On Niche Marketing

Where is your demographic on Saturday morning?  For me, most Saturday mornings consist of some serious bonding time with my pillow, followed by a hot cup of coffee and some sort of breakfast item prepared at my leisure.  I, like most Americans, spend my Saturdays in chill-mode.  Saturdays are prime time for television and newspaper ads, but maybe it’s time to think outside the tube. 

Before

This past Saturday, I joined a select few of my more adventurous friends and woke at the crack of dawn to don our white apparel and cruise down to Petco Park for the Color Me Rad 5k.  If you’ve never done a color run, I highly recommend it.  (Note- this is being recommended by someone who typically runs only when being chased, so don’t let 3.5 miles scare you away from all the fun)  Loosely based on the Holi Festival of Colors, Color Me Rad starts with a run and ends with what is essentially a massive street party, only instead of punch and pretzels, it’s color dyed corn starch. (Gluten free since 2012).  It takes a certain type of person to wake up at 5:20a (yes, the dark one) and run into a mob of rainbow powder-pelting peers.  But we do exist, and are what you might call a niche.

After our event concluded, we started walking back to the parking lot and were greeted by a spokesperson for 5-hour energy drinks.  I’ve never purchased one before, but I had an actual person spend some time talking to me about what was in the drink, ask me why I’d never tried it before, and offer me a free sample.  Much more powerful than an on-screen pitch.  When we arrived back at our car, we had a flier for an 80s costume race definitely focused more on fun than a run.

Two excellent examples of groups that did their homework and found their niche market.  It’s not a stretch of imagination to assume that if I am willing to wake up early to participate in a color run, I might be willing to try an all-natural energy drink or wear a pointy bra in my next 5k.

After

In my opinion, more companies should have taken advantage of this opportunity.  Where was Jamba Juice?  Or McDonalds with their all new under 400 calorie breakfast sandwiches? Where were the gyms offering new member discounts or free guest passes? Want to find your target demographic on a Saturday morning? Find their niche.

Mood: Alive