Evergreen vs Seasonal Niches: How to Survive the Slow Months

No business really wants a slow season. Yes, it is acceptable–but why settle for only having a few months with impressive sales when you can do it all year round? The key is to find the right niches, or rather the evergreen ones. And in this blog, we’ll discuss what these niches are and how you can determine the right fit for your brand. 

No matter how strong your marketing strategies are, doing business can be like a rollercoaster ride–you’re not always on top. Especially in the e-commerce world, there is what we call the ‘slow season’ or the months where shoppers just aren’t as active as usual, and sales, thus, come in slow. According to CedCommerce, this typically starts around January and lingers up to March due to a number of reasons such as the consumers’ hiatus on spending after consecutive holidays. 

However, the slow months or slow seasons can actually vary from business to business. Depending on the niche or specific market segment you’re targeting, your sales trends throughout the year can differ from that of others. 

What Is a Niche? 

Before we get into the details, let’s first define what a niche is exactly. Think of doing business as a shooting game–you’ve got your branding and marketing gimmicks as your bullets, and your whole online store as your main weapon. Without a target, you’ll probably end up shooting your bullets everywhere and not even know if you’ve won. 

That’s what niche is all about. Your niche, basically, is that very specific market segment you wish to aim your promotions and branding strategies at. Consequently, it’s what makes your brand unique–that specialty or quirk it will be known for. Having a niche lets you come up with more targeted strategies, whether in your marketing or product development processes. Some examples of brands that are able to clearly define and target their niche are the following (Mirasee):

TomboyX

TomboyX is an underwear clothing brand whose target audience is the LGBTQ+ community, and basically, everyone. Their gender and size-inclusive clothing has become a niche on its own, defying societal standards and norms when it comes to fashion and comfort. While they offer clothing to ALL body types and gender identities, you can see how they differ from your usual underwear and lingerie brands such as Hanes and Victoria’s Secret. 

Freelancer at Work

Freelancer at Work is another unique, targeted brand that caters to well…you’ve guessed it–freelancers. Their product offering is pretty straightforward. They create laptop stickers or decals for freelancers to let people know what they do wherever they are and potentially get more clients. 

Jacamo

Jacamo is a UK-based clothing brand that caters to men of every size and build. They offer stylish apparel choices to men who need help looking for fashionable pieces that fit comfortably from their local department stores and other known brands. 

What Is a Seasonal Niche?

Got a much clearer understanding of what a niche is? Great! Now, let’s discuss what seasonal niches are.

As the name suggests, seasonal niches are market opportunities you can grab only for a certain month or season in the year. These niches are dependent on certain occasions or special events, and shoppers won’t be willing to spend on related products once the calendar flips to another season. 

Most Popular Seasonal Niches

Some of the most popular niches that make some serious money every year are the following:

Valentine’s Day

Shortly after the new year starts comes the season of love. Valentine’s is another great seasonal niche to explore because apart from being profitable, it provides a lot of creative freedom for sellers, marketers, and designers. Especially now that people are encouraged to celebrate all kinds of love, you won’t run out of product ideas and marketing strategies for this season. 

St. Patrick’s Day

Also known as St. Paddy’s Day, St. Patrick’s generates an average of $5 billion spent every year on apparel, decorations, parties, and other related merch. This is why many marketers keep an eye out for this holiday as soon as March begins. 

Mother’s Day and Father’s Day

These two occasions are very brief, yet widely celebrated around the globe. Every Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, lots of shoppers are on the lookout for gifts and gimmick ideas they can use to express their love and appreciation to their lovely parents. 

The Back-to-School Season

While not everyone (especially the students themselves) may be excited to return to campus after the summer break, the back-to-school season remains to be among the top profitable seasonal niches. Aside from the school-goers, parents during this time scour the e-commerce platforms and physical stores for deals and superb items their children can use as they kickstart the new school year. 

The Holiday Season

Once Thanksgiving ends, the holiday season begins. During this time, marketers and online sellers get lots of opportunities to sell winter collections, Christmas-themed items, and gifts for all sorts of market segments. People generally are influenced by the spirit of giving and celebration during this season so it’s really a lucrative period for many businesses.

Check out this e-commerce holiday guide to know more about potential seasonal niches.  

Advantages and Disadvantages of Seasonal Niches

Seasonal niches are a great opportunity to boost sales during certain months. However, your products and branding shouldn’t solely revolve around these niches. Once the fever for a specific event or holiday ends, people will lose interest in your products and you’ll be left with stagnant or constantly declining sales. Finding the balance between exploring seasonal and evergreen niches is a must. 

What Is an Evergreen Niche in Print on Demand?

Evergreen niches in print-on-demand are specialties that never go out of style. You wouldn’t have to wait for a certain season to launch these products as people would want to buy them at any time of the year, depending on their own needs and budget. 

Evergreen Niche Examples

The key to creating or catering to an evergreen niche is finding a need or pain point you can solve, or a strong interest that doesn’t die out quickly. Some examples of this niche are the following:

Lifestyle Based Niches 

Many consumers nowadays base their purchases on their lifestyle habits and priorities. This is why lifestyle-based niches are becoming more and more popular. These niches include fitness, self-care, sustainable living, special diets, and more. Because these values are part of your customer’s lifestyle, they aren’t likely to stop supporting your brand and products any time soon, as long as you keep offering ones that speak to them. 

Some products you can offer under such niches are activewear and eco-conscious items like reusable tote bags. 

Profession or Occupation Based Niches

Occupation or profession-based niches can also be lucrative all year round. These are niches that depend on your target market’s job or career. For instance, you can target working moms and offer stylish shirts with empowering quotes. Or, you can target a certain career profession you feel close to and offer products such as mugs and tees with funny, #relatable sayings your customers would resonate with. 

Niches Based on Personal Interests 

Some interests don’t just fade after a trend dies down. These are interests people may feel firmly attached to, such as music, memes, astrology, and even love for pets. These niches aren’t only evergreen, but they also offer endless possibilities when it comes to product and design development. You can start by offering clothing pieces then expand to accessories and even home decor with designs that people in these niches would dig!

Advocacy Based Niches 

If you’ve got personal advocacy you’re gravitating strongly to, you might as well explore it as a potential niche. Values and advocacies such as body positivity, gender inclusivity, women empowerment, and more open a lot of opportunities to businesses wanting to target a specific segment. For instance, you can sell gender-neutral clothing or plus-size pieces, and establish your brand as one that celebrates diversity and all body types. 

Advantages and Disadvantages of Evergreen Niches

Evergreen niches are a great choice for almost every business. They can keep your sales steady and give you a regular revenue stream. However, you also get lots of competitors in these niches so you really have to step up your marketing game and product offerings. Plus, you’re likely to be affected by the slow months if you don’t offer your consumers something that would make them continue shopping from your store. 

Which Type of Niche Is Right for You?

If you plan on running your business all year round, you don’t necessarily have to choose between these two types of niches. You can have an evergreen niche as your main and explore some seasonal ones if you want to boost your sales for certain periods. 

On the other hand, for those who are just testing the waters or would mostly run their business as a side hustle, starting with a seasonal niche may be ideal. It would help you gauge and figure out if the business really is for you and if there are other niches you can cater to. 

Regardless of your chosen niche, the key to ensuring your business’ success is finding a print-on–demand provider that can help you satisfy your customers, no matter which month or day of the year it is. With a POD partner you can rely on, exploring different niches along the way becomes a fun and less intimidating journey. 

Ready to Find Your Niche?

We hope this blog has helped you identify which type of niche would be perfect for your business. And while it may sound so cheesy, following your heart or your own interests may just be the key to finding the right niche for your brand. All you have to do is do your research and know which set of consumers you’d like your business to cater to. Once you identify these and align them with your vision, starting your POD business becomes a breeze!

For more e-commerce and print-on-demand tips and tricks, check out our blog!