Niche Marketing For High End Personal Services
We just started working with a new client - a day spa. If you're familiar with day spas, you'll know they offer high end personal services like massage, facials, manicures, microdermabrasion, etc.
Most day spas will tell you that what sets them apart is their serene environment, friendly service, years in business/experience, etc. It's not a great business for low prices for a few reasons - one is the split the spas make with the actual people providing the service and another is the perceived luxury of the service. Discounting prices may have a negative effect on business because it tarnishes the level of luxury. You don't see Starbucks, Mercedes, or the Concord (when it existed) discounting very often - for a reason.
So how does a day spa differentiate? Great question. You may have asked the same question of your business.
The answer in this case: niche.
Rather than be another day spa, our client has chosen to specialize (albeit in several arenas). Specializing has some significant benefits - it allows you to narrow your target for an easy "reachability" factor, it allows you to develop an expert perception within the niche, you can afford greater frequency of message within the niche, you can specifically design packages to cater to the niche, and you'll ultimately find you have very little competition within a niche.
Case in point, one of the niches our client is exploring is the "expecting mother" niche. By getting out of the day spa business and into the "making mommy to be comfortable and less stressed" business, they will be able to take advantage of the niche benefits. They couldn't do that as a day spa.
It all comes down to this: create an apples to oranges comparison between your competition and you. When your prospects can't compare your proposal, line by line, with your competition, your proposal stands out and you can demand a higher price in exchange for greater value.
Just thought you would all like a concrete, real life example of creating a niche market - overnight. Now, how can you apply this to your business?
Have an idea? Post it in the discussion forum for feedback from others and from us!
