Product Launch Hazzards – The Right Things in the Right Order with the Right Resources for Your Retail Success

Turning Your Product Idea Into A Product Development Plan With Lisa McCarthy Of Make My Idea Real

Thu, 28 Apr 2022 10:00:00 GMT

Often, one of the challenging things many creatives face is not finding product ideas but bringing them to life. How do you get things done, planned, and brought to reality? In this episode, Tracy Hazzard is with none other than the creator of Make My Idea Real, Lisa McCarthy. Lisa breaks down the steps in creating a product development plan, which includes zoning in on your target market and goals because there is no one-size-fits-all. She shares some guide questions and tools to help you understand the process not only for today but also for the future. As the saying goes, “hope is not a plan.” Let us take the reins of our ideas and start making them real! Create your plan today!

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What Women Want: Challenges Of Launching Female-Friendly Furniture With Dana Bakich

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 10:00:00 GMT

Contrary to what many believe, women care about the desks and the chairs that they buy. They want features that no one's ever thought of before. On today’s show, Dana Bakich joins Tracy Hazzard to discuss the challenges of launching female-friendly furniture. Dana is a nonprofit consultant and the Founder and CEO of herdesk, a desk made by and for women. At the end of the day, women are constantly on the hunt and looking for the right thing. When they find it, they will find money to pay for it because they've been looking for it. Be sure you’re able to deliver what they want.

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Designing With The End Mind & PLAE-Fulness Too with Ryan Ringholz and Jonathan Spier

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Starting and then having the capacity to scale a business in such an entrenched branded community can be very daunting. For Ryan Ringholz and Jonathan Spier, that is coming into the shoe industry establishing the first lifestyle brand to start with kids through their company, PLAE. In this interview, Ryan and Jonathan take us into their journey from when they first launched entirely online in 2013 to evolving with their wildly successful approach to adults in 2017. At the heart of their brand is the word “play” where they recognize freedom of thinking like a kid. They’re taking this unique concept into their model and processes, especially with the new world of digital engagement. Tune in to catch their scaling advice that is essential no matter what industry you are in.

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Product Inventors Rights with Natasha and Fred Ruckel

Tue, 20 Aug 2019 10:00:00 GMT

In this day and age, the quest to be different and stand out has become so competitive that it becomes tempting to steal someone’s work, ideas, or concepts. Natasha and Fred Ruckel of the Randy Cooper Foundation joins us today to talk about protecting your products from infringement. Embodying Randy Cooper’s passion and desire to stand up for the product inventor’s rights, Natasha and Fred help protect, educate, and empower inventors. As they unfold the ways infringers play in the field and give us advice on how we can combat them, they also go deeper into the rules of copyright protection, the right way to build and launch your brand, and the proper ways to protect your product. As ideas are becoming more creative, so are the ways people steal, so equip yourself with the right education to protect your creative output.

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Asian Sourcing Tips with Rhod Needham

Wed, 03 Jul 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Broadening your lines and reaching out to source products beyond Amazon can sometimes be daunting for many entrepreneurs out there. After all, it is a whole new territory that needs to be tread carefully. If this new territory for you is in Asia, then you are going to be learning a lot from this episode. Rhod Needham, a product sourcing expert and the Co-Founder of Market Source Asia, pours in his knowledge about sourcing for products in this region, giving some great Asian sourcing tips. They specialize in launching products and collections for both global retailers and start-ups, and Rhod takes us into the systems they have in place and walks us through the development process – from getting ideas into products, down to QC and even selling them. Don’t miss out on this episode as Rhod delivers some great advice about designing, testing products, and broadening your reach.

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As Stolen On TV with Paula Brillson Phillips

Tue, 11 Jun 2019 10:00:00 GMT

There are some inventors who are not so lucky when it comes to owning their products and gaining the necessary income and praise because of manipulators and false advertisers. Paula Brillson Phillips, a managing partner of Digital Law Group, has built her career advising start-up companies and mentoring hundreds of individual inventors worldwide to navigate the complex process of getting a business or product off the ground as well as helping them make effective decisions to protect their intellectual property, meet their business goals, and leverage the value of what they have already created. Her book, As Stolen On TV, arms the inventor with useful information on how to avoid being swindled in the invention industry.

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From Shark Tank To The Kids Table: Food Product Start-Up Lessons with Joanna Parker

Tue, 04 Jun 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Joanna Parker, the co-founder of Yumble, explains how she was inspired to open her own company as a mom. Yumble has three pillars which are all centered towards providing healthy food for children. Joanna says children’s diet and appetite greatly vary, and that is why she is customizing the foods she offers, providing options for both picky and adventurous eaters. She narrates how it is working with his husband side by side while taking care of their kids, sharing the struggles they had while their business was growing and how they overcame it. For those who want to do a food startup, this is an episode you shouldn’t miss.

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Nui Foods with Victor Macias and Kristoffer Quiaoit

Thu, 16 May 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Everybody wants a sweet life, but when it comes to food, too much can become an addiction. Victor Macias and Kristoffer Quiaoit, founders of Nui Foods, are on a mission to annihilate sugar addiction by creating products that are both indulgent and healthy. Victor and Kristoffer take us into their journey, starting from having no baking background to producing a product that brought them to Shark Tank. As rookie entrepreneurs, Victor and Kristoffer know the struggle of starting, and they share to us the ways they overcame those challenges.

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Product Pitch Advice From A Shark with Kevin Harrington

Fri, 10 May 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Most products in the consumer market, whether it’s mass market or eCommerce, has a seven out of ten failure rate. However, when you have access to good data, you are able to pitch products in a way that people want to buy it and elevate that level of success. Kevin Harrington says that nowadays with the internet, we can target our offerings to people in certain niches, categories, or demographics such as age or zip code. Kevin is an original shark from the hit TV show Shark Tank and a successful entrepreneur for more than forty years. He invented the infomercial and helped make “But wait, there’s more!” part of our cultural history. In this interview, discover Kevin’s “tease, please, and seize” system for a good product pitch and learn more about direct response marketing, proof of concept, crowdfunding, and more.

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The Rockefeller Strategy: Corporate Asset Protection

Fri, 29 Mar 2019 10:00:00 GMT

In today’s world, the biggest mistake you can make is to not look at yourself as a business. Whatever product you have is not just an invention or a brand. It’s a business and you need to be getting the full benefit and the full protection of that. In this episode, Aaron Young talks about corporate asset protection and the Rockefeller Strategy. Aaron is the CEO of Laughlin Associates. He is a consummate entrepreneur as he’s been an entrepreneur pretty much his whole life. Too many inventors or sellers think they’re too small and don’t really need a corporation or an LLC, but having someone like Laughlin who can advise on what’s the right thing for you is vital. If you’re earning income or making money on your products, find out what corporate formation you need, whether it’s LLC, S Corp or a C Corp, to get some advice and get that going.

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South American Sourcing Of Products with Tim Jordan

Fri, 15 Mar 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Sourcing services are usually accessible only to huge conglomerates and big brands, but not to smaller brands. Tim Jordan of Hickory Flats, however, offers alternative sourcing ideas and services to the small guys out there. He founded the Private Label Legion, a community of like-minded entrepreneurs dedicated to great learning and group collaboration. He’s also built a seven-figure business. Tim shares how he found eCommerce and Amazon selling by accident and changed the game, and how it led him to look for alternative resources.

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Branding Through Product Packaging with Apurva Batra

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 10:00:00 GMT

Packaging is what breaks or makes a product. As entrepreneurs, we want our customers to be satisfied right from the get-go by making our mark on their impressions right from the packaging alone. Apurva Batra from FlexiblePouches imparts his expertise on that as he talks about branding through product packaging and the competitive business happening on the retail shelves. He also takes us on a different journey with his personal business experience.

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Amazon Seller Legal Issues with CJ Rosenbaum

Fri, 08 Feb 2019 10:00:00 GMT

As the world moves into the digital space, it has become very important for us to keep ourselves secure, most especially for those Amazon sellers whose products are sold virtually. CJ Rosenbaum of Amazon Sellers Lawyer takes us into some Amazon seller legal issues, talking about what is going on with this platform and how you can keep yourself, your IP, and your products secure and safe. He talks about digital rights management, the listing hacking process, and establishing your brand – from trademarks to copyrights and patents. CJ also touched on starting from Kickstarter and Indiegogo, and how you can protect yourself from falling victim to the risks.

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Celebrity Product Placement Process That Actually Works with Sarah Shaw

Fri, 01 Feb 2019 10:00:00 GMT

The marketplace has indeed evolved, but one thing that remains the same is the influence. We all know the power of having celebrities to be your product endorser due to their wide influence in the market. This is what led Sarah Shaw to craft this trend of endorsement and marketing into a new mold. Sarah talks about the Celebrity Product Placement Process which actually works for more and more entrepreneurs. Discover how you can scale your business by getting celebrity access for your products. You may get these influencers to use your product, be photographed with it, and get them to talk about it. You’ll never know when one of these famous faces can eventually make a huge difference in your bank account.

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Planning And Managing Product Engineering with Orlin Wetzker

Fri, 25 Jan 2019 10:00:00 GMT

It takes an amount of technology and engineering to pull together all the power-buttoned gadgets that we know and love. When most companies in the US throw over the fence to a factory in Asia the ideas they come up with for development, it’s great to have Orlin Wetzker’s company develop and engineer all these things in the US. One of the main projects that Orlin talks about is the moisture sensor which brings high technology to farming. Given the different technology life cycle of the kind of developing and product engineering that he’s doing, Orlin is no exemption when it comes to challenges. He shares some techniques on how to minimize these challenges as he takes us to his journey of pursuing his craft.

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Scaling Successfully On Amazon with Jason Magee

Wed, 23 Jan 2019 10:00:00 GMT

How do you increase your sales? Have you ever thought that your brand can be at par with big players in the business? There is no difference between small brands or large brands. The key is to understand the actual metrics of your business. The goal is to be profitable. What’s your gross profit as a company? How do you make sure that the product market fit is right? Jason Magee, Director of Seller Partnerships at Teikametrics, is obsessed with helping entrepreneurs scale successfully on Amazon. Jason talks about building an ecosystem of best-in-class partners to help people as well as to bring people in.

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Leveraging E-Commerce Chatbots For Product Launching with Michelle Barnum Smith

Fri, 18 Jan 2019 10:00:00 GMT

It costs to play today. Product launching is no exemption. It’s not a fast return on investment as much as you want it to. Marketing veteran Michelle Barnum Smith joins Product Launch Hazzards to discuss how you can leverage ecommerce chatbots as a marketing tool. She quickly became an expert in the niche once she realized how powerful Facebook Messenger bots can be. Michelle recounts how she got started in product launching and marketing, and talks about the importance of list building and leveraging e-commerce chatbots to launch your products and create engagements.

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Influencing Multiple Unit Purchases With The Right Amazon Promotions with Jenna Lieber

Tue, 15 Jan 2019 10:00:00 GMT

There are so many products sold on Amazon, yet if you take a look at them, the majority tends to hold out only one piece of the product. They tend to overlook the value of multiple unit purchases. Jenna Liebner of Turnkey Product Management has seen time and time again how sellers on Amazon are not trying to influence how people purchase multiple units. Jenna goes over a number of Amazon Promotions that will help you to try to get people to buy more than one product from you in a single transaction. Not only will this influence potential customers but your sales as well. Jenna dives deep on the topic and touches on promo codes and coupon clippings, Bogo and cross selling, and social media promos.

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Grow Your Product Sales Into The UK & EU Plus eCommerce Brexit Risks with Karen Codd

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Amazon UK and EU market are definitely the potential recourse for those who want to expand. If you are aiming to grow your product sales into the Amazon UK and EU market, then you have to learn what they need. Amazon selling strategist Karen Codd answers some questions that bugs most Amazon sellers. Karen talks about the product changes you need to make in order for them to perform well in the UK and Europe, and gives tips on knowing when you are ready to move your brand. Getting deep into some Brexit risks, Karen lays down the effects it has on selling into the UK, what it looks like for the Amazon market, how it happens, and who pays what.

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Investing Time Or Money In Market-Making Or Disruptive Innovation

Wed, 12 Dec 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Tracy gives an insight into one of the talks she gave at a City Summit event in Salt Lake City. With innovation becoming the buzzword for this day and age, we can’t help but get too caught up in just investing on what seems catchy. It’s time to actually think it over and start to think carefully about how you are going to invest in innovation, whether you are investing your time or investing your money. Tracy looks at the difference between disruptive and market-making innovation. She gets down to answer whether or not you’re in a disruptive or market-making venture yourself.

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Formulating Beauty Products with Nadia Fleury

Fri, 07 Dec 2018 10:00:00 GMT

There are so many beauty influencers today that we can’t help but think how easy it must be to create your own beauty products. Nadia Fleury proves otherwise. She is a French-Canadian entrepreneur, life strategist, and chemist who founded the skincare line, Avesence. Nadia talks about the bumpy path of developing and formulating a beauty product while letting us in on some beauty secrets. She breaks down our preconceived notions as she discusses the truth behind “natural” and why pH is bad. She also gives some great advice to aspiring entrepreneurs about the importance of having an inventory, carrying a brand, and why you should not compete on just the product benefit.

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Pitching Product Gift Guides And Product Review Publicity with Dave Farrow

Fri, 30 Nov 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Getting the word out about your amazing product is getting harder and harder. You’re tasked with the burden of presenting it in the best light. However, one of the biggest mistakes is trying to do a product pitch on your own. Unless you’re sophisticated and have the experience, you can almost destroy your brand if you don’t do it right. Dave Farrow of Farrow Communications talks about the different kinds of product publicity and how to do gift guides and get product reviews. Dave has been doing this for a long time, and he’s shifted his business multiple times to keep up with how things work. He shares why product publicity is so important but yet so hard at the same time.

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Four Amazon Strategy Pointers For Quarter Four with Jenna Lieber

Fri, 23 Nov 2018 10:00:00 GMT

The holidays is just at the corner; this means more people shopping on Amazon and more people coming at you. While it may seem that the surge of potential buyers will mean more for your business, it is not always the case—most especially if you have not properly optimized your Amazon strategy. Fortunately, Jenna Lieber of Turnkey Product Management has the answers for you! She gives out some big pointers that not only apply for quarter four, but also to your business in general. She talks about four different topics and breaks every single one of them just for you: Enhanced Brand Content (EBC) updates, video on the listing, giveaways, and pixeling.

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Pitch Product Value Lessons Learned from The Pitch Queen Michelle Weinstein

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We dive so often into the product world and we get all caught up in our features and functions that we forget about pitching our value. After years of sitting in a cubicle, Pitch Queen Michelle Weinstein realized it wasn’t the life she envisioned for herself. Michelle went from being a real estate analyst to accounting to products, and learned about contracts, legalities, product manufacturing, food manufacturing, lawsuits, investment money, pitching to top investors in the country, and more. People buy people. If you’re pitching whatever you’re doing, they’re buying you because you’re solving this massive problem or inspiring a lot of people. Michelle recounts her trials and tribulations starting products, and shares some of the success factors that got her to where she is right now.

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Focus On Product Impact And The Sales Revenue Flows with Wendy Lipton-Dibner

Tue, 13 Nov 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Impact is the measurable difference that we make in people’s lives as the direct result of contact with us, our teams, our message, our marketing, our products, and our services. When we put something into the world, the goal is ultimately making a difference for people, and that difference will be measurable. Impact strategy is how do we make that happen? How do we create the product? How do we innovate the product? How do we design a product not just for market fit but for market impact big time? Impact strategy queen Wendy Lipton-Dibner dives into the subject of product impact and impact strategies that get you the most opportunity for success.

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Global Sourcing Using A Retail Buy Plan with Tracy Hazzard and Brenda Crimi

Mon, 15 Oct 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Part of growing your business is expanding. One of the routes you take with that is global sourcing, specifically in one of the booming markets in the world, China. However, doing it for the first time can be quite challenging and intimidating. With the help of Brenda Crimi of AMZ Alliance, Tracy guides you into the world of product sourcing in China for the first time using a retail buy plan. They talk about going to the Global Sources Summit and how to make the necessary preparations for it. Sourcing is not about being impulsive, that is why you need to have a buy plan in order to keep your head above and have a manageable inventory. They go over the financial aspect as well as the time of the year to buy. Learn some great tips on how to go over product sourcing abroad while keeping in mind where you want to go with your business.

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Meet Flexible Packaging Expert Apurva Batra

Fri, 21 Sep 2018 10:00:00 GMT

One of the important aspects that small companies tend to overlook during the product launch is packaging. In fact, it shouldn’t be the case since this could serve as the starting point of entry for your products to the market. The packaging is the first interaction of consumer to your product. That is why when you do it, you have to do it right. Flexible packaging expert, Apurva Batra, goes in depth on how to effectively package your products. He discusses the many material choices and considerations in order to formulate the right package. Concentrating on flexible packaging, which is the use of barrier films, he talks about the technology and benefits it offers to the shelf life and more. Ultimately, by packaging your products well you will be able to rise to the competition.

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Meet Crowdfunding Launch Expert Will Ford

Thu, 20 Sep 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Many startups find it challenging to launch their products successfully. They can’t seem to crack the market and have the right support. Will Ford, serial entrepreneur of LaunchBoom.com and an expert on Kickstarter, Indiegogo, and startup funding and crowdfunding, talks about how he and his team successfully launched million-dollar crowdfunding campaigns. He discusses what they do at Launch Boom and what processes they make to ensure success. Covering the heart of the company, which is digital marketing, he shares his insights on getting the right content across to the right demographics. Ultimately, he shows how he created this effective system that has allowed them to outperform thousands of live campaigns.

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Meet Product Advertising Expert Ian Smith

Fri, 14 Sep 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Relationship building should be a priority for business owners. It does not only reach customers, but also keeps them with you. Ian Smith of Evolve Media talks about that in relation to marketing and advertising. He pushes forward the importance of having the right and consistent message through content while providing you tools to grow—from ManyChat to Facebook messenger. Touching also on reviews and social proof as well as the importance of follow-ups and giving your customers a way out, he urges business owners to build that customer relationship.

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Amazon Brand Registry And Trademark Protection with Jason Webb

Wed, 05 Sep 2018 10:00:00 GMT

One of the big issues facing people who are doing commerce online is that Amazon has become a huge dominating force in the market. A lot of sellers don’t like Amazon. It is difficult to work with but buyers love Amazon, and that’s one of the reasons why sellers aggregate towards Amazon. It’s often one of the first places to look if they want to go buy something. If you want to be part of that market, you need to be part of what Amazon is doing. Amazon has been aggressive and successful at doing the things that buyers want, and that often makes things difficult for sellers. One of the things is it’s made it difficult for sellers to stop infringement when it’s happening. This also happens with Alibaba and eBay or any online aggregate of retailers. The Amazon Brand Registry program is a way to automate that and make that easier, and here to talk about is patent and trademark expert Jason Webb.

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Amazon Competitive Analysis with Jenna Lieber

Tue, 04 Sep 2018 10:00:00 GMT

It’s tough when you first get on Amazon. You don’t know where to start, what keywords to use, or what images to put. Jenna Lieber of Turnkey Product Management suggests doing an Amazon competitive analysis so you can hone in on what you need to start with. Jenna thinks everyone needs to. If you’re already on Amazon, she recommends doing this once a quarter to see if your competitors have changed or if there’s anything new going on that maybe you’re not doing yet. It’s very simple and valuable for everyone to do it. Jenna goes through six steps in terms of creating a competitive analysis.

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Global Sourcing Tradeshows with Meghla Bhardwaj

Fri, 31 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Growing your brand means having to step up your game by going out there and source. A great venue to kick start that process is through tradeshows and fairs. However, there is a difference between the two, which most people do not know. Fortunately, Meghla Bhardwaj of Global Sourcing can guide you through that. She talks about the different types of tradeshows and fairs happening around the world, telling which is which, what’s the best one for you, and what to expect. She also provides some great insights as well as some tips on how to go around these events and what you need to prepare.

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Meet Big Branding Expert Gerry Foster

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Creating a brand is more than just pasting an image or a logo for your business. It is about creating a perception. It’s about telling people what you are instead of them telling you who you are. Brand is your business’ reputation and it is the promise you give to your consumers. Only by realizing this will you be able to create a perfect and memorable brand. Branding expert Gerry Foster teaches the ways you can harness and find the brand that truly speaks for you. As someone who has worked for major companies, he is the person whom you can count on to lift up your small business amidst the many competitions. Standing out has become harder than ever so the need to create a big business brand that will make you visible is even more necessary.

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Best Consumer Market Research Tools – Field Agent with Rick West

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

When you’re selling a product or service, you need to be able to know people’s feedback in order to improve. But how? Through research, of course. Tracy, together with Laura Hazzard, brings Rick West of Field Agent to talk about the best consumer market research tools.. With years of credible experience, Rick shares his work of promoting real time, location-based mobile research for companies who would like to get more user feedback. Offering both quantitative and qualitative data, they work great for those who are still figuring things out. Going down into mobile technology and more, Rick shows the true importance of market research for the future of your product and over-all business development.

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Meet David Chitayat of Genimex

Thu, 23 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Ensuring the product quality is a must for a business. Otherwise, it just won’t work and would bring the business down. You need to properly go through the process to secure the value. There is no shortcut even if time is not on your hands. David Chitayat, one of the three group CEOs of Genimex, chats about the processes from planning to getting your products on the shelf to the importance of category expertise and the relationship between quality and price. He goes deep about the crucial aspects of production that some business owners fail to do while giving us some lessons along the way on why product testing is necessary before launching.

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5 Big Amazon Mistakes Brands Make with Jenna Lieber

Tue, 21 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

The most successful brands continually look for ways to increase conversions and improve customer satisfaction. Established brands usually have their systems in place, but when you’re constantly dealing with the day-to-day operations of your business, it’s difficult to see the glitches in your processes or strategies, and that could affect you in terms of competition or changing markets. This is the reason why we often see established brands making common mistakes that can hurt their bottom line. Jenna Lieber from Turnkey Product Management came up with the five big Amazon mistakes brands make to help you avoid these oversights.

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Guiding Brand Growth With An Executive Level Customer Advisory Board with Betsy Westhafer

Fri, 17 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

In order to have sustained and continued innovation, have brand development, and growing your brand to be bigger, you’ve got to be aligned with what your customers think and what they want, and you’ve got to provide that continued service. If you can’t have that conversation with them and you don’t have a system for having that conversation, then you’re really not on a path for the right type of big brand growth that you’re looking for. Betsy Westhafer, entrepreneur and bestselling author of ProphetAbility, developed a system called Executive Level Customer Advisory Boards that help entrepreneurs get out in front of their customers by listening to them so that when their customers get there, they’re already there and they’re ready. It is also an opportunity to network with their peers and to interact with the leadership team of their key suppliers or partners.

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Brand Funding And Licensing Timing Issues with David Lieberstein

Thu, 16 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

As inventors, when we have great ideas, we like to find the perfect manufacturer to license our product and sit back and make tons of money. Dream product guru David Lieberstein is an expert in brand licensing and got to experience the pros, the cons, and the pitfalls of all that’s entailed in doing so. David had his own companies for a number of years in the houseware and gift industry. The last company he had for 25 years was called Wine Things Unlimited where he worked with the artists for designs but also did a lot of licensing for the designs to put on their three-dimensional sculptures. Five years ago, he became a consultant to work with inventors to help them launch their own companies and take the next steps to find the right manufacturer to license their products. David talks about what to focus in on and what needs to be done next for product design, sourcing, working with the factory, and getting all the details and stuff for business and marketing.

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Top 5 Project Management Strategies To Innovate And Mitigate Risk with Loren West

Wed, 15 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Knowing the strategies to innovate and mitigate risk is essential for every company, especially those that are product-based. It’s key for a company to stay on top of how are you going to innovate, whether that will be through some new technology in your product, or bringing a new product being first to market, or expanding as a company and bringing more innovation to your process flow. Alongside innovation, the other element is to mitigate risks, whether that be a financial liability as you launch a new product, or operational risks as you move forward launching a new brand. Loren West of CPG Beauty and Beyond, an LA-based consulting agency, says there are always things that companies encounter typically. You should always try to take in mind to recap what risks you have and how to mitigate those from the start. She shares the top five project management strategies to innovate and mitigate risk on your projects.

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Is Your Brand Ready To Be A Big Box Retail Product? with Tim Bush

Wed, 15 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Is your brand ready to be a big box retail product? Tim Bush of TLB Consulting says you should make sure that you are ready because if you hit up a buyer and things don’t go well until that buyer swaps out and changes positions, you are going to have a tough time going back to that buyer. That’s where you’re at it unless something majorly changes. Tim shares some things you should be looking at when you’re getting your product ready for retail such as pricing, packaging, sales, the uniques, your customers, your target retailers, and marketing plan to push your product forward. He goes in-depth each one of these seven key items to give a better understanding of their significance in getting your product ready for big box retail.

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Planning Inbound Freight Logistics And Order Fulfillment with Paul D’Souza

Fri, 10 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Logistics and order fulfillment as part of the initial process you make before launching is vital to to customer satisfaction. Paul D’Souza of Source Select breaks down why it should be on the top of your list in order to offer the complete customer experience and later on reaping the benefits from it. Paul shows how he helped many clients with his expertise on handling and fulfilling this particular need, He gives some great advice and tips on how to be more efficient with your order fulfillment, from picking your market and partner to keeping your product safe. He rounds up his discussion by giving the key points when its comes to dealing with global fulfillment, reinstating how necessary the proper order fulfillment is to expanding your business.

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US Product Classifications For Tariffs And Import with Abby Duffield

Thu, 09 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

So much goes into getting your products classified in the US that many still find problems with the entire process. Abby Duffield of Shapiro breaks down all the necessary things you need to know about US product classifications for tariffs and import. She gets down into the details of the information you need to present about the products and gives some instructions that will help you identify what you have to provide, like how to know the country of origin, among others. Abby also presents real-life examples that show what goes under the entire process of having your product classified. Being conscious about all these, you’ll find the true value of products.

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Asia Product Sourcing Pitfalls

Wed, 08 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Sourcing products internationally need some expertise in order to successfully crack into the global market and avoid some pitfalls. Equipped with that expertise, Tom shares his twenty years of experience product sourcing in Asia. He offers some ways on how to avoid those and ensure overall quality as he lays down the problems most people encounter, Learn more about deceiving samples, communicating with the factory, quoting products, and the manufacturing process and inspection as Tom goes into all of them one by one and gives some great insights that will help you source and receive the right product.

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Amazon Review Policy – Don’t Get Shut Down! with Brenda Crimi

Tue, 07 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Amazon reviews are a big part when it comes to selling your products on that platform. Yet many people still find themselves falling under some wrong ideas about how to go about it. It is now time to iron those misconceptions out and go deeper into the nature of Amazon reviews. Brenda Crimi from AMZ Alliance tells the truth about how reviews affect your ranking and conversion of sales as well as the policies that surround them. She also speaks about how to and how not to solicit for reviews, how to tell which reviews are which, and how to protect yourself from reviewer abuse.

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Successful Product Marketing For Sharks with Seth Greene

Fri, 03 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

The only two things that matter in your business is if you’re selling product, you need the right people to see your product, and then you need them to actually buy it. Hopefully, if it’s consumable, they’ll buy more than once. Marketing magician Seth Greene of the Sharkpreneur podcast says they encompass successful product marketing in the traffic and conversion departments. Whether traffic and conversion is taking place online via a marketing funnel that takes people through a series of steps designed to get them to punch in their credit card, or whether it’s taking them to a physical bricks and mortar outlet to punch in a credit card, however they end up consuming that purchase, that runs the gamut of what they do in terms of taking a company and driving their sales as high as they want them to go.

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Provisional Patent Application Guidelines with Jason Webb

Thu, 02 Aug 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Provisional patent applications are a relatively new type of application that has only been around for twenty years or so. It wasn’t always possible to do a provisional patent application. What it was called back then was utility patent where it took months to get these filings in because there are so many formality requirements and so many things that you can’t change once it’s filed. However, we need them filed quickly because priority date is important, so what did they do? What they decided to do was to allow a temporary application with fewer requirements, fewer standards, and it’s a lot less formal. They decided to call it a provisional patent application since it wouldn’t be examined and all the examination requirements that you should have don’t have to be there. Patent and trademark expert Jason Webb deep dives into provisional patent, its application guidelines, and what differentiates it from the non-provisional or standard patent.

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The Engineering Design For Manufacturing Viewpoint with Dennis Shaver and David Recker

Tue, 31 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

You can take different features from different concepts and combine them into a more cohesive design. The next step is to take all those different ideas and refine the design. Design refinement is where you start to utilize computer aided design tools to start building the product. It’s a terrific tool as a way to visualize the part with all the features that it needs to be able to be manufactured. The CAD file could go directly to a 3D printed part or a machine part. Engineer David Recker says it’s important to have somebody who is in tune with all the different types of manufacturing processes. Work with somebody who’s got experience in that area because it can have a great impact with the choice of process or choice of materials. Dennis Shaver from Products On Demand says you have to make sure that the person doing the work for you has design for manufacturability experience or DFM.

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Missteps In The Early Market Research Process with Laura Hazzard

Mon, 30 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you don’t understand who’s buying your product, how can you make a product for them? That’s what research is in a nutshell, but secondary research is understanding what exists out there. Secondary research is just information in the marketplace that’s already out there. Some of the biggest retailers and brands out there are spending millions of dollars a year on research and secondary research. Market research expert Laura Hazzard recommends doing secondary research at all phases of your product launching because research affects the features and the usability of your product, the colors, the styles, the packaging, and also the marketing. But how you talk and what you say in your advertisements, you can learn in secondary research. Laura talks about some of the huge missteps that she’s seeing a lot of retailers do.

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Get Your Brand Covered with Joe Tarnowski

Sat, 28 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

There are a couple of things that are common with any editor in the industry. They’re very overworked and have a ton of work that they do across a lot of different things. They manage the overall editorial direction, they plan out all of the stories, they usually have multiple news stories that they have to post online every day, they’re all involved in social media, plus they travel a lot. They visit retailers, they visit trade shows, and they do a lot of speaking engagements and webcasts. At the same time, they are also getting bombarded with press releases, calls, and pitches by suppliers and, in some cases, retailers. The supplier is always pitching to them to try and get into the magazines. How does an editor-in-chief or an editor in general decide what is going to go into the magazine or on the website and what’s not going to go? Joe Tarnowski of ECRM and RangeMe takes you through an editor’s perspective of what they’re looking for and how to best get your brand covered in their magazines online or in their social media.

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Product Launch Timing is Everything

Fri, 27 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Time creeps up on you fast. If you’re thinking about launching a new product, you’ve got to think about when you want to be on the market and work it all the way back. Product launch timing is often an overlooked issue, especially with people that are new to product launching. It’s probably the most significant and critical factor to success. It can sneak up on you because it happens in different ways for different people. It’s not the same for everybody, but it is super critical. It’s multi-level because it’s not just the timing of the stages that you do, it’s also the time when you decide you’re going to go to market, the timing of the speed to market, and the timing of doing each of the stages. Discover how you can get it accomplished and have your product launch timing flow quickly and smoothly without a lot of time creep in it.

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Strategies to Grow Amazon Sales Fast with Jeff Lieber and Jenna Lieber

Thu, 26 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

How do you make your Amazon listings standout amid the tough competition? Jeff and Jenna Lieber are sharing some of their proven Amazon sales strategies that they use for their clients at Turnkey Productions– from Amazon promos like giveaways, coupon clippings, tiered promos and more, Jeff and Jenna will give you product launchers some insight on how you can best utilize them to boost your sales and grow your brand as fast as possible on the world’s biggest e-commerce platform.

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Shipping Incoterms And Transit Times with Abby Duffield

Wed, 25 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

The biggest thing to know about transit time is the different pieces in the entire timeline chain that we’re looking at. Abby Duffield of Shapiro, a customs brokers and freight forwarder company, says sometimes when you’re looking at a quote, more often than not, when it hits the transit time, it’s talking about the port to port transit time. If you’re looking at a transit time for the sea and air shipment, that transit time is going to be from one port to the other. It might say two to three days. That doesn’t mean that your entire shipment is going to take two to three days, it’s going to take longer than that. You want to make sure that you’re planning out fully what the entire scope of this time is going to bring. Learn more about Incoterms and transit times as Abby breaks it down a little bit more.

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A to Z of a Cosmetic Product Launch with Loren West

Tue, 24 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

CPG Beauty and Beyond founder Loren West takes a deep dive into specific processes and stages involved in successfully launching cosmetic products, which could also very well apply to many other different categories. Whether you are an entrepreneur starting out with your own beauty brand, dabbling in producing cosmetics, planning a cosmetic product launch or are working on a totally different product category, you will definitely have something to learn from Loren’s rich industry experience. As she connects one beauty product launch process to another, she will show you how all of its moving parts, from teams working on product development, market research, sales and marketing, logistics and more could work in harmony to help you achieve your business goals.

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Amazon Wants to Buy Your Product Directly – Is That a Good Thing?

Mon, 23 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you are already an Amazon seller, or maybe an entrepreneur looking for opportunities to grow your brand who is considering to sell your products on the world’s leading e-Commerce platform, you might have heard of the terms “seller central,” and “vendor central.” Being on the seller central side in Amazon means you own the product and have complete control of the sales process of your products, from listing to marketing and promotions– while being on the vendor central side means Amazon has bought your product. While it seems like a very handsome prospect, being a vendor central brand means there will be some restrictions with regard to your products’ sales cycle process flow. Brenda Crimi discusses the pros and cons of being a seller central brand versus being a vendor central brand on Amazon, so you can make an informed decision on how to manage your sales on the e-commerce giant’s platform.

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Seasonal Amazon Strategies with Brenda Crimi & Tracy Hazzard

Sat, 21 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

It’s Christmas in July, especially for your product launchers and entrepreneurs as you prepare and finalize your holidays sales plan. July is usually the deadline for getting your holiday retail planning done in retail, but the bigger your business is, the more ahead of the game you should be so you will not miss sales opportunities. Thinking about Christmas as a buyer versus being a seller is way different mindset– sellers should plan according to researched trends, designs, and materials forecast months ahead, making purchase orders in huge volumes way in advance to supply the demand. Brenda Crimi gives advice on how you can effectively employ a holiday sales and logistics strategy to prepare for the busiest season in retail, especially if you are an online seller on the leading e-commerce platform Amazon.

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Holiday Design Trends with Tracy Hazzard

Fri, 20 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Why do design trends matter? Design trends matter because we have all kinds of decisions that have to be made. When we’re investing in inventory or when we’re making these decisions so far in advance, it helps for us to understand what’s going on in the generalized marketplace. It helps for us to understand what might be going on and how design is shifting. What’s going on with those design trends? When we look at them, we can make some more micro decisions about our products and where we’re going to take them. Get an idea on what to do for the holiday season as Tracy talks about coolest holiday design trends you can try.

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Seasonal Inventory Planning for Retail with Timothy Bush and Tracy Hazzard

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you want to head into mass market retail, there are a whole lot of things you’ve got to think about. Timothy Bush joins Tracy as they give you some prep about retail. Timothy Bush is the resident Product Launch Hazzards expert in all things on the shelf of retail. Tim says one of the hardest things about retail in general is you’re never in the month you’re in. You’re never thinking about talking and dealing with and wondering about the month that you’re in. In fact, people that are just entering into Big Box retail, they don’t think in those terms. They think if the buyer says yes right now, that means you need to be shipping product now and it’s all going to happen now, but it’s not. Tracy and Tim talk about seasonal inventory planning and strategies and all the things that you need to know about retail.

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Holiday Color Trends 2018

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

There is a concerted color trend every holiday season. Color forecasting is the science and math of choosing colors for the next season. You have to do research on this field for your product development, because we have said before, color is a big factor for consumers when making purchase decisions, especially during the fourth quarter holidays, from Thanksgiving, to Christmas, to New Year’s. It is indeed the most wonderful time of the year for retail. We are sharing our holiday 2018 color trend report with you, just in time for making purchase order decisions, scaling up your product inventory, and producing your marketing collateral as you gear up for this year’s holiday season.

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Getting into Big Box Retail Faster

Tue, 17 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you have a product, or are thinking of going into retail, your number one concern might probably be the length of time it takes to get your product to sell. At the end of the discussion, our resident Office Hours Expert Timothy Bush answers that number one question product launchers ask. He will not give you false hopes, but instead enlighten you with his full transparency on what it truly takes to get your products into big box retail. He dives into core sales and marketing information to consider and prepare for, which will mean the difference between product launch success and failure. Get in touch with Tim by sending your questions about product retail sales.

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Is Your Idea Patentable? with Jason Webb

Mon, 16 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Is your idea patentable? How can you tell whether something is patentable or not? Intellectual property attorney Jason Webb says one of the key pieces is you want to look at if something is appropriate for a patent or maybe appropriate to be protected in some way. For example, your branding, the name of your company, or the ends of your products are all protected under trademark. The books that you write, the art that you create, the songs or the videos that you put together, that’s all copyright things that you can keep a secret. They’re valuable because they are trade secrets. Jason teaches how to make a choice between protecting something with trade secret protection or patent protection.

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Research & Design Budget Guidelines

Sun, 15 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

It takes a lot of time to get from planning, to sampling, to launching, to marketing. There are so many aspects to take care of in the product launch process, and it takes doing it in the right order to ensure success. Our goal here at Product Launch Hazzards is to make sure that everything you spend money and effort on as you make and market your product ends up as an asset, an not a liability. We will give you pointers on how you can make a feasible and sustainable research and design budget plan including how to incorporate intellectual property costs into it, especially when you are a startup developing a new product.

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Market Research Timeline: What Research to Do and When

Fri, 13 Jul 2018 10:00:00 GMT

In general, most, if not all of you here right now are at different stages of product development. Some of you might be drafting your ideas, some of you might be on the invention phase, some of you might be in prototyping phase. Maybe you already have a new product out in the market, or maybe you are looking to expand your SKUs and your brand as a whole. Succeeding at every stage and knowing for sure if someone wants to buy your product requires a great deal of market research, which comes in many different forms, including doing a quantitative survey, focus group discussions, and lots of others. Laura Hazzard guides you through the foundations of market research from methodologies, data analysis including how and when to do them so you can learn how to use maximize your resources and get the most out of your product launch.

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Is Your Product Right for Amazon?

Thu, 28 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Certified Amazon Expert Brenda Crimi helps product launchers and business owners like you determine if Amazon is the right platform to sell your product. From the lens of an experienced and successful Amazon seller, she starts with the reasons why you should consider launching your brand on the e-commerce giant’s platform because it brings great exposure, builds brand awareness, and the data availability from product to market, which will automatically give you customer feedback so you can adjust your marketing strategies accordingly. She then dives into reasons not to sell on Amazon, which mainly touches on product fit for the platform. Do not go into your business industry blindly and let experts like Brenda guide you on how to best plan your tactics and launch your product.

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Is Product Patent Protection Worth It?

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Two of our legal experts on Office Hours, Attorneys Jason Webb and Rich Goldstein, have both emphasized the need to do a thorough assessment of one’s overall business strategy before considering filing for a patent because it can both be a daunting and costly process. With over 38 patents (pushing 40) under our belt as product designers, Tom and I have pretty much mastered how to make a business case for patenting products under development in our business. We have learned that patents should be filed only when you are truly sure of selling or commercializing your idea or product, especially if you are a small business owner, product innovator or inventor up against bigger brands with deeper pockets. Grow your business by learning how to maximize intellectual property, and knowing how to make the crucial business decision of whether you should patent your invention.

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When Should You Patent?

Mon, 25 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Maybe you have a fresh idea or product concept that is underway, and you are thinking whether filing for patent will help you and your business. Attorney Rich Goldstein, founder of Goldstein Patent Law has over 25 years of experience as a patent attorney, has advised over 10,000 inventors and entrepreneurs from different industries on patenting, and has an impressive record of having over 2,000 patents approved under his belt. Over the course of his career, he has learned that the costliest part about patents for inventors, product designers, or business owners is their misinformation about the patent process. Rich discusses the patent process, utility patents, design patents, as well as other useful tips and information to help you determine whether your idea or product is worth patenting so you can avoid wasting precious time, money and effort.

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The Ins and Outs of Product Tooling

Sun, 24 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you are not just fabricating materials off the shelf and are going to use certain manufacturing processes to make your product, it will most probably involve tooling. Tooling requires a one-time fee that varies from product to product. It involves unique molding, stamping materials, or creating customized tools, fixtures, or mechanical device used to manipulate the materials of your product as it is being made in the factory– it takes many different shapes and forms, depending on materials used, or set manufacturing processes of each factory. With more than two decades of experience as product designers who have launched over 250+ products in mass market retail, we have dealt with a diverse product range from different niches, as well as a great variety of factories from all over the world with different manufacturing processes. We will guide you through the ins and outs of tooling for your product: which products don’t, and do require tooling, types of tooling for specific materials, estimated tooling price ranges, and a lot more.

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Amazon First Steps

Sun, 24 Jun 2018 07:00:00 GMT

Certified Amazon experts Jeff and Jenna of Turnkey Product Management teaches you how to market on Amazon faster with the definitive building blocks of a high-converting online store on the world’s biggest e-commerce platform. They apply these basic principles in their own Amazon production management company, where they help clients from a range of different industries with widely diverse product categories sell over $1,000,000 in total a month. Jeff and Jen give you the lowdown on why selling on Amazon is worth the time and effort, and reveal concrete fundamental solutions on how you can extend your reach by maximizing the e-commerce platform’s many useful features to prime potential clients with spending power to buy from your very own Amazon store.

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How to Create a Me Only Product with a Killer Unique Selling Proposition

Fri, 22 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We often talk about how having a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) for any brand is vital for product launch success. In the product design world, we also call a unique or original product as “Me Only Product.” When we say “Me Only,” it means that it is something that only you are manufacturing, that you are the only one selling it in the market, that you are the only game in town. It is easy to throw unique features, and all sorts of bells and whistles onto a product at the marketing stage and say that it’s the only one in the market– but being in the real “me only territory” means that you cater to your target market’s needs, that they are able to make an emotional connection with your brand or product– and doing it right entails a great deal of product development planning, which will definitely cost you a significant amount of time and money. Don’t worry, there are definitely ways to optimize the process, and that’s where we can help you. Learn what goes into making a me only product, how to best market it, and why producing one is the best way to up your brand value.

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Meet Branding and Video Marketing Expert Rick Cesari

Thu, 21 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

After graduating with a degree in biology, our branding and video marketing expert Rick Cesari, founder of Direct Branding got involved into real estate marketing, and discovered that he had a knack for it– from then on, he continued treading the marketing path and branching out to other industries, approaching things with a direct response mentality. His passion for marketing and branding lead him to set up his own company back in 1989, where he became part of the team that made juicing popular to consumers, and in bringing other health products into mass retail. Since then he has contributed his expertise to help develop and market billion dollar brand names like the Sonicare, George Foreman Grill, Oxiclean, and many other consumer products, including, more recently, the GoPro. Get monthly access to Rick’s in-depth industry know-how so you can create and implement a solid business strategy that highlights your brand’s unique selling proposition in more ways than one before launching your product.

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What Comes First, Brand or Product?

Wed, 20 Jun 2018 10:30:00 GMT

So you have a product that you think will sell on Amazon, or through Walmart’s or Target’s shelves. Maybe you are still playing around with the idea, or you might be in the early stages of product design and development and you want to take a step back by asking which comes first before launching your product: is it branding, or perfecting your product? Many innovators, inventors, and non-business savvy people get completely shocked when we say that branding must come first. The truth is that many of the things involved in product development and the design process are expensive and time consuming.Discover why knowing your brand the first step in determining the best product design as well as in identifying the perfect retail price, and in knowing how to channel your marketing efforts in the most effective way possible.

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Meet Design for Manufacturing Expert Dennis Shaver

Wed, 20 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Our resident design for manufacturing (DFM) expert Dennis Shaver from Product on Demand serves you “inventreneurs” his invaluable industry knowledge and insight to help you get from mind to market to profit faster. Born and raised in a dairy farm in Michigan, Dennis has the unique experience and skill set honed by years of working side by side with his brothers and parents for the farm’s upkeep– during those formative years, he learned how to be resourceful when it came to repairing and inventing things as he dealt with both livestock and machinery. This has become a solid foundation for Dennis as he took on more advanced jobs throughout his flourishing career in manufacturing and production. He is eager to share with you how to increase efficiency and reach your business bottom line with solid planning, as well as proper communication across all units involved in manufacturing your product.

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Meet Product Licensing Expert David Liberstein

Tue, 19 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

A self-proclaimed “serial entrepreneur,” David Liberstein of Dream Product Guru started his very first business that lasted 10 years while he was in college back in the 70’s. He monetized his passion for photography by making photographic note cards with inspirational quotes on them, first in a darkroom at his parents’ basement garage– until it grew into an operation with its own in-house designers that made up to $100,000 for half of the fiscal year as a young company. They joined trade shows where big companies took an interest in their designs, asking if it was possible to use their creations as prints for their products. That was how he started gaining experience both as a licensee, and as a licensing agent for his own company’s designers. From then on he took on other business and marketing roles, at one point helped with product licensing to put designs of characters from Looney Tunes, Betty Boop, Cirque de Soleil and others on starter bottles, set-up other businesses, and has helped product developers and inventors from various industries launch their dream products. Gain access to David’s wealth of valuable branding and invention licensing knowledge gained from over 40 years and counting in the business.

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Pricing By Design: Formulas for How to Profitably Price your Products

Sun, 17 Jun 2018 10:30:00 GMT

Many of you probably think that product pricing is purely science, because it involves a lot of math, data, and pieces of information consolidated and analyzed to get optimal results. We are seasoned product designers and entrepreneurs here, yet pricing products is an ongoing struggle because it does not wholly rely on scientific data and mathematical formulas– identifying the perfect product price also relies heavily on human psychology, on ever-changing cultural, sociological, economic and political climates, and ultimately rides on how much you understand your target market’s behavior and what drives them. It requires making a thought-out plan with clear revenue goals based on your specific business model, on your product, and on proper timing, among other things to create a realistic profitable pricing strategy that will up your revenue. You can always schedule a call with us, or with one of our experts like Tim Bush so we can have a deep dive into feasible product pricing tailored to suit your specific needs.

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Avoid These Top 7 Market Research Mistakes

Sun, 17 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Our resident consumer market research expert Laura Hazzard warns product launchers about the top 7 consumer market research mistakes that can cause a lot of damage and possibly torpedo your overall business and marketing strategy. She packed in a lot of meaty information in a span of seven minutes, solidifying her excellent points on quantitative and qualitative market research fails and how to avoid them. Laura says that good market and product research sets the path forward to great product development, usability, distribution, advertising and marketing, building your brand, and ultimately selling more products for bigger profit. You can get a deeper dive into her market research expertise and use it to grow your business through our membership podcast, where she will happily answer all your market research concerns.

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Know the Difference Between Styling, Branding, and Design

Sat, 16 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Styling is just one small component of design. Think of celebrity stylists who dress celebrities for red carpet events– they shop for their clients, putting together accessories, clothes, and other components to make a whole look. Product styling is not so different, in that it merely deals with combining colors and materials that work well together. There is no design or invention involved, as it does not deal entirely with features that are focused on the users’ primary needs, unlike in product designing. At its core, styling is about achieving a certain look to convey brand image– that is why it is problematic if you only have a stylist designing a product that you are making. The best product designers understand the limits of manufacturing, as well as how to get the most out of design techniques to get the perfect balance between form and function, as well as aesthetic.

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Meet Joseph Tarnowski, Expert in Connecting Brands to Retail Buyers

Fri, 15 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Office Hours Expert Joseph Tarnowski has multiple industry experience when it comes to watching companies do what goes right and what goes wrong in terms of retail and marketing. With a degree in Trade Media Journalism, he has had extensive experience working in the food industry, general merchandise, health & beauty, and pharmaceutical industry. He is with Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM), a company that helps connect retail buyers to prospective retail suppliers such as you product launchers. We have known Joe through ECRM, where we used their time-saving and cost-efficient service as buyers in the contract furniture industry. Know the basics of getting a great match between buyers and suppliers in retail by touching base with Joe, who will share his no-nonsense know-how on connecting brands to retail buyers.

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What to Sell Next: Stacking Consumer Product Growth S Curves

Thu, 14 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

No product lasts forever. Consider yourself lucky if your original product is still in the market for five years– we call it a platinum record if it reaches the five year mark. Some of the products we have developed have been in the market for decades, including the Aeron Chair, which is still being sold 25 years after it first came out. How do you stay on top of the game and keep consumers coming back for more from your brand? An S curve is an oft-used tool in product management and project management, a graph that tracks the growth rate of your sales so that you can align your business development plan accordingly and consistently beat the competition. Learn how to future-proof your business by looking at your product growth S-Curve, and knowing when exactly you should start planning for the next big product to launch.

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Meet E-Commerce Implementation Expert Abby Duffield

Wed, 13 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Abby Duffield is the e-Commerce Implementation Manager for Shapiro, an established freight forwarder and brokerage company that has been in business for over 100 years. She shares industry knowledge and informed insights on logistics, regulatory compliance, customs brokerage, purchase order management, e-Commerce shipping and more especially to small business owners, up and coming entrepreneurs, and product launchers like you who need guidance with their freight forwarding concerns. Learn from her anecdotes, get great advice and valuable tips on how to navigate the realm of international shipping, importing in the US, partner government agencies (PGA) compliance, US Customs to FDA as well as product regulations so you can optimize your overall business strategy to make it more cost-effective, efficient and compliant to ever-changing regulations.

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Secrets To Working With Your Spouse

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

It is no secret that Tom and I are husband and wife business partners. It is our competitive advantage – what sets us apart from all the other product design firms in the market. Because most people cannot imagine working with their spouse at all, they are always fascinated by the idea that we do this 24/7, in a home office and have made it over 21 years so far.

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Meet Product Management Expert Loren West

Mon, 11 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Loren West is a process and systems expert who has a ton of experience in growing brands by optimizing processes in big companies to make their business run more smoothly and efficiently. She gained her core professional strengths in business processing and marketing by working in the packaging, beauty, and health industry for years. Loren has worked for big brands like O.P.I., Keiser, and has also branched out into consulting for other companies from diverse industries to optimize their structural system flows and business processes. A lot of you product launchers are owners of up and coming brands who will surely get great monthly insights and advice from Loren through our membership podcast, so that you can map your vision and produce quantifiable results that will make your company soar to greater heights.

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MOQ & Small Run Manufacturing Options

Sun, 10 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Especially if you are quite new to creating products and ordering them from small-run manufacturers, you might be left asking, “Why is this manufacturer giving me a hard time with high quotations, I just want very few samples of the products so I can be sure of the quality?” We started going directly to manufacturers in China back in 1998, and have learned the ropes about small-run manufacturing processes, minimum order quantities, and how it relates to an entrepreneur’s overall product launch plan. There is a delicate balance in determining MOQ’s, which is essentially the specific lowest number of products one can order from a supplier. MOQ’s are not random calculations, and are mostly precise as they are based on hard facts and figures. Learn the basics of MOQ’s and small-run manufacturing processes as it has applied to our business model, so you can get informed perspectives and information on how you can best navigate the complex product-specific structure in your own terms.

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Meet Amazon Experts Jeff & Jenna Lieber

Sat, 09 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Jeff Lieber, founder of Turnkey Product Management once dreamed of starting his own business, and he knew that Amazon would be the perfect channel to do it. He learned the ropes and soon, from selling one dog product, he quickly expanded his inventory, ventured into baby products, and then eventually sold his online business for six figures. Together with his cousin, Turnkey Client Manager Jenna Lieber and their team, they now help clients reap the full benefits of online marketing with focus on an informed, overall approach to Amazon product listing campaigns and strategies. Jeff & Jenna lend you their expertise on maximizing profits from your online business. Ease your worries and send us the questions that matter to you. Join us every month as these first-rate Amazon experts dive in on tips, trends, and practical advice on asset building that you should not miss as budding entrepreneurs in the ever-changing landscape of digital advertising and e-commerce marketing.

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Do It Right: Early Stage Funding for Your Business

Fri, 08 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We first raised money for an invention way back in 1997 and had around 13 angel investors– way more than what we recommend now that we have learned through our years of professional experience as product designers and entrepreneurs. The two of us are cautious about raising capital via crowd funding because there is truly a lot of pressure in giving small pieces of your company to investors, and often times it does not necessarily go into the best interests of the business. From the perspective of inventors trying to build a company from the ground up, it is absolutely necessary for you to have complete legal compliance when it comes to documentation of your intellectual property, getting a great product or business plan presentation together, and to use systems in place that can help you track your progress. We will be talking about equity crowd funding, warnings about Kickstarter campaigns, important bits on Security and Exchange Commission compliance and many more to help you go through the motions of raising money for your business securely and efficiently.

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Meet Logistics, Sales and Operations Expert Paul D’Souza

Thu, 07 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

As one of our Product Launch Hazzards experts, Paul D’ Souza, founder of Chief Revenue Officer as Service will be helping you product launchers design the right go-to-market strategy with his comprehensive knowledge gathered through years of practical experience in logistics, sales and operations. One of his most notable clients was the Pebble Watch company that started in KickStarter through two campaigns, and grew to ship over 2 Million units to more than 150 countries. He currently works at SourceSelect, a 3PL that helps early-stage product companies move their products from their manufacturers, to their warehouse facilities, to their customers, and back to the warehouse if there are returns. Paul offers free consulting sessions on how to plan logistics and order fulfillment before launching campaigns. You can get access to his expert profile and send in your questions.

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To NDA or Not To NDA

Wed, 06 Jun 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Here you are, with a great idea or invention and wanting to explore business opportunities with another company to expand your brand. Then suddenly, when you propose a legally-binding non-disclosure agreement (NDA) at the infancy of the negotiation stages, often even before your initial consultation with them, all communication with them stops. While you should seek proper legal counsel to make sure all terms within the contract are fair, and that first step alone takes up so much time, money and effort—one of the most important lessons we’ve learned through our many years of practical experience as product innovators is that NDAs almost always slow or stop negotiations if you propose them first. Despite its popularity, filing an NDA, also known as secrecy agreement (SA), confidential disclosure agreement (CDA), or proprietary information agreement (PIA) has its drawbacks. It can sow distrust between parties, foiling a mutually beneficial relationship before it matures. Learn how NDA’s can put you in the wrong position for getting your idea presented in an open-minded standpoint, and discover smarter ways to protect your intellectual property with or without an NDA.

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Meet Small Business Patent Expert Rich Goldstein

Tue, 05 Jun 2018 09:00:00 GMT

“People ask me, ‘what’s the costliest part of patenting?’ I’ll tell them, the costliest part of patenting is your misinformation about patents,” says our Product Launch Hazzards expert Attorney Richard Goldstein, author of the American Bar Association’s Consumer Guide to Obtaining a Patent. Rich graduated with an Engineering degree before being a patent lawyer, and has the unique combination of having a systems-oriented brain from his engineering background, combined with a liberal arts mind that enables him to write really well, allowing him understand the finer details of product designs and explain precisely what is needed for effective applicable patents . He has dedicated his law career into educating and helping individuals, small business owners, startups, product developers and inventors understand the core principles of patenting. He started teaching the patent process in the early 90’s, and has created a 6-part video series on the basics of patenting with over 10,000 views. Discover how you can ultimately reduce the risks of product launch failure, cut costs, save time and resources as Rich answers your patenting concerns each month.

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Working Prototype or Appearance Model?

Tue, 05 Jun 2018 07:00:00 GMT

The choice between creating a working prototype (a product sample that looks, feels, and works like the actual product), an appearance model (non-functional, but adheres to actual products physical appearance, and dimensions), or a functional prototype (a crude model with limited functionality, often used to present a a product under concept development) for product presentation has often confused product innovators. There are a range of factors to consider, from budget constraints, product liabilities, to meeting deadlines– but the key to selling your product lies in having in-depth customer knowledge so you can manage the expectations of your potential consumers or investors, as well as future retail buyers, and being aware of the circumstances that surround your product presentation so you choose and create the right type of prototype to make your presentation a success and get your product or idea sold.

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Why We Love Being Product Designers

Thu, 31 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We have been product designers for more than two decades and have won awards for our designs through out the years– but the ultimate accolade for us would have to be the longevity of our products in the market. Over 80 of the products that we have designed for mass retail have been bought and used over and over again by consumers for the past 20 years and counting. We believe that our success in this regard lies in the genuine joy we find in the process of product design, and most importantly, in how it betters the lives of consumers. Reading positive feedback from online customer reviews, especially when users recommend our products to other consumers, gives us immense satisfaction as designers.

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What To Do When Mass Retailers Like Amazon Become Your Competitors

Tue, 29 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

If you are a thriving vendor with products on Walmart, Staples, other mass retailers’ shelves, or you are selling online through Amazon, Alibaba, or any other big e-Commerce platform, be warned: the days of vendor loyalty are long gone, which is why it is essential for you to secure your products and customer base before launching your products. As experienced product designers, innovators and entrepreneurs, we have learned from first hand experience as well as vicariously how big companies can take advantage of entrepreneurs who offer private-label products or services. Take Amazon for example– if you have an unpatented original product that you get from another manufacturer and the e-Commerce giant sees that your product is selling like hotcakes through their platform, it could go two ways– they can either source any number of variations of your products’ Stock Keeping Units (SKU’s) from your manufacturer and persuade them to make your products for them for reselling, or your manufacturer may negotiate with Amazon to achieve the same goal, resulting in an increase in their profit margins and a decrease in yours. At the end of the day, everything is a business decision done in the name of more revenue. This is an issue that a lot of small business owners in the private-labeling industry are experiencing, and something you must take heed of especially if you are just starting out in the same field. Get informed perspectives, tips and useful information on what to do when this happens to you, how to be proactive about it, and many more from business, marketing, and manufacturing industry pros.

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Meet Amazon Seller Training Expert Brenda Crimi

Mon, 28 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

As one of our experts at Product Launch Hazzards, certified Master Amazon seller training expert Brenda Crimi will be dishing great advice every month for aspiring online sellers, as well as curious listeners who want to have an understanding of “all things products, and all things Amazon.” Meet Brenda as she shares her inspiring entrepreneurial journey– from being a consultant, to managing a law firm to selling on Amazon. She found her calling as a successful online entrepreneur launching her own products and managing her own online business on the e-commerce giant’s platform since 2013 and coaching and or managing other aspiring brands and sellers. Brenda shares her no-nonsense expertise and answers your eCommerce selling questions through the Product Launch Hazzards membership office hours and coaching or managing other aspiring brands and sellers.

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How To Invent Must-Have Products

Fri, 25 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Tom and I are a husband and wife team of Industrial Designers. We are lucky to be working together not just because we enjoy each other’s company– we have a complimentary set of skills, and unlike in corporate settings where people have qualms in voicing out their opinions we are both capable of having an open, honest debate when designing products that involve gender-related perspectives because of our shared vision. We have coined a term called “gender blending,” which refers to meeting the needs of both male and female consumers when it comes to designing products. Launching many successful products for ourselves and our clients through out the years was made possible by combining our strengths, which includes our unique ability to factor in the needs of both genders in our product designs.

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Meet Patent & Trademark Expert Jason Webb

Thu, 24 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Is your idea, product or service competitive? The truth is, the best ideas don’t always win because there are many things in your way to making it happen. As an entrepreneur or an inventor, you should have the best system and marketing tactics to get ahead of the competition. One of the most crucial steps is to protect your trade secrets, original business concepts and ideas. Join internationally recognized intellectual property lawyer Attorney Jason Webb of Pearson-Butler every month as he explains how to make patents, trademarks and copyright work for protecting business owners, inventors, and product developers in this ruthless global economy. He has successfully negotiated licensing agreements for Fortune 500 companies, with products and services that are sold worldwide. Get honest, educated business perspectives from Jason through the Product Launch Hazzards membership office hours.

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The 80/20 Color Rule for Choosing the Right Colors for Your Products

Wed, 23 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Picking the right colors for specific consumer goods is exciting, and can also be a very agonizing process for some product inventors, innovators, designers, and marketers, especially to newbies. Even experienced branding professionals get challenged sometimes, and rightly so, for there is so much is riding on choosing the right color for your product. Many factors can affect our opinions on product color selection, most especially our personal preferences. If you happen to pick the wrong color for your product, it will not be marketable, and problems with inventory among other things will arise. Get the skinny color selection for product design and the ultimate 80/20 color rule from one of the leading experts in the product design industry who also specializes in picking colors that sell in mass market retail.

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Meet International Logistics Expert Jimmy Tran

Tue, 22 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

A lot of new Amazon sellers often make the mistake of putting logistics and freight forwarding as an afterthought in the product launch process, and it can hurt profitability. Jimmy Tran, General Manager of World Craft Logistics is a Product Launch Hazzard expert on Freight Forwarding. He knows that Amazon sellers need a highly dependable freight forwarder who will cater to their needs to get their products shipped smoothly and securely from factory to warehouse. Starting his online business from the comfort of his own bedroom five years ago, he now has a 78,000 square-foot warehouse to accommodate the upward demand from clients. Detail-oriented Jimmy shares his freight forwarding know-how so you can keep your supply chain running efficiently and cost-effectively by optimizing your logistics strategy, from timing deliveries, customs clearances, proper documentation, warehousing distribution, light assembly, labeling, and everything in between. You can get in touch with Jimmy and ask your questions on all things logistics.

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Meet Market Research Expert Laura Hazzard

Tue, 22 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

When you’re selling something, some questions that come up in your mind are, are people going to buy what you’re selling? Are they going to respond to it? What features do they value? A great way to answer that is market research. Market research expert, Laura Hazzard, has worked with big brands like Target, Starbucks, Disney, Fox, and Sony. She’s done everything from plus size women’s apparel to cat food and everything in between. Laura shares that it’s so critically important to ask questions because then you have a better understanding of why people purchase the things they do. She says that big brands and small companies should both dive deep into market research. They should have a process that they run to see if people will buy their products so they can cut down on costs by avoiding mistakes and optimize their sales.

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How to Design What Women (and Men) Want

Mon, 21 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Tom and I are a husband and wife team of Industrial Designers. We are lucky to be working together not just because we enjoy each other’s company– we have a complimentary set of skills, and unlike in corporate settings where people have qualms in voicing out their opinions we are both capable of having an open, honest debate when designing products that involve gender-related perspectives because of our shared vision. We have coined a term called “gender blending” product design, which refers to meeting the needs of both male and female consumers when it comes to designing products. Launching many successful products for ourselves and our clients through out the years was made possible by combining our strengths, which includes our unique ability to factor in the needs of both genders in our product designs.

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Meet Retail Sales Expert Timothy Bush

Fri, 18 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

The number one question that On The Shelf Retail Expert, Timothy Bush, gets is how long does it take? He says that most entrepreneurs who try to get their products on the shelf don’t struggle with the question of whether they are ready, even though they don’t really know what they’re doing at all. They actually need somebody else to tell them whether they are ready or not. For those that work in the real trenches of retail, trying to launch a new item or a huge celebrity takes a certain amount of time. Things don’t get quicker. They get more backed up. It requires more preparation to really understand what the buyers want to have. What Timothy does is help people take all the little roadblocks out that could get them put down under the pile to be on the top of the stack.

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Product Promotion: Reserving Capital to Promote It

Thu, 17 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

It is not enough to put your product out there on Amazon, HSN, Walmart, or any other retail store. Those who spend at least 10% of their capital on brand promotion are guaranteed to sell more and increase their brand’s overall acquirable value. The key is to get your message out through a platform and resonate with your audience. Your goal as an entrepreneur should not just be focused on make a single sale per client, but to transform them into fans of your brand who will constantly hanker for more of what you have to offer. Let them know the story behind your brand, and how your products or services can benefit them when consistently churning out high-quality useful content like blogs, videocasts, or podcasts. Get started on building a brand promotional strategy and a public relations plan that converts your target audience into paying customers.

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Product Production Planning: Critical Factors to Produce It

Wed, 16 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Finally, you are done with the product development stages and are ready to produce your product for selling. As an entrepreneur, you know that it is absolutely critical to get your product right before launching it to avoid killing your brand with bad customer reviews and high returns. What are the things you need to consider for cost-effective and efficient materials sourcing, finding the right factory for manufacturing, and in making all other major decisions in the production process? If you are clueless as to how or where to start on product production planning, here is a general framework you can work with: building a relationship with your manufacturers, having strong documentation, and consistent follow-up. It can be a daunting process because there is no set flow chart for going about things since it is all really product-specific– but with decades of combined multi-industry experience, Product Launch Hazzards will guide you on how to best produce and launch your product for maximum profit.

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Invention Protection: Protect It with Patents and Trademarks

Tue, 15 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Having intellectual property is good for valuation of your business. It is definitely an asset worth investing in especially if your goal is to become an acquirable brand. But first, you have to make sure that your trademarks, patents, and copyright are relevant to your long term business plan, or else they will be useless. We will talk about some examples of what we have done and how we operate as product inventors so you can have a sense of the value of protecting your intellectual property, and hopefully learn from our practical experience how you can save significant time and preserve capital in the process. If you feel that you need to disclose information to a licensing partner, a manufacturer, or a distributor, we have useful resources, as well as intellectual property attorneys we have recommended to our own clients whom you can get in touch with for invention protection.

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Product Prototypes: When is the Right Time to Prototype It

Mon, 14 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Prototyping involves design, engineering, early quoting, sampling, iterations, and a host of other factors that need to get done with the right team for optimal results. You need to make a product prototype or do product sampling after proving, planning, and pricing your model so you can have something tangible to show your investors, to make sure it has the right functions, look or feel, and that you can really sell it in mass market retail. As seasoned product designers, we know that there are a lot of unknowns and alternative ways to make an original product that are not included in the traditional manufacturing process. This is why you have to get the right manufacturers whom you trust, at the right rate and the right time. If you are not hitting your target market, have no core capabilities required in your product category, or doing the product design and engineering is distracting you from running your business, you definitely need to hire a consultant, an engineer or designer who can do the job for you. As an importer or brand owner, you have the higher responsibility to make sure that your product is up to par with your claims to avoid costly and time consuming mistakes– prototyping is a part of the process, and we can help you get it right.

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The Key to Product Launch Success is to Plan It

Fri, 11 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Tom and I say this a lot: “Hope is not a plan.” There are a lot of concerns to address and factors to consider before selling your product. As a business owner, it is your responsibility to make sure that money and time spent from product research, market study, product development, licensing, prototyping, manufacturing and marketing is worth every penny. In the long run, all mistakes committed in the process of launching and marketing your product will add up and can greatly impact your success, that is why developing a solid game plan is of utmost importance for all stages of your product launch journey. We can help you there through our resident experts, who have a wealth of product development, manufacturing, intellectual property, marketing and advertising knowledge to share with you.

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Get Your Product Pricing Right for Maximum Profit

Thu, 10 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

How should you decide what to price your product in the market? After creating, developing and marketing over 250 successful products in the last two decades, we have discovered that product pricing relies on completing a correct order of steps for optimal results, something that you can not afford to mess up if you are a serious business owner. There are so many hard facts to account for when preparing an effective cost and profitability analysis that goes well beyond the assigned cost of goods quoted by a manufacturer– details like taxes & duties, logistics, packaging, carrying costs, and many more must be considered and factored in to make sure that you increase and preserve as much profit margin as you can once you launch your product. We will help you figure out the best way to go about pricing your product for maximum profit.

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Market Proof: Prove Your Product to Market Fit

Wed, 09 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

How could you be sure that your product or idea will sell? You cannot always rely on friends and family to tell you the truth, because they might not be realistic with their assessments: either be too encouraging without considering the follies in your idea, or too scared for you to fail and lose money and resources that they could discourage you. There are many obstacles in the way to making it happen, including the facts to consider before diving all in and manufacturing your product. From our collective study of research done by Harvard Business Review, Inc., Forbes, and Entrepreneur, over 68% of product launch failures are caused by having the wrong product for the wrong market– your product might be good, but it is not matched to your market. If you are an inventor, product designer, or small business owner considering to sell a product or service, it is essential for you to know how to prove your product to market fit with market research, a/b testing and other methods to avoid the risk of product launch failure.

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Figure Out Your Product Brand First

Tue, 08 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

What is product branding, and why does it need to be the first thing you figure out before launching your business? Branding is not necessarily about who you are, it is about how people perceive you. As much as you would like to be in full control of your brand identity, it will all really depend on how your audience sees your brand. That is why it is vital to consistently check market perception, so you can constantly align your brand messaging and reach your targets. Big brands like Procter and Gamble, Coca Cola, and others recognize the importance of knowing their core brand identity, so that they can adjust their marketing plans accordingly and be most efficient when acting on them. Do not fully equate branding with logos, colors, and design– they are just visual expressions of your brand. Taking the time to truly have a deeper understanding of what your brand stands for and who your target market is will enable you to create and effectively implement a business and marketing plan that will help you reach your business bottom line quicker.

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The 7-P Process to Launching Your Product

Mon, 07 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

Product developers, inventors, marketers, entrepreneurs, and curious listeners, lend us your ears: the success of your product does not rest on how passionate you are or how great you think your product is. There is a fundamental process that you must follow, which involves having the right things, in the right order, and the right resources before going deeper into the rabbit hole. Here at Product Launch Hazzards we give you the right resources through our membership Expert Office Hours podcast, where our seasoned industry experts answer your questions by sharing their insider know-how– and on this episode we will put these resources into context by tackling the fundamental 7-P process of product launching. We have done this over 250 times throughout our careers as product innovators and entrepreneurs, and we will impart the lessons we have learned from studying and researching other people’s as well as other companies’ product development process. Discover how we came up with the 7-P process, how we put it in the right order and how you can save precious time and resources by applying it.

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Asset Building Product Design

Fri, 04 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

In the consumer retail market where 7 out of 10 consumer product launches fail and less than 2% of inventors ever make any money, the odds are stacked against you. But with some Product Launch Hazzard protection tips and Success By Design tactics, you can reduce risk and defy the odds as you go from Product Idea to Big Brand to Sold. Tracy Hazzard, Product Launch Expert in the Product Launch Hazzards membership community, dives deep into a proven formula that helps optimize processes and maximize your resources so you can out-source, out-design, and out-profit your competitors. It has been applied to virtually all types of consumer product categories, and mastering its fundamentals is the first step to retail sales success. These solutions were firmed up from years of practical experience in working with big and small brands.

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Should You Do It: Prototyping, Selling, and Everything in Between

Thu, 03 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We have seen a lot of startups fail and close shop after only a few years because of one fatal mistake: not having enough information before taking a deeper dive into launching their product or business. Falling in love with your idea or product can run you out of business early in the game. There is nothing bad about being passionate about what you do, but it must always be coupled with the proper mindset to avoid losing precious time and money. When entrepreneurs make an emotional decision, they sometimes choose not to see the pitfalls of their plan, glossing over any kind of objective criteria to properly evaluate the feasibility of their business venture. Guest Experts on the Product Launch Hazzards membership Expert Office Hours podcast guides business owners like you so you will know how to sift through all necessary information for review before proceeding to the next step, identify necessary revisions, and ultimately know how to determine whether your product launch is a go or a no-go.

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Avoid These Top 10 Product Launch Hazards

Wed, 02 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

We have seen far too many entrepreneurs, small business owners, product designers and marketers fail in business because of fundamental mistakes made before launching their products or services. Over the years, we have gained an in-depth understanding of what it takes to succeed in launching as well as marketing products by studying, researching, and observing processes that have allowed us to spot the top 10 product launch hazards that can delay, derail, and sink a business into oblivion. These mistakes are so common among startups because they seem so small and insignificant, but committing them can cost a business owner a lot of unnecessary time, money and effort. We will guide you on how to steer clear of these product launching mistakes so you can out-design, out-source, and out-profit your competition.

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Want Product Launch Success? Meet Your Product Launch Protection Experts Tom Hazzard & Tracy Hazzard

Tue, 01 May 2018 10:00:00 GMT

7 out of 10 consumer product launches fail and only 2% of all inventions make any money. Launching products is full of pitfalls and failure points. The odds of product launch success are not in your favor. Insiders and big brands not only know but can outspend and survive when they make mistakes. Find out how product launch experts like Tracy Hazzard and Tom Hazzard with 26 years as consumer product designers for big and small brands – on-line and in-store, flip the odds, build in protective measures and resources, and guide you on what you ‘don’t know that you don’t know’ so you can avoid rookie errors, save valuable market time, spend less money, and successfully launch into a big acquirable brand.

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