Successful entrepreneurship is not only about designing a good product. It includes the entire range of the profit-making process, from market research to product expansion. There is no denying that creating a good design makes up a significant portion of the work. Still, in today’s increasingly competitive business landscape, it’s almost impossible to rely solely on how well-designed your product is and take everything else for granted.
There is no guarantee that a product from any company, big or small, will be profitable and see financial success. There are just too many variables at play, from consumer demands and market trends to marketing and price. Some variables are beyond your control, but product design is your brainchild—it is the result of a combination of creativity, hard work, critical thinking, smart business decisions, and willingness to seize even the slightest market opportunity.
Having a reliable consumer product design company as part of the team allows you to focus on core business activities such as building networks, acquiring financial capital, and analyzing your competitors without putting aside the actual design process. When all are done simultaneously, market penetration can (and will) happen at a much quicker pace.
The Pros of Product Design Services
A product design company takes away a lot of headaches and hassle from the entrepreneur while providing professionals to help intensify and materialize ideas without the expensive overhead cost. Each design agency has its own approach to product development, but they can all help you in the following ways.
Research
You may have a lot of questions and worries about your own product design well before it goes out for sale. When it comes to entrepreneurship, having just the right degree of hesitation is not necessarily a bad thing as long as you can weaponize it appropriately.
Instead of getting dragged down into the hole of procrastination, you should be all fired-up to get the right answers. Even if you don’t like some of the answers at the end of the day, at least you’ll know before it’s too late.
In the mind of a budding entrepreneur, there must be some lingering questions like:
- Are there similar products on the market already?
- If not, is my product design technically-viable to manufacture?
- How much does the production cost?
- If there are similar products, what makes mine different from others?
- How big are my competitors? How long have they been on the market?
- What are my target demographics?
- How should I price my product to make a profit?
- How much are consumers willing to pay?
Any smart business owner figures out all the answers before continuing with the actual product design process, not the other way around.
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Comprehensive market research removes all the guesswork and minimizes the chances of making the wrong product with the wrong design for the wrong market. It is impossible to overstate the importance of market research prior to product design and launch. Some key points to remember:
- Entrepreneurs must conduct thorough market research to develop a product design (and revise it if necessary), plan for viable production method, and craft strategies to make sales.
- Not only does market research analyze competitors, but it also identifies consumer trends. Based on the trends, entrepreneurs can invent solutions for ongoing problems.
- Information in the analysis is the foundation for promotion and marketing plans.
Bear in mind that not every product design agency also does market research analysis. In case you happen to come across an agency that offers such a service, you will have to look at the agency’s previous case studies. Don’t be fooled by a lot of technical drawings and creative designs; what you need to see is an assortment of final products, client testimonials, and a good track record of introducing actual products to market.
A reputable industrial design company can help you handle the entire market research process during early development phases including choice of materials, profitability, manufacturing methods, and marketing approach to build a strong foundation upon product launch.
Fresh Voices and Ideas
Regardless of the type of product you want to create, working with a product design company provides the obvious advantage of enhanced creativity. As soon as everyone involved sees the rough sketch and hears the underlying idea behind it, there is an immediate expansion of perspectives and opinions.
Think of the design company as a fresh pair of eyes to help recognize potential errors and room for improvement. Once all possible mistakes are identified, the company can streamline the solutions and make the product much better while maintaining the originality of your idea.
Everyone at the product engineering company is part of your team. Assuming you manage to work with an experienced company, the professionals are able to offer valuable advice and recommendations based on the tried-and-true thinking process to both eliminate development errors and boost marketing potential.
A design company is considered “experienced” only if it has worked for and with many different clients with their own unique perspectives on a vast array of products. As a result, the company is now equipped with a broad range of approaches to design in its vault.
When the idea behind your product and a smart analysis of what customers need are put into one creative space, together they create a powerful combination to ensure survival in a competitive market. In the absence of market research and external perspectives, it is easy to fall into the trap of designing a product for yourself rather than for potential buyers.
One key element in grabbing a buyers’ attention and motivating them to keep coming back for more is a powerful customer experience. Whether you’re creating a physical or digital product in every form factor and operating system, the product must be able to engage customers with its aesthetic, usability, and functionality. Cad Crowd’s furniture design freelancers do this expertly.
Customer engagement based on good product experiences nurtures preference and a much more personalized connection between the product and users.
Cost Efficiency
Unless you run a big company with a sizable financial strength behind your back, building and assembling an in-house professional design team can drain your wallet in no time. For startups or small businesses, the payroll from hiring pet toy designers – who can immediately get on the job – can be too much of a burden. Another option is recruiting young designers. It may sound like a better use of money until you think about giving them training and equipment.
On the other hand, a product design company already is an established service provider filled with professionals equipped with the right tools for the jobs. The team is made up of professionals of various backgrounds, not only design and engineering, but also supply-chain, manufacturing, marketing, finance, and so on.
RELATED: What Engineering for Manufacturing is and How it Helps Product Design Companies
It is true that outsourcing sometimes comes with negative connotations in the world of entrepreneurship, but in reality, it all depends on the outsourced company’s quality and professionalism. Outsourcing (including for product design) is a proven method of achieving good profitability thanks to the cost-efficiency, especially when the outsourcing agency/company you work with is of a reputable kind.
On-Time Product Launch
Based on the type of product and its manufacturing specifications, it’s easier to predict when your product will be ready for launch. In many cases, you want to beat out your competitors, but sometimes being the quickest to hit store shelves does not mean a better chance of success.
January is a good month to launch self-help online courses, books, sports equipment, or healthcare devices. July is great for all summer products, while November and December are excellent for launching family-oriented products with Thanksgiving and Christmas themes, such as toys or fashion accessories.
Launching your product on time means taking it to market according to a plan based on your market research. You don’t have to be the quickest; it can bite you in the back, especially if you rush the design process.
Working with a freelance 3D product modeling company gives the benefit of efficient time management simply because the team can work on many different (but not all) parts of the job simultaneously, such as crafting a promotion plan, design refinement, and searching for factory partners to manufacture the product.
Outsourcing the design process to an agency takes the pressure and overhead off of your in-house team, yet your product development still gets the much-deserved attention it needs to arrive at the market exactly as intended.
You’re Not Designing for Yourself
Product development is not the easiest thing to get right. It’s exciting to take a glimpse at what the market may give you, but it’s only possible if you make serious investments to tackle day-to-day problems from the start to product launch and beyond. You have a greater level of confidence and a positive approach to challenges with a professional development team on your side.
When looking for a product design company, be sure to elaborate on your idea and ask the team to collaborate with you on it. As a rule of thumb, remember that you are not designing for yourself but all potential buyers in the market. Be very clear about what you want right from the beginning and ask them to give detailed explanations for every change suggested.
Cad Crowd has a network of freelance 3D modeling services and product design services. If you’re looking for help designing your product, whether you’re in the prototype stage or are just coming up with the idea, let us help. Contact us today for a free quote.