Stand Out in a Saturated Market
HOW TO MAKE YOUR BUSINESS STAND OUT IN A SATURATED MARKET
Article by Angel Quintana
Photo Credit: Dasha & Mari
Magazine: Issue #21
Angel, I have been a blogger since 2007. I've had some fun experiences and some financial success but a girl can't live on skin care samples alone. The market is saturated with fashion/beauty blogs now and I am struggling to make a consistent income. I'm not sure which direction to take to make a higher income. I'm not a trained personal stylist or makeup artist, I'm a busy mom who loves to look her best. What service do I offer that is useful and desired by other women? I need to get clear and get this in the works.
Many thanks for your input!
xx,
Tammy Gibson
Nude Member, The Club
Great question Tammy! It’s a question I think a lot of entrepreneurs and bloggers out there would love to know. So here are are some tips to hopefully set you on the right path:
Determine the Urgent Problem You Solve
1| The first thing to consider is what Urgent Problem do you know how to solve? You mentioned you are a busy mom who loves to look her best, I could probably guess there are a zillion of those women out there searching Google right now trying to find a solution to their rut. Embody their pain and figure out in their own language what is keep them up at night.
Create a Niche
2| Finding a niche is neither here nor there. How you really find your niche is to create one. The next thing to determine to find your niche is to figure out what part of the industry do you fit best in. You mentioned fashion/beauty blogs, but perhaps the real problem you solve is much different. I like to refer to this as the “root problem”. Create a niche and go deep with it.
Gateway vs Root
3| Once you know what root problem you solve, it’s time to step into the pain of your ideal client by understanding what “they think” their problem is. Many of those fashion/beauty blogs are selling “gateway problem” solutions, but you and I (and the rest of the Holistic Fashionista villa) know that the real problem is much deeper than anything you wear or put on your skin. It’s imperative you know what “gateway problem” you will lead with to bring them to your front door (aka: your website), but it’s the root problem that will take their pain away.
Develop Stellar Products/Programs
4| Now that you know what urgent problem you solve, you’ve created your niche, and know the gateway problem to bring them to you, and your holistic solution (or your root problem), you’re now ready to put together your products/programs to support your ideal customer. Putting together your products/programs can be tricky, because you’ve got a lot of skills, expertise, and qualifications— it can be tough determining how to cohesively communicate and organize your skill set into a system that solves the problem. Take your time with developing your products/program— it’s paramount to your success.
The bottom line is to forget about your competition and start focusing on what makes you different. Get your audience to trust you by delivering them rich content each week on your blog that gives solutions to the gateway problem, but always encourage them to take the next step to solve that problem for good! That’s where the money is.
