No doubt you’ve heard me talking about why it’s so important that you are niching your business before. You may have already started working on your niche already… but today I want to introduce you to the concept of magazine research.

How you can use magazines to help you get clarity around niching your business.

Step one is to determine whether other people are as interested in the topic as you are. Speciality magazines are a great source of market research for you.

When you visit one of the larger newsagents or bookshops in your area, you’ll notice they have a huge range of speciality magazines available. Most magazines make their money from advertising revenue.  So if there is a magazine on your topic that has been around for a while, it is a fair bet people are looking for information on your topic- and are willing to pay!

Some time ago, I talked to a guy who wanted to niche into teenagers, because he saw his purpose as helping to empower them. There’s one huge problem with trying to sell to teenagers though. 

Do they have the money to spend on your product or service? 

The even bigger problem is that in this niche it actually becomes a double sale because (a) you have to sell to the teenager; and (b) you have to sell to the parent with the credit card!

Therefore, even though he had picked a great niche, it’s was going to be a challenge to get the money exchange happening!  If you do want to work in a niche that doesn’t have money to spend- you may like to niche into another area first for your business, and make this “penniless niche” your charity 😉

Here’s two easy ways you can determine whether your niche has money to spend:

Market research the people: Ask those you know personally. You’ve got your niche, you’re passionate about it and hopefully you have a community around you of other people who also share your passion.  These are your market! Ask them if you sold a product that did “x” would they buy it, and for how much?

Are people advertising to them? As a general rule you can assume that if people are advertising to a group of people in a speciality magazine, that group is buying the product. 

So if you’re wondering whether you’ve chosen a niche that has money to spend, why not take some time this week to browse through the magazine shelves. Find a magazine that is aimed at your niche audience and see what it throws up.

More and more business owners are undergoing what I refer to as “The Lifestyle Shift”. They are waking up to the fact that they are the boss, and therefore should be able to design their business to fit their lifestyle… not the other way around! It’s YOUR time!