[l u k e]

I do not necessarily agree, and we have been on different sides of this fence before. I boot-strapped my business up from nothing totally by myself, and the support of a wife and family who did not mind eating macaroni and cheese five days a week (the other two were crackers and water ) I taught/forced myself to do everything; managing, marketing, product development, sales, attending trade shows, being nice to people when I wanted to strangle them. It is possible if you are motivated, and I am very glad that I was motivated because now my wife and I are the sole owners of a very profitable, several million dollar company, and can enjoy life taking cruise around the world or relaxing in our backyard. And I get to play on the CNC machines in my home shop.

Off topic, but what is your business? Would you by any chance have a web site? I'm currently on the second or third step on the same ladder that you have already climbed, I'm just curious what product you sell.

[Noodles87]

I'd just like to thank everyone who's given their opinions and suggestions so far. I apreacite all of it.

Geof. if you're willing, I'd really like to hear more from you. Here or PM if you'd rather it be there. Also, anyone else who's willing to share their experiences of what they've gone through and things they've learned along the way.

Thanks again, everyone, its been great!

[Geof]

......Geof. if you're willing, I'd really like to hear more from you......

I am always willing to prattle on, indeed I have been told on more than one occasion that I am too willing.

But what to prattle about? I reviewed the posts in this thread, and I do not think there is one that does not provide useful in formation. So I am just going to prattle on different topics that may or may not have been touched on. Some of this is based on my experience or perspective, some from talking to other business owners, some from reading magazines and books. Probably none of it is truly original.

Patents?

If your product is really difficult to develop, dead easy to make, and has a market that can absorb kazillions...get a patent. Even if you do not have the money to protect it you will probably find someone who will, for a piece of the action, and even if you finish up with a minority share you have to remember that a minor share of something big is better than owning all of nothing.

If your product is fairly simple to develop , but requires a big investment in machinery to make, and/or needs a lot of pre- and post-sale customer service...forget about patents. Put your money and effort into getting it on the market, build up your customer service capability and develop a reputation for being the best. You will get knock-offs of course, but they will never displace you.

Pricing?

Many moons ago I did a degree in science, and had to take some 'Arts' courses, so I took an Economics course designed for non-economists. Apart from all the jargon like monopoly, and monopsony, and elasticity of demand, etc., one thing a remember is it gave me a definition for the correct price, for anything. The correct price is slightly less than the next alternative. Notice that this definition does not take any notice of what it costs you to make and sell the 'anything'. Also, if there is no alternative, there is nothing to be less than, so you charge what the market will bear. My first business was making scientific equipment, and for one item I made I found out what was the typical maximum amount that a university researcher could spend without getting competitive bids...and set my price just below that. It was a great money-spinner for several years.

Market Entry

This is kinda related to pricing. You have a new product, the greatest thing since sliced bread (almost), how do you introduce it to the market? You can come in low and go for volume right away, or you can come in high; what are the disadvantages or benefits?

The disadvantage to coming in low and going for volume is that you need a large amount of capital up front to finance the high volume production and advertising. The benefit is that if you are successful you, and your investors because you are almost certain to need them, can multiply your investment several-fold in a short time, and bale out before the market gets saturated.

The advantage to coming in high is that you limit your sales so you have time to ramp up production. You recover the high inititial cost of low volume production. You actually find out what is the maximum price a portion of the market will accept, and you cream off this portion. As your volumes rise, and unit manufacturing costs decline, you can reduce prices and tap into larger, but price sensitive sections of the market. If somebody tries to compete with you it is possible you will have the flexibility to offer significant discounts for a limited time, and blow them out of the water.


And that more or less exhausts my prattlefullness for the moment; actually truth be told, I am going to crack a bottle of wine, and my typing ability will soon degenerate.

[Noodles87]

Thanks Geof! I always enjoy reading posts from you and a few others. They're very insightful. I don't think you'll from me, that you've gone and said too much! haha. So feel free to say as much as you'd like.

Anyone else willing to share experiences, suggestions, and what not, as well?

Thanks guys!