The term ‘tribe’ has become a bit of a business buzzword recently. I’m still trying to work out whether I like it or not, but I know that a lot of you do so I’ll go with it. For me, the word tribe describes a niche audience, people who will come to you because they know you offer what they need.
On reflection I think I prefer talking about ‘my people’. I’ve been part of a fantastic group coaching programme recently and I’ve found myself describing the coach and the other members as my people quite a lot.
Anyway, none of us are here to get into a debate about semantics just now. Whatever you call them, your tribe, people, gang, or fans are all people who like you. Who those people are will depend on your business but the way you speak to them is incredibly important.
Who are your tribe?
If you already have a tribe you’ll know who they are. They’re the people that you can communicate with easily and who love what you do. They’re the first to sign up for new services or buy your latest product. They tell their friends about you.
Of course, you might not have got to that stage yet. Attracting new regular customers can be a long process. Converting new customers into ambassadors takes time too.
If you’ve read my earlier blog posts about building a business within a niche you’ll know that the tribe you serve can be key to the services you offer. (If you haven’t read them you can catch up here and here.) It also helps you to work out how you need to talk to them in your copy.
What do your niche audience like?
If you serve a niche audience there’s likely to be quite a lot of overlap in their interests and pain points. For example, I work with a lot of women who run their own business but who also have other family commitments, whether that involves children or parents who need extra care as they get older. Working for themselves involves a lot of juggling but it also helps them to work flexibly. They also want to have fun and enjoy the finer things in life when they get the chance. That could be a great family holiday, a spa day or a night out with fizz or cocktails.
I’ll be talking more about this in a future blog post but you’ll probably have your own ideas based on your current customers. (Or the ones you’d like to have.)
Don’t be afraid to be geeky
I’ll admit, the word geeky conjures up an image of a certain kind of business. However, there are people across the board who are happy to go into a huge amount of detail about a subject they love. When my friend Irina first told be about her business Book and Coffee I’ll confess to letting out a little squeal. I don’t read nearly as much as I used to now that I have young children but I still love books. I’ll talk about them for hours. At least, until other, more up to date obsessives lose me with their knowledge of more modern classics.
If your business lends itself well to this, feel free to indulge. I don’t imagine that anyone goes into business selling books, film memorabilia or graphic novels without having a certain level of fandom themselves. When your business is aligned with your own interests you have the perfect opportunity to start a conversation with people who think just like you.
Do you serve a niche? How do you talk to them? Let me know in the comments below!
Further reading
For more about Book and Coffee, the book and coffee subscription service, you can visit their website here.
