Unless you've been living under an Internet rock, you've probably heard the buzz about Niche Marketing. Right now it's the hottest marketing topic online.

Is it a new concept?

Well on the Internet maybe, but if like me, you've been involved in direct response marketing in the 'Bricks and Mortar' world then it isn't - that's the way we've done things since time immemorial.

So what's this Niche Marketing thing all about?

If you have ever taken Marketing 101 then you'll have heard of the old marketing adage : "Find a need and fill it" - that's what "Niche Marketing" is all about. Finding a "focussed" group of people, with a specialized interest, eager to buy (The Niche) and promoting a suitable product or service to all those interested in buying it (Marketing).

Let me give you a few examples of these Niches :

Recipes Golf Fishing Health and Fitness Travel Collectibles Dating Dog Training Satellite TV Beauty Tips Astrology Cats Bartending Alternative Health Hand-poured Candles Gourmet Foods Gambling Mortgages Credit Cards Music Jewellery

...... the list just goes on and on and these are just the main headings, there are niches within each of these niches ... Think of a subject and there's likely a niche market for it...

But the name of the game is to find a "tightly focussed" niche. The reason for this that if you target a general market the competition is fierce and it's hard, if not impossible, for the little guy to get a foothold.

When you narrow down the size of the market you eradicate most of the heavy hitters with bottomless advertising budgets, because these guys aren't interested in making a few thousand bucks a year from these tiny specialized markets, they're after millions from mass markets...

... And let's face it if you're a little guy you simply can't be everything to everybody, so you must pick a specific focus (Niche) for your business. For example don't target "Fishing", instead target "Fishing Baits" or "Fishing Lures" both of which have a much more specific focus...

...Get the idea?

Once you narrow down the size of the market you have an automatic advantage over larger companies. Here's why :

* You can quickly become an expert in your niche (if you're not already)

* It's easier to keep current with a narrowly focussed market niche

* You can respond faster to changes in the market

* You can build close relationships with key customers that will be hard to compete with

This is something I learned from experience - if you're interested you can read my story here : http://www.nichemarketknowhow.com/articles/andre-anthony- value-of-niche-marketing.htm.

By now you're probably wondering about the mechanics of this niche marketing stuff. In a nutshell here's how it works :

* Find and research profitable niche markets

* Locate or develop suitable products/services to market

* Set up a web site to market the products/services

* Establish a marketing system that works for you

* Repeat the process over and over again with a different niche each time.

Imagine having a niche site producing one sale a day at say $20. That's $7300 a year - how many sites could you set up and run 10, 20 ....?

But before you get too excited, I have a word of caution for you:

Niche marketing is not a magic bullet. It isn't a matter of putting up a web site and then sitting back and waiting for the money to roll in - "build it and they will come" may have worked for Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams, but it doesn't work that way on the Internet - if you do that you'll be waiting a long time.

If you want a successful niche business, you have to work at it just like any other business - if you're prepared to put in the effort though the rewards can be significant.

Copyright ? 2005, Andr? Anthony Niche Market Know-How

Andr? Anthony owns and operates Niche Market Know-How a resource for beginning Niche Marketers. Visit http://www.nichemarketknowhow.com today to find strategies, tips, tools, products and resources for effective niche product creation and marketing. Get his Niche Market Know-how Mini Course here: http://www.nichemarketknowhow.com/course.htm