the
ultimate
guide to
niching
by tom ross
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
Table of contents
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
Let’s get started
page 3
Why niche?
page 4
How to niche?
page 9
Elements of a viable niche.
page 13
Examples of niching.
page 16
Objections to niching
page 17
Go forth and niche!
page 19
Want weekly coaching?
page 20
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
01
let’s get started
If you’re reading this guide, it means that you’ve joined my newsletter
community. For that, I want to thank you, and promise to bring you as
much value as I possibly can each week.
If you follow my content or teaching, you’ll know that I’m a huge fan of
niching.
However, it wasn’t always that way. In fact, in my earlier career I made the
classic mistake of trying to offer everything, to anyone who cared. And
guess what?
No one cared!
The truth is, if you’re trying to do everything for everyone, you quickly
become invisible. Not only that, but you make your job as a marketer
infinitely more difficult than it needs to be.
?
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
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why niche?
There are several compelling reasons to niche down.
1. There is less competition
The obvious reason to niche is less
competition. Let’s take the example of
Becca Clason, renowned food letterer and
founder of Letter West conference.
If Becca simply produced hand-lettering
she would be competing with millions of
others. By niching down into food
lettering, she is competing with
significantly less people.
This is something you’ll see in every single
niche out there. The more niched you
become, the less folk you’ll be competing
with.
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
I call this the entrepreneur: consumer ratio.
This dictates if a niche (market) is over-served or underserved. Ideally you
want a high number of potential consumers, but a low number of
entrepreneurs serving them.
Niching is the quickest, easiest, cheapest way to side-step competition.
example 1:
1 million clients want lettering, but
there are 2 million letterers.
Client to designer ratio is 1:2 so
there are just 0.5 potential clients
for every letterer.
VS
1 MILLION
CLIENTS
2 MILLION
LETTERERS
=
1:2 RATIO
0.5 POTENTIAL
CLIENTS PER LETTERER
example 2:
1000 potential clients for brewery
murals niche worldwide, with only
100 specialists in the area.
VS
1000
CLIENTS
100 BREWERY
MURAL ARTISTS
In this niche, the ratio is 10:1.
Meaning for every specialised mural
artist there are 10 potential clients!
=
10:1 RATIO
10 POTENTIAL
CLIENTS PER MURAL ARTIST
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
2.It’s easier to become a specialist/expert
Being a specialist is subjective, but it’s a
combination of your actual expertise, and
your expertise relative to the market you’re
serving.
If you’ve seen the movie Idiocracy starring
Luke Wilson you’ll understand what I mean.
Luke Wilson’s character travels to the future
where the entire popular has a significantly
lower IQ than present day. He has become
literally the smartest man in the world. Has
his own IQ changed? Not one bit! But the
market has changed, the world he competes in has changed.
Let me give you an example of how niching makes becoming a specialist
easier. When I started my personal brand, I was trying to teach
entrepreneurship for all entrepreneurs. It was tough going. Not only are
there millions of folks already doing that, but I had to try and compete with
those at the top of the game (Gary Vaynerchuck, Seth Godin, Tim Ferris,
Marie Forleo etc...). I found that I got far more traction when I niched to
teaching entrepreneurship to creatives.
Suddenly my value in this smaller, niche market went way up! And my
competitors included many of my peers/friends (Mike Janda, Chris Do). It
suddenly felt possible to establish myself as a foremost expert in this
space, because it was smaller, and my level of expertise/success positioned
me at a very good level within this market.
3. you can often charge more
This is symptomatic of becoming a specialist/expert in your space. You can
command a higher rate for your time/services.
If you are one of the best options for consumers in your niche, you can
command a higher rate, compared to if many others provide a better
quality option to you.
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
4.It’s easier to find/serve your intended audience
Imagine for a second that I asked you to go find your ideal client if your ideal
client is ‘anyone who needs design work doing’. You’d likely feel totally
overwhelmed!
Now imagine if I told you that you can exclusively do work for restaurants in
a 20 mile radius of your house. You could literally reach out to each one of
those restaurants systematically in 1 week.
20 mile radius
That’s one of my favourite things about choosing a niche. You define who
‘your people’ are. And when you know who they are, you can often find
where they spend their time.
I see incredible creative entrepreneurs who have niched and are laser
focused in targeting their ideal clients.
There’s the designer I know who is targeting the CBD industry, and
attending as many CBD conferences as possible, making all kinds of
awesome connections.
There’s the kid’s book illustrator who is pitching as many publishers as
possible and making genuine, positive connections in that industry.
There’s my friend who’s become an absolute authority in the logo design
space, after previously being a generalist. Not only can he reach his ideal
people more easily, but they can find him more easily!
bonus tip:
Not only can you reach your intended clients with more focus and clarity, but you
can connect with them easier, by speaking their language. If you’re trying to reach
everyone, you’ll be forced to use generalised language, that doesn’t really resonate
with anyone. If you know exactly who you’re targeting, you can use words, phrases
and ideas that you know will deeply appeal to them, and it doesn’t matter if this
language isolates the rest of the market, as they are not your people!
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
5. become first to mind
It becomes a powerful tool to be first in mind within your niche. Whenever
I’m asking about a topic, I typically have someone in that space that springs
to mind above all others.
The number of folk I’ve recommended simply because they’ve committed
to their niche as a specialist, and therefore are front of my mind is
staggering.
I never recommend generalists. Ever.
However! Need someone to design Instagram graphics for you - I got just
the person! Passionate about body positivity? Got just the woman for you!
How about cats? Yup, I know someone for that too! Personal training?
Photoshop memes? Cute illustrations? You name it, there’s someone that
I’ll happily recommend to you.
?
The beauty is that you don’t necessarily need to be the biggest/most
established name in your niche to be that person for at least some people.
Even just a small community of people actively recommending you to
friends can be tremendously powerful!
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
03
how to niche?
If you’re reading this guide, you’re likely a creative or designer of some sort.
There are 4 ways to niche effectively as a creative (but these tips can apply
to most entrepreneurs).
1. Skill/Service:
The first niching method we’ll look at is via skill/service:
I want you to think in terms of a large triangle when it comes to your
current offering. The widest part of the triangle at the top is the more
generalised. As the triangle becomes more narrow at the bottom, this
represents being more specialised.
Here’s a super basic example:
Designer
Logo Designer
more generalised
more narrowed down
To visually show the example of Becca Clason whom I mentioned earlier
in this guide:
creative
hand letterer
food
lettering
more generalised
more narrowed down
very specialised
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
2. style/positioning:
Style and positioning is another fantastic way to niche down.
Let’s stick with the world of hand-lettering for a moment. My friend Lauren
Hom did a tremendous job breaking through as this space became
increasingly saturated. She managed this in part, due to her unique
positioning. As everyone continued to post forgettable, boring
affirmations/quotes, she took a unique stance and posted bright lettering
with funny, sassy, quirky, fun messaging.
hand
lettering
hand
food lettering
withmotion
with stop
quirky
quotes
animation
funny
stop
motion
quirky
quotes
animation
Boom! Instant niche.
With the example of Becca Clason she decided to fuse her love of food
lettering with stop motion animation. Combining two styles/niche service
offerings can often carve out a highly unique, smaller niche for you.
food
lettering
food lettering
with stop motion
animation
stop motion
animation
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
One of my coaching group, Kat, has recently niched her illustration work
into exclusively illustrating cats. Her service offering remains illustration,
but her subject matter is now much more specialised. She is starting to
now actively target fellow cat lovers, rather than ‘anyone who likes
illustration’.
illustrations
illustrating
cats
loves
cats
3. industry:
Picking the right industry to serve is pivotal to your success.
I’ve knew a web designer who exclusively designed websites for churches.
How’s that for having a laser focused idea of who you’re targeting?
There are all kinds of promising industries just waiting for you to serve
them.
Here are just a few:
sports
hotels
restaurants
cbd/cannabis
conferences
personal
brands
publishing
wine/beer
gardening
healthcare
beauty
online
teachers
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
4. Via Client/Customer Profile:
This is similar to the industry you wish to serve, but allows you to go even
more specialised.
Do you want to target high-net worth individuals or bootstrapped startups? Do you want to sell to goth teenagers, or retired tennis enthusiasts?
It’s really up to you!
Each customer profile will have benefits and drawbacks.
This is explained further in the next section.
benefits & drawbacks
x
corporate
culture
good
money
x
long
hours
high net-worth individuals
big
projects
x
tight
deadlines
exciting
opportunities
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
04
elements of a viable niche:
In my opinion, you should only pursue a niche if it fulfils the following 4
conditions:
01
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
02
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
03
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
04
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
When I was a freelance designer, my specialist service niche was web
design, with a focus on conversion optimisation.
In my very early career I tried doing websites for bands.
Let’s plug that into our 4 part system:
01
02
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
I was totally passionate about
doing the work.
x
03
?
04
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
I liked the clients well enough,
although truthfully could have had a
stronger bond with some of them!
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
Unfortunately it turns out bands
(especially amateurones) have no
money! I could never earn a
living from serving this audience.
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
I felt equipped to serve them
well, and I could reach them
easily enough.
Let’s call that 2.5/4 = an unsuitable niche.
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
Let’s try another one. Perhaps, if I targeted Fortune 500 companies.
01
02
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
I’m sure I’d be passionate about
doing the core work still.
03
x
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
The money would be huge in this
space, so this is a big tick!
04
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
I have never really resonated with
corporate culture, and don’t think
I’d like all the hoops and red tape to
jump through. So this may not be
too fun for me!
x
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
I would also have struggled as a
younger designer to land clients like
this, who would gravitate to
reputable industry
agencies/veterans.
So that’s 2/4 = another unsuitable niche.
I found by far the greatest traction in my freelance career when I began
helping online solo entrepreneurs earning $100,000+ annually with their
websites.
01
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
02
Still loving the work!
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
These clients could afford to pay
me the biggest rates of my
career thus far.
03
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
I totally understood these people,
as a fellow entrepreneur. It made it
much more fun to work with them,
and I could better understand their
goals/business needs.
04
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
I could reach them due to the
network I’d established as an
entrepreneur myself.
4/4 = Success!
I highly encourage you to plus your current service/product offering and
intended consumers into this model. Without the full 4/4 I believe you will
struggle. I would advise pivoting/adjusting until you hit that 4/4 score.
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
WORKSHEET
Complete each section. See how highly your chosen niche scores.
01
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
02
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
03
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
04
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
your score:
Not a great score? Want to try again?
01
You are passionate about the work
you will be doing.
02
The clients/customers can pay
you enough to meet your financial
goals.
03
You understand and like these
clients/customers. You will enjoy
working for/with them.
04
Your have sufficient experience
and credibility to reach and serve
these clients/customers well.
your score:
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
05
great examples of niching:
If you’re looking for some real-world inspiration from those that have been
there and done it, check out these inspiring folk, right from within the
creative industry:
scotty russell:
Business Coaching > Business Coaching for Creatives >
Business Coaching Creatives On Their Side Hustle
dustin lee:
Digital Products > Digital Design Products > Retro Themed
Digital Design Products
dave talas:
Social media strategy > Instagram strategy > Instagram
strategy for creatives
Zulfa (The Cosmic Feminist):
Illustration/lettering > Space themed illustration/lettering >
Space themed illustration/lettering with a feminist message
James Lewis:
Hand lettering > Hand painted lettering > Hand painted
lettering in a unique 3D style
Dina Rodriguez:
Illustration/lettering > Illustration/lettering around bodypositivity, weed + feminism
There are also a huge number of companies and larger influencers I could
give you, but I wanted to show you that there are also many independent
creative entrepreneurs seeing remarkable early success in their creatives
using the power of niching.
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
06
objections
Whenever I talk about niching, people tend to get uncomfortable. They
couldn’t possibly niche, could they? What if it’s not a good fit for them?
Their objections tend to fall into 4 main categories, and I will address each
one here:
1. They think they will get bored / feel constrained
I understand, if you’ve bounced around painting a totally different think
each day for years, the idea of committing to a specific audience or subject
matter may feel very limiting.
However, I personally know dozens if not hundreds of entrepreneurs who
are successfully niching. None of them feel bored or constrained I can tell
you!
What’s more constraining - endlessly struggling and not finding traction
but keeping your options open, or committing to a niche and finding real
success?
Plus realise that even the most narrow niches offer tremendous creative
flexibility. In fact, your niche may just give you the focus you need to trigger
creative ideas.
2. I don’t want to limit my opportunities
Many people feel that if they niche, they will be missing out on clients,
opportunities and success afforded to them by a larger market.
The has been proven not to be the case again and again. Virtually every
successful creative entrepreneur I know has niched in some way.
Try to think of any entrepreneurs you look up to. They’re likely not a
generalist, or at least didn’t find initial success being a generalist. You very
likely know them for a specific thing. They may be your favourite kids book
illustrator, your favourite logo designer, motivational speaker, digital
product designer etc…
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
3. My desired niche may not pay
Even micro-niches are often surprisingly abundant in terms of financial
opportunity. I’ve known so many entrepreneurs make a killing in niches
many others have written off as too small.
However, I encourage you to run through the exercises featured earlier in
this guide to assess if a niche is financially viable.
It’s absolutely essential your niche can pay you enough, but the beauty of
the internet is that the long-tail of smaller niches has never been more
lucrative for savvy creative entrepreneurs.
motorcycle
illustrations
food
lettering
design for
gardeners
micro-niches
personal trainer
crossfit athletes
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
07
go forth and niche!
I hope that after reading this guide you’re feeling inspired to exploring
niching more.
Niching is something anyone can do, and it costs you literally nothing.
I’ve coached so many people who have only found traction after they’ve
started to niche properly.
It can mean the difference between floating around, feeling like in a mass
market, and getting laser focused to find success in a highly lucrative
smaller market.
I wish you the very best of luck, and of course if you have any questions
don’t hesitate to message or email me. I’m always here for you :).
- Tom.
www.tomross.co | @tomrossmedia
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THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NICHING - TOM ROSS
08
want weekly coaching support?
If you would like hands-on support from me, weekly
homework, accountability and the chance to participate
with an amazing group of creative entrepreneurs, my
weekly group coaching may be a great fit for you.
CHECK IT OUT HERE
testimonials:
Liz - @heartofmercydesigns
Tom is amazing and pours his heart and passion for business
into our tribe calls with the goal of our success through
actionable steps! The value we receive truly is priceless!
Paul - @paulhallamcreates
Tom’s insight and guidance into creative marketing has been
fundamental for growing illustration business and making
money from my passion.
Jacki - @lakehouse_designs
Tom is passionate about helping creatives achieve their
business goals and in the process has created an incredibly
supportive community I’m proud be part of.
Rachel - @rachelhollert
After I joined Tom's group, I started making money doing
work I truly love. Simple as that.
Luke - @deadweightdesign
Tom has helped massively in the process of me niching down
and breaking down my business idea. He cares about your
project and his "tough love" is more like constructive
criticism delivered in the nicest way. I look forward to my
continued work with him!
Zulfa - @thecosmicfeminist
I've been incredibly lucky to have come across Tom at the
beginning of my freelance career. Tom's mentorship has been
extremely valuable. He 100% helped shape my thinking about
marketing at an extremely important phase of my journey.
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