Niches I Never Thought Of
Christmas is the time for Odd Niches to show themselves…
As marketers, we're always told to “niche it up”. And, my coaching clients frequently ask me, “What niche should I get into?”
Here are some niches that I certainly had never thought of!
#18: Demotivators – (Don't tell the kids but I know that this is what they got me for Christmas. They know me so well!) This is an example of actually providing a product that is funny, hip, and NEEDED.
It starts to fall apart after that one…
#17: Nostril Egg Separator – Just the other day, I tried to separate some eggs for a cornbread recipe that I was making. The first one came out like a charm. The other? Not so good. If only I had a ceramic nose to use to separate my eggs… You know, eggs look enough like snot. This one just kind of makes my stomach turn. Would I use it? Heck yeah. It's cool. But, I might gag while cooking, which is really not cool for the people who might be watching me make their food.
#16: Fast Food Origami – I don't get it. Anyone? Anyone?
#15: Origami Boulders – there's a need that is, thankfully, finally, filled. Now I can sleep at night.
#14: Pet Strollers – What ever happened to a leash? Am I that old-fashioned?
#13: Wind up Sushi – Uhhh… no comment. This is just weird.
#12: Chew by Numbers Art – I have no idea how you'd display this chewed gum art after it was done, but … I guess it is better than sticking it under your desk or behind your ear?
#11: Corn Dog Air Freshener – No, silly. It won't freshen your corn dogs. It'll make your car smell like Corn dogs. Breathe that aroma. Ahhhh….
#10: Giant Underpants – Practical if you and several of your friends all forgot your unders on the SAME DAY. Thank goodness you avoided that faux pas. That could have been embarrassing!
#9: Brain Mold – Gives new meaning to the word “Brain food”.
#8: Butt-Face Towel – Now, this is practical, at least, if you're sharing towels with your spouse. See, gentle readers. Every problem gives the opportunity to profit. The problem is drying your face where a bottom may have been. Now, this company makes money helping people to avoid that scenario all together. Pfshew!
#7: Man Groomer – For the man who wants to groom his OWN back hair.
#6: Poopouri – It's for giving to your husband when you're staying at your mom's house…
#5: Hello Kitty Birthing Rooms. Yes, in Tokyo, they've decided that “Hello Kitty” would help relax mothers in labor. HELOOOO?! If the thought of holding your newborn baby isn't enough to stop the screaming — maybe a cartoon cat with no mouth will help? I don't THINK so.
#4: Squirrel Underpants – Yes. There I said it. Those naked squirrels really offend me. Flashing children at the parks. Now you can teach modesty to even furry little rodents.
#3: The Wine Rack – Now, I loves my wine as much as the next gal, but I don't need a bra full of it! There's no way to discuss this one gently, so just go look.
#2: Chicken Poop Lip Junk. Yes, it is called “Chicken Poop”. No, that wasn't a spelling error. The motto is “Be healthy. Be happy. Smile proudly and tell your friends you’ve got Chicken Poopâ„¢ on your lips!”
#1: Tampon Crafts. Nuff said. See more here… if you dare. 😉
Now, I'm all for niching-it-up in business, and I certainly hope all of these ideas do well. I love the creativity of the human mind.
Have you seen any “thinking outside the box” niches recently that you'd like to share?
Warmly,
Nicole
PS. This is another great example of Outsourcing. Guess who sat on Instant Messenger with me giggling for the last 1/2 hour, finding these products? One of my VA's, Tracy! 😉
Tracy Roberts
December 18, 2008 at 6:42 pmuh oh – my son saw the tampon blowgun and is thinking of raiding his sister’s stash to make one…
The things you come up with… 😉
Tracy Roberts’s last blog post..Easy No Bake Christmas Desserts
Annette
December 18, 2008 at 6:54 pmWell I was just a little scared to go and open a few of those links – lol! Thanks for the giggle!
Annette’s last blog post..Direct Sales Quick Tip – Dress it up!
Shannon Smith
December 18, 2008 at 7:49 pmI had seen the tampon angel before, but not the others. And thank you for all the time I just spent browsing the tampon crafts. Ha!
Secondly, the nostril egg separator? Ummm, no.
I wish I had seen the Chicken Poop lip stuff in time for Andrew’s stocking.
And last, but certainly not least, puh-puh-puh-please do not tell Andrew there is such a thing as a corn dog air freshener. #1, I don’t want to drive around smelling corn dog all the time. And #2, I don’t want people seeing a corn dog hanging in my car. Sheesh!
Shannon Smith’s last blog post..Disney is celebrating Andrew!
Vera Raposo
December 18, 2008 at 7:41 pmThanks for the great laugh! I like the butt towel, I could buy that. But the man grooming!?! I don’t think I want to try tampon crafts either. lol!
Vera Raposo’s last blog post..Product Reviews: Do they help you with Marketing?
Stephanie
December 18, 2008 at 9:39 pmGoing to have a baby soon. Can I just say “No, no, no, nonono!!” to the Hello Kitty hospital room?
Stephanie’s last blog post..Sorry, There’s Only So Much Santa Can Do
Arika
December 19, 2008 at 5:00 amWell…hmmm what can I say? ROFLMBO! Thanks ladies!
Wonder what hubby would think if I started creating tampon art? He’d probably take me right up to the mental hospital that’s what!
Arika’s last blog post..More Facts about Virginia than You Ever Needed (or wanted) to Know
Sharon
December 19, 2008 at 4:27 amWell Nicole and Tracy thank you for helping to take me “outside of the box”…way outside of the box – LOL! I haven’t seen any unique niches lately but I do need to start thinking about some unique projects for the new year and instead of struggling on my own, I’m going to think about outsourcing a little more.
Sharon’s last blog post..The Joys of Urban Life
Susanne
December 19, 2008 at 7:04 amThe nose egg separator is just plain gross LOL.
It did remind me of another odd niche though. There’s a gadget called an egg cuber. You hard boil and egg and peel it. Then you stick it in this cube tool to make it square. The idea behind it is that you will have square slices of egg for those little slices of cocktail bread.
Susanne
Susanne’s last blog post..Do You Remember The Words To Those Christmas Songs?
Melissa Ingold
December 19, 2008 at 6:41 pmOMG, I was giggling my butt off!! Thanks for the laugh Nicole 🙂
Melissa Ingold’s last blog post..Do You Need a Business Butt Kickin’?
Polly Pierce
December 20, 2008 at 4:41 amI was just saying how I feel I’ve short changed the kids on their stocking this year; I wonder if they’d like a box of tampons and the link to tampon crafts? They could make a fortune…
Absolutely hysterical! Thanks a mill…
Polly Pierce’s last blog post..Polly’s Interested; In What…?
Mummy
December 20, 2008 at 8:31 amAlright… I had to take a peek at each and every one of these new-found niches just to see what all the giggling was about. lmao2!!! Thanks for the guffaws and Christmas gift ideas! HA! I’m ordering my Wine Rack today!
Love ya!
Administrator
December 20, 2008 at 10:45 amMom! Order me one, too! Do they make bikini tops for the beach? I’d fill mine with margaritas.
Wer
December 26, 2008 at 5:28 amOh my! Those are niches that are so obvious but never gave a thought to it!
Stefani
December 28, 2008 at 2:26 pmI would never have dreamed of tampon crafts!
Stefani’s last blog post..Graco Car Seat Giveaway!
Sabac
December 29, 2008 at 1:41 amAll those links are very funny and interesting but you introduced many cool ideas. I think it is always a big dilemma for us to go after niche specific stuff or not but I think those can be fruitful more than our expectation.
Melissa Multitasking Mama
January 12, 2009 at 8:37 amThis is embarrassing but we have the butt-face towel (in my defense it was a gift from someone to my tween boys) They love it LOL
JC
January 21, 2009 at 12:03 amThose were great… a great example of our out of control consumption. I assume #4 was the product those gag standing squirrel pictures with “extra equipment”
Nicole
January 21, 2009 at 11:20 amExtra equipment? Aren’t squirrels in your neighborhood as “manly” as squirrels around here? 😉
Lafa
October 29, 2009 at 4:34 amWow! very informative article. Thanks, I liked it.