Manufacture a Product – Domestic or International

“How do I manufacture a product?” is the most common question that entrepreneurs tend to ask. They might have a different approach, but the question is still the same. After you start your business and design your product, find the best way to create your product and offer it to your customers.

Working with the wrong factory can be very expensive. Many companies fail because they invest too much money in the production process and do not leave enough for marketing. Here are some tips to get started.

Prepare

Before you choose to work with an international or domestic manufacturing company, you need to do your homework. There are multiple things to keep in mind here. First, you need to do market research and then you must figure out the type of product you want to create. You also need to design the product (we recommend having it designed with manufacturability in mind) which can be a rather time-consuming process.

Prototypes

It’s a very good idea to create a prototype overseas because you get access to the best manufacturing plants and they are also very affordable. A prototype is important, so you get to show investors and other people your products. Making the prototype as close as possible to your idea is crucial, since it will make your projects more believable and appealing. You will have an idea of the quality you can expect from your manufacturer. Keep in mind that initial prototypes are usually quite different from the final product.

Manufacture a Product Internationally or Domestically?

Normally a lot of entrepreneurs would go with the local approach, but the problem with that is it can be very expensive. If you’re a small startup owner, investing so much can bankrupt your business. There’s a reason why many companies including Apple manufacture their products overseas. It is a lot less expensive, and for the most part you are getting the same experience and results. You need to take all of that into consideration since it will help you quite a lot in the long run. However it is crucial to find a trustworthy manufacturing partner, and there are additional difficulties like language and time barriers when working with international manufacturers.

Manufacturing Process

The first step for this entire process is to create your own designs and prototypes. It will end up being quite a challenge and a time-consuming process. But that’s what will help you get started and the process is necessary.

After that, it is time to find a good manufacturer. Ideally you want to search the internet and find the best manufacturer that you can. Directories will be a good starting point, but don’t hesitate to ask for referrals or anything like that. It’s important to focus on that and ensure that everything comes together the way you expect. You can contact multiple manufacturers to see how they respond, what manufacturing conditions they have and so on. The more you know about them, the better it will be.

Now you want to create a prototype overseas. You can use a single manufacturer or you can go with multiple ones to see which is the better option. A lot of people go with the latter option because it offers a better insight into what you can expect and what results you can get. It certainly helps and you will find yourself very impressed with the quality and the process itself.

Once you know what you can get quality-wise, ask for a quote for a certain amount of products. Then you compare the quotes and see which one suits your needs. You need to study the quote very well to see what’s included, if there are any extra costs you need to know about and anything else like that. It’s crucial to talk about this kind of stuff because it will give you an insight into the total costs and any other challenges that might arise.

Minimum Order Quantity

Another thing to consider is that creating products internationally might affect minimum order quantities. What are those? Lots of international manufacturers need to be sure that their customers order in bulk, so they have a certain amount of products required per order. The minimum order quantity is important because some manufacturers will require a higher one than others. You need to inspect quotes carefully, because it will provide a much better way to weed out the manufacturers you do not want to work with.

Once you go through all these steps, you can go ahead and begin your order. The most important aspect when you manufacture products overseas is consistency. It is cheaper and you get a larger profit margin, but at the same time you still need to the right manufacturing partner for your business. This is actually going to be trickier than you might imagine. It’s common to go through a few manufacturers before you find the right one.

Conclusion

It can be challenging to manufacture products internationally, but it is also one of the best ways to boost your revenue margin. We recommend taking your time and studying all of the options. Then, pick the one that works for you. Manufacturing internationally is the best approach if you want quality and competitively priced products. If you need support or have any questions please feel free to contact us.