Niche marketing begins with pinpointing your niche and building your firm around its needs. Once your niche-related services are ready to launch, the next step is to communicate with potential clients. Communicating to your niche through a website or mailer is effective for making initial contact. But, to turn a contact into a long-term client, there needs to be personal, face-to-face connections made through social interactions.
Here are several of the many examples of the social side of niche marketing:
- Some accounting and bookkeeping firms designate a “niche champion” to be the face of the firm to the clients from your niche. If you are the niche champion, through social interactions with the client, you will need to determine the needs of the client and how you can meet them. Listen to how one client’s needs may be shared by others in the niche.
- Other firms host round table discussions with clients and potential clients from the niche. As the host, you will need to create and ask open-ended questions, and guide discussion, while listening for concerns that are unique to their business or life situation.
- Others provide education through presentations and workshops. This is not an event that will happen spontaneously. You need to create the event and invite attendees. These presentations should not be an advertisement for your firm, but should contain helpful content specific to the niche.
- Many firms engage on social media; however, the term “social media” can be misleading. There is nothing “social” about it, unless you are using it to start a conversation. It is no longer effective to just have a presence on a platform. Be active. Use it to ask questions and listen. Although social media may be less intimidating than other social interactions, it still takes thoughtful initiation.
Is the social side of niche marketing a pro or con?
That depends on you. Social interactions may not be your favorite. Your idea of fun might be a quiet night at home. Social interactions may leave you drained and exhausted. If that is the case, you may see the social side of niche marketing to be a “con.”
On the other hand, the social side of niche marketing gives you opportunity to confidently communicate your services. You know that you do good work. And, you know you are the best fit for your niche, or else you would not have honed in on it. Confident, personal communication works for getting and keeping clients. If you look at the social side of niche marketing as just part of the hard work it takes to be a successful accountant or bookkeeper, you will see the effectiveness of the social side as a big “pro” to niche marketing.
