A niche market is a collection of potential customers who share characteristics that
Make them knowledgeable to a particular product or service. Marketing niche strategy looks at this essential trait which could be no more difficult than a very simple need: For example refrigerator magnets, neckties or wedding flowers. Therefore marketing niche strategy is how to convert a likely section of the market into a niche.
Launching a piece of merchandise into a niche market is far cheaper than launching a mass-market product. Potential clients are easier to identify and to reach. Niche markets often develop as a division of mass markets (the market for classic cars and left handed oven mits, and mass marketed manufacturers choose to promote niche products as well. Chevrolet for example manufacturers the Camero SS, a niche vehicle that sells in extremely limited quantities to headstrong motor addict. Dodge produces the Viper, and Plymouth the Prowler.
With the order reversed, what are projected to be the niche markets at times develop into mass markets. When Apple produced the personal computer in the early 80s, they did not expect it to turn out to be a mass market product. Out of the massmarket for personal computers there ultimately developed a number of niches such as portable PC’s.
The conflict with niche markets that do not spin mass markets is that they soon reach their boundries. A niche, which can be so valuable in getting the product off the ground, can soon become a limitation. The manufacturer has to find an alternative niche product or a different market in which to sell their existing product.
The web has features that make it optimal for niche marketing. Through emailing lists and forums it gathers electronically in one place exactly these groups of consumers with comparable interests that are a niche markers joy. Mailing list and forums focus on certain topics. In each discussion group there can be as many as 10,000 regular readers with special interest in that topic. And there are discussion groups about coin/stampcollecting, racing, cycling etc almost anything you can imagine.
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