When the niche is too niche?
From few days I had the task of following the online marketing of an Italian company specializes in supplies for screenprinting.
Customers are the printers, the market is Italian but it is growing abroad.
The primary sales channel is the web site.
The site has 150 visitors per day, and 7 or 10 orders.
My question is: where the other 140 visitors go?
Perhaps it is a niche too niche?
There is a way for growth?
The website is: www.cplfabbrika.com
Answers (7)
Souri ..
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A niche is too niche when the size is too small to generate any viable revenue. Maybe that is the reason by it is not addressed by the mainstream.
Clarification added October 6, 2008:
Maybe that is the reason why (not by) it is not addressed by the mainstream.
Nikki P.
Internet Marketer, renowned for our innovative and experienced team, we work primarily with SMEs and deliver results.
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Are you sure that's 150 visitors and not 150 hits?
10 orders from 150 visitors isn't a very bad conversion rate, but there are probably things you can do to increase it.
Some people maybe put off by Paypal. I can't comment on your content, as my Italian isn't that good, but it may be wirth reading this article to increase the conversion rate of your website:
http://www.nikkipilkington.com/internet-marketing-articles/internet-marketing-article-top-3-ways-to-increase-conversion-on-your-website
Obviously the easier way would be to increase the traffic - if your conversion rate stayed the same, you get more orders.
Links:
Problems:
- Bad Design (Site) Not consistent
- Italian Only
- Poor Branding
Solutions
- New Design with better identity (Colors, Consistency)
- Support Multiple Languages through an entrance screen
(i.e.,Entrance Screen introduces the rebranding of services)
- Rebrand! and make it known through proper channels
(Try an eBay store as well)
I would need to see more specific stats on the site before making any more suggestions.
Good luck!
Hsien-Hui T.
CEO at National University of Singapore Society
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Enrico,
Actually there could be the following factors:
- Does this company sell solely through the internet? If not, what could be happening is people going online to check the product and then calling in or faxing their orders (this is more common for companies as it is unlikely their purchasing departments are allowed to pay through paypal or using a credit card).
- I would say that in broad e-commerce, a success rate of approximately 5% is pretty good. There are other users of the site than just customers. For instance, they could be researchers checking out the market, they could be students, they could be competitors, etc.....
- Online marketing is just that...marketing, not sales per se. Sales as a result of marketing is good, but it should not be the sole reason for having the website. Its also a public relations tool, a branding tool, etc.....
- As mentioned in an earlier reply....to determine if a niche is too niche....is largely dependent on the perceived acceptable returns from the category. If profitability or complexity of sale does not justify the effort then obviously a broader appeal needs to be worked into the business plan.
Hope this helps.
I setup toysonline.co.nz site selling childrens toys. Within a couple of day the development cost was paid off. This site was leased six months ago and the new owner informs me due to this global crisis the number of buyers are solowy fading away. My recommendation to him has been to add more products and categories. Once the market is good get back to the niche.
Is the 7 or 10 orders a daily or a total order count? I'm going to assume it's a daily purchase count...
At 150 visitors per day, and 7 or 10 orders, you're looking at a conversion rate of 4-6%. Not bad, considering the average online retailer converts 2-3% (see URL below.)
Just a few suggestions:
Try Chinese, English and Spanish versions of your site (Chinese, English, and Spanish languages being the most widely spoken and used for the Internet. See URLs below.) Make the site auto-detect the language of the browser, and render for the user -- with the ability to select a preferred language (little flags or text links to the alternate languages.)
It seems that you're already using Google Analytics (GA.) Make sure you're using the tools available through that service to analyze your user clicks and navigation to improve your service.
Using GA, Pay particular attention to your exit pages and traffic sources. Add content to exit pages to keep the user on your site, and try to encourage more users from sites where your conversion rate is better by well placed advertising, blog content, etc.
Also using GA, Pay attention to your visitor loyalty -- are the same users returning time and time again, making repeat purchases? If so, reward them. Word of mouth is more powerful than any other form of advertising -- especially in niche industries.
Are people missing your best products? Move your popular, higher margin, products up to the top of the front page. If you have a product you wish to sell more of, move it to a more prominent position.
For niche products; start talking about common and not-so-common uses, provide tutorials to increase your product user base (which it already appears you do!) or step-by-step directions.
If you have a niche product, and want to invite new customers, think about lowering the barrier to entry. do you have a "newbie" kit? Provide a startup kit or complete packages with detailed instructions -- and identify them as "complete."
Lastly, be creative! Your product seems to be based around screen printing, start printing products with your name and website URL on them! Provide these as marketing collateral and advertising. Flaunt your product in places other than online. Be proud of your brand and your products! The goal here is to drive traffic to your site from non-web based sources. Trade shows, schools, and industry groups that are more likely to make a purchase.
Good luck, and I hope this helped!
Links:
Gianluigi C.
Managing Partner 90:10 Group ★ Do you leverage Social Media as business accelerators? Be Faster, Better and Cheaper
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Enrico,
I had a look at your site, I don't think your niche is too niche, it has more to do with the design of the site, usability, Italian only and a couple of other factors.
If you work on those and customers still remain behind, you could look at other factors which could cause this.
