Here’s the thing: competition sites that point to a specific niche—something unique which defines them—tend to be a big hit with the customers.
There are really no limits! At Zap, we have clients who specialise in competitions for sea anglers, competitions for golfers, guitarists, and history nerds!
But why is it so helpful to have a niche like that?
Let’s unpack.
The world is full of robots! From AI to troll bots, it’s all well and good in places, but it does mean that people crave that human connection with a business.
When humans start a project, it often comes from a place of passion for that particular thing. When robots start a project, it’s likely to be more surface-level and business-focused.
Competition sites with a particular niche have that human flair: it’s clear to any audience that the site has come from a place of shared interest, rather than purely developing from a business focus. That helps build trust.
Having a specific niche helps you find people like you. It’s like when you write a Tinder bio: ‘I like XYZ’. People who share your love of XYZ are more likely to swipe right to talk about XYZ with you.
Your niche acts as a bridge between you and your potential customers: something to connect over. It gives them a reason to follow you, and the ability to engage with something means a lot to them.
For you, meanwhile, it specifies some boundaries for when you’re doing your market research. Research is always easier when you don’t have to search the entire internet for everything that ever happened.
If you can be specific (for example, searching ‘Sea angling tips and tricks’), you’ve already narrowed the field. It’s easier to find the sorts of demographics most likely to engage with your brand, and the sorts of things they want.
In other words, it helps you find your community. People that vibe with you.
There’s a bit of mistrust around the competitions industry. While that’s not a massive problem—it just requires that we be extra nice to our customers, and prioritise transparency and safety, which can only be a good thing!—it does mean you need to take some extra considerations when setting up your competition site.
The good news is, finding a niche will do a lot of that work for you. It goes back to what we said before about it showing off that human side. It also shows that you’ve put time, effort, and thought into your brand.
It’s not just any competition site; it’s a way for you to share your passion with your followers. Less-than-legitimate competition sites that are in it only for the money aren’t going to put that much time into creating a particular theme. It’s just the way it is!
Running a competition site isn’t all fun and games, but it should be at least some fun and games. Right?
Choosing a niche you care lots about will really help with that. After all, what could be better than spending all day, every day, talking about things you love? Whether it’s cars, or whether it’s historical motorbikes, whether it’s makeup, or whether it’s gold and silver: shout your passion from the rooftops.
A successful business of any sort exists to fill a gap in the market. It’s all part of the process of brand positioning.
The competition industry is becoming increasingly saturated. People have cottoned on to how lucrative it is!
The solution? Finding your place within the industry. Your niche helps with this: it allows you to say, “Sure, there’s a lot of competition sites out there, but do any of them do THIS?”
Being able to answer that question is super helpful when it comes to marketing, too. You can present your company as the solution to many problems, supporting your brand messaging pillars, and giving you a theme for your content marketing strategy.
Got a niche interest, but not sure how to make it into a competition? Or got a competition, you’re not sure how to make it into a niche?
Whatever it is, we got you covered.
