You think you know the UI/UX niche you want to go into.
Here is how to test it.

Why test it?

Well, you want to make sure you don’t waste your time. You will want some market feedback that will help you improve your language and offer so you attract the right type of clients.

Unfortunately, most designers think that changing the tagline of their portfolio is the way to go. They keep it up for some time, don’t see a result, and go back to some sort of generic statement to make sure they don’t scare away some clients.

Or even worse, they don’t even dare to try the niche thing. They just read about it and then they make excuses in their head about why it will not work for them.

There is a simple, non-risky way of testing out your niche design service.

The ultimate validation of your idea is if people pay you money for it.

But the next best thing is if they pay attention.
So we need to capture their attention.

Step 1: Pick a place you can run your test

You are looking for two things.

Your potential customer needs to hang out there.
You can get feedback as quick as possible.
So, this could be any social media platform, an online community or a co-working space. You can even use paid ads if you know-how.

If I had to go pick one place right now, it would be LinkedIn.

Step 2: Get their attention

You will create some content.

Don’t be scared. Think of it as if you already work for this type of client and you are doing some research for them to help them make a decision on something.

Here is an example. Let’s say the niche you choose is UI/UX design for health mobile apps.

What you can do is curate a list of resources for founders or product owners that are creating this type of product.

• Top 3 mobile health app trends for [next year]
• 3 health apps with great onboarding flow
• 10 UI inspirations for mobile health apps
• The 3 most common UX issues in health apps
• 3 health apps with excellent UX design

You get the idea.

Pick topics related to possible problems. Pick a content format you feel the most comfortable with. Text only, text and image, carousel slides, screen capture with voiceover, full-on video. Don’t overthink it. Try something.

Stick to curation for now. Don’t produce original designs.
Try this for a week. One post a day.

Step 3: Analyse engagement

Do you get any engagement? Views, likes, shares, comments, anything.

Track the engagement and double down on what works every day.
If you get questions in the comments, be helpful. Don’t sell. Ask clarifying questions to learn more. Link to more helpful resources.

You might even get your first client this way.

Some platforms take more time to get organic engagement. You might need to keep the test going for more than a week.

Step 4: Iterate

If you get low or almost no engagement, this is a red flag.

Either the language you are using is not resonating with the niche, or the niche doesn’t care about what you are offering. Or maybe the niche is so small, that there are not enough people that care about this in general.

Whatever it is, it’s time to iterate. Make a change. Test again.

Bottom line

You don’t need to take big risks to test a niche design idea. Use curated content instead to solve your potential client’s problem.
Now, get testing.