If you have finally decided to start your own blog, then firstly i would like to congratulate you. The reason is because the toughest thing to do is always to get started. I am sure you have heard about people rambling on non stop about niche markets and how to define your target market. This article will help shed some light on this topic.

Your blogging style and target audience always come hand in hand. The moment you decide to create a blog, you must figure out what your target audience is; you must know what do they want to read and find out more from your blog. The articles your write on your blog must provide quality and value to your readers in order to build up a relationship with them. If you provide quality information, it would be very effective in building up communication and your readership. Encouraging your readers to leave comments in your blog works fine as well.

At a closer look, the definition of a niche market could be broken down into 3 criteria:

1. A group of people – This particular group of people (targeted audience) interested in a particular hobby, interest or profession.

2. Searching for a solution – Your targeted audience would be better if they are searching for a solution, and you are there to provide it to them. You need to find this group of people through what they are looking for. The most practical way is to use keyword research tools to find out exactly what phrases or questions these people are typing into the search engines to find a solution.

3. They are not finding many relevant results – It would be easier to establish your blog in a smaller and more targeted market than a saturated one. The reason is because if you wish to write a blog to publish updates on soccer news, you would realise that many websites out there are already doing so and the competition is very stiff. In this case you lose out on your readership and traffic.

I advise that people start with their own passions, hobbies, interest or expertise.

You might find this formula handy:

My niche market is people who are (action word) + (your passions)

Here are some examples:

My niche market is people who are (learning) to (play the piano).

My niche market is people who are trying to (build) a (dog kennel).
My niche market is people who are learning to (cook) (French-style cuisine).

Use this questionnaire to dig deeper into your interests.

What websites do you visit when you have nothing to do? What topics do these websites cover?
Do you collect anything?
Do you play any sports?
Do you have pets?
Do you have any specialized knowledge? Example: Flower Arrangement, Gardening Skills…
What is your occupation? What field or area of interest does it deal in?
Is there anything you really want to learn about, but you gave up because of the time constraint in your life?

Come up with a list of at least 3 or more interests and you are ready to go!