I was wondering how people here found their niche. I have OCD and am very detail oriented. I have done car detailing, custodial work, window cleaning, I recently got my CDL and have been doing delivery for awhile. I found myself satisfied with the finished product of a detailed car, a clean window, a vacuumed rug or freshly swept hallway. Pristine satisfies my OCD and I enjoy the completed product, as I'm sure many in this sub do. Delivery is not very fulfilling to me as it's just drop the product off, get a signature from the customer, goodbye and see you next time. Delivery also has tons of competition with Amazon, Walmart, Doordash, etc.
Thus I am leaning towards a car detailing or pressure washing business, but open to other business ideas. I know I need to research my competitors and essentially have a better product/service than them, as well as be competitive on price.
How do you stand out from everyone else and differentiate from the competition? I live in a fairly big city so is it better to undercut the competition and have top quality service, or match their prices and offer periodic "promotions" to gain repeat business?
Any and all advice appreciated!
How to find your niche and stand out from everyone else
byu/Night_Shift_7 inEntrepreneur
Posted by Night_Shift_7
3 Comments
You’re going to want to align your business with what interests you the most and where you can find yourself working 5 years later. Sounds like that might be the car detailing business. A couple pieces of advice – first make sure your business is solving a problem for your target customer. If you’re not solving a problem then the customer doesn’t need you. Now for your differentiator – either get your car detailed by some of the competition and see if anything stands out that you could do differently or better OR (if that’s too expensive) look at the google reviews that are 3 stars and below from the competition and see what stands out – and do that better. As for pricing – i would avoid pricing based on competition because no one wins price wars and it doesn’t allow you to protect your margins. Set your pricing and aim for a >50% gross margin. If that makes you too pricey see what costs you can reduce and then see what else you can offer that is low cost for you and high value to the customer.
Your niche is just who you focus on and how you’re different. You are the person shops call so their windows look spotless before opening.
You love perfect cleanliness and attention to detail. This is your main strength. Focus on a niche where this is valued, as you mentioned, car detailing or pressure washing.
My logic would be this: **the main goal is to make the client return several times and develop a habit** of using your service. Once a person gets used to the quality, it becomes harder to look for someone else, and regular clients are the foundation of the business.
**Practically, I would act like this:**
* On opening day, offer a free wash to each client by appointment.
* On the second visit, give a bonus, for example, a 50% discount.
* On the third visit, offer a small discount or gift to reinforce the habit.
**But this is just a tool.** The main task is to delight the client with the result every time so they return not for the discount but for the quality.
**Additionally**, use videos and photos of the process. Show attention to detail and cleanliness. This is your unique advantage. People like to see how professionals work.
Next, plan all points of contact with the client: booking, reminders, service, post-visit communication so the client becomes a regular. But this is a separate, deeper topic.
In short, build a system, not one-time promotions, and one strong process will attract and retain many clients.