Consider These 3 Things Before Selling Your First Product

Anyone can come up with a product idea, but that doesn’t guarantee it will be a success. On paper, any idea can seem fantastic. Then, when translated into the real world, it flops. For your startup to be a success, you have to ensure your products will sell well. So, here are a few things to consider before you launch into anything:

Can you meet the MOQ?

Selling a product isn’t as simple as getting your hands on something and distributing it. Many people are involved, including the manufacturers. Now, if you’re wondering, what does MOQ mean? It stands for the minimum order quantity, which is the least amount of units you can order from the manufacturer. This is important as it basically sets the bar for how many products you need to sell.

Say the MOQ is 500, can you realistically sell all of those products? If the demand isn’t high and you sell 100, you’ve got 400 wasted products in a stockroom. Do your research to see a genuine demand for your products to be sure you meet the minimum order. Ideally, you want to surpass it, but meeting it is the first step. 

How much does it cost to sell your product?

It’s easy for a newbie to look at businesses and assume that selling products is easy. However, it actually costs a fair bit of money to sell a product. Typically, you have the following costs to worry about:

• Manufacturing

• Marketing

• Cost of labor 

• Business overheads

• Delivery/shipping

All of these things add up to tell you the true cost of your products. The number one business mistake is selling a product based solely on how much it cost to build. This is extremely important, but you have many more costs to take into account. It’s a very tricky process, and you should hire an expert to help you work out the cost per unit. From here, you will understand how to price your products to get a profit. Again, this is tough, but that’s another discussion for a different article!

Who’s buying your product?

Or, to put this another way, who is your product aimed at? Funny enough, this links back to the first question on whether you can meet order quantities. You must understand your products' target demographic as this directly influences the sales potential and your marketing strategy. For example, marketing something to a teen demographic means you have awesome sales potential as the teenage market is full of potential buyers. But, if your product is aimed at a very niche market, it might sell, but you’ll struggle to see massive figures. Think about who your product is aimed at before you get into the business of marketing it or ordering any quantities. 

If all of this sounds complicated, that’s because it is. Hey, if running a business was easy, everyone would do it. Ask yourself these three questions before you launch a new product on the market. They should help you figure out if it is destined for greatness or not worth the risk.

How To Develop a Great Product for Launching a Startup

If you’ve always dreamed about working for yourself and owning your own company, it is easy to fall into the trap of latching onto the first business idea you think of. However, it is important to remember that not every idea is a good one. If you want your business to be successful, you must offer a good product or service. Here are five questions that can help you determine if your idea for a new product is good enough to launch a company.

Is the Product Useful?

Luxury products may be sellable for established corporations, but the chances of succeeding as a startup selling items that have no use are slim. The best products fill a need in the market and solve a problem. Take the tech company ecoATM for example. If you Google “What is ecoATM?” you’ll find a company that sets up kiosks where people can trade in their outdated electronic devices for cash. EcoATM recognizes that cluttered electronics is a problem for many people and developed an innovative way for the problem to be resolved. Make sure your business idea fits the same criteria.

Is the Product Affordable?

You want to get your manufacturing costs as low as possible so you can increase your profit, but it is important to remember than the price of your product needs to stay reasonable. People will not buy it if they are not satisfied with the quality they receive for the price.

Is There a Market for the Product?

As part of your marketing strategy, you need to identify your target audience before you even launch your company. If your target market is too narrow, it probably will not sustain your company. If you can’t properly narrow down your target market, you’ll end up spending too much on advertising with little to show for it. Look for a market that can be easily defined but has a specific need for your product. For example, if your company sells an innovative car seat, a target audience of mothers is too broad but if you target mothers with young toddlers, you have a sustainable market for your product.

Is the Product Consumable?

While customers want products that are high-quality, you won’t make much money if the items are designed to last a lifetime. Products that are made to last forever have a one-time price and even if customers purchase several of them, your company’s profits will plateau as it becomes more popular. Consumable products are typically more successful. Food, makeup, toy, and clothing products all have to be replaced eventually ad customers who enjoy the product are more likely to repurchase it from your business when the time comes for a replacement.

Can the Product Launch a Line of Items?

While a single product is often useful for launching a new company, you will likely need to add other items to your repertoire to see sustainable growth. Instead of incorporating a bunch of random items into your company’s catalog, make sure they are all connected by the same idea of your initial product. For example, if you sell skincare products, you can grow the company by adding the same products with different scents. If you own a home security company, expand the business by adding office and computer protection.

You can’t expect to launch a successful business with the first idea that comes to mind. Focus on developing a high-quality product that answers these five questions so you know your business idea is sustainable. If your new product checks all of these boxes, you can give your company a solid foundation for it to build upon.