Are you looking to design your own product?
The entire process can be pretty confusing. From creation to design to manufacturing, there is a lot that goes into making your dream product a reality.
Every great physical product starts with an idea. It’s all about getting your idea made into a prototype, which sets you apart from the pack of wantrapreneurs.
In this article, I’m going to give you 7 killer tips for designing your dream project from scratch, so that you can bring your idea to life!
Let’s dig in.
Come Up With The Product Idea
Coming up with a product idea is the most creative step in the entire process. You’re a world observer; you see problems and come up with solutions.
Most great ideas start with a problem. Perhaps you witness it, perhaps you experience it yourself, and you begin to ask: why doesn’t the product that solves this problem exist?
Product ideas can also come from looking at current and existing solutions to commonly held problems, and finding a way to improve upon the method that solves that problem.
For example, take the humble wallet. The problem is we need a place to store our credit cards, cash, and identification cards.
While the wallet is certainly a viable solution to the problem, a product like Ridge Wallet redefines the wallet as “a better way to carry cash and cards” by creating a sleek, durable alternative to the traditional billfold.
As an entrepreneur, you’re always seeking creative ways to cultivate newfound value in people’s lives. You’re an outside the box thinker with a willingness to push boundaries.
Get the Idea Out of Your Head (Design the Product)
So you’ve come up with a revolutionary idea, and it’s constantly churning around in your head.
The next step is to actually get the idea out of your head.
What do I mean by this?
When an idea is exclusively confined to your own imagination, you can only explain the product on a very surface level. It’s not going to become visceral and real to other people unless they can see it in some sort of tangible way.
The design stage puts your product in two dimensional form. The best way to do this is through a sketch.
Sketching your idea is a form of rapid prototyping, and gives you something to work with. Don’t overthink it; you don’t have to be an art professional. You’ll likely find yourself tossing out sketches and trying again—don’t be discouraged by this.
As you sketch out your idea, questions are going to come up. I highly recommend writing these questions down, as it will help you immensely through the brainstorming process and help you to understand your product better.
While a sketch will start on paper, you’re going to want to get a digital version of your product so that you can more easily share it with industry leaders.
A couple of great platforms I recommend for this are Sketch and Figma, where you can create, collaborate, and bring your idea to life.
Model the Product
Now that you’ve got a working sketch to build off of, it’s time to start modeling your product.
This doesn’t have to be a functional prototype. However, you should seek to have a tangible version of the product so that people can interact with it in some way.
As more individuals are able to interact with your product, more questions are going to come up. You’ll see the strengths and weaknesses of the model—and with this—you can update your model to better solve your targeted problem.
You’re not going to get it right on the first try. You might have to use different materials, or change the design, or change the size. This is normal—all great products change through the modeling stage!
The primary questions you should be answering during this phase are:
- Who is using this product?
- How are they interacting with the product?
- Where are they using it?
- What are they expecting from it?
Narrowing the Functionality (A Blueprint for your Product)
It’s time to bring engineers into the mix.
The engineering stage is all about rendering functionality to the end user.
This step is much more detail-oriented; you’re getting down to the nitty-gritty.
- Can the product do what you are promising?
- What are common problems similar manufacturers in the industry face?
- Creation of CAD Designs and workable blueprints
Once you have these questions answered and detailed designs in place, you can start to consult with manufacturers.
The manufacturer will be tasked with engineering the creation of your product in bulk and mass production.
Supply Chain Management (Manufacturing your Product)
When it comes to finding a manufacturer to create thousands of products, it’s all about finding the right people.
You’ll have to consider a multitude of factors, the most pressing being industry experience and affordability.
Depending on the complexity of your product, you might have multiple manufacturers working on different components, with an assembling manufacturer bringing it all together.
You are going to get a crystal clear sense of what it is going to cost to produce this end product.
This is where crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo come into play. This is my particular area of expertise, and I have a ton of great content out there that gives you crowdfunding tips and best practices.
These platforms can help you raise the money necessary to fulfill the minimum order quantity and get your product manufactured.
I have a lot of valuable experience in running crowdfunding campaigns, and I’d love to invite you to book a free coaching call with me if you’d like to talk further about this.
You can also check out my book The Kickstarter Launch Formula and my free crowdfunding course for a wealth of helpful information.
The reason crowdfunding platforms are so great is that you can actually gauge interest in your product before placing a massive minimum order quantity. You don’t want to order thousands of units if you don’t have any customers.
Getting the Product to the Customer (Order Fulfillment)
The next challenge will be storing the product you manufactured and getting it shipped out.
I’m paired with a great company called Fulfillrite that takes care of all of this.
You might be wondering: why would I give an order fulfillment company a piece of the pie when I can store the items in my garage and ship them out myself?
At first, this might be possible. But as your business scales, you are going to realize that fulfillment takes a ton of time.
You will likely be shipping internationally, storing large quantities of products, and dealing with different retailers and distributors.
Passing this task off to experts can save you a lot of time and stress, leaving you to focus on marketing and other vital components of your company.
Know Your Brain
Ultimately, it’s up to you what steps in this process you want to take on yourself, and what you want to outsource.
My brain, for example, is more in-tune with the marketing and sales sides of things. I don’t get as excited about the nitty-gritty engineering and data, but for other people, this is their favorite part of the process.
Recognizing your own interests, strengths, and weaknesses will put you way ahead as an entrepreneur.
Being honest with yourself will make it easier to get help where you need it, assemble a productive team, and streamline the production of your product.
Conclusion
Your idea for the next great product could change the world.
But producing a product from scratch takes a lot of work and planning.
Foremost, you have to take action.
Your product idea is only a dream if you don’t get it out of your head. It’s a leap of faith, but a necessary step for all great entrepreneurs.
Crowdfunding an awesome way to bring your product to life. You should check out my free crowdfunding course and Podcast for all the best tips and insider secrets as to how using platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo can go to work for your product.
Ready to get your product off the ground? Schedule a free coaching call with me for a consultation.
I hope these tips have been helpful. If you follow this guide, you’ll be more equipped to design your product from scratch and start solving problems for customers everywhere!
Have thoughts about this post? Leave a comment! I love hearing from you.
