Since Natural Markets are areas on a positioning map with preferences but no nearby brands, they also can be considered market opportunities. The key is "consumer-recognized needs and wants," which is what ideal points on a positioning map represent, at least in terms of evaluative dimensions for a product that would meet those needs and wants. Natural markets are markets where consumers know they want something, but cannot find it. For example, if you want a low-powered hair dryer (because it will not damage your hair), you cannot buy one. They are all high-powered, and every time you need to buy a new one the wattage is even higher. (A barber said new ones could be used to strip paint!) So low-powered hair dryers are a natural market. And since people would like to buy them if they could, low-powered hair dryers are a market opportunity for some producer.

But not all market opportunities are natural markets. The term "market opportunity" is often used in marketing to denote any opportunity to increase sales, say of an existing product through increased advertising. In this case there is an opportunity to increase sales, perhaps through frequency of purchase. Natural markets, however, are about the products themselves—ones that do not or no longer exist.