Service Professionals start their business for a variety of reasons. Some are passionate about something, some are looking to improve their income, some are looking to improve the quality of their life, and some just want to make a difference.  No matter how they start, most decide what they want to offer and then look for the market to offer their services to.  To learn more about choosing a target market read my blogs “Defining your Target and Niche market in 4 easy steps” and “3 Steps to Defining your Coaching and Consulting Niche”

This may work for some businesses, but it is not the easiest way.  Only 5% of businesses survive after 5 years, and in turn, over 95% of them fail. What is the secret of the few that survive?  What do they do to improve their odds?  They have identified a niche market that they can serve.  They understand their markets’ needs, and they know how to solve their problems. Their niche market values their services, and is willing to pay for it.

The key is to find a market with urgent needs and the desire to resolve them — a market that is willing to pay to solve their problems.  Then, you either know how to resolve those problems, or you can acquire or develop what is needed to solve those problems.

How did you pick your target market and niche?  Do you know what your target market needs are? How are you helping them to resolve those needs?  You may benefit from hiring a coach to help you with marketing planning if you are stuck or need to market your services effectively.