Navigating the investing waters can be difficult at times. It can often feel as if you are being pulled in a dozen different directions. One of the best ways to jumpstart your business and improve your focus is by concentrating on a niche. A niche is an area of the business that you feel you know better than everyone else. It is where a bulk of your deals will come from. A good niche can help you generate business faster than anything else you do. Where and how you find your niche is entirely up to you. If you have been searching for a niche and don’t know where to start, here are some pointers to help you get on track.
Make it your own: There are many different ways to invest in real estate. Just because an investor has had success in one area doesn’t mean it will happen to you. When choosing a niche, it is important to keep in mind that it can be anything you want. If you find tax liens exciting, they should be your area of focus. If you feel that there is growth in mobile home investing, make it your niche. If you jump on the short sale and foreclosure bandwagon without really enjoying it, you will not work as hard to find deals. Your lack of interest will slowly lead you out of the business. On the flip-side, if your niche is something you have a passion for, you will want to learn everything about it. Your niche should be something you enjoy, regardless of what anyone says. Once you find a niche that keeps you up at night, the investing business will never feel like work again.
Become an expert: If you promote yourself as the short sale king, you had better know everything about short sales. Choosing a niche doesn’t mean you can’t pursue other types of deals, but the bulk will come directly from your niche. This means that you need to be the go-to authority on it in your area. You need to read as much on your niche as you can. There is nothing worse for you than to rely on outdated information. Go to seminars and learn current trends. Listen to experts at investment clubs or networking groups. Every time you speak with people in the business, they will look at you as the authority in this area. If they find that you really don’t know what you proclaim to be an expert in, you will lose their trust and ultimately their business.
Promote: Simply saying you are the commercial building authority does not make it so. You need to make the shift from average investor to one who is passionate about their niche. This means changing the title on your business card and the heading on your website. If you are going to lean on a niche you have to be willing to promote it. Your goal should be have people think of you when they talk about your niche. Slowly, this will lead to business and the beginning of a reputation in your market. You can accelerate the momentum by putting yourself out there and promoting your niche.
Working with like-minded people: It is important to surround yourself with the right team. Regardless of what your niche is, you need to have realtors, contractors, attorneys and fellow investors on the same page. If your realtor doesn’t want to show you properties in your niche, you need to move on to ones that will. Many investors make a great living focusing exclusively on properties under $75,000. If this is your niche, you need to let your team know. They may not make as much on every deal, but there will be more deals to work on throughout the year. Talk to investors who may be looking at the same deals as you. The more original your niche is the less competition there will be for deals. If everyone around you is negative this will come across in your business.
Commit to it: Focusing on a niche will not bring overnight success. There will be times when you will question what you are doing. It is important to fight through these times and stay the course. If you are willing to choose a niche you need to be willing to stick with it. By bouncing around from niche to niche you will never plant your flag in one area. In time you will start to see results but until then you need to stick with what you are doing. Give yourself at least a few months to see if you enjoy it and see progress. Stopping before 90 days will not tell you much of anything.
An investing niche will help you stand out from the crowd. In a business where there is plenty of competition, this can be the thing that helps your business grow. Remember that a niche can be anything from a style of doing business to the types of properties you focus on. The goal is for people to remember your message long after you leave them. A good niche can give you opportunity for repeat business for many years to come.
