8 Ways to Go From Product Conception to Manufacturing

You have an idea to make a product, maybe you want to make a product that exists better, or you have something that will change the world.

Now that you’ve had a great idea and designed the perfect product, it’s time to take it into the real world. This is where the rubber meets the road, and you need to know how to proceed with making your product a reality.

Here Are the 8 Ways You Can Start Manufacturing Your Own Goods:

1. Consider the Market You’re Selling to and Who Your Competition Is

If you begin with one idea, as fun as that sounds (and believe me, I know the feeling), you might end up losing sight of what makes your product unique and how it stands out against its competitors.

So decide now: do you want a large market share? Many smaller markets? Or none at all? Once you have decided on a goal for yourself, look at which product ideas best fit those goals.

You can also play around with different types of products – some may have fewer competitors but have a smaller audience or vice versa – so figure out what works best for each situation after you develop an overall strategy for your business.

2. Know the Materials Needed to Make Your Product, Where You’ll Get Them, and How Much They Will Cost

You need to know if there is a good supply of your materials to create your product. If you don’t think about this aspect ahead of time, it can lead to an expensive problem down the road. You may run out of raw materials or be unable to purchase more at a reasonable price because someone else purchased all stocks of those materials before you could purchase any.

So now what? It’s also important to note that not every material is available in every area. For example, there are plenty of cedar trees used to build lumber in California, but good luck finding a cedar tree if you live in New York. Many manufacturers use MRP software to help them keep track of their materials and stock.  

3. Decide if You Want to Produce Your Product by Yourself or Outsource the Job to Outside Companies

Both options have pros and cons: producing it yourself will cut down on costs because you don’t have to pay anyone else, but not all people have the resources or knowledge needed to make their own products from scratch.

Hiring other companies can save you time and money in design and manufacturing costs but cuts into your product profits. It’s up to you which route you take when creating your product idea.

As long as you know what direction feels right for going before going too far with it, then consider this step done.

4. Determine Your Product’s Design Specifications and Material Composition, if You Have Not Already Done So

If you are making your own product, you must understand the product’s materials to give yourself a chance at success. If you are outsourcing the job of creating your product, this part will be more difficult but still possible with the research of similar products on the market. Either way, you must know exactly what goes into your product.

This step is typically handled when designing or engineering a new product. Without understanding how everything fits together, there isn’t much hope for disrupting the market with quality work.

The majority of mass production companies do not create their own designs and therefore look to create similar products, so having a different design or even just a new product is what makes it important that you do this step.

5. Find the Components of Your Product and Determine Whether There Are Existing Patents for These Parts and/or if They Can Be Patented in the Future

If you come up with a great idea, but somebody already has a patent for that exact same idea, then any money or time spent trying to turn that into an actual working, profitable project will have been wasted. Using third-party companies works well here because they have access to databases full of information about previous patents.

In contrast, it will take forever, even with the best software if you try to search for yourself. If your idea can’t be patented now – or ever – you need to consider whether it’s worth the time and money required to secure a patent for this product.

6. Make Sure Your Idea Can Be Turned Into a Feasible Product, if Not, Go Back to Step 1

In order to have any chance of success when making your own products or when using a third-party company, you must make sure that your idea is actually workable in the real world. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is because there will be kinks in any plan that will arise from the design process.

Make sure that these little problems don’t end up becoming big ones down the road by turning them into speed bumps rather than roadblocks before they even happen.

A good place to start with checking feasibility is the internet because there are plenty of forums and discussion boards on all sorts of topics, including product design and engineering.

7. Design Your Product, if You Haven’t Already Started; or Hire a Company to Create It for You

Of course, this step will depend on whether you want to make your own products or not. If you want to make your products, consider hiring third-party companies that specialize in creating product designs for others generally, these things are best left for experts because they have years of experience working in factories.

It can be difficult enough trying to make sure everything fits together properly, so using professional help makes sense here.

If outsourcing this job, keep in mind that what goes into your product, the quality of the materials makes all the difference. You can find companies that specialize in the design, or you can find third-party companies that do it all.

8. Build a Prototype to Test for Usability and Marketability

Suppose you are working with other people to create your product. In that case, they will often let you know when they think it’s time to build a prototype, but if you are alone on this project, schedule some time to take things slow and try out different versions of your prototype before anything gets too far along.

This might sound like an obvious point, but there is no sense in rushing ahead just because you’ve got an idea that nobody else has done just yet.

Make sure whatever version of the prototype you build can be used for testing purposes. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, but it does need to work, especially if your plans include gathering market research from people who use the product.

In conclusion, the most important thing you should remember when going through these steps is taking everything slow and not rushing ahead just because you think you’ve got a great idea on your hands.

The quality of whatever product design or engineering company you hire will depend on how well they perform in each step, so make sure your partners are completely thorough before you start spending any money or spending too much time on this project.