Niching Down: Why It's Taking You Forever
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The ideas are flowing.
You are uber excited to share your products or services with the world.
But there is one problem...you just can’t seem to nail your niche.
You’ve spent weeks, months, maybe even years going in circles. And still, you don’t have the clarity you need to create that perfect client persona.
And you’re just about ready to throw in the towel.
Sound familiar?
Well, you aren’t alone my friend.
The majority of my clients struggle with this exact thing. And after asking some questions I’ve discovered why it takes most people (what feels like) forever.
It’s the old-school way of niching down that keeps people stuck. Loads of marketing gurus create fancy pdfs with exercises to get to know your niche.
You’ve seen them, right?
Heck, maybe you’ve even downloaded loads of them. Wishing and praying the next one will work.
I don’t blame you. Niching down is vital to attracting your dream clients.
When we know our audience inside and out, our copy, messaging, sales pitches, content, and everything else becomes a no-brainer. It's usually when we are unclear about our audience that creates overwhelm.
But here’s the thing with those traditional niching down exercises... they don’t work. The questions are designed to scratch the surface with things like, gender, age, location, where they shop, and what books they read.
You and I both know people are far more complex than their age, gender, region, and where they shop, or what they read.
While those details are good to start, they aren’t going to help you niche down in a way that will really tap into your client's greatest desires and fears.
If you want to nail your niche, you must learn to understand them on a deeper level.
It’s knowing them at the core of who they are and what makes them tick. What keeps them up at night, and drives their motivation.
No one cares if they shop at Target or Trader Joe's. Sorry, but it’s true. The pretty downloadables are meant to keep you stuck, which results in you wasting lots of time and money.
That is why I want to share a snippet of the process I take my clients through when developing their client persona.
Are you ready?
1. Talk to Your Ideal People
Instead of sitting in your house filling out downloadables, find your ideal people and talk to them. This is the best way to get to know them on a deeper level.
“But Kathryn, what if I don’t know any of my ideal people?”
Are you telling me in this overly connected world, you can’t find a handful of people that fit the description of your ideal people?
I really hope you answer no to this question. Your people are all around you. It’s now up to you to actually talk to them.
2. Watch Your People
Okay, I’ve officially gone stalkerish on you. But, watching your people and their behavior is another amazing way to start understanding what makes them tick. And what they are currently struggling with right now.
How can you do that?
Again in this overly connected world, there are a plethora of places you can watch and observe your people.
- Join FB Communities where your audience hangs out
- Follow podcasts and watch the comments
- Read book reviews
- Follow hashtags and see what content is being posted
Look for patterns and themes. For example, what are the most commonly asked questions? What type of comments do they make?
Use these patterns and themes to form a deeper understanding of your people.
3. Align with Your Dream Clients
Make a list of the type of people you want to work with, and a list of the type of people you don’t want to work with.
For example, I only want to work with people who take full responsibility for themselves, who are committed and operate in integrity, while I don’t want to work with people who play the victim, who are looking for someone to save them, and who don’t honor your time.
When we are clear about the type of people we want to work with it makes it easier to start attracting those types of clients.
4. Use Personality Tests
There are so many personality tests out there now. Use these tests to boil down the psychological makeup of your ideal clients' personalities. These tests are eye-opening and will give you a kick-ass picture of your people.
Here are some mainstream tests that provide great insight:
The more we can learn about our ideal clients' personalities the better we’ll understand them.
These are four snippets of the process I take my clients through inside my signature program, the Messaging that Sells Accelerator.
I’ll be opening my doors again in the fall and if you’re someone still struggling to communicate the value of what you do to attract your dream clients, join the waitlist to be the first in line.
