Niche Selection

How to determine the best 1-3 potential niches to target with your speaking services.

We’re going to spend a lot of time on selecting the right niche to speak to.

Why?

You’re going to become an expert in this niche.

You’re going to be traveling to events and conferences for this market.

You’re going to be speaking to people in this market.

This is who is going to sign your checks!

Therefore, selecting the right niche to market to (and speak in) will be one of the cornerstones to your career. Get this wrong and you could spend your time banging your head against a wall in frustration. Get this right and you could get lots of gigs with relative ease. This lesson and the next lesson will help you ensure you’re going to pick a niche that will make you happy, fed, and filled with purpose.

Action Steps to Proceed

• Define your TPC intersect
• Identify 1-3 niches that could support your desired lifestyle
• Watch the ‘list of niches’ video below
• Use the ‘list of niches’ for guidance
• How to determine the best 1-3 potential niches to target with your speaking services.

Youth 

Elementary Schools

This includes grades K-6 and is usually a presentation in the multi-purpose room or cafeteria. The budget for these is usually $100 to $1000. Use schooldigger.com for research.

Youth Groups

Elementary Schools

Schools grades 5-9, depending on county. Budget: $300-$1500. Use schooldigger.com for research.

Student Councils

Schools grades 8-12, depending on county. Budget: $500-$4500. Use schooldigger.com for research.

Middle Schools

Include after-school organizations, youth foundations, and church youth groups. $500-$4500.

CTSO’s

Career & Technical Student Organizations. Includes FBLA, DECA, FCCLA, SkillsUSA, HOBY, FFA, TSA. See: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/cte/vso.html

Teen Leadership Events

For students from at-risk and low income neighborhoods. Often, there are foundations funded by private individuals.

High Schools

Elected student leaders of middle and high schools.

At-Risk/Inner City

There are a multitude of teen events that don’t fall into a clear category.

Summer Camps

Typically summertime. Includes, but not limited to, 4H.

College Students

Freshman Orientations

Most universities and colleges have a freshman orientation week or event, many of them hiring speakers.

Marketing Associations

Several national groups that work in colleges have marketing conferences.

Graduation/Commencement

Schools will sometimes hire motivational speakers as their commencement speakers.

Leadership Trainings

Clubs on campuses are associated,  meaning they hold conferences with other clubs.

Diversity Programs

College is culture shock for many, so universities will often invest in residential life and diversity trainings.

Greek System

Most fraternities and sororities have a national governing body that requires each chapter to invest in education. Find those subjects and you’re on easy street. Additionally, fraternities and sororities have regional and national conferences.

Guest Lecturer Series

Departments of schools will sponsor a guest lecturer series. These are usually specialized and/or technical, such as ‘botany’ or ’18th century literature.’

Professionals

Associations

Holding regular meetings and needing to hire speakers, these are a wonderful option.

Annual Retreats

Companies will often send their employees on annual retreats or reward performance with events.

Mental Toughness

Perhaps a fad topic, speakers on being mentally tough and having ‘grit’ seem to be getting booked on a frequent basis at the moment.

Corporate Conventions

Larger corporations often have retreats, trainings, celebrations, etc. that hire speakers.

Negotiation Strategies

Companies are interested in teaching their employees and executives negotiation strategies. Karass seminars would be the penultimate company that monetizes this need/market.

Managing Change

Everything changes for companies, and that change can be seen as a threat and/or a problem. Teaching techniques for a smooth transition is the key.

Conferences and events that focus strictly on sales techniques and selling.

Conflict Resolution

Problems exist at every level of existence and companies believe they can improve their bottom line if they teach skills for resolving them.

Communication Strategies

Nothing gets done if people don’t talk, so this includes trainings for new technology used for communicating as well as effective communication techniques.

Entrepreneurs

Social Media

Facebook? Instagram? Snapchat? Teach ’em how.

Public Speaking

Techniques for getting on stage and delivering an effective presentation.

Copy Writing

Salesmanship in print.

Real Estate

Often a hot market, this is about getting wealthy with land, homes, rentals, foreclosures, etc.

Search Engine Optimization

Instruct them how to get placed at the top of the search engines.

Direct Marketing

How to send marketing pieces directly to an individual and ask for the sale.

Business Strategy

General principles for taking your business to ‘the next level.’

Stocks/Forex

Making money by trading stocks in the short or long-term, and trading foreign currencies.

PR/Press Releases

How to get media exposure in radio, tv, print, and online.

Web Development

Teaching others how to create and optimize their websites

Franchising

Sometimes for those who want to franchise and sometimes for franchise owners.

PPC/Online Ads

How to run bing, google ads, linkedIn ads, etc.

Hobbyists

Cruise Ships

They feed you lobster and give you a hole to look through in exchange for giving an hour-long speech.

Continuing Education

Universities, colleges, and community colleges make extra revenue by offering continuing education courses to their communities. They do a profit share with guest instructors, who do not need to be professors. See Mike Rounds interview in the What’s Working Now clubhouse.

Family Life

How to be a great mom, dad, and/or parenting couple.

Festivals

Depending on the hobby/niche, there will be festivals that will hire and utilize guest speakers.

Dating

Including online dating, there are full-blown events for dating techniques, specific to both men and women.

Associations

There is an association for everything, including your favorite hobby.

Love & Relationships

How to maintain healthy relationships and marriages.

Bonus video: 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=zw3tmvtIxok