There has been a lot of talk about Niche Marketing as of late. In fact, you can’t visit a music marketing blog without the resident guru screaming, “Musicians MUST Identify Their Niche, Then Sell Music/Merchandise To That Niche“. But what does that mean, exactly?
What is a Niche Market?
Traditionally, it is a product or service that is not mass marketed, but targeted toward a smaller group of consumers who share a specific need/desire that is not a universal consumer expectation.
Online it is a technique used by affiliate marketers whom seek out smaller segments of a larger market, then develop and promote a website to service a smaller, targeted group of customers.
This is by no means a new idea, but relatively few musicians truly understand it. So how does this relate to your music?
Let’s say you describe your band as Metal. That’s a pretty broad statement. A guy my age might conjure up images of Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden, whereas my daughter would be thinking Dimmu Borgir or Enslaved. Basically, a Black Metal band would not choose to target Heavy Metal fans, right? Same goes for Heavy Metal bands not wanting to target Black Metal fans.
Ok, let’s go with a Black Metal band. That narrows it down quite a bit, but what kind of Black Metal? Traditional, Symphonic, Norwegian? Granted, many Black Metal fans will like them all, but let’s focus on marketing to fans of your particular sub-genre.
Alright, you are a Norwegian Black Metal band. Now, how do you set yourself apart from thousands of bands who also lay claim to that sub-genre?
Answer that question and you have found your niche!
Maybe you’ve incorporated a Bukkehorn (an ancient Norwegian musical instrument made from the horn of a ram or a goat) into your music. Perhaps your songs revolve around Jesus, as seen through the eyes of Judas, or your music is the backdrop to elaborate, Pagan incantations. These are examples of separating your band from other Norwegian Black Metal bands, thus defining your niche.
Once you have found your niche, you have found your potential fans/customers!
Don’t worry if you haven’t found your niche yet. It will come.
You may consider asking those who listen to your music to describe it in their own words. Also, find out who they think would most likely to listen to it. In fact, ask fans to write a review on your latest CD. This is much more powerful than media generated reviews, in my opinion.
Above all, stay true to yourself and to your music. Don’t try to force it. Don’t try to fake it.
Hey Chris,
Glad to see you on here. I’ve watched the video before and I’m already subscribed to your list. I hope you’ll consider contributing some info to Network Or Die! Definitely keep in touch.
Hey,
Love the content. This is as clear a definition and direction of ‘nicheing’ (um, if that’s a real word…) I’ve ever seen. Nice!
I made a video that complements this pretty well I reckon – it’s on (in case you don’t have time to get to watch that) how artists can make a living, usually a better living, by not focussing on music sales as the path to income.
My whole view is that the music industry we’re in now is sinking. I think we all know it. 95% of downloads are illegal, and that’s not gonna go away anytime soon.
Thing is, that’s not really such a bad thing for guys like you and me who aren’t invested in the current business model. We can make up a new one if we like. Who says we have to make money selling the right for people to listen to our music?
I think in my mind, the important thing is that Music is our passion, it’s what we want to do all day. And if we love our fans and connect with them, then that’s all you need. Music is the vehicle that gets people to know us and builds our fanbase. But once we’ve used that to build our fanbase, and they know us, like us and trust us, we can sell anything — if it connects with out niche.
Anyway, before I get far too excited about it all… You can check it out at my site – http://www.MakeYourBandFamous.com.
And I don’t know if these comments notify me if you reply, but feel free to pop me a mail there and let’s have some conversation.
cheers,
Chris Cox
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