A recent newspaper review of a new book, Selling Sickness, got me thinking about niche marketing (The Globe and Mail, Saturday, August 6, 2005, D8-D9). The book in question considers case studies that purport to show how "Big Pharma" (the entire pharmaceutical industry, from manufacturers to drug salespeople) manipulates data to "create" a disease that they have the "cure" for.
Regardless of how one feels about the pharmaceutical industry, the book does demonstrate one thing-the ability of this industry to correctly identify small-but-profitable niches and exploit them for huge profits. The book, as indicated by the reviewer, identified a "familiar pattern" for the "selling of sickness":
A pharmaceutical company identifies a wedge condition, set of symptoms, or "risk factors"; hires a PR firm to come up with a "disease" name, ideally something catchy with a pronounceable acronym (e.g., SAD); develops a drug, or adapts an existing one, to tout as a "fix" for this new medical problem; and begins massive marketing to physicians and the public. The media pick up the story, suggesting that the "new" disease is greatly undiagnosed/undertreated; the market expands; drugs sales rise. And voila! Another blockbuster is born. (Direct quote from the review)
Do you see the building blocks for a niche business in this description? Following Big Pharma's lead can help you begin a small niche business and grow it into a financial success. Simply follow these steps:
- Within your industry, identify a "wedge" that you can target.
- Create a fancy way of describing the number one problem your product or service solves; make it stand out from any other site that offers the same thing.
- Demonstrate, by way of strong benefits, how your product or service will solve the problem.
- Tailor your marketing efforts to your "wedge" by these means.
- As your marketing catches on, you will grow from marketing to just a "wedge" to marketing on a larger scale.
- Voila! You have your own niche blockbuster business!
Such a process certainly takes time, but these 6 steps provide a solid foundation for any niche business to gain a foothold and grow into a success.
About the Author
Jeremy M. Hoover is an online article and content writer. If you need articles for promotion or for your website, contact Jeremy at his website, www.jhooverwebcopy.com . Read more marketing articles by Jeremy at his blog, www.jhooverwebcopy.blogspot.com .