| I'm all in favor of researching a niche and using what | | | | the psychotherapist who wants to make $150 an hour |
| you find out to intelligently select a client niche. | | | | without accepting insurance needs to attract just 35 |
| However, if you sell time-intensive services or | | | | people who are willing to accept those conditions. |
| complex, high-priced products, research could cause | | | | Third, can you cost-effectively find that number of |
| you to overlook a perfectly viable niche. A key point | | | | clients in the niche you are considering? Perhaps only |
| that might come up in your research is what the | | | | giving it a try can answer this question definitively, but |
| average member of the niche can afford or would | | | | be sure to examine a wide variety of marketing |
| pay. Ignore that average! Here are the numbers to | | | | options for attracting clients. Are there magazines that |
| think about instead, and why. | | | | reach, let's say, aspiring rock musicians holding down |
| First, how many clients would you have per year if you | | | | well-paying corporate jobs? Then advertising and |
| were as busy as you wanted to be? In some | | | | publicity in those publications can put you in front of the |
| industries, this number is extremely low. A direct-mail | | | | right people. Can other professionals refer to you |
| writer told me that her schedule is completely full with | | | | individuals who have more than $2 million in assets or |
| just six clients per year, since she gets repeat | | | | serious issues getting over childhood abuse? Are there |
| business from each, and each project might take a | | | | lists of second-home owners within 30 miles of you or |
| month or six weeks to complete. If we look at | | | | owners of pre-1990 Mustangs that you can rent for |
| professions where clients tend to have weekly | | | | promoting yourself as a caretaker or auto restorer? |
| appointments for 45 minutes to an hour, like music | | | | Finally, let me illustrate this three-step mode of thinking |
| instruction or psychotherapy, there might be no more | | | | with a niche that you might be tempted to dismiss as |
| than 35-40 clients a year when factoring in attrition. | | | | obviously impossible to make a living from - artists. |
| According to Donald Mitchell, author of The 2,000 | | | | Everyone knows the stereotype of the "starving |
| Percent Squared Solution, the typical | | | | artist." Well, that's a stereotype, not a universal truth. |
| business-to-business company has only 30 clients. And | | | | Recently I read an article documenting that a surprising |
| according to Registered Rep, a magazine for | | | | number of Baby Boomers who have paid their dues in |
| investment professionals, wealth managers tend to | | | | high-paying corporate jobs are taking early retirement |
| have a full practice with 70 or so clients. Until you | | | | to finally fulfill their artistic leanings. These people have |
| actually figure this out, you probably imagine the | | | | plenty of money to spend on artistic coaches, mentors, |
| number of clients you need as way higher than is | | | | workshops, etc. and the mindset to spend it. The |
| warranted. | | | | biggest issue in targeting them as a niche would |
| Second, determine whether or not there are enough | | | | therefore be whether or not you could cost-effectively |
| people or companies in the niche you're thinking of | | | | find or attract 20-30 clients who fall into this category. |
| who are willing to pay what you want to charge. And | | | | It remains true that most artists do not have much |
| at this point you can see why averages are irrelevant. | | | | money to spend on their career. But it is also true that |
| If the direct-mail writer needs just six clients a year, | | | | a number of them do. So long as you can identify and |
| then whether or not the average company in the field | | | | attract the ones who do, you can turn that into a viable |
| of, for instance, organic supplements is willing to pay | | | | niche. Averages, smaverages! |
| her rates doesn't matter. She needs only six. Likewise, | | | | |