What "Big Pharma" Can Teach You About Niche Marketing
by Jeremy M. Hoover
Published on this site: August 11th, 2005 - See
more articles from this month
A recent newspaper review of a new book, "Selling Sickness,"
got me thinking about niche marketing (The Globe and Mail,
Saturday, August 6, 2005, D8-D9). The book in question considers
case studies that purport to show how "Big Pharma"
(the entire pharmaceutical industry, from manufacturers to
drug salespeople) manipulates data to "create" a
disease that they have the "cure" for.
Regardless of how one feels about the pharmaceutical industry,
the book does demonstrate one thing-the ability of this industry
to correctly identify small-but-profitable niches and exploit
them for huge profits. The book, as indicated by the reviewer,
identified a "familiar pattern" for the "selling
of sickness":
A pharmaceutical company identifies a wedge condition, set
of symptoms, or "risk factors"; hires a PR firm
to come up with a "disease" name, ideally something
catchy with a pronounceable acronym (e.g., SAD); develops
a drug, or adapts an existing one, to tout as a "fix"
for this new medical problem; and begins massive marketing
to physicians and the public. The media pick up the story,
suggesting that the "new" disease is greatly undiagnosed/undertreated;
the market expands; drugs sales rise. And voila! Another blockbuster
is born. (Direct quote from the review)
Do you see the building blocks for a niche business in this
description? Following Big Pharma's lead can help you begin
a small niche business and grow it into a financial success.
Simply follow these steps:
- Within your industry, identify a "wedge" that
you can target.
- Create a fancy way of describing the number one problem
your product or service solves; make it stand out from any
other site that offers the same thing.
- Demonstrate, by way of strong benefits, how your product
or service will solve the problem.
- Tailor your marketing efforts to your "wedge"
by these means.
- As your marketing catches on, you will grow from marketing
to just a "wedge" to marketing on a larger scale.
- Voila! You have your own niche blockbuster business!
Such a process certainly takes time, but these 6 steps provide
a solid foundation for any niche business to gain a foothold
and grow into a success.
Jeremy M. Hoover is an online article and content writer.
If you need articles for promotion or for your website, contact
Jeremy at his website, www.jhooverwebcopy.com
. Read more marketing articles by Jeremy at his blog, www.jhooverwebcopy.blogspot.com
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