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Chances are, you’re somewhat familiar with the term ‘niche.’ By definition, a niche is “a place or position suitable or appropriate for a person or thing,” “pertains to or is intended for a market niche” or “has specific appeal.” In other words, your niche market is a classification of the specific kind of people for whom your t-shirt brand is intended. To simplify this concept, here are some basic examples using fictional t-shirt brands:

The niche market of Ponies4Ever would be people who love ponies and horses and who have probably visited a ranch or rode a horse at some point in their lives. Monsta Truckas clothing brand might appeal to fans of the monster truck scene.

But neither of these fictional brands would be created to appeal to people outside of their niche, such as the niche market of “tech geeks.” There is less of a chance that tech geeks or any other outsiders to the brand’s niche would be attracted to the products released by either brand. Now, you might be thinking, “But I want to make t-shirts that anybody would love.” This is the classic mistake of trying to please everybody, and it typically won’t do you any good. In fact, every successful brand, whether it be in the clothing industry or some other industry, leaves out certain groups of people in their branding and marketing efforts in order to zero in on specific niche markets.

Identifying your niche market is a vital aspect of developing your branding and marketing strategy. Here are easy ways to decide who your t-shirt brand is intended for.

1) Identify different niche markets you would be classified under by listing your interests and hobbies. These niches might be suitable targets for your business.

2) Decide what kind of people you’d want to wear your t-shirts. Rock stars, you say? Your niche market would be rockers and fans of rock music.

3) Think about the kind of people who would find your products valuable or even benefit from them in some way.

Once you have identified your niche market, consider the estimated size of the market in order to determine if it is a profitable niche. Are there enough people in this niche market to keep your business running? Would the people in this niche market even be interested in t-shirts? The town of Beaconsfield, Iowa has a population of 11, making Beaconsfielders one of the worst choices for your niche market. Don’t make the mistake of choosing too small of a group.