“The riches are in the niches.” Many so-called copywriting gurus will tell you that the path to success is to proclaim a niche right away. But just because something rhymes doesn’t make it sound advice. In fact, choosing a niche when you’re just getting started is not a magic bullet for success at all. And it could be deeply, deeply detrimental to your career.
In this episode, Nicki and Kate unpack why you may want to think twice about jumping too quickly into a niche.
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Looking for closed captioning or a transcript? Check out the episode on YouTube!
A Sneak Peek at the Episode
[1:26] What do we mean when we say niche? It could be choosing a type of industry, a type of copywriting, or a type of client. I only work with health coaches. I only write emails for financial technology. I only write for the makeup industry. I only write banner ads.
[2:50] So, why do people give the advice to choose a niche? Supposedly it means you can land more clients in the niche and charge more because you’re specialized. But as copywriters, we’re already specialized in a certain type of writing. And when you’re first getting started, you’re not necessarily an expert in writing for a particular industry. And you don’t know what you’re going to like and what you’re not going to like.
[4:48] You don’t necessarily know if there is enough work in an industry. When you choose a niche, you’re unnecessarily narrowing your pool of clients.
[6:39] When you niche, your website says that that’s all you do. So, if someone from another industry comes to your site, then all they see are samples from one industry. They’re going to assume you don’t want the work outside your niche!
[8:20] Your job is to be a copywriting expert. You can bring a fresh perspective to any industry. Your process should inevitably give you the information you need to effectively write copy.
[12:24] It’s important not to make assumptions about any company. Every company of every size needs messaging. The opportunities are immense—if you choose to explore them.
[18:04] 2020 made it clear that having diverse experience is so important. For example, if your niche was travel, but you have experience in other industries, you were in a better position to pivot.
[19:30] When a company can see you can adapt your voice to various company’s brand voices, they’ll feel much more confident that you will be able to come in and nail their brand voice.
[22:35] There may come a time when you’ve explored a lot of areas and you realize what you enjoy most. Then, it may make sense to choose a niche. But you also don’t have to.
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Ready to turn your love of writing into a successful copywriting career?
Join professional copywriters Nicki Krawczyk and Kate Sitarz to get the tips, tools, and training to help you become a copywriter and build a thriving business of your own. Nicki and Kate have 15+ and 10+ years of experience, respectively, writing copy for multi-billion-dollar companies, solopreneurs, and every size business in between.
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Last Updated on December 16, 2022
