So we always hear ‘make content in your niche, ‘don’t post outside your niche; if you get too general, you’ll lose engagement. I want to be clear. They are NOT wrong. Let’s start by peeling a layer back and understanding — what a niche is and how we can help you find yours. Disclaimer: we all have a lot of niches; I believe in the intersectionality of interests. There are always people who share what you like — trust that.
What does your niche mean?
Niche is what you contribute value you bring to your audience. It’s the topic and everything that surrounds the issue — brand, community, business.
If you want to create a successful brand as a creator, it’s not enough to create content. The proper engagement with your followers can make the difference between success and failure.
Elements of a Niche
Topic — the targeted topic of your content.
Format: What you choose to create?
Language: How does your audience communicate?
Audience: Who do you serve?
Voice: How will you communicate?
Platform: Where does your audience live?
If you’re able to develop a thesis for these questions, iterate on feedback, and talk to fans. You’ll be successful. Here are three steps you can take to find a niche.
Step 1: Start by identifying the overlap.
Look inside yourself and think about these questions.
- What do you want to show the world as a creator?
- What aspects of your personality or life experiences do you have in common with other creators?
- What have you created in the past that’s gotten good feedback?
When you’ve figured the above out, you can research other platforms. You should figure out the following:
- Where are people already spending their money?
- What are they already reading, watching, consuming?
Reverse-engineer the things that other people are already doing to create content and earn. You can start by curating content into something new.
Step 2: Creates A LOT of content OFTEN to get noticed.
“When you focus — you give your audience an anchor… They go to your content and know immediately what they’re going to get.” — Bella Cooper.
Volume helps your audience believe your message.
When you’re first starting, think of every piece of content and a|b test to a big pond of people. Be the creator who’s sending out 10+ tweets a day, 205 tik-toks per week, 100 diffusion boards! It’ll grow faster, thanks to compounding.
Step 3: Monetize through creating and getting feedback.
Content ->Follower -> Community -> $
You can’t make money until people know who you are, trust your taste, and you’ve made something they find valuable.
In the creator economy, success is no secret. The secret is to focus on making things that other people value. Suppose you want the rewards that creators enjoy, income & community. Solve the real needs of people.
Who cares if you’re not an expert in everything — focus on what interests you and position yourself as a knowledgeable resource on that topic. Be Confident.
Find what content resonates with fans — how they like to digest it, what their needs and pains are. Bring those who find what you create most valuable into a community, and they’ll find a way to take care of you. For successful creators, the work is listening and figuring out who before the what! They create what they can with the skills they have for the people they know. It’s not until they’ve proven value that they reap the benefits.