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4 Reasons You Need A Niche Market

Key #1: Focus
When we focus our business to serve a niche market we create a compact business strategy that knows the ‘ins and outs’ of our market’s needs. Our web page speaks to a select market from an expert point of view. Speaking from authority that respond to a familiar need with a focus is a powerful way to attract your niche market. It is called marketing by attraction, or pull marketing.

A niche market may include a million potential buyers, or ten million potential buyers. A small business web site would most likely be pleased with having 10 thousand potential buyers, and to get attention from a niche market of 10 thousand buyers we will need to focus.

You might be inclined to try and sell to a wider market than a specific niche. The broad approach is common and it most often fails because in trying to speak to everyone it speaks to no one. A broad message is lost on all aspects of your market when they have a specific problem to solve.

The majority of business web sites seem to have fallen for the false idea that a web site can sell to the world. The reality is that the web creates a one-to-one relationship. Our web sites need to be more specific to each aspect of our web market.

For instance, a web designer may develop a niche market for business owners that are new to the web. There is also a niche market for those business owners on their second or third web design and the changing needs of that niche. A niche exists for certain professions like a dentists or a realtor.

Of all the different kinds of businesses needing a web design it will be a specialist that can be found quickly and the business jargon speaks volumes to the client.

Key #2: Specialize
You will need your web site to speak about how you specialize in order to attract attention from an important niche that exists within your wider market. Your web site may sell picture frames but you specialize in wooden frames. This would be your primary market, but you can still sell other types of frames. The important thing is to capture your special niche market because it is obviously a big enough market for you to want to specialize in.

Creating a web page for a niche market is often referred to as building a landing page when you have more than one niche market to serve. When this happens then you pull one niche to a certain landing page and pull another niche to a different landing page. Keywords play a big part in which landing page is delivered.

Call them by name:
It helps if your web site can address your niche market by name. Something like “wooden picture frame lovers… ” should catch their attention and from there you can talk about the unique features of wooden picture frames.

Why does your business specialize in wooden picture frames and why do you love wood and like to work with wood? When you speak this way about why you truly appreciate wooden frames your web site is expressing your values as a knowledgeable business owner. Your niche market likes this and they identify with your business because they share the same values.

Key #3: Be of Service
As you build content for a niche market you help them to feel right at home. The jargon you use and the solutions you offer provide a unique experience for your niche market that otherwise have to guess if a web site really does offer a solution for their specific needs.

Your niche market becomes comfortable because you are serving their need to find trust, quality and respect for the values they share with you. This is an unspoken service because your web pages doesn’t say, “We are trying to make you feel comfortable and let you know that you belong here with us”, but this is what your market feels just the same.

When your web site provides insight and helpful information for choosing products and services you’re pulling your niche market in. Your market is not only made more comfortable they are educated in ways they never knew before. This is because their needs are unique to the special niche they are a part of. The market that loves wood probably wouldn’t know why a hardwood may suit some projects but not others. Members of your market may only want the appearance of wood and not care about its other qualities. There are so many things to talk about in providing good service.

Okay, you don’t sell wooden picture frames
Almost every business will have a lot to talk about that is informative for their niche market. As the market become more knowledgeable on the features and functions of a natural product (or your product) then you can educate them on being price wise so they don’t purchase the cheapest product and end up being dissatisfied.

Your service needs to extend beyond the price so your market can purchase in the price range and other considerations that is best for them. And this is true whether the final price is high or low. Good service provides all the important reasons for spending less or spending more so that the final purchase is without regret.

This is truly being of service and it is that old time value we loved about the local business owner that we could always trust to keep us safe while giving us their best information.

Key #4: Search Engine Placement
As you build quality content that covers all the bases in your niche market from beginning (curious) to end (sophisticated answers) you will also be completing your own page SEO. You used to pay big dollars to an SEO expert so the search engines would place your site high on the list for your search terms. Today, it is by providing the quality content that you also complete the SEO for your page.

Over the years Google has changed and the new requirements are that your web site needs quality and quantity when it comes to relevant web content. An SEO specialist cannot do this for you. They might be able to tweak your content slightly to perform better, but no one can support your market as well as you can.

These changes by Google fit perfectly for focusing on your niche market. In the process of providing insight and specialized knowledge for your niche market your web pages are sharing unique information of quality that search engines want. Search engines are in the business of listing the most relevant pages for a search. By giving your niche market the information that helps them the most you are also giving the search engines the pages they want to deliver. It is called symbiosis.

If you didn’t write content for a niche market you would be writing content to cover a broad market and then your business web site would read more like a department store than a specialty shop. But – and this is a BIG but – even a department store needs to have landing pages with a tight focus for a specific (niche) market.

Google will choose pages that provide a specific focus to match a keyword search. Those broad general market descriptions so many business web sites use to attract everyone in the world do not capture the interest of any particular market, and they do not attract the interest of search engines.

The common search terms used to attract traffic are not specific enough to capture the interest of a niche market. What really happens is that the common search terms act as the default. When there is nothing else to choose then common terms will have to do.

Your web site, written for a niche market you are familiar with, is far from common and a niche market will close in on your site with the keywords that identify their need for information.

How to Find Great Live Auctions for Resale Items

Hi, my name is Walt. I’m an auctioneer with 25 years of experience in the auction business and licensed in the state of MA. I own Quick Auction Service, a company that specializes in building and running custom auctions, I’m also the webmaster of my own site and have been on eBay for 8 years. Besides eBay, the types of auctions I run most frequently are antiques and on-site estate auctions, although I’ve run everything from business overstock auctions to charity & special event auctions.

I enjoy sharing my knowledge and stories of the auction business. My goal for article is to help folks get the absolute most out of their auction experience.

Whether your fresh out of the package or a seasoned dealer I think I can offer something in this article to help you with your auciton adventures.

There may be as many reasons to attend auctions as there are types of auctions to attend. Maybe you want to attend an auction to buy items for re-sale on eBay, or some other market. Maybe you want to furnish your home with wonderful antiques, or you want to furnish your home as inexpensively without sacrificing quality.Some folks are just looking for a fun night out. With a little perseverance all these things are possible.

There are antiques and estate auctions, auto auctions, overstock auctions, absolute and no reserve auctions, real estate auctions, specialty auctions where only one genre of items are sold, tailgate auctions, live auctions, online auctions, sealed bid auctions, silent auctions, charity and fund raising auctions and many more.

Can you really buy for pennies on the dollar at an auction? You bet! Many times I’ve seen folks buy and re-sell at the same auction on the same night for a good profit, although be advised, this should only be done after the auction is over.

There are a lot of ways to find an auction, but here are some tips on how to find and attend the best ones.

Visit the genre of shops in the area that apply to the type of auction you want to attend. IE: If your looking for a good antique auction to attend, stop in the local antiques shops and ask for what there are for good auctions in the area. Sounds obvious right? But listen to what they don’t say as well as what they do say. Oftentimes when a dealer speaks poorly about an auction he or she attends, it may be likely that they are trying to keep a good thing secret. Think for a moment, why would a dealer keep attending a lousy auction?

Newspaper ads: I personally like to find ads in the classified ad section rather than flashy display ads. Flashy ads are usually indicative of an auction that will be high priced, may have reserves, (a set price on an item), and usually an enormous crowd. While any auction can be profitable to attend, it is usually best to steer clear of the glitzy ones, at least for the beginner.

Here’s the minimum you want to find out before you go. If there is a phone number in the ad, call and ask for the terms of the sale. What forms of payment do they accept? Is it an absolute auction? An absolute auction is one that has no minimum or reserve bids on items. These are the best auctions to attend! Is there a buyers premium? A buyers premium is like a tax that everyone who makes purchases at that auction must pay above the winning bid price. Most auctions these days do charge a buyers premium, 10% is not unreasonable but I feel much more than that is greedy, and the auctioneer that charges over 10% is counting on most bidders not doing the extra math as the bids quicken in pace.

A fair auction will have ample time to inspect the merchandise, usually at least 2 or 3 hours. Find out when inspection starts and make sure to attend! Never attend an auction if you can’t make the inspection, not unless your prepared to gamble. Most auctioneers sell at a rate of about 100 items per hour, which is why they sell “as is”. They simply don’t have the time to give a detailed description of all the items. Since almost all items at auction are sold AS IS, there are sure to be some damaged, refinished, fake and incomplete items at any given auction. Beware of any auctions that offer very little or no inspection time.

Good auctions will usually have 150 to 400 lots. A lot may be one item or a group of items. The exception to this are specialty auctions, auto auctions, real estate auctions etc.

When you attend your first sale, take note of the 1/2 dozen or so dealers that buy the most often. See if you can find out about other area auctions they attend.

When you do find an excellent auction, attend it as often as possible. By frequenting good sales, you help increase the bottom line of that business. It’s difficult for many auctioneers to keep the quality of merchandise consistent, so good attendance certainly helps. And when an auctioneer gets to know you as a buyer, he/she will go out of the way to accommodate you, to keep you coming back.

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Hiring An Auction Company

Estimating your assets value:

Typically, one of the first questions a business owner will ask me is, “how much will the assets bring at an auction”. After taking the time to review the assets, the auctioneer should give the client a conservative estimate of the sale based upon his experience and the current market trends. It is important that the company give realistic expectations so the seller can make informed decisions based on their best interest.

Compensation and Expenses:

Is the company you are considering working for you or against you? The agreement you decide may determine this.

A business owner should carefully consider how the auction company is compensated. The most common commission structures include: straight commission, outright purchase of assets, guaranteed base with a split above to both auctioneer and seller, guaranteed base with anything above going to auctioneer or a flat fee structure.

In a straight commission structure, the company is paid an agreed upon percentage of the total sale.

In an outright purchase agreement, the auctioneer simply becomes your end buyer. The company purchases your assets and relocates them. While this can be an option in some unique situations, keep in mind that they will want to purchase your assets at a very reduced price to make a profit at a later date.

In a minimum base guarantee, the auction company guarantees the seller that the auction will generate a minimum amount of sales. Anything above that amount either goes to the auction company or split with the seller. While a seller might feel more comfortable doing an auction knowing that he is guaranteed a minimum amount for his sale, keep in mind that it is the best interest of the auction company to secure a minimum base price as low as possible in order reduce their financial liability to the seller and secure higher compensation for the sale.

In a flat fee structure, the auctioneer agrees to show up for the sale and call the auction. There is no incentive for the auctioneer to get the best prices for your assets. The auction company is compensated regardless of the outcome of your sale.

What is the best option for business owners? In my experience, an agreed upon straight commission structure. This puts the responsibility on the auction company to offer the best outcome for everyone involved. There is an incentive for the auction company to work hard for both parties, set up and run a professional sale, get the highest bid and sell every item on the inventory. Successful auctions translate to a higher bottom line for both the seller and the auction company.

Auction Expenses:

In most auction agreements the expenses to conduct an auction are passed to the seller. If the auction company pays for the expenses, it is simply absorbed in higher commission rates.

All expenses should be agreed upon in advance in a written contract. Typical expenses will include the costs of advertising, labor, legal fees, travel, equipment rentals, security, postage and printing. A reputable auction company will be able to estimate all expenses based upon their experience in previous auctions. An agreement should be actual costs charged as expenses, not an estimated amount.

Advertising is typically the highest cost in conducting an auction. The auction company needs to set up an advertising campaign that will promote the sale to its best advantage and not overspend to simply advertise the auction company.

Once the auction is complete, the auction company should provide a complete breakdown of all expenses to the seller, including copies of receipts within the auction summary report.

Buyer’s Premium:

What is a buyer’s premium? If you attend auctions regularly, you are very familiar with this term. The auction company charges a fee to the buyer when they buy an item at auction.

The buyer’s premium has been around since the 1980′s and is standard auction practice. It was first used by auction houses to help offset costs of running brick and mortar permanent auction facilities. Since then, it has spread to all aspects of the auction industry. It is prominent in online auctions and allows auction companies to cover added expenses incurred from online sales.

It is the responsibility of the auction company to provide clear disclosure of the buyer’s premium to both the buyers and the sellers. Those not familiar with auctions are often taken back by the buyer’s premium. They looked upon it as an under handed way for the auction company to make more money. Reputable auction companies will provide full disclosure within the auction contract, advertisement and bidder registration.

Typically, an auction company will charge online buyers a higher buyer’s premium percentage than those attending an auction in person. Extra fees are incurred with online bidding and are charged accordingly to online buyers. This provides the seller a level playing field for both online buyers and those attending the auction in person. Without the buyer’s premium, there is no way to do this.

Pre-Sales:

We’ve all been there. We’re looking forward to attending an auction only to find that some items were sold prior to the auction date.

As an auctioneer with over thirty-six years of experience, I can honestly state that pre-sales will hurt an auction. When a company decides to liquidate their assets, it is easy to sell off high-end pieces of equipment through online sources, equipment vendors or to other businesses. The seller receives instant cash and avoids paying a commission to an auction company.

Auctioneer’s find themselves appearing to acting in a self-serving capacity when potential clients say they are planning to sell off parts of their inventory prior to an auction. It’s hard not to consider the auctioneer’s commission when they warn you not to pre-sell anything. Yes, the auctioneer wants to earn a commission on those sales but it is more important that the auctioneer protect the sale from potential negative backlash that comes from pre-selling. The buying public knows when an auction has been “cherry picked” prior to the sale and it reflects in their bidding. It becomes a sale of “leftovers” and that impacts prices.

A buyer who purchases prior to the auction usually does not attend the sale. They already bought equipment at a good price with no competition. If they do attend the auction, they tend to let others know of their great pre-sale purchases which again, impacts prices and the overall excitement of the sale.

It is important to understand that auctions work best with a complete inventory. You want competition on your higher end equipment. The easy to sell items make it possible to gain respectable prices for hard to sell items.

When a business owner decides to liquidate their equipment assets, there is only one opportunity to do it right. Hiring a reputable auction company will assist you with a professional, orderly and timely liquidation.

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