Journal of Financial Planning: December 2025
NOTE: Please be aware that the audio version, created with Amazon Polly, may contain mispronunciations.
Janice Cackowski, CFP®, is a vice president and wealth adviser at Sequoia Financial Group in northeast Ohio. She believes strongly in her fiduciary responsibility to provide financial advice that is in the best interest of her clients. Janice proudly offers personalized financial planning and investment advisory services to new retirees, young profes-sionals, and LGBTQ+ couples.
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When starting in the financial planning profession or launching a financial planning firm, many advisers are told that success hinges on finding a niche. As the saying goes, “The riches are in the niches.” Developing a niche for your practice may help you build something that can add a lot of value to a small group of people.
But what happens when the niche you think you’ll build or bring with you into your practice doesn’t pan out? What if your market tells you something entirely different about who you are best positioned to serve? This is the reality for advisers who start with a clear vision and end up with a different, often more refined, one. I learned this firsthand when I changed careers from a paralegal at a divorce law firm into a role as a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® and, eventually, opened my own financial planning firm.
The Niche I Thought I Had
Before transitioning mid-life to a career in financial planning, I worked as a paralegal in a divorce law firm. My role as a paralegal had me working directly with clients on how to equitably separate assets during the divorce process. It was a terrific springboard into my current career.
Once I transitioned into financial planning, I was employed by a couple financial advisory firms. When I found I wasn’t fulfilled with those firms, I decided to start my own practice. I had a solid professional background working with people going through divorce. I understood the emotional complexity and financial uncertainty that goes along with divorce, and I found it fulfilling to help clients navigate their division of assets, understand tax implications, establish financial independence, and create new plans for their future. Because of this experience, I thought for certain that divorcees—particularly women—would be the cornerstone of my firm’s client base. In fact, much of my early branding and messaging emphasized this niche. I highlighted my skills in helping clients during life transitions. I spoke directly to women and those people working with women through the divorce process. I offered support with the kind of compassionate guidance that is often needed during and after a divorce.
So, I was surprised when that niche didn’t follow me quite the way I had envisioned.
What Actually Happened
Despite the marketing and my previous experience, my firm began to attract a different kind of client—pre-retiree couples. And not just any couples. These were often traditional households, where the male partner handled most of the high-level financial decisions.
Even more surprising? It was usually the husband who first reached out to me.
At first, I didn’t understand the shift. But after many first meetings, it became clear: these men were looking for a financial adviser they could trust, not just for their retirement, but for the long-term security of their spouse. They were planning ahead for the possibility that they might pass away first, and they wanted someone in place that their wife or significant other would feel comfortable with. They were seeking not just experience, but relational continuity.
What started as a divergence from my plan slowly revealed itself to be my actual niche.
Why Niches Matter—And Why Flexibility Matters More
Having a niche is important. It allows you to target your messaging, create service offerings that speak directly to specific needs, and build a referral network around a clear identity. But when starting out, it’s equally important to remain flexible. Your niche isn’t just what you choose—it’s who chooses you.
I’ve met other advisers who get stuck trying to force a niche that doesn’t resonate in the market they’re in. That’s not to say you can’t create a niche with enough time and focus, but often your best niche is right in front of you, emerging from the people who find you and trust you.
In my case, I had to stop thinking of my niche as only women in transition and start recognizing the deeper emotional needs of my actual clients: couples entering retirement wanting to protect and provide for each other. That recognition opened opportunities to refine how I work, how I communicate, and how I serve my clients.
How to Discover—or Refine—Your Niche
If you’re in the early stages of transitioning into a career as a financial adviser, or even if you’ve been in business a while like I was when I started my own practice, here are a few key steps to finding or fine-tuning your niche:
1. Start With What You Know—but Stay Open
Like me, you may begin your firm with a specialty or target demographic in mind. That’s a great starting point as it gives you direction and something to build around. But be careful not to ignore the clients who naturally gravitate toward you.
Pay close attention to the people who reach out. What do they have in common? What concerns or values do they share? Patterns will emerge.
2. Look Beneath the Surface
You may think you’re serving a demographic (objective, statistical data like gender, age, income), but your real niche could be a psychographic (attitudes, values, interests, lifestyles). In my case, I initially thought my niche was “women after divorce,” but I eventually realized my deeper value lay in creating continuity and confidence for families facing transition.
The niche wasn’t based purely on life stage or gender, but on an emotional need: having a plan in place and a person their family could rely on both now and in the future. That’s a pretty powerful and durable value proposition.
3. Evaluate Client Relationships, Not Just Revenue
It’s easy to judge your most “ideal” clients by AUM or complexity, but sometimes your niche is found in the clients who value you most deeply, refer you most often, and connect with your communication style.
If you consistently hear “You really helped me feel better about all of this” or “My wife would be comfortable talking to you,” that’s worth paying attention to. These statements are clues to your true strengths and where you make the biggest impact.
4. Align Your Marketing Gradually
Once you identify who you’re really serving, align your messaging to that audience. It doesn’t have to be a complete rebrand. You can shift your tone, create specific content, or develop a service process tailored to your ideal client.
If you’re working with pre-retiree couples, consider offering retirement readiness checklists, legacy planning content, or communication guides for spouses who don’t normally talk about money. This can build trust and encourage the very relationships your clients are looking for.
5. Test, Learn, and Adjust
No niche is set in stone. Markets change and your skills progress. As you mature into your career, your focus may evolve. Continue to evaluate what’s working and where your energy is best spent. The niche you start with may not be the one you grow into—and that’s OK.
The Core of a Strong Niche
A niche isn’t just a market segment—it’s a human connection. The strongest niches are built on trust, empathy, and real-world outcomes. When you show clients that you understand their challenges and care about their long-term well-being, they may feel safe with you. And when people feel safe, they refer like-minded people to you and they stay.
That’s the heart of what I’ve learned from working with married couples nearing retirement. For many of the men who first contact me, they’re not just hiring an adviser—they’re choosing a guide for the person they love most. That is an enormous vote of confidence and responsibility, and it shapes how I run my practice every day.
To new advisers: don’t be afraid to start with a clear niche in mind—but also don’t be afraid to pivot. The clients who trust you, refer others to you, and value your insights may not be who you expected. Listen to them. Learn from them. And let your firm evolve to meet their needs. That’s how you can build a business that lasts.