Hardware is hard. As an entrepreneur working in this field, you have an incredible amount to think about: manufacturing, supply chain management, building your team, raising funds, creating a brand; but be sure that selling is not the last item on your list.
Zero sales = no business.
At The Blueprint, we’re a destination to sell the products you’ve worked so hard to build. We’ve recently launched, and have learned a ton about what works and what doesn’t when selling consumer hardware products.
The idea here is the importance of building a company, and not just a project (unless that’s what you want to build). For example, if you crowdfund, it can take 6 months to 2 years to match your initial raise post launch.
Here are our top three tips for creating a successful e-commerce experience:
1) Hone in on your niche or a specific behavior.
Hardware products excel when they dominate a niche. Look at the recently crowdfunded Skully Helmet (fastest Indiegogo campaign to raise $1million) to “Hello.is,” which focuses on optimizing your sleep behavior (over $2 million on Kickstarter). The products that sell like hot cakes (and can literally make you hotcakes) on The Blueprint like Drop (digital ‘baking’ assistant) are filling a very specific niche of tech connected bakers.
2) Share your story and educate the potential buyer.
How did you start your company? Why? What challenge does your product solve? How will the product you’ve created enhance the buyer’s life? With new and unique consumer hardware and gadgets coming out, it’s important to teach potential buyers about the value your company and product can bring to their life.
3) Create a seamless e-commerce experience.
The average shopping cart abandon rate is nearly 70%. That’s HUGE! It’s so important to optimize your ecommerce experience on your website. Be sure to keep the steps simple to checkout, be clear on when potential buyers can expect to receive the product and when it will be shipping, and information on returns or exchanges!
BONUS TIP:
Create a product that solves a real problem. This seems like a no-brainer, but how many tech gadgets do you see (or buy) that you feel are ‘nice to have’ or ‘cool’ but doesn’t actually add value to your life. Before starting, be sure to evaluate how you solve a problem.
Did these Top Tips help you? Share your opinion with the Maker’s Row community in the comments!
Related Posts:
• Need $15,000 for Your Brand? Try These 11 Tips
• 6 Ways to Ensure Your Products Match Your Vision
• 5 Tips for Getting More Product Sales
