14 Web Design Niches You Might Have Overlooked

Finding niches as a web designer is similar to finding niches in any profession. Key to selecting a niche, in my opinion, is to determine which niche companies want and are willing to pay for what you are offering. It’s great to only work for the kinds of companies you know well and like, but that’s not always realistic.

Each niche market has its own requirements. Individuals and companies rarely put up sites now simply for the sake of seeing their names on the Internet. They are looking for a result from that site, whether it’s measurably increased traffic, sales of a service or product, or simplified operating processes. Often, they don’t even know what they really want, beyond “more customers!” Study these niches and see if you can figure out ways to help them get more customers or communicate better with the ones they have.

Niche Companies Who Need Web Design, Desperately

Here are just a few niches that seem to need your help.

Financial Planners—Financial planning is growing quickly and will continue to grow for the next twenty years, as baby boomers begin to retire and need help figuring out how to continue investing and responsibly spending their savings without running out. Planning sites are notoriously boring and could benefit from animations, photographs, video presentations, document repositories, password-protected member pages, online chat, and more.

Travel Planners—Yes, we can all book our own flights now, but the activity of flying has become even more of a nightmare. Travel agents are doing more in the area of planning and organizing vacations, working with resorts, hotels, car rental agencies, and many other service providers in remote locations. Travel sites would benefit from video, photography, dynamic, database-driven scheduling, online chat, and social networking.

Home Organizers—Forty years ago, the average home was less than half the size of the current home. Now those huge homes are full of stuff. And more people are working longer, so they don’t have time to organize all that stuff. Enter the home organizer, who helps with closet design, garage storage design, office design and more. These sites could use document repositories, dynamic design tools, video, photographs, and more.

Computer Support Services—As more people retire, you’re going to see more people going online rather than fewer. And all those retirees are looking for help using all of these new, cool tools to videotape their family events, post photos to web sites, store online documents to online storage sites, plan vacations, and more. Computer support services are springing up like mushrooms after a heavy rainfall.

Tutors and Test Preparation—Competition is fierce for open slots in good universities, and even in private high schools. More and more parents are hiring tutors and companies that specialize in test preparation for the SAT, GRE, and other tests. These sites need clear navigation controls, video, document repositories, sample tests, and online chat.

Custom-Designed Jewelry—Many high-end custom jewelers are offering their wares online. They need help designing classy sites that also provide practical information about sizing, colors, designs, and pricing.

Group Home and Elder Care Facilities—These facilities help take care of the disabled and elderly, particularly those with Alzheimer’s Disease. Sites need help presenting a professional but conservative look, and need to include lots of information about safety issues, medical issues, insurance, legal compliance, and pricing.

Solar Energy Services—Alternative energy is going to continue to grow over the next 50 years as a business and a lifestyle choice. Small companies are popping up all over to sell, install, and service solar technologies. These sites could benefit from animation, video, documentation, pricing, and online support and chat.

Local Merchant Associations—Many people are relocating to relatively small towns across the USA and Canada. Most of these small towns have business or merchant associations, which is how shopkeepers group together for mutual support and sponsorship of periodic events like parades, holiday events, and sidewalk sales. This associations could be a good source of business for a diligent web designer who could create an online mall type of site.

Daycare Organizations—Daycare organizations range from in-home daycare to large, corporate daycare. Many of these organizations fall somewhere in-between, with several employees and supporting a couple of dozen children and their parents daily. These sites need to project an image of safely, respectability, and reliability. Sites could benefit from video, photographs, testimonials, downloadable applications and documents, legal documents, and realtime video and audio.

Videographers and Independent Journalists—With the rise of online video sites and blogs, more and more people are become part and full-time videographers and journalists. Some specialize in commercial enterprises, like videotaping weddings or parties, but others are more focused on community activism, entertainment, or local events. These sites could benefit from video, of course, but also from membership forums, social networking, and online contact technologies, like chat.

Specialty Photographers—There are so many commercial photographers out there, that if you became sufficiently skilled in designing a number of gallery designs and slide show presentations, you would have little problem specializing in this niche.

Personal Chefs—Again, with more people working longer, the notion of having a personal chef who will prepare a week’s worth of meals for your freezer is becoming widely accepted and adopted. Yet, many of these personal chef sites are boring, lacking in detailed information about how their service works, or are just simple pages on the site of a personal chef organization. These sites could really benefit from the entire array of new technologies, including photographs and videos, online recipes, order forms, online chat, and e-commerce.

Local Recreation Services—If you live in an area that provides a variety of recreational activities, don’t overlook the many tour providers and recreational activity vendors. Anybody who offers walking tours through your city, kayaking, cycling, helicopter tours, dance lessons, cooking lessons, heritage tours, garden tours, and so on, is in the market for a web site. Video is perfect for these types of companies.

To find these companies, just look in your phone book, or do a search on the Internet. Even if they have a website, it’s likely they could use a refreshed design. By focusing on only one or two of these niches, you’ll build up an expertise in knowing what they need and how to reach their customers. You’ll also create your own repository of designs that’ll help you get faster and more efficient.