Gonna Make
We've all done it - have a few beers with the mates from the office and suddenly there on the napkin is the best thing-a-ma-jig you've ever seen. Everyone screams, "We're gonna make a million!" You start some basic research and then throw caution to the wind and whip out the credit card..."I've got to make this now! Christmas is only a month away, how hard can it be..."
Well, it doesn't have to be hard but there are lots of people out there who will "help" you make it "easy" and lead you right into...bankruptcy.
Before you have to sell plasma to pay your creditors you might want to start with the basics of product design.
Do your homework! You're confident that you can either be the first in a category or make a substantial improvement to an existing product. Now, the big question is always - how to get it manufactured? Here are some possibilities:
Do it yourself -if you are capable, equipped and willing it's not a bad idea, especially if you're not sure of the sales potential. It's best to plan for worst-case scenario, i.e. truly a best case, where you are overwhelmed with orders. Who can you pull in to help, outsource to, and fill the order?
We have a buddy in the Detroit area who owns a small tool and die shop with his brother and they are doing just that. They have a patented product that the auto companies (yes, they're still doing business despite reports to the contrary) love and are capable of producing the product themselves with the help of a few other shops when times get busy. They're making good money and having a good time.
Have it made for you - to order. There are plenty of websites that tout just such an ability from cards and t-shirts to tables and shoes. You send them the order and they crank out the product. No inventory, no worry about overstock but depending on the product, not the quickest way to fill orders.
If you're looking to produce more than t-shirts and calendars online you'll need to find a manufacturer to produce orders. Here is where it can get tricky.
You want to have two things before you reach this point: One, a prototype that has been approved by the buyer and any relevant testing/standards lab with all of the appropriate certification. Secondly, you need a ... pay attention... a PURCHASE ORDER.
A purchase order is your whole goal. Not a promise, not a handshake, not a hunch - you want a piece of paper with a price, a quantity and a delivery date. If you don't have that -STOP! Do not collect $200 and do not pass go.
With a purchase order all things are possible. It may sound like the chicken before the egg, and you should have a really good idea of who you want to manufacture your product, but without a P.O. you're wasting everyone's time.
Now, you have a red hot P.O. so you need to be prepared. You must have a manufacturer you trust, who has provided a workable price and a realistic time for delivery. Pay them a visit in person and inspect both the facility and the people that are doing the work. Remember Kathie Lee?
What else have they done? Are they located near you or do you have to fly to check progress, quality, etc. Remember, proximity equals power - the farther they are from you, unless you hire a rep you trust - the less control you have over if and when the product is produced and delivered when you need it.
We had such a scenario where we had a product that was both unique and well received by the buyers. Although we didn't have stock, we took the gamble of ordering product and implementing a marketing initiative that was costly but we were assured by the sales rep that it would be more than worth it.
Two things happened, we did not communicate our product well enough to the reader (that's another story) and secondly we couldn't deliver product to the ones we did sell. The manufacturer was overseas and we were at the mercy of e-mail updates. Week after week orders dropped.
We pulled it out in the end, selling over a million dollars of product, but you'll save yourself a lifetime of grief by doing it right the first time.
With some good research, some footwork and by following some fundamental rules you can be on your way to producing the next big...well, that's for you to decide!
©2009 Jeffrey Abraham All Rights Reserved.
Jeffrey Abraham
JJ&A Studios
Have questions about product design, conveying your ideas to buyers/sales reps or unleashing your product on the world? Visit us at http://www.jjastudios.com or feel free to e-mail us at info@jjastudios.com.
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