Discussion 2: Finding Products That People Search For

How do I pick a winning product? Selecting the products in your catalog or making your own products require surprisingly similar thought processes to achieve great results. Both consumer packaged goods companies and custom packaged goods companies have flourished, even while the business of retailing the items in brick and mortar stores have become less valuable. I remember loving to go to Toys 'R Us as a kid, now they're barely keeping above water.
What happened is a very complex situation, however there were major story lines woven into that situation. As a kid a trip to Toys 'R Us was awesome, you got to try out new toys and hopefully walk out of the store with a present even though I rarely deserved one as a kid. That experience seemed to have changed, it's tough when adults like me make broad assumptions about an experience for another, and in this case younger, generation. I think part of that experience I lost as a kid wasn't yet established.
The Big Box store. These retail behemoths became warehouses for the retail population. Home Depot is basically the only one that "should" look like a warehouse, but recent trips to Toys 'R Us were simply a Home Depot experience. The products are no longer front and center, useful/testing experiences are not catered to. As an aside, DJI has awesome retail stores, so does Nespresso, they're both nailing it, more on that later.
Products for retail are easy for anyone with virtually any money to get into. Want to start a business with only $100? You can. Want to purchase $10 million in inventory? You can. Want to build the next ______? You can. The retail, and the manufacturing side has never been more accessible. Even 15 years ago it was a ton of capital to get a brand up and running. I built Dawg Grillz, a brand with a $150,000 valuation in the first year with only $20,000. That's a 650% increase in one year. My business Creatibly has seen a 351% increase in the past 5 years and as of January-July has increased 100% over < year >.

Shorten your failure cycle until your successes rub against each other.

As a brand builder that's my job, to build a brand and help it grow. Not every attempt is a success, but the failures are shortening their cycles in between successes. That should be a goal of every business, to not overly worry about failures but to simply to shorten the failure cycle. It's much the same with anything in life, if you're trying to lose weight simply reduce or shorten the mistakes you make, maybe the donut should be singular, not plural. If you want to run faster, gradually reduce the time between cycles of not running. It's an over simplification here but I promise to give up the details. Context is important.

Don't sell crap to people.

This one should be dead obvious but it's still not and it blows my mind. Consumers are more than ever able to distinguish between a great product that satisfies or exceeds their expectations or it sucks and Yelp hears about it, and Google Reviews hears about it, and they blog about it. If you try to dupe people they'll come back, not in the way you want them too, your personal brand will take a hit.
When you receive a product sample or are designing your own, put yourself in the shoes of how the consumer feels. Is it up to your own expectations? If you received this as a gift would you be happy or just "meh…" If you're marginally on the fence with the "meh…," it's time to re-evaluate it. Your product may need Version 1.1 or 3.1 before it's ready.

Keep refining and putting in the work so that if you received your own product you would be happy.

Death by committee is common, it goes something like this: You're happy with your brand, your product, your service or any combination and you decide that it would be a great idea if 15 of your family members reviewed what you've done. They'll most likely dislike what you've done or give you a laundry list of errors, you'll never keep up and you'll most likely become dis-heartened. I've been in the consumer packaged goods industry for 15 years, I have seen amazing products hit the trash can because someone lost hope in it, they lost hope when it was ready, when it could have been sold, when it could have made someone happy, could've changed the world.
Ego is always tough to leave out of your product, and even a brand you represent whether on a manufacturing, distribution, wholesaling or retailing. It's important to take the helm of your own brand and be it's ambassador. Too few people stand up for themselves and their brands that they end up feeling like they're not worthy of them and lock the doors.

Taking responsibility and being an ambassador for your brand is endlessly important.

When you decide on your brand's design or the product you represent it's important to represent that brand to the best of your abilities. Whether it's simply responding to e-mails promptly, responding to positive and negative feedback promptly, to representing your brand even by the way you act. You will eventually embody your brand and it's important to put the best, most unique version of yourself out there to represent it. One of my Chinese employees said to me once "If you're one in a million in China, there are ten thousand just like you." At first it was kind of offensive at face value, but when I asked him more he said that even if you are incredibly unique there are thousands you can relate to.

You are going to become your brand, you may as well love what it stands for.

If being straight laced, suit and tie wearing, shoes polished kind of business person there is a huge market. If you've died your hair purple and wear a mask there is a huge market for you too. With how connected we've all become it's easy to see how unique our market has become. 40 years ago, you could choose between laundry detergent one, or number two. Now I can get laundry detergent that meets my specific niche. I made a valuable, original, unique business from a ball for dogs, you know how many balls there are for dogs? Usually less than two if you're being a responsible pet owner ;)
"If you don't know where you're going, any road'll take there." – George Harrison
You may ask "what does this have to do with me picking a product?" Well, it's simple, you don't have to follow a trend, try to predict a market, try to guess what kids will be into three summers from now. Think small in community, think you, think about what you would do, or what you would want to buy and there is a market for it. You're not alone, you don't need to appeal to the masses in order to be successful.
When I speak of success, I speak of day to day, sustainable success. It's always better to swing high and miss, than to swing low and hit. You may as well be on-board with your own brand. You're hopefully going to see your brand grow every day, and evolve constantly, you're going to be responsible for its successes and its failures.

Think about the logistics of your brand.

I have an old house, come to think of it I've always lived in old buildings. With radiator heating and window air conditioners peppered around the windows. Do you know how hard it is to find a window air conditioner that actually looks nice? It's friggin' impossible I tell you, the ones I have are by a top brand and work great but they completely suck from a human interaction and visual appeal stand point. They're noisy, but air conditioners have to be, you know, mechanics and what-not.
Here's why all window air conditioners look like shit, logistics. They're heavy so they need a monster of a box to carry them, that box has to absorb test drops as well. Logistics comes into play with how cubic meters are shipped, by the cubic meter. Typically weight doesn't have a ton (pun intended) to do with it when shipping large quantities, sure if you're shipping a cubic meter of lead it will generally be different than feathers, but when it comes to products people use it's generally not that vast a difference. So the air conditioner manufacturer has to design something that is efficient and powerful in a small space so design and interaction move way down the list of items that need to be checked.
This lack of design and human interaction considerations has effected the price, each time I'm in a big box retailer or shopping on-line air conditioners are in a race for the bottom. If all of the products in a category are generally terrible then price is the only concern. This is how your product becomes a race for the bottom on pricing. These manufacturers have decided that $300 for an air conditioner is expensive, and they mark the price down to compete because the products are the same. Then consumers walk out of the same Best Buy store with a $1000 phone. I hope this is coming clear, if you leave out original, unique answers to product questions you only have price to differentiate yourself. If you build something, or partner with someone selling something unique and can connect with your audience you will have a great business on your hands.

Being unique will allow you to avoid the race to the bottom on pricing.

Connecting your product to its market is the priority for any product, and doing so has never been easier. Depending on your budget you may have to order smaller quantities, maybe one at a time, if this is the case then there are numerous manufacturers in various categories, think custom anything. The greatest feature of this new custom economy is that custom products are incredibly popular.
One of the industries that rooted itself in the custom consumer packaged goods market is also one of the largest, the cycling industry. As a consumer you have been able to build a custom bicycle for the past decade. Never has a bicycle been more expensive, the industry has seen a near exponential increase in product cost, it's easy to by a bicycle for well over $15,000 and it's common to virtually any brand. There is a market for a $15,000 bicycle, a huge one in fact. I used to race years ago even up to the National Level and it was incredibly fun, I used to race on an $10,000 bike, and even at my level I didn't need it, it was too much bike, the only reason people bought these was that they were the best of the best for that time.
Having a unique, customized, and high quality product offering will put your product in a category where the customers will be more demanding of quality but also less responsive to pricing considerations.
Here are some tips on picking or creating your product or brand:
1. "Shorten your failure cycle until your successes rub against each other.
2. "Don't buy, or sell crap to people."
3. "Keep refining and putting in the work so that if you received your own product you would be happy."
4. "Taking responsibility and being an ambassador for your brand is endlessly important."
5. "You are going to become your brand, you may as well love what it stands for."
6. "If you don't know where you're going, any road'll take there." – George Harrison"
7. "Think about the logistics of your brand."
8. "Being unique will allow you to avoid the race to the bottom on pricing."

Using The Affiliate Business Model for Local Businesses

Discussion 1: Finding AliExpress Suitable Products to ReSell on Amazon

How I literally started an Amazon business in about 1 month for about $1KBRIEF INTRODUCTION (PURPOSE OF THIS POST):
Hey guys. Listen. This is not a plug for anything, this is me trying to help you. In my opinion, all the info you need to start an Amazon business is on YouTube, Reddit, and podcasts. In my humble opinion, you'd be a fool to pay thousands for a course or bootcamp, when you could spend that on product.
I did it with $1k and in about a month. Below is how I did it, step by step, with very specific examples from my process. Before I dove into this world, the phrase "start a business" was intimidating to me. What? How? Isn't that for Stanford MBA's, folks with millions of dollars, etc.? Don't you need an earth-shattering idea that will change the world? No, and NO!!! You need some common sense, willingness to put in about 100 hours in a month, and a thousand bucks. Note: if you have anything more than $1000 to devote to this, it only makes it easier, but I did this with less than $1000.
WHAT YOU NEED:
• $1000 dollars
• about 100 hours of time to work on this, in a month
• an internet connection
• a mailing address
THE STEPS

Step 1) Amazon Research

• APPROX TIME: 1 week
• APPROX COST: $0
Go to Amazon. Find a product that meets the following basic criteria:
• It sells well
• The top results don't have too many reviews (4 guys with 2-500 reviews? Good. 9 guys with 4,000 reviews? Bad. Too much competition. 2 guys with 60 reviews? VERY Bad. No Demand).
• No national brand dominates the product (Don't sell basketball shoes against Nike and UnderArmour)
• In general you want something small and light. This is extremely important
This is the most important part of the process, and a long, arduous process. You will find products you love, and in two days, they will seem like crap. It's all part of the process. Here is a screenshot of the numbers for the top-16 products for a certain keyword, that I consider good, and am considering pursuing right now:

🔗🏹
Why is this a good product? There are a LOT of sales per month (anything over 3K sales per month for the top few competitors on a keyword is great). Why? Because even if I capture a SMALL percent of the market share, I can make $2-$5k per month in profit here. Not bad. People with as few as 30 reviews are doing $9K/month in sales. And reviews are the toughest part of this game. I don't care if you invent the cure for cancer, if it is on page 9 of Amazon, with 0 reviews, no one is buying it. I can get 30 reviews in a week or two. And if my product is good, and the marketing is good, I will be making a lot of money here.

Step 2) AliExpress – buy your inventory

• APPROX TIME: 3 days
• APPROX COST: $522.28
This is where you go to AliExpress. And you simply buy your product, and it is delivered to you in about 1-2 weeks. That's it.
USUALLY, you want to go through AliBaba. Better rates, but you also have to buy large MOQ's (minimum order quantities), and wait for a long time for it to get to you. Right now, we are focused on SPEED. And AliExpress is like Amazon: you order 100 of something, and in 1-2 weeks, it's at your doorstep. Period.
Lets say I decided to compete in water bottles. (HINT: do NOT compete in things like water bottles and iPhone cases. Firstly, water bottles are dominated by great brands Nalgene and CamelBak. Secondly, these are too popular, and hundreds of buyers, with deeper pockets than you, are aggressively pursuing. If it's obvious, it won't work, and you will be buried on page 10 of results making 1 sale a month).
Here's how you do it:
a) Search "water bottle" on Amazon. (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_5?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=water+bottle&sprefix=water+bottle%2Caps%2C194&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Awater+bottle).
b) Check out the top sellers, what traits they have, etc. Pay special attention to the price for a water bottle. Looks like the top ones are going for 10-13. So you will price yours at 10-13.
c) Search "water bottle" on AliExpress. I did, and on the first page, I found this:
(http://www.aliexpress.com/item/New-Black-Environmental-Cartoon-Foldable-Water-Bottle-Bag-Portable-Kettle-Outdoor-Sports-Travel-Bottles-Free-Shipping/32306477305.html?spm=2114.01020208.3.12.m93aOm&ws_ab_test=201526_5,201527_4_71_72_73_74_75,201409_1)
A cool looking, foldable water bottle, made from food grade material, BPA free, leak-proof, drop resistant. Looks swanky. Could probably sell. 2 BUCKS A PIECE.
d) The price is 2 bucks a piece. You may be thinking "sweet! Buy for 2, sell for 12, game on!"
No, no, no, my friend. Each piece also costs about $1.50 to ship to you from China. So that's $3.50 per piece. Amazon then takes a cut for allowing you to list it. That's probably another $4. Packaging is another $0.50 per piece (you need this. You cant' just sent customers a loose water bottle). And shipping to TO Amazon will be about 20 cents a piece.
So a product that costs $2…will all-in-all, actually cost about $9 to get into Amazon warehouses. So you're making a $3 profit per item, in this example.
In general, you want to shoot for much higher, which is why I am not doing this, and illustrates why you don't go into popular products. Companies with deep pockets are selling 5,000 of these per month, which makes it worth it. To you, selling 100 items a month at $3 profit…is not worth it.
LETS SAY, I BUY 150 WATER BOTTLES. INCLUDING SHIPPING TO ME, I AM PAYING $522.28. THAT IS $3.50 PER UNIT. SEE SCREENSHOT BELOW

🔗🏹

Step 3.1) While you wait for product to arrive – get the marketing ready – Packaging

• APPROX TIME: 1-2 weeks
• APPROX $$: $210 bucks
Here is the easiest way I found to make professional looking packaging for cheap. If you can think of a better idea, do it, but this works in a pinch.
Go to a site like Uline, order 150 boxes at $0.40 cents a pop. That's $60 bucks.
http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-18336/Corrugated-Boxes-32-ECT/8-x-8-x-8-Lightweight-32-ECT-Corrugated-Boxes
Next, find someone in your area who does stickers. Design your own sticker in Photoshop (or GIMP) if you can't afford it, and print these. In general, its $1 per sticker, so $150 total.
Stickers + Box = $210, and boom, you have packaging. Don't over complicate it, this is all you need. It doesn't need to be Apple-like packaging and design, just enough to get the job done.
Here is a whited out picture of my packaging for my product:

🔗🏹
Again, not world-beating, but for a week or two of work, it looks professional enough.

Step 3.2) While you wait for product to arrive – get the marketing ready – PHOTOGRAPHY

• APPROX TIME: 3 days
• APPROX $$: 0 (??)
Guys, you need good product photos. Ask a friend who has a nice camera to get you some, take some good photos with good lighting (This can be done DIY for minimal money), and learn to white out backgrounds to your photos by yourself (takes an hour or two-very valuable skill).
Not gonna get too much into this, but this is HUGE. People click on your product based on photo. It conveys that you are a professional company, and not some putz in his basement (even if you are).
At a MINIMUM, you want your listing to look like this: http://www.amazon.com/SKYE-Bottle-COOLEST-Frosted-Birthday/dp/B00KUT0PGK/ref=sr_1_79?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1442698381&sr=1-79&keywords=water+bottle
Search for Skye Bottle, these dudes (or dude, or chick, whatever) sourced some items, tossed up a quick page, and their listening doesn't look amazing. This isn't a company at all. This one bottle is making $5K a month. This is possible

Step 4) The Final shit

• APPROX TIME: 1.5 weeks
• APPROX $$: $75
You get your bottles. By now you have your boxes and stickers. Put the stickers on the boxes, put the bottles in the boxes, pack them up. Put them into a bigger box. Sign up for an Amazon Professional Seller account $40/month, first month is free. Create a listing. Put all info on your product, and the pictures of your product up. Send in your 150 units to Amazon FBA Warehouses. This will be about $35 for this example.
In 1.5 weeks, Amazon will receive your stuff, sort it, and distribute it to their warehouses.
And Voila. Congrats. You have now started your own brand, and are selling on Amazon.

Misc Notes:

Give away 50 of these in exchange for reviews. Pretend you didn't pick water bottles, but something where you need 50 reviews to get to page 1. You need those ASAP. You now have 100 bottles left. That is what you sell.
If they sell, re-invest into more bottles, and bam, you have your own company, and small business.

What if My Product Is a Success?

Let's say your product sells out quick. Contact the seller, ask about wholesale pricing for an order of 1,000 pieces or more. If you get it for $2 a pop from AliExpress, wholesale pricing probably means you can get it at $1 per piece if you order a lot. Rinse and repeat.
If your seller is a reseller, and not the wholeseller, go on AliBaba, find a manufacturer who can make the exact same product as your got (send them a sample or the spects), order a lot. Rinse anad repeat. Good luck
EDIT 1: DISCLAIMER – If You Are Ready to Take This Seriously, Use Alibaba, Not Aliexpress
I recommend using AliExpress if you want to hack your way to do this, and have a basic product up within a month. If you're tired of studying and want to act already, if you want to build a business with customers within 30 days, this is a decent way to go.
BUT.
It's best to spend more than $1000. And the best way to do this is to source on ALIBABA. AliBaba is where you get shit in BULK. You get lower prices. And you deal directly with manufacturers, so you can print your logo onto things, customize packaging, change the color, etc. You don't worry about putting stuff into boxes and labeling…they do that for you.
AliBaba has minimum order quantities (MOQ's) and most factories will not deal with you if you are ordering less than a few grand of stuff. If you are not ready to commit to that, or want to dip your feet in, use AliExpress.
If you're ready for the big leagues, use AliBaba.
The steps are pretty much the same.

Shopify CMS as a Subdomain to Run Amazon Affiliate Program and DropShipping

A Dropshipping Store past $1m in 6 Months