12 Steps to Niche Music Success

Here's a great example of a music site that does more by doing less: Sunlight of the Spirit Music. Of course, what I mean is, it reaches more ideal fans by appealing to fewer people -- and by doing so, is much more effective than a more generic music site.



Here's a description from the site's home page:

Sunlight of the Spirit Music exclusively sells CDs from artists in recovery -- all kinds of CDs and all kinds of recovery -- with the largest selection of twelve step and recovery music available for dealing with alcoholism and addiction in all its forms.

The site was founded last year by Gracie Hollombe Vandiver. According to this article in The Tennessean, Vandiver "helped start 12-stepradio.com in 2004. And seeing there was demand for recovery music, she started Sunlight of the Spirit Music in 2006 ... It was just the enterprise to combine Vandiver's skills as a songwriter, author and publicist and also give her a chance to market the artists in recovery she was representing."

The site offers recovery articles, a blog, a newsletter, and a Sober Cafe podcast -- in addition to the music store.

The lesson: Find a niche you're passionate about -- one not currently being served well -- and build a buzz (and a business) around it.

-Bob