The power of choosing a niche for women business owners and consultants
What sets you apart? It’s amazing how people seem to become flustered when asked this question directly. Yet choosing a specialism or niche, is one of the most efficient ways to raise your profile and get recognised for the work you do.
Who doesn't want to hear colleagues say: "Oh, you should definitely go see Sarah, she knows all about...." In fact, I would be willing to put money on the likelihood that if I had not chosen a niche within executive coaching - that is working with professional women in male dominated fields, I would not have the reputation I do now. This approach is diametrically opposed to that of many people who are content to be generalists but often struggling to get recognition for their skills. When I look at the careers of those people, however, I see the danger in appealing to the masses but convincing no one. Who do you want to convince?
As a speaker and author who helps organisations develop and retain their female employees, I respect the power of the niche. Indeed, after I completed my PhD from the University of Cambridge, looking at this area and then did my additional coach training, very few coaches specialised to the degree I did. And in fact, some thought it career suicide to hone down within executive coaching further to specialise in working with a specific group of people - namely professional women working in law, science, technology, pharmaceuticals and banking - all male-dominated fields. When I began to market my skills in this area, many people suggested I was limiting myself too much -but I know that the clients I work with love my specialism as they feel I understand what is going on in their world. I am not just trying to be all things to all people.
I have indeed successfully coached men and women from a range of industries, but for me as I developed my business it was a pragmatic choice of focusing my attention - I don't want to vie for the title of "Best Coach in the World". It's a competitive market, and wouldn't utilise my academic background or personal passion for women's career development. Choosing a niche allowed me to focus on a smaller target market of women in male-dominated fields and become known as the "Best Coach for Professional Women". We focus on areas such as profile raising, communication strategies, image projection, confidence, office politics, work-life balance, maternity leave and other areas that are of prime importance to women in these fields.
I know people who niche down even further, coaching project managers in IT, women returning from maternity leave, partners in the legal sector, soon-to-be retirees. A niche gives another distinct advantage - they are easily memorable. People often remark they remember me because of my specialism and this extends to the he interactions I have whereby people unsolicitedly send me articles about women in work, invite me to speak at events, introduce me to female friends they have in these fields - people understand what I do far better now than they did before I decided to specialise, and just worked in ‘career development'. It also makes marketing much simpler because you are not trying to target everyone. You can choose the journals, magazines, newspapers, and types of social media your client bases use. You can also be much more discerning about where you network, all of which saves time and precious marketing resources.
Needless to say, this effect has only been heightened since publishing my book "Beyond the Boys' Club: Strategies for Achieving Career Success as a Woman in a Male-Dominated Field." When I have been interviewed by male journalists who have looked through the book, they unearth a big secret - that much of what I say could be useful to men willing to look at a "women's book" for tips on taking their careers to the next level. While that is certainly true, the power of the niche is in the fact that I didn't write the book for all people, I wrote it specifically for women in certain types of fields who face certain types of challenges - and that is why they love it - after all, who doesn't like to feel unique yet understood?
If you suspect you are becoming more of a generalist or are trying to find your niche - ask yourself:
- "Who are the people who tend to be drawn to me?
- "What are the issues my clients bring time and time again?
- "With whom do I achieve the best results?"
- "Where do I find most of my clients?"
- "What do people say drew them to me?"
By Suzanne Doyle-Morris, PhD
Author of "Beyond the Boys' Club"
www.doylemorris.com
www.beyondtheboysclub.com
Suzanne Doyle-Morris, PhD is an author, entrepreneur, speaker and accredited executive coach specialising in career development/leadership coaching for executive women.