Think Like A Fly Fisherman

Want a Successful Niche Business?  Think Like a Fly Fisherman.

My father was an inveterate fly fisherman.  He’d walk and wade a trout stream for hours to understand all its nuances. Then he would return day after day to study the shifts and changes in its characteristics.  When he wasn’t doing that, my father would be huddled over a magnifying glass tying a specific kind of fly that the trout were looking for that day. Figuring out exactly the right fly to use to attract a trout and then get it to bite is central to the art of fly fishing.  So, not getting it right means going home with an empty fishing creel.

Niche Marketing is Like Fly Fishing
WWAGFFD or What Would a Fly Fisherman Do?  First a seasoned fly fisherman spends a lot of time investigating and observing the trout stream.  It’s the only one way to get a deep understanding of that special trout audience. It’s the same for niche marketing. Completely immerse yourself into everything about that niche market. Do it right and you’ll gain valuable insight into what that unique audience wants, needs, desires, and how it behaves behaves.  In other words, gain insight into the things that make your niche customers tick.  It’s the only way you’ll be able to reel them in.

You Need Niche Insights to Attract Niche Customers
Real fly fishermen tie their own flies.  That’s because each fly must look exactly like what a trout wants in order for it to bite. What does that mean?  Good question.  You gotta talk to the fish.  However, once you get a sense of what those particular fish are seeking to find, you can use the perfect fly to reel them in.

Test the niche market waters by creating some different “flies” to see what draws attention.  Does your audience show little no interest in what’s being dangled? It might mean that there’s not a niche audience for your business. Don’t give up yet. Good chance you don’t completely understand what that fly needs to look like. It’s not that there’s no niche fish. It’s that the right signal isn’t being given to appeal to that niche fish.  Try a different fly.

Spot-on insights for niche markets are even more important than those for conventional mass markets businesses. Niche markets require a highly individualized approach that speaks to a select group of customers with a specific interest. Mass market businesses pursue large swaths of market audiences. While mass market businesses still must know their customers well, they don’t need the level of unique insight to connect with devout niche audience interests. These special audiences will only respond to something that speaks their niche language and understands all the attributes of their niche culture.  And remember, this audience is also willing to pay more for things that are hard for them to find. Good insights will allow you to create exactly the right niche products and messaging to pull in customers.   Put those niche insights to work and you’ll have a nice fishing frenzy on your hands!