'Find a neesh' they said...

Why bother with a niche? You don't really have to...

...or another way of putting that - you don't have to be boxed-in by a niche.

Conversations about "niching down" bring up all sorts of worries about being restricted creatively, getting bored, or being cut off from the rest of the world that is filled with other interesting work you'll never get to do.

Quick story about Hilary who worked with me a few years back.

Her book of photography clients included real estate agents, parents of newborns, corporates, a motorcycle meetup, a pottery maker, and weddings on the weekend.

Important points:

• She was always busy, never lacking 'enough' work
• She enjoyed her clients and the variety
• Was making good money
• And had a strong referral network, so work often found her

But despite all of that, there were downsides. She hadn't taken a break in several years, especially with weddings on weekends.

And when she did do marketing, it was a little bit like "I'm a photographer, I can photograph most things for you, let me know what you need photographed and I'll come photograph it for you 😬".

What she realised was that despite the variety, the cool clients, the little bit of travel which she mostly enjoyed... she didn't have a lot of control over much of it.

If a wedding came up, she felt compelled to take it whether she was 'feeling' it or not.

Counterintuitively in her case, the wide variety was actually restricting her freedom.

To try and find a way through, we didn't start with looking for a niche... Instead, we threw all of her clients and projects onto the table and discussed each one in detail.

We were looking for something she:

• Enjoyed
• Was good at
• Knew was in demand
• Could build a system around
• Could set a tight scope for, with few moving parts
• Could price with a decent profit margin
• Could deliver in under a day, ideally in a few hours
• Could put a guarantee on.

Corporate headshots bubbled up early - it had enough positives that it quickly became the 'control' that we held all other options up against, and ultimately won out.

The offer she created, which has changed a few times since, looked like this:

• 90 minute sessions
• Photgraphed in her studio (clients came to her)
• Bring one outfit (no changes)
• Arrive with hair & make-up already done
• Paid in advance to book a timeslot ($500 back then, now has options from $800)
• Photos in Google Drive by that evening (this is the guarantee)

She created an offer that had a very tight scope; a fixed price; a guarantee; and it was efficient enough that she could do several in one day.

...and would you look at that - it's also rather "niche" shaped.

This one product allowed her to address many of the downsides in her business:

• She could take breaks because time and money were more systemised, so she could somewhat predict and plan for it
• Her marketing was far more specific, meaning it had more chance of actually working (it did)
• Aaaand... she didn't have to say no to the other stuff she enjoyed.

The product simply helped stabilise her business.

Productising and creating fixed-price offers is not a new, million-dollar idea.

It's a strategic move you use when sense there's a lack of predictability in your business, which is fixable.

Don't grab a torch and go hunting for niches - start with in-demand things you're good at, for people you already help.

(This is the foundation of The Solo Mastermind, running next year - email me for more info).

Have a great weekend.