If you serve a niche market, make proprietary data your key differentiator

If you’re a small business or a startup, niche markets provide opportunities to grow your business quickly and expand into larger, more competitive markets. Customers in niche markets share a highly specific set of traits; serving them effectively may require greater focus, but less initial investment than when taking on larger segments.

According to Forbes, “there are more niche markets than ever,” where “business owners can enjoy larger margins on their products and services.” Many of these markets feature businesses and consumers with highly specific needs left underserved by bigger industry players. Consequently, you can go to market with a stronger value proposition and drive greater business value, even if your total potential revenue is limited by the size of that segment. You can subsequently expand your offerings into other segments, building on the foundation of your initial success.

Niche Markets Pop Up Where You Least Expect Them

If your plan is to go to market within an already heavily trafficked space—B2B marketplaces, for example, a market in which Amazon Business is quickly gaining traction—existing saturation needn’t take away from niche groupings within that larger segment.

Our friends at Blue Collar Lists (BCL), for example, have a unique take on the B2B market by servicing a specific subset of businesses—namely, professional contractors. BCL offers specifically designed tools for this subset, providing business solutions where none existed before. Larger players in this field are unlikely to develop these highly specific sets of tools, which makes BCL highly competitive.

Proprietary Data Adds Power to Your Niche Value Proposition

Big companies are investing heavily in market research to position themselves as ‘thought leaders’ and paint their products and services in a positive light. Small businesses can take the same approach to niche markets with hyper-focused research that boosts their appeal to unique customer segments. Unlike larger players, however, they are likely going to market with unprecedented insights compared to direct competitors.

Best of all, the tools for acquiring this data—and the content that drives their businesses forward—is astoundingly affordable and accessible to small businesses today. According to The Guardian in their report on market research for small businesses:

“[Research] can be used to show you… how to work out your next steps and stand apart from your competitors. The knowledge that you have the evidence to base decisions on and inform your strategy can be of real help to a fledgling business or entrepreneur.”

The Guardian, How to use market research to improve your business

If you’re concerned about the cost, direction, or value of market research opportunities, but you’d like to know more, contact one of our analysts. We’ll find a solution that works within your budget and highlights the key value points you want to identify in your customers. Then, we’ll help you develop the content you need to show customers how you stand out from your competitors.