Get Slightly Famous - Step One

Become a Specialist
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I had a weekend all to myself.
I was alone. Justin was spending some time
with his mom. Bonnie, my girlfriend, was in
San Francisco for the weekend.

I was alone in our rambling beach house.
I was working on what would become the
new BarryMorris.com.

As is my habit, I decided to spend some time
sipping the world's finest coffee in a nearby
Starbucks.

I drove the mile in no time flat.
I walked in. The aroma of fresh coffee surrounded me.

I ordered my coffee. I ripped open my two packets of
Splenda, poured in the Half-n-Half, and I was in
caffeine heaven.

I sat in one of the comfy chairs, got out my pen and
opened my notebook when I heard, "Dad?"

I immediately looked up. My parental radar rapidly scanned
the horizon and came back without a single blip.

The radar is seldom wrong.
It had to be a mistake.

There it was again.
"Dad!"

It wasn't Justin calling me.
It wasn't Bonnie's son, Charlie.
It wasn't any of my three older kids.
It was a complete stranger.

A little girl, with curls and eyelashes that most
women would die for, was calling me. "Dad?"

But it soon became apparent that
she wasn't calling me at all.

She was calling out to her Dad...
who was in line.

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Call My Name & Get My Attention
===============================
No, it wasn't my little Princess.
She's now 22.

In fact, it wasn't my child at all.
So why did I immediately respond when I heard this
little cutie calling her dad?

Because I'm a dad, too.
It's my main job. :-)
And it's my name.

If you want to get my attention, call me by name.
Dad, Barry, Tall-Dark-&-Handsome..they all work!

That's how a marketing niche works.
It calls the name of the prospect.

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Why Your Copywriting Business Needs a Niche
===========================================
Many freelance copywriters think that catering to
a larger market is the surest path to success.

They're afraid to target a specialized area because they
feel they'll miss out on the larger market's business.

But in reality, the opposite is true.
If you really want to be busy, specialize.
Find a niche that possesses specific problems that
is in need of specific solutions.

Case In Point:
--------------
Mark Bohrer - www.precision-copywriting.com

Mark turned 25 years of experience in high-tech into
a lucrative and rewarding copywriting business that
targets the high-tech sector.

As a result, Mark is the Top-of-Mind copywriter
for local Silicon Valley and global high-tech companies.

Although Marked niched his business in high-tech,
he's also writing for industries where he hasn't
carved out a niche. He's successfully written business
case studies as well as web copy for a variety of industries.

Mark's experience further explodes the myth that
if you specialize, you'll miss out on additional work.

==========================================
Three Reasons Why You Should Niche-It-Down
==========================================
I can hear you.

"But I don't have 25 years of experience in
anything except breathing! What do I do?"

You don't have to have years of experience in
a specific area in order to successfully niche
your business.

In the book, Speak & Grow Rich by Dottie Walters,
she repeatedly advises beginning speakers to "niche-it-down"
and find the one area where they can become the expert.

To determine if a particular niche is right for you,
Steven Van Yoder suggests considering these questions:

1. Do I have an identifiable target population with similar
interests and needs?

2. Is the market large enough to support my business?

3. Can I tailor my services to meet the needs of this market?

4. Is the market currently under-served?

5. Can I reach this market in a cost-effective manner?

So, why niche?
Here three reasons:

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Reason One: Price Is No Longer An Issue.
=======================================
When you serve a niched market and work to
establish yourself as the expert in this area,
you are no longer subject to the same pricing concerns that
might crowd you out of a larger market where many generalist
copywriters have determined the prevailing rate.

If you are the expert copywriter in any field,
chances are you can charge almost any rate and
get it.

You've got to be good and really know your stuff, but it's
a safe bet that a specialist will make more than a generalist.

Bonnie Needs Hand Surgery
--------------------------
My girlfriend Bonnie needs an arthroplasty on her
left wrist due to arthritis.

She has two options: getting the surgery performed by her
general practitioner, or getting it done by a hand surgeon.

Does she opt for a generalist who also knows hands,
or does she choose the hand specialist?

I know who I'd choose.
Choosing a copywriter is no different.

By specializing, you become the expert resource for
your target market. If you're good, you can charge
more than the prevailing rate of generalists...
and get it.

Not only that, but having a niche sharpens
your marketing focus.

===================================================
Reason Two: It Gives Your Marketing a Sharper Focus
====================================================
I like focused photographs better than fuzzy ones;
Don't you? They're easier for these old eyes to see.

The more you specialize, the easier it is for your target
audience to see and understand the value of your services.

The more visible you become to your niche, the more
you are associated with expert status. Expert status is
always associated with more income that non-expert status.

Case In Point:
---------------
Dan Poynter - www.parapublishing.com

From his web site:

"Dan Poynter fell into publishing. He spent eight years
researching a labor of love. Realizing no publisher would
be interested in a technical treatise on the parachute,
he went directly to a printer and "self-published."
The orders poured in and he suddenly found he was a
publisher himself.

In 1973, he became interested in a new aviation sport,
couldn't find a book on the subject so he sat down
and wrote one. After four months of writing and intense
research that took him from coast to coast, he delivered
the manuscript to the printer. So far, Hang Gliding has
sold over 130,000 copies-a "best seller"!

Occupying a niche can also make your business easier
to manage.

===================================
Reason Three: Niches are Manageable
====================================
It's been said that:

A generalist knows nothing about everything,
while a specialist knows everything about nothing.

What's that go to do with anything? Plenty.
Occupying a niche market can make your job easier.

You don't have to be everything to everybody.
Specializing takes the pressure off you to be as generic as
everyone else. You're free to be who your market needs.

You can get your mind and budget around a smaller population
in order to plan and execute a smart marketing strategy.

Case In Point:
---------------
Tony Roeder - www.RedWagons.com

Knowing that it would be near to impossible competing
against the behemoths of Amazon.com and eToys.com, Tony
decided to offer only Red Flyer brand wagons.

His site carries Red Flyer's complete product line while
his big competitors carry only a few of each brand.

By focusing on one aspect of the toy market, he further
specialized seeking the audience of Red Flyer enthusiasts.

By reducing his niche to just one area of interest, he
has effectively reduced the amount of information he
needs to present to his customers.

They don't care about any other brand. As long as Tony can
supply their desire for Red Flyer brand toys, he's going to
continue to be the Top-of-Mind "expert" Red Flyer customers seek.

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Final Thoughts
==============
Getting slightly famous involves, first and foremost,
selecting the right target audience. Selecting a market
niche is the first step.

A market niche can create all the exposure and income you
might require. The added benefit to service a market niche is
also enjoying the other work that comes your way when

The next step is using the niche to position your business
for maximum impact. That's what I'll discuss next time.

Until then...
Thanks for reading!

Barry