Many of us have corporate jobs and are interested in diversifying or securing an additional source of income. In this case, side hustles are lucrative ventures. But every venture requires the correct implementation strategies to make it work – side hustles are no exception. For people who are not exactly sure what a side hustle is (as many have their own definitions), there is an article published by Damon Brown in Inc.com describing Chris Guillebeau's book Side Hustle. In that article, he describes what a side hustle is and what it is not. But for this article, I would highlight a few points, and I quote, “A side hustle is not a part-time job. It is an asset that works for you - you do not work for it [...] Side hustles are not meant to be your primary income […] It should add, not subtract, from your stability (Brown, 2017)”. The keywords here are ASSET and ADDITION.
So how can you create such as side hustle – how can you create a side hustle that is lucrative, that is an asset to you, and adds to your stability? In this article, I will give you three of my tips on starting your side hustle with a focus on niching.
What is niching? Niching is where you narrowly focus on one or two lucrative selected target markets together with a unique marketing mix. It should be effective enough to obtain a competitive advantage and concentrated enough to satisfy the needs of your target market better than your competition. Niching is very important because:
It allows you to specialize in a single market group or one product or service offering, and by specializing, you are avoiding being a “jack of all trades and a master of known.”
It makes you unique in the marketplace. When you specialize, you are recognized for something exact or as the go-to person/business in solving a specific problem.
You can better serve your target market profitable by focusing on just a single market group.
It allows you to develop the conditions for excellent positioning, which is important in building a competitive advantage in a saturated market.
I strongly recommend niching in the early stages of your side hustle. You can further expand once you have developed sufficient experience and knowledge in the market. Here are my three tips or steps for starting your side hustle. Each tip includes basic, straightforward, and concise examples for a better grasp of the information presented.
1. Know your business
If you are starting with an existing product or service offering, the niching process requires you to properly define your business. This process sounds simple, yet many people incorrectly define their business. In defining your business, one must focus on being customer-oriented instead of product-oriented. For example, let us assume that your current product is cocoa butter lotion. In this instance, you can incorrectly define your business using the product-oriented approach and consider yourself to be in the lotion business. Or, you can use the customer-oriented approach to correctly position yourself to be in the skincare business. These two approaches are distinctly different and present particular benefits, as one approach concentrates on the product and the other on the customer. Remember, the key is to always keep an eye on the customer and not the product.
2. Finding your niche
If you do not have an existing product and you are generating ideas to start a side hustle, sit down and analyze your strengths and or skills. The first step in this niching process is to select two or three business pillars that are: (1) your strengths, (2) that are relatable and (3) profitable, and; (4) which you can also combine. This process will help create an unbeatable niche that works best for you, maintains your interests, is profitable, and has excellent returns. So, let's suppose your strengths are beauty and skincare; we can now use these strengths to build your niche and niche statement.
(A) But before doing so, you would need to get even more specific and clearer as to what you offer to your audience. To do this, you need to answer three mandatory questions: (I) who is the specific group that is going to benefit, (II) what problem are you solving and; (III) what are you giving or how are you going to solve the problem (i.e., what would you be providing/offering).
Let’s answer these three questions through a simple illustration:
I. The first question is: Who is the specific target group? – Answer: “Women who work in air-conditioned offices.”
Note that a target group of merely “women” is too broad in this niching process. Remember, in building our niche, our aim is to concentrate and specialize on a single market group or one product as narrowly as possible. Hence, to get specific with the group type, “Women who work in air-conditioned offices” leaves no room for question.
II. The second question you are trying to answer is: What problem are you solving?
The problem you are solving is to “help prevent dry skin” or "maintain healthy skin." These responses are also specific.
III. What are you giving, or how are you going to solve it?
You are going to solve the problem through “quality skincare products.”
Keep in mind that when choosing your product, it is recommended to focus on one product or a collection of offerings. Let us take the previous cocoa butter lotion scenario. For example, the product offering could be cocoa butter or a collection under that product line - for instance, cocoa butter lotion, cocoa butter oil, cocoa butter soap, cocoa butter scrub, etc. Or a line of products under that umbrella, for example, shea butter, cocoa butter, body butter, etc. Whatever it is, ensure it is focused and specific.
(B) Now that you have answered your three questions, you can now formulate your niche statement. Here are some examples - your niche statement may be: “providing quality skin care products to help prevent dry skin for women who work in air-conditioned offices.” Or “Helping women who work in air-conditioned offices maintain beautiful, healthy, hydrated skin with skincare butter products.”
After you have formulated your niche statement, your niche statement should now serve your business purpose. In other words, all marketing activities should be tailored around that specific niche statement. Likewise, your statement would help to clearly communicate with the public what exactly you provide.
3. Know what you offer – be an expert
This next step is also simple but frequently overlooked. This process is focused on education. What does this mean? It means that you must put yourself in a position to obtain adequate knowledge and expertise about your product, service, and experience offerings better than your competitors and from your customer's viewpoint. That way, you can effectively educate and speak articulately and innovatively about your offerings to your customers.
For example, educate yourself on the benefits of the product or service for the problem you are solving and what else makes it unique, different, and valuable. You also need to know about your competitors’ products in comparison to yours. In the long run, being knowledgeable would not only help you communicate well with your customers but also help in closing sales.
Let’s take the previous cocoa butter example. In this case, you would need to know how the product solves the problem of preventing dry skin or maintaining healthy skin for women who work in air-conditioned offices. You would need to learn more about the product benefits towards skincare, such as the ingredients, the reviews on the product – what people are saying, how to use it effectively, how it works on oily skin and dry skin or combination skin, what are the strengths and weakness of industry leaders and other competitors, what is the general noise in the marketplace about the product, etc. These are just a few examples, but you can get very creative and in-depth in your search. The more you know, the better.
You should also study your customers and learn who they are, what they do, and what their interests are. To find ways to connect with them, I suggest you take time every day to diligently study your customers. This is important because when you are ready to expand and develop your side hustle, you will have already attained excellent customer knowledge, and that is your strength or weapon in the marketplace. With that acquired knowledge, you can take calculated risks in any future developments of your business.
All things considered, there are many other considerations when starting your side hustle, such as skillsets, planning, resources, expenses, etc. Hence, keep in mind that the tips featured in this article are geared towards developing your focus strategy as you start your side hustle. Needless to say, every industry or business can benefit from this niching process. In brief, whatever your side hustle business venture may be [the sky is the limit], remember niching is valuable if you want to set yourself apart and get noticed.
Reference list:
Brown, D. (2017, Nov 3). This is the Best Definition of a Side Hustle. Retrieved from Inc: https://www.inc.com/damon-brown/this-is-best-definition-of-a-side-hustle.html