Niche markets: The brave new world of print and online advertising

Advertising will always remain the lifeblood of any media platform, regardless of whether it is print or online. In the continuing battle to find the key that will persuade the customer or the client to shell over their almighty buck, one trend is emerging: the “niche” approach.

Annie McMindes in Above the Fold compares how niche is being used in two separate media: “ Niche publications are those that publish to a specific group of people; a specialized audience. The publication becomes the expert on the subject, and the advertisers in the publication become the items to have among those spectators. The advertisers can target a defined group of prospects within the publications using niche marketing. Niche marketing addresses the need for a product or service that is not being delivered by the mainstream.”

Print publications who court niche advertising create specialised mini-magazines, newsletters, or supplements that focus on the advertiser’s industry or the market it wants to reach. For example, newspapers that want to corner banks’ advertising funds will come up with a special issue that features the leading financial institutions in the country or state, and the products that professionals, company executives, entrepreneurs, and even working parents might find attractive. It is presumed that the banks’ marketing heads would be more predisposed to spending for advertising on that issue if they see that it has authoritative yet positive stories promoting the industry.

E-commerce has blasted the way for individual businesses to promote and advertise their products to underserved markets that might have been forgotten by mainstream companies. Forbes Magazine names some of these winners which have redefined the online advertising industry: Dollar Shave Club’s subscription-based razor service is earning US$240 million (A$317.8 million) in revenue this year, 2016; Medelita targeted the neglected medical-uniform sector and shook up the billion-dollar fashion industry. Businessman and writer Tony DiConstanzo makes a lot of money by selling educational books online to educators and lawyers.

Dom Einhorn, the founder of M6 Limited which produces the news app Born2Invest , affirms that niche markets are here to stay and will continue to grow as organisations begin to become more aware of the consumer’s changing tastes. Born2Invest’s loyal readership of investors, businessmen, entrepreneurs, and FinTech enthusiasts click on several news categories in the app every day, eager to see the variety of content that could help them manage their different enterprises and interests.

“That’s where their specific tastes come in, and which we have to be sensitive to, as publishers,” says Einhorn. “Gone are the days when users will mostly access news in print, and then just focus on reading about the industry they work in. Today, you’ll find doctors looking up the stock market and tech investors who are keen on seeing the latest medical inventions. Our stories are curated from the most reputable news agencies around the world, giving readers the best content when they choose various categories that are crucial to their specific lifestyles. As they continue to discover their interests, we continue to seek and develop content that will be relevant and of use to them.”

Aside from an international team of curators, in specific countries, Born2Invest has homegrown writers, writing news pieces that originate from their area. This gives the users’ news feed a sense of localisation, strengthening what is already a niche audience.

Advertising Week opines that the lines between advertising-run journalism and online marketing may soon thin if the evolution of travel blogging can be taken as an example. Resorts, hotels, and other destinations that want to promote their brand are turning to travel bloggers to feature them, instead of the making the traditional request for a print publication coverage or advertising in their pages.

Two reasons motivate this: the speed by which travel bloggers post their stories online, and the low cost (compared to advertising rates) in inviting them. Yet, in an interesting twist, bona fide travel journalists are also becoming travel bloggers, combining their extensive experience in the field and ability to treat the subject with greater depth with their newfound flexibility in using social media and other internet tools. This mix of quality, speed, and reach is good news to the brands.

Kashem Miah, Shutterstock content marketing head, explains this balance: “You can’t only sustain yourself by reading the travel section of The New York Times a couple of times a week, and you also won’t be able to fully appreciate a place for all of its allure by scrolling through an Instagram page.”

That place where advertising and revenue generation find a balance in quality for both print and online advertising can be attributed to niche. Niche stresses the imperative for quality content by focusing on a specific market and providing them the kind of articles they need, including topics, length, and readability format. As all these attract advertisers, the chances for sustainability—and the existence of the medium of publication concerned—becomes even higher.