5 Litmus Tests of A True Niche Market

Not every customer segment qualifies to be a niche specialty. To be practical your niche markets must meet the immutable laws of niche marketing. Yes, a segment might have different needs and sound like a tempting target, but in fact it is what marketers call a “sub-niche” or “faux-niche” because it fails one or more of the Rainmaker real estate niche marketing litmus tests.

1. Substantial: A niche must be large enough to justify the investment and resources required to target it.
2. Identifiable: If the prospects don’t identify themselves as a niche, they are not a niche except in your own mind. Often keyword search terms reveal a true niche (Wordtracker.com, NicheBot.com, Google Keywords).
3. Durable: Even the “market of the moment” (short sale sellers, bank-owned buyers, new subdivision buyers, etc.) must be relatively stable over years to deliver results (and return on investment). Avoid the need to make frequent mid-course corrections to your niche strategy.
4. Reachable: Your niche must be reachable with channels of communication or media readily available to you (think non-owner occupied tax records to target investors, or a condo association newsletter for dog-friendly buildings, or Notice of Default lists for short sale sellers, etc.).
5. Unique: A niche must have different needs from other segments or the market as a whole, yet be as similar as possible within the niche. These unique needs will be the foundation for your different marketing promotions.

As you work to find your niches and plan how to scratch them true niche markets must meet these criteria to qualify.