Product Startup

Joe Dunne is the Director of Partnerships at PTC, the firm behind Onshape and Creo. Before this, he worked for SolidWorks since the early days of the software starting with them back in 1995, and before that, a Mechanical Engineer. Today Joe is going to share some valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on how CAD software has evolved since the 1980s, what the best-in-class software is doing today, and how the software is evolving in real-time to best support getting new hardware products to market faster, cheaper, and better than ever.

Click this link for This Episode's Full Info Page: https://productstartup.com/podcast/153-the-evolution-of-cad-product-development-software/

Today you will hear us talk about:

• History of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software
• 3d parametric modeling in the 1990s
• Going to 3D was also a huge change due to the ability to start iterative design
• Find guys that you want to hook your wagon to
• Modern CAD software has evolved by becoming based in the cloud
• The future of CAD is in the integrations, all allowable by being architected via the cloud hosting of the core software.
• This allows for products to be developed more complete, faster, with less people, and all the way through to and including production.
• Design software is now a community of integrated app builders to layer on top of core CAD design host technology
• You have to get your product to market, and you have to test it.
• There is a lot more flexibility in design options today than ever before.

EPISODE LINKS:

Joe Dunne Links:

LinkedIn | Onshape

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

https://www.ProductStartup.com/

Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook Page | Facebook Group | Pinterest | Twitter | https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

Instagram | LinkedIn | Quora | Facebook | Twitter

Brad Pedersen is a founder of the hardware product Lomi which raised almost ten million dollars in crowdfunding as his most recent hit success of many. In his earlier years, he developed many new products and also distributed thousands of other hardware products all over the world, mostly in the toy and sports product fields. Today Brad is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can learn what the 3 most important elements of an emerging hardware startup are, how to avoid key pitfalls around each of those 3 areas, and how to scale your product to become the next big hit invention success.

Click this link for This Episode's Full Info Page: https://productstartup.com/podcast/152-three-main-problems-when-scaling-a-hardware-startup/

Today you will hear us talk about:

• People, Systems, and Cash
• Growth is a double-edged sword
• You must constantly re-invent each of the main 3 primary scaling failure areas
• When you find product market fit, how do you ensure that will go the distance, and people is the biggest lever
• You start with generalist and move to specialist
• Single-digit growth is annually, double-digit is quarterly, and
• Don’t become the bottleneck of everything.
• Systems allow you to best utilize your people
• 4 key things to a hardware startup: Smart founder and a great idea, marketing plan that is different not better, a team (your people), and execution (the systems).
• Hire people that are smarter than you, even pay them more than you, especially in the early days.
• Get the cash you need to get to your MVP
• Perfection is the enemy of progress
• Build, measure, learn.
• Consider selling direct to customers

EPISODE LINKS:

Brad Pedersen Links:

Personal Website | Lomi | LinkedIn

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

https://www.ProductStartup.com/

Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook Page | Facebook Group | Pinterest | Twitter | https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

Instagram | LinkedIn | Quora | Facebook | Twitter

Michael Solomon is a Marketing Professor at Saint Joseph’s University, has written over 30 books, and teaches the Engage marketing course on Teachable. He is also a fellow writer with me at Forbes Magazine. Today Michael is going to share some valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on what the AIDA marketing method is, how to understand each step of the marketing funnel, and how to best ensure you convert potential customers into product sales.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• AIDA Model
• 4 Stages of Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action
• It doesn’t happen overnight
• Marketing is a funnel
• Selling attributes where customers are buying benefits
• Focus on the problem to identify the solution
• Simple is better, both in product design but also in new product marketing
• Attention is arguably the most critical part of marketing
• Attention requires both Novelty and Relevance
• Make your hardware message clear
• There is a sensory overload for information, so you need to stand out with your initial messaging
• Having an interested physical product consumer is the holy grail, put a lot of value onto the fact that you have a person interested in your product.
• Consumers are always looking for ways to minimize risk in the purchase
• Unique Selling Proposition. What is the one thing that sets you apart from the competition? Again USP is based more on Benefits than Features.
• The Interest phase is primarily cognitive, Desire is the emotional phase.
• To create desire, show people what will happen in their lives if they use your product.
• Think of your ad as a makeover to that person’s life
• The overlooked importance of early adopter customers
• The 80/20 rule of revenue
• The call to action may be a feedback loop
• The number of touchpoints to make a sale
• Invest in the relationship to sell long term
• Think of the value of the customer beyond the first sale
• It is 7 times more expensive to attract a new customer than to re-sell to a prior customer

EPISODE LINKS:

Michael Solomon Links:

LinkedIn | Past Episode | Marketing Course

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

https://www.ProductStartup.com/

Instagram | LinkedIn | Facebook Page | Facebook Group | Pinterest | Twitter | https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

Instagram | LinkedIn | Quora | Facebook | Twitter

Robert Irwin is currently the lead industrial designer for Origyn LLC, an external R&D partner of the multinational company Haier. He was the past Senior INdusdtrial Designer at Amazon for their shopping cart products. He is also a fellow lecturer in the design industry. Today Robert is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can first understand how to manage your product design and prototyping team, then work with them to develop physical prototypes to perfect your product for both manufacturing and the end-customer.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• Empathy in the design process with various stakeholders
• Listening to your potential customer, but also to your design team and other product development stakeholders.
• Be careful about compartmentalizing features, they need to all come together via a hardware product prototype.
• Iterative loop in design, engineering, and prototyping your hardware product
• Good prototyping relies on great design, and design that is done right to start with.
• After a professionally built CAD design is done as far as you can push it, then build a physical prototype of the invention, but keep that first prototype relatively rough and simple, such as through 3D printing.
• You don’t need to make a fully functional prototype to start getting feedback
• Never skip the iterative process in developing the product, and ensure to use multiple prototypes that increase in complexity and quality as you get closer to manufacturing.
• You are de-risking the failure of the product by properly developing your product.
• Fail early and fail often

EPISODE LINKS

Robert Irwin Links:

• LinkedIn
• Past Episode

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Mike Morton was an Industrial Design Senior Principal at Dell for many years, and before that similar roles at HP and SunBeam, along with working with many physical consumer product inventors and startups along the way. He has also been a mentor at Capital Factory and Techstars, in addition to working with Mako Design too. Today Mike is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can understand the importance and best practices around the different types of prototypes, how important prototyping is to the product development process, and how to use prototypes to ensure a product is successful both in the market and in manufacturing.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• The importance of physical product prototyping for an invention idea to go into production with
• Rough product prototype
• Mechanical product prototype
• Refined product prototype
• Pre-production prototype or production sample prototype
• Prototype early and often
• Test your prototypes out for both problems AND opportunities
• Some of the best designs and engineering ideations come out of the prototyping phases.
• Never skip prototyping steps, but rearrange them or do side prototypes to best suit the needs of your product.
• Bring in manufacturing as you start getting into the more serious mechanical prototypes, especially as you get into pre-production or refined prototypes.
• Manufacturers want you to be successful, it helps everybody.

EPISODE LINKS

Mike Morton Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-morton-design/
• Past Episode: https://productstartup.com/podcast/064-preparing-and-executing-your-products-first-production-run/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Jim Cermak has spent over 30 years helping hardware companies educate, navigate, and conquer selling their products at hardware tradeshows. He is also the Founder of Trade Show University, an organization that educates and consults small businesses on winning at trade shows, including his new video series which answers 7 key questions on how to tackle a trade show. Today Jim is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can plan for launching or scaling your hardware product at a hardware trade show, and how to maximize success when it comes to managing your tradeshow booth at the show.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• Trade shows are one of the most efficient and effective ways to get your product exposure.
• Figure out why you want to go to a trade show
• Pick the right trade show to launch or scale your product
• Understand what you have to sell.
• Be clear in your messaging at the Trade Show
• Be big and bold
• Speak the hardware buyers’ language
• Plenty of pre-show marketing for your invention idea at the trade show
• Get appointments or stop-ins ahead of time
• Reach out to the show and see what extra showcase placements they have available. Sometimes they are even free.
• Ask people at the show to give a quick testimonial about your product.
• Tips for being on the floor of the show
• Have your qualifying questions ready, be very specific.
• As a team, find out what the top questions you are getting asked are, have your top 20 tradeshow questions for your invention idea.
• Do not work the tradeshow by yourself, even if you’re just an inventor.
• Take a video of yourself after a great tradeshow conversation

EPISODE LINKS

Jim Cermak Links:

• Website: https://tradeshowu.biz/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimcermak/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Morgan Teachworth was the head of Hardware at Meraki, a company that was acquired by Cisco for $1.2 billion dollars, and is now the VP of Engineering & Supply Chain there. He has been involved in the development of hundreds of physical mass-manufactured products leading to approximately 16 million units of his products being sold around the world in his 15-year tenure with the organization. Today Morgan is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can understand the difference between developing a product to sell as a startup to then developing products to sell as a growing scale-up brand, and what you can do to best strategize for this kind of explosive hardware company growth in the product space.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• How the customer changes as you scale your hardware product business
• Your customers become your salesforce in the very early stages
• Your next tier of customers are the wholesalers, distributors, resellers, etc.
• What are some new stakeholders
• Think about the factory, the installers, the resellers,
• Micro stakeholders and macro stakeholders
• You can tune the product design, the packaging, the product experience, the manufacturing, all around multiple stakeholders
• Simplicity is an important part of design considerations, but also in all other stakeholders this should be considered too.
• Keep your product simple, it’s actually easier to do as a small physical product business than it is as you grow, so start now.
• As you grow, you become the big incumbent now that other small innovators are trying to take on.
• Cross-functional initiatives help as you scale.

EPISODE LINKS

Morgan Teachworth Links:

• Website: https://meraki.cisco.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mteachw/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Michael Corr is the Co-Founder of Duro PLM, a product lifecycle management tool for centralizing the entire communication process of development to production. They have thousands of users improving their design for manufacturing process. Today Michael is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can understand what Design For Manufacturing is, what is required to fill the gap between product development and your first production run, and how to communicate effectively with all manufacturing stakeholders, especially on a first production run.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• What is DFM Design for Manufacturing
• How do you efficiently and effectively manufacture
• Hand-based manufacturing vs automatic manufacturing in PCB / electronics parts
• Design both for functionality AND for manufacturing
• Think about manufacturing at the early phases of development
• Increase the amount of DFM work as you get closer to production
• The further along the manufacturing process, the more it will cost to fix the problem.
• Each product has its own nuances and unique elements that should be ironed out
• Manufacturers have your best interest in mind, but they don’t know the product nearly as well as you do.
• Incorporate your manufacturers into your processes, especially as you get closer to manufacturing.
• Make sure that communication channels are into your manufacturing process.
• Be sure you have transparency and trust in the failures that are occurring in manufacturing.
• This can be done in a social contract, or a technical contract.
• Communication for DFM should be in real time, and also fully disclosed.

EPISODE LINKS

Michael Corr Links:

• Website: https://www.durolabs.co/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelgcorr/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Hussain Almossawi has worked as a senior hardware director or designer at Ford, Adidas, and Apple for many of their hardware brands. He is also the author of The Innovator’s Handbook, and the Founder of the creative agency Mossawi Studios. Today Hussain is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can develop new hardware products beyond their first innovation, how to scale your brand beyond being a one-hit wonder, and how to best figure out what your next hardware innovation should be.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• What options are there beyond your first invention
• Expand your existing innovation
• Create an evolution of your product
• Create accessories for your product
• Pros and cons of each category
• How do you decide which way to expand your hardware product
• Look at semi-related industries to see how they expand, this is the very realistic ways that other industries have expanded. What can you use from this?
• Always ask what-if questions (blue sky). These are the crazy ideas.
• Tips and tricks for innovating a hardware brand
• Intersect ideas and technology to innovate your hardware product
• Be a curious sponge
• Feedback, in combination with blue sky ideas and similar industry ideas.
• You don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time you evolve.
• Be laser-focused on your development, focus on the one key feature.
• First principles method of product development.
• Keep your product simple, and keep the next innovation of your product simple.

EPISODE LINKS

Hussain Almossawi Links:

• Website: https://mossawistudios.com/
• Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/173785080X/ref=tsm_1_fb_lk
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hussainalmossawi/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/

Chris Moe is the Co-Founder of Cartograph, a digital marketing agency with over 150 million dollars of client sales per year on Amazon. They have grown a number of CPG brands from zero to millions of dollars in sales, and many of them in just a few months. Today Chris is going to share some valuable knowledge on how inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can understand what Amazon Marketplace is, how to launch your new hardware product on Amazon, and how to understand the algorithms and marketing avenues to increase your Amazon sales.

Today you will hear us talk about:

• How does Amazon work for selling a new invention hardware product?
• Using Amazon to sell products is very seller friendly.
• Make sure that you are ready to launch, and make sure that the timing is right.
• Have the first wave of product market fit.
• A lot of the time product negative feedback may just be messaging, not even in a flaw of the product.
• Pricing is a “triangulation exercise”.
• If you are cashflow constrained, make sure you price at the right price.
• Taking a low-price strategy likely doesn’t make sense for an inventor on Amazon.
• How does Amazon actually work?
• How to launch (pricing, competition, timing).
• How to scale.
• Amazon Marketplace for inventors, hardware startups, and small emerging manufacturing brands.
• Fulfillment by Amazon Network (this is how you get that Amazon Prime Badge)
• The difference between standard shipping size, and oversize shipping size.
• Invest back another 20% or so into advertising on the platform.
• How the Amazon algorithm works
• Paid ads on Amazon
• Amazon reviews, along with content (the Moat on Amazon).

EPISODE LINKS

Chris Moe / Cartograph Links:

• Website: https://www.gocartograph.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrismoe1/

The Product Startup Podcast Links:

• Website: https://www.ProductStartup.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ProductStartup/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ProductStartup/
• Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ProductStartup/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ProductStartup/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProductStartup
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@productstartup

Kevin Mako Links:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Entrepreneurs/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/KevMako/
• Quora: https://www.quora.com/profile/Kevin-Mako
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KevMakoPage/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/KevMako/