The Process of Creating A Real Product

[marklov]

Great progress!

I have been doing on and off days where I cold call to sell physical products to some business owners and it's crazy the amount of interest there is to actually buy.

Mention ranking, "web presence", anything leading to online.
I can hear them getting glazed over.

Mention a physical medium and they instantly get it, it clicks
and ready to buy.

Fun factor for selling physical products is a lot higher
and finding ways to add value comes more natural to me.

Wish you continued success man!

 

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[Late Start]

I just purchased the Stephen Key book on Audible based on your recommendations. I had something I was planning to get our eight year old for Christmas, only to find that it isn't something readily available on the mass market, and definitely hasn't been innovated in a while (if ever) based on the offerings I found on Amazon and eBay. This kind of blows my mind, because the specific market it would cater to has exploded over the last five years.

The problem is that it's a sizable physical product - nothing fancy, just some wood, plastic, and screws, but not something I can whip together in my garage either. I've got a cousin who is something of a fastlaner, as he builds custom items for high end customers, so I'm hoping he can help me out with design and getting a prototype put together. I just wish he wasn't on the other end of the state.

 

[Mac]

Crazy how I stumbled across this thread and I've been doing the exact same steps that you listed out here. Must mean I'm doing something right.

I ordered all the ingredients and created my own formula for a personal health product, feedback so far from people has been good. I think I tried to outsource too early, because I hit up a bunch of manufacturers and they're asking me for my Certificate of Analysis from a lab and all my supplier information.

I don't have any suppliers besides those wholesale sites like bulk apothecary, etc. The testing lab also asked for my suppliers - so that's next up on my list.

 

[ZF Lee]

Bump.
Haven't spotted a thorough invention thread until now. Surprised it wasn't notable.

 

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[Eskil]

Haven't spotted a thorough invention thread until now.

If you're interested in invention threads, there's this

 

[pickeringmt]

..

 

[S. Brown]

So, one thing I forgot to put in here is that there are really 2 major channels that you have with your initial offering as you work to build some awareness about your brand.

The first, most obvious, and most difficult to develop is an online presence with your targeted niche segment.

I say this is the most obvious because it is always the most widely pursued, and I say this is the most difficult because it is ..... the most widely pursued. The first thought of everyone is to run out and join every FB group and post about their business.

You need a much better plan than that. This is a whole 'nother post - and would take me off point. But definitely something we will get to here if people are interested.

Great thread and many gems @pickeringmt! This is a relatively old thread but I feel this thread shows a great example on branding and developing a great connection/experience with its niche market.

Do you mind talking about "brand awareness plan/strategy through online presence" ? As you say it is the most challenging to do because it is widely pursued.

Building a great brand can separate a brand from its competitors and can have a competitive advantage in its market I feel. Especially just starting out as many business brands don't have good online presence. I see it alot with e-commerce businesses and with Amazon sellers.

Thanks for this great thread and hope you have come a long way in your business pursuits.





Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

 

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[Walter Hay]

Great thread and many gems @pickeringmt!

Building a great brand can separate a brand from its competitors and can have a competitive advantage in its market I feel. Especially just starting out as many business brands don't have good online presence. I see it alot with e-commerce businesses and with Amazon sellers.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

The reason for this is that a lot of people in eCommerce, whether selling on their own site or on Amazon have little understanding of marketing.

Most people think that marketing = advertising, but that is only a part of the marketing process. According to the American Marketing Association, "Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large."

I would like to expand on that definition to remove the cloud caused by the jargon used.

That definition fails to specifically mention market research, but that would be included in "activity, set of institutions, and processes." Also included should be logistics, from product development or acquisition, to delivery to the customer.

Creating is another way of saying developing the concept, i.e., the idea of a product or service, but also understanding how that product or service provides value in the marketplace, otherwise the concept would have no value.

Communication means advertising in its various forms. What is omitted here is that advertising is far more comprehensive in meaning than just PPC ads, posting on IG, FaceBook etc. It extends to design of listings on sites such as Amazon or eBay, and design of eCommerce websites.

I admit that my hobby horse relates to labeling and packaging. The term "Private Labeling" is grossly misused and misunderstood. Most often it is taken to mean putting a label on a generic product so that people will know that it's yours, not your competitor's. ("Just slap on a sticker.")

Instead I suggest that it should mean building a great brand through use of distinctive labeling and packaging that take into account the entire marketing and advertising process. That means designing both labels and packages to convey the most appealing message to your target market.

From time to time on this forum various parts of the marketing process get a mention, but marketing should always be considered as a whole.

Walter

 

[dabelge]

This post was exactly the guide I needed today even 4 years after it was written. Excellent post!

 

[papi016]

Bump

 

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