Are you thinking about pivoting your business marketing strategy? Picking your target audience is an integral part of your business's marketing strategy, and this is because every single action you execute throughout the process is essentially based on your audience. However, sometimes your business grows and evolves, and it becomes necessary to shift gears or pivot your niche and start targeting a new audience for further growth. Pivoting can be complex, with so many factors to consider. This article will provide you with a brief overview of what it means to pivot your niche, the best time to pivot your marketing strategy, when not to shift, and things to consider when pivoting your target audience to ensure a successful pivot for your business.
What Does It Mean by Pivoting Your Niche?
Pivoting your niche means changing your niche's direction when your current services don't meet the needs of your target audience. Even though pivoting your business's niche can breathe a new life into your failing business, it also requires you to abandon your previous investments and start from scratch. So, why is pivoting your niche important? The main goal of pivoting your niche is to help your business survive in the market or improve your business's revenue. However, how you redirect your niche makes all the difference. A great company that has continuously benefited from pivoting is Netflix, transitioning from DVD to mail and now a large streaming service.
Five Signs It's Time to Pivot Your Niche
Having your original business idea and implementing it is a peak point in your life as an entrepreneur. However, when your business evolves, there comes a time when the idea doesn't work as smoothly as before. In such cases, it's time to pivot your business strategy into something more purposeful and profitable. Pivoting your niche is an excellent move to solve your business problems. However, it's crucial that you only consider pivoting your niche when essential. Here are some of the critical signs that
your business needs a pivot.
Your Business Isn't Generating Money
Are you trying to sell your idea and no one's buying it? You might want to interview your target audience or market and get feedback. The market will never lie, and getting direct feedback from your target market might give you an idea of how you need to pivot your target audience, niche, or both. If you provide a solution to a perceived problem, your business will sell. And once your business starts generating money, you can tweak your marketing, pricing, and packaging to help you leverage your value and time.
Changes in Your Business's Money Flow
Consider a scenario where you added more services to your business, and the money flow didn't stop in the previous areas, leading to an increase in revenue flow. In a case like that, where your business feels commoditized, then it makes more sense to tweak your niche to upgrade your client profile. Pivoting your niche or marketing strategy and adding a corporate, divisional focus is crucial to accommodating your new client profile. This move will help you create a better client profile for the different service areas and refine who you want to reach—that's your target audience.
You're No Longer Serving Your Current Target Market
If you want a successful business, your purpose should be clear. If your company and personal goals are fuzzy, you need to take your time to get them clear again. Keep track and note your business performance metrics, and if you notice any gaps, it shows you've drifted away from your target audience's desires, and you're no longer serving them. When a new idea presents itself, it's time to pivot your business niche and grab the next opportunity.
Your Target Audience Tells You To
When your target audience or market gives you the insight to pivot your business in one way or another, listen to them. Clients never shy away from vocalizing what they love or need, and if you don't listen, they won't hesitate to walk away. Be sure to examine your customers' trends from their actions; you might get insight if it's time to pivot your business.
Your Original Niche or Idea Doesn't Work Anymore; You've Stopped Growing
Businesses change, and once you discover that the services you're offering aren't needed anymore or what you're selling is not working, it's the perfect time to pivot your niche and try new ways to operate. If your business niche doesn't work anymore, it might indicate that your productivity, efficiency, and profitability are constantly declining, and this needs pivoting. Ask your audience, read the current trends, and determine your next viable solution to solve your customers' challenges. Every business requires flexibility, so try your next option and see if it works for you.
When Not to Pivot
Pivoting your niche should be the last resort after you've exhausted all other options. If you're multi-passionate and still struggling with your current business niche, then a pivot or niche switch might not be what you need. Instead, you might want to consider addressing the real issue your business is facing, which mainly boils down to traffic, leads, or sales. Addressing the real problem is crucial because taking "you" to the next niche means that you're likely to face the same problem you're facing in your current industry or niche. Consider giving your business the necessary effort and time it requires to notice results because, let's face it, businesses take time to build, including online ones.
Things to Consider When Pivoting Your Target Audience
If you choose to switch up your business strategy to remain relevant and profitable, here are things to consider to ensure a successful pivot for your business:
Understand Your Target Market and Their Demands or Problems
Re-evaluate the product and invest in a niche where you can make a difference. If the product you're selling has no problem and is not selling, it means you're aiming at the wrong target audience. Ensure your niche is within the new reality by identifying your audience's demands, ensuring you dominate your niche.
Consider a Goal That Aligns With Your Vision
If you pivot to a path that does not feel right to you, you'll spend extra time ensuring that your goal aligns with your vision and will set you back as you try to evaluate your life's mission. Choosing a goal that already aligns with your vision will make your entrepreneurship journey a lot easier.
Strategize Before You Pivot
Ensure everyone is on board and aware of the changes before making any other significant steps. Test the product you're pivoting to and create a strategy that aligns with all your core departments before executing the pivot. Also, include your employees in the business strategy changes by training them, especially those at the forefront of the business. Lastly, ensure that your pivot has an opportunity for growth so that you're not limited.
Your Marketing Tactics
Once you update your objectives and goals, your marketing tactics will also need adjustments. For instance, you might want to pivot your messaging tone, think about how your customer's journey has changed, and review your automation to accommodate your target audience. In short, rebrand, redesign, market your product, and keep evolving to adjust your market.
Maintain Your Visibility and Monitor Your New Strategy
As you pivot your target audience, consider maintaining your business's visibility. For instance, more people spend most of their time online, which gives you an excellent opportunity to captivate your current audience and reach new customers. Lastly, monitor your new business strategy and measure its success. This will help you know when to pivot your business again.
Key Takeaway
Starting and running a new business niche is filled with risks. So, suppose you're a business or marketer that wants to expand your brand, and you're looking for ways to pivot your target audience successfully, then it's necessary to know what pivoting entails before going forward with the move. At the end of the day, having the right tools and knowledge to accomplish your goals will determine how you get the right message out there for your target audience and, ultimately, will determine your success. If this sounds like a lot of work, contact us to book a call and see if we're a good fit to help you pivot your niche and grow your business.