How to Find Yours

1
Niche Markets

• How to Find Yours!

2
The Basics

• You need to have
• A niche focus
• Differentiation uniqueness
• Cost leadership value for product

3
Niche Market Products

• Generally serve a small, localized clientele.
• Serve a unique need or want.
• May, or may not, have competitors.

4
Customer Relations

• Know your customer
• What do they want/need?
• What will they pay for your products or services?
• Keep your customer coming back
• Positive reputation
• Continuing relationships
• (Goodwill builds over time)

5
Customer Demographics

• Measurable characteristics
• age
• gender
• family structure
• income
• ethnicity
• geography
• What product examples can you think of that would
  appeal primarily to a particular demographic?

6
Customer Psychographics

• Lifestyles
• Attitudes
• Interests
• Opinions
• What product examples can you think of that would
  appeal primarily to a particular psycographic?

7
Customer Behaviors

• Status
• Product usage rate
• Product usage occasions
• What product examples can you think of that would
  appeal primarily to a particular customer
  behavior?

8
Niche Market Examples

• Work with a partner.
• Choose one of the examples mentioned and list the
  pertinent characteristics
• Product
• Expected customer demographics (age, gender,
  family structure, income, ethnicity, geography)
• Expected customer psychographic attributes
  (lifestyle, attitudes, interests, opinions)
• Expected customer behaviors (status, usage rate,
  usage occasions)

9
Resources

• What do consumers want in dining?
• (Source Produce Marketing Association, State of
  the Industry Report)
• Consumers are
• Time Starved - decline in free time
• Convenience Seeking
• Want Family Style Experience - decrease in cost
  difference between eating out and eating at home
• Quick-Serving Opportunities - Eating out
  quality, diversity, and fun.

10
Resources - Generation Generalities

• name ages ( population)
• World War II, gt 73 (14)
• Swing babies, 61-72 (14)
• Baby boomers, 42-60 (30)
• Generation X, 30-41 (17)
• Millenials (Generation Y), 12-29 (25)
• (2005 data)

11
Resources - City Data (online)

• City-Data.com
• Lots of information, including
• Population
• Median ages
• Median income
• Median home values
• Ethnicities,
• Education levels
• Marriage status

• foreign born
• Nearest cities of at least 200,000, 1 million
• Most common occupations (men women)
• Weather data

12
Example Batesville

• Population (2000) 6,033 2,885 males (47.8)
  3,148 females (52.5)
• Median resident age 35.9 years
• Median household income 50,115 (2000)
• Median home value 118,500 (2000)

• Ethnicities
• White Non-Hispanic (96.8)
• Hispanic (1.2)
• Other race (0.9)
• Two or more races (0.6)
• Nearest city with pop. 200,000 Cincinnati, OH
  (50.6 miles, pop. 331,285).
• Nearest city with pop. 1,000,000 Chicago, IL
  (243.8 miles, pop. 2,896,016).

13
Expanding

• The Internet can open up a much wider customer
  base dont grow faster than you can manage
  demand.
• As you grow, you will probably need to hire help.
• Finding good help and managing people can take a
  lot of time and may require time that you dont
  want to spend.

14
Examples

• Cooks Bison Ranch bison meat
• Country Line Orchard apples, pumpkins, more
• Bed Breakfast Tryon Farm community
• Grace Island Specialty Foods, Garrett, IN jams,
  sals, baked cheese crisps and other foods
• Vancouver Island things to do when visiting
• Farmstead Cheese goat cheese
• Everona Dairy sheep cheese

15
Some Final Thoughts

• To be successful, you need to
• Be willing to work hard.
• Be resilient and flexible.
• Do something you are interested in.
• Do something you enjoy doing enough to spend a
  lot of time on it.