossible to find their website online. But I knew as soon as I walked in the door that this was the place for me. This place had flexible hours, good pay, great atmosphere, and wonderful people to work with.The interview lasted five minutes and I knew I would accept any job they offered me. Turns out, third time is the charm.

After my three month long job search, I feel that I have grown a little wiser. The job hunt is frustrating for anyone, whether they are just coming out of college or in the middle of their career. Along the way, these are the points I have found that may help you find your perfect job.

  1. Don’t be discouraged – Anything you are feeling during your interview will read all over your face. Smile and be yourself. This way, your employer won’t be expecting “interview you” when you walk in the door on Monday.
  2. Keep throwing darts – Keep applying for anything that seems remotely interesting. If you throw enough darts, eventually one will stick.
  3. Look for something different – Don’t just look for a specific position. For example, most marketing majors start looking for marketing jobs, but most of those job listings online are for door to door or over the phone sales people. Again, this may be what you are looking for, but sometimes your skills may call for something else. While looking online, search for keywords like “entry level” if you’re looking to advance, “writing” if that’s what you enjoy, or simply browse the different job listings in your area. There may be something there that you would have never looked for in the search box.

    Don’t forget to visit the actual websites of companies where you think you would like to work. Some of them may not be using a website like Career Builder or Monster.com, and some smaller companies may be using Craigslist because it is less expensive. Also, look in places you may not have thought of at first. Hand in resumes to businesses around your home. Actually giving them the resume in person will probably make you more memorable to the person hiring for the company.

  4. Interview them too – While you are in your interview, make sure you are asking questions too. You need to make sure this job is right for what you want in your life as much as they need to make sure you are fit for the job.
  5. Relax – It may take some time, but something will happen if you work hard enough.

What tricks do you have for finding a job after college?

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Author’s Bio:
Amy Gardner writes financial topics including small business credit cards. Amy welcomes your comments.

Thanks, Rachel. Even the seasoned pros at home need reminders like these!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Should You Build A Brand Online Or Use Traditional Offline Brand Building

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A Guest Post by Jason Nash

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Does a Website Change How You Build A Brand?

There comes a time for every small business to, with some great webhosting, build a brand online and focus their efforts on gaining a stronger consumer basis throughout the Internet. Many entrepreneurs prefer using traditional offline brand building to gain consumer spending, but find it difficult to connect with younger generations without the aid of technology. The target demographic will usually encourage a business to focus their efforts with either online or traditional brand marketing. However, a business entity will always focus these pursuits with the primary goal of greatly improving its revenue.

Within an industry, there are few cases where a company does not have to compete with an overwhelming number of national competitors. Even in small communities, consumers have the ability to order products directly through the Internet to obtain goods that could have been bought in local stores. When a business is forced to realize its anonymity within its market, it is up to the business owners to differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack to secure a particular niche with consumers.

Large Business or Small Business?

Larger businesses with well known brands can charge more for the same product while offering fewer overall goods to their customers. This is due primarily to the marketing of their brand to be synonymous in the minds of their consumers with the product or service they sell. For instance, when you add up the price of the physical components in a large company, it will still be significantly less than the amount it would sell for due to its brand name being sold with it. This virtual commodity often has a higher price than any other individual aspect of an entire firm.

Which Generation and Where Are They Found?

Products that are intended to be used by the younger generation or consumers who use Internet access for their work will need their brand to be marketed throughout the Internet. When a company chooses to build a brand online, they have the advantage of generating a large consumer base that will only increase through time. Unlike traditional offline brand building, Internet use is becoming a universal tool that is taught to most children throughout the nation and not much is needed to get online.

Cheap web hosting is often sufficient. Once you got this you’re ready to get started with setting your online presence up. And remember that older generations will decrease over time and the traditional brands are expected to go with them if they do not revitalize their images. This can be seen by many established names trying to build a brand online to prevent the inevitable switch from damaging their profits.

Companies that offer products oriented to consumers who more frequently use television and printed materials for their information can gain more through traditional offline brand building. This marketing is quite popular currently due to the aging baby boomer population that is less integrated in social networks. Since the level of computer illiteracy is on average higher for older generations, it can actually be a wasted effort using online marketing for products that would be bought directly by the consumer.

What if it’s multiple consumer groups?

Since some products can be bought by multiple consumer groups, these items will often require both traditional and online brand marketing. This is true for products and services that are non-age oriented and for age-oriented products that can be given as gifts. It is important to focus each marketing task on the specific consumers who would be reached through media and online sources. For instance, when older generations look for a particular luxury service, they want to see a diligent staff that is both polite and friendly. For this same luxury service, younger generations will be more interested in the accommodations and the comparative price. Creating a brand that fills both of these needs can be done when each demographic is reached with the portrayal they desire.

Online brand marketing will often be through social networks and other informational sites that directly market to the consumer. The most effective form of designing a brand online has been to involve the consumer into the company’s daily operations. This often requires forum moderation after the marketing is over and special content that is designed to make these consumers feel included. Social chats with head officials to reassure consumer groups have proven to be effective. Corporate paraphernalia, including T-shirts, hats, and other trinkets can be displayed on site shops for dedicated consumer groups to show their brand loyalty.

Keep Track of the Traditional

Traditional brand creation will focus on telling consumers why your company is unique. This has the disadvantage of being a one-way conversation and relies on the trust consumers will place in your promises. Orienting the appearance of your company to the desired viewpoint of your consumers will lead to a higher reception. Since the general consumer will need only a positive psychological improvement to buy your products, traditional brands will often give the illusion of superior quality. For instance, focusing on a particular detail that is different from other competitors in a positive light can build a brand with targeted audiences. This does not even require the detail to be important or affect the performance of your product. It is simply something that makes your brand unique.

No matter the path you take with the marketing of your brand, it is important to remember that the revenue for your products and services will increase dramatically with a successful campaign (and don’t forget that a lot visitors/customers require strong hosting solutions, such as for example dedicated server hosting – otherwise your successful campaigns will be in vain). Before you branded your company, the costs were only in the material and labor that was incorporated into the product. Afterwards, you can take into account the worth of your brand and increase the prices to meet this improvement in the psychological satisfaction gained by your consumers.

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Author’s Bio: The article is from Jason Nash from webhostingsearch.com Jason writes
about technology, social media and online marketing strategies and
follows brands online and off as part of his work.

Thank you, Jason!

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz on your business!!

Is There Light at the End of the Tunnel for U.S. Businesses?

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According to a report released Oct. 5, from Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP), U.S. companies brought on more workers in September than the previous month, however the number was not enough to put a dent in the large unemployment numbers nationwide.

While the ADP report brought some encouraging news, two separate reports unveiled the same day noted that layoffs increased rather dramatically last month, while service companies are not hiring additional employees despite the sector’s relatively stable growth.

Looking back at the brighter report, ADP and Macroeconomic Advisers LLC report that private-sector employers added 91,000 positions in September, an increase of some 2,000 jobs from the previous month. The government’s official jobs report is slated to be released on Oct. 7.

Is Minimal Growth Better than None at All?

While the news is somewhat encouraging in that the country appears at this point to be dodging another recession, the recent report also demonstrates that growth is coming in very minimal numbers at best, providing us with weak growth at best.

While everyone is looking for any signs of growth, we shouldn’t be deceived by the numbers.

Much like when gas prices are inflated to high levels, drivers think they’re getting a deal when they pay less for gas, the bottom line being it is still $1 or $2 above what they paid the year before. Improvement, but much better is possible.

As for expanding on the down side, a report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas points out there were sharp increases in layoff announcements for September, with businesses planning to cut some 116,000 jobs, more than double the August report and the worst in more than two years. The biggest cuts came among the government and financial sectors.

What is Your Business Doing to Grow?

With the recent numbers showing a mixed bag, has your company been impacted either positively or negatively when it comes to job growth lately?

For many companies, especially smaller businesses, growth has been hard when you throw in the added costs for health care that many employers have been dealing with. While the government has tried to throw some incentives in the direction of small business owners, a fair number of them have either stood pat on hiring or even laid off where they felt it necessary.

If your small business is contemplating hiring, do you plan on? –

  • Waiting until after the holidays?
  • Waiting until you see better jobs numbers and additional incentives from Washington?
  • Waiting until next year’s presidential election is over?
  • Waiting to see if health care costs come down?

Lots of questions still remain for many small businesses, many of whom are playing the waiting game.

Photo credit: gaebler.com

Dave Thomas, who has authored a number of articles regarding business phone service writes extensively for www.business.com an online resource destination for businesses of all sizes to research, find, and compare the products and services they need to run their businesses.