Niche Building 105
Part 5 of 5 of the “Building a Niche” Mini-Series
This post is the fifth and final installment in our five-part mini-series where we’re pulling the curtain back on exactly what we did to start an industry niche focused on construction and trades businesses.
So here we are – previously you’ve heard:
101: Why/How We Decided to Niche
- Taking the plunge on nicheing
- Deciding on construction and trades
102: How We Started a Niche (aside from just saying we had one)
- Finding a place that not only had our niche clients but also provided a great source of education on this industry
- Committing fully to getting in the room with people in the industry
- Focusing more on “getting smart” than on selling our services
- Using our website to prove we were serious about the niche
103: What We Did WITHIN the Firm to Reinforce the Niche
- Designating certain Lanterns – and therefore the team within them – to be niche-specific
- Creating a “Construction Crew” to collaborate on niche-specific knowledge
- Finding colleagues also in our niche and collaborating with them on a monthly basis
104: Spreading the Word About the Niche
- Knowing what you want to say
- Pricing for your niche
Opportunity Knocks
Sometimes connections provide the best opportunities out of the blue.
In September 2024, the President of the Painting Contractors Association of Portland asked if we would be willing to present to their group. We were thrilled!
And then we thought,
“Ummm…. What do we want to cover that will be meaningful?”
“Will anyone show up if the word “accounting” is the focus of the presentation??”
“What if they start throwing pub food at us to indicate their lack of satisfaction???”
(the meetings are held in a meeting room of a bar)
But we decided that this was a great opportunity, not only to get in front of our niche, but to really put thought into exactly what would make the presentation not only understandable, but also relatable and would bring the crowd to their feet in cheering applause at the end.
(one can dream….)
Our First Public Appearance
We spent WEEKS… actually, MONTHS, working on:
…. the outline of the presentation
…. the wording on the slides
…. the graphics on the slides
…. re-ordering the slides
…. writing speaker notes
…. practicing the presentation
…. re-doing the wording on the slides again
Let’s just say that we REALLY tried to be prepared – and it still didn’t feel like enough.
Finally the day of the presentation arrived – we got there early to make sure we were able to connect to the video equipment and get comfortable with the microphone.
And then it was time.
The presentation was a bit of a blur and while we likely had a small stumble here or there, we came away feeling that we had genuinely reached much of the audience. Attendees even asked some questions afterwards! And we went home and slept better than we had in a while.
Did we get any new clients out of it? No. But being brave had it’s own perks: we took on a new challenge, came up with content that we felt spoke to our audience, presented to a room of people and made some great connections. We’ll call that a huge win.
In fact, we’d actually call that BEST. EXPERIENCE. EVER.
Now, you might be asking yourself, “What exactly did they cover in that presentation??” It looks like we might have another mini-series on our hands – stay tuned!!
If you’re a construction or trades business owner looking for bookkeeping and outsourced accounting support from a team that truly understands your industry, we’d love to connect. Luma Accounting, headquartered in Portland, Oregon and serving small businesses nationwide, helps clients build systems that support confident growth. Reach out to us to start the conversation.
