Does your product stand out?

16 June 2010 3 CommentsBy Sarah Shaw

How Do You Know if Your Product is Unique?
I get asked this question all the time! I wish I had a crystal ball that could tell you if you had the next million dollar idea. I can certainly help you determine if it is unique and worth a try! I asked my Experts to contribute their 2 cents as experienced Entreprenettes to give you a ton of ideas……56 to be exact, of how you can determine if your idea is unique and worth pursuing.

1. Earrings Without Partners

How to tell if your product is unique: We all have earrings without partners, with no chance of finding them a mate. Don't despair,they can happy transform into pendants. If the earring has a long back, simply straighten it and loop it around so it creates a bail for a chain. If it has some filigree or holes in it, simply add a jump ring to slide a chain through. If it has smooth metal around the outer edge, drill it with a 1/16" drill bit and attach a jump ring there. All you need is a rouge cloth to polish it up and a chain!

Thanks to: Amy Ragsdale of Amy Ragsdale Design.

2. Re Vamp Name and Pictures

How to tell if your product is unique: The easist way would be to retake pictures of the product in a new way, add different accents to the picture or different backgrounds, then re-vamp the name with a different angle then you had used before. A "Heart Shaped Ring"....might be called the "Must Have Love Ring". Also change the verbage of the materials you use. Sterling Silver might be referred to as Recycled Hand Melted Sterling Silver.
1.Different name 2.New Pictures 3. Materials used described differently.

Thanks to: Jackie Kaufman of Rock My World, Inc..

3. Turn Old Dog Into New Trick

How to tell if your product is unique: In 1996, I produced an exercise video for women recovering from breast cancer surgery called One Move at a Time! I sold it to a pharmaceutical company who gave away 16,000 copies to hospitals and oncology clinics. As VHS faded away, and the video sat on the shelf, I asked myself, "How can I revise this product?" Simple: I reformatted it into a DVD, designed a new, modern and updated video cover and created a custom label for the DVD face. A new product was born, just by using new technology.

Thanks to: Christine Clifford of The Cancer Club.

4. Making junk into treasure

How to tell if your product is unique: I met a gentleman recently that transforms old motherboards into very unique stained glass items (like the picture you see on the left). His custom work is absolutely amazing and it is truly hard to believe that it is not real stained glass.

Thanks to: Susanne Alexander-Heaton of Motivated by Nature.

5. How to Re-invent a Product!

How to tell if your product is unique: The Turbie Twist had been around for 12 years with the same packaging design.

In 2007, a simple change of packing style, from a standard photograph to our current "retro"-cartoon girl was made. It proved to be an instrumental part to increased sales. Sometimes an updated look can do a lot for an older product- sparking interest in new customers. We always get positive feedback about our bold packaging presence from retail customers as the product flies off the shelf.

Thanks to: Christina Cummings of Turbie Twist.

6. Doodler's Dream

How to tell if your product is unique: Encourage creativity with this fun flea market update.
Directions:
* Shop flea markets to find an old school desk
* Clean desk and apply 1-2 coats of chalkboard paint, available at local hardware stores. We recommend leaving the desk's metal frame as is. The wear and tear will give the piece added charm.
* If rust is found, sand spots lightly with steel wool, brush off dust. Tape any surfaces you don't want painted and apply metallic silver paint on rusty spots.
* Add chalk

Thanks to: Stacey Johnson of Mile High Marketplace.

7. Reinvent your online gifts

How to tell if your product is unique: Creating products that your customers love is a continual process of reinvention and ensuring you solve your customers most pressing problems.

But reinvention takes a lot of planning, effort and energy so why not make it easier on yourself and see if your existing product (s) could be tweaked to fit a niche market you don't currently cater too.

For example you offer a `How to create stunning websites that sell' eProduct for real estate agents. Could you reproduce this for consultants?

Thanks to: Natalie Sisson of WomanzWorld.

8. Repurpose To Maximize Profits

How to tell if your product is unique:
As a freelance writer/product designer, I tell clients, "Maximize profits by repurposing into physical products."

"Repurposing" means that something is reused for a new purpose. Information, for example, used to create a paperback, can be repurposed as an audio CD, a video DVD and a DVD/printed workbook.

People will pay more for physical products, and each repurposing, sold at a different price point, will appeal to a different group of buyers, thus maximizing your potential sales.

Thanks to: Bonnie Boots of Bonnie Boots Communications.

9. Hospital Gown Alternative

How to tell if your product is unique: I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 10/08. By the time I reached radiation treatments in 1/09, I was an ANGRY cancer patient. Having to wear those hideous hospital gowns, Mon-Fri for 7 wks of radiation treatments, was the last straw. I decided to make my own hospital gown to wear. I designed a bright, fun and colorful wrap. Something that felt like a nice warm HUG! Wearing my own creation gave me back my dignity and I no longer looked or felt like a patient! I now make them for others.

Thanks to: Brenda Jones of Hug Wraps.

10. Evolving with the Evolved

How to tell if your product is unique: In the customer experience industry, often it isn't a product or service that gets "stale," but rather, it is the interests of a customer base that have evolved. When those needs shift and a product seems "old" to a given market, re-brand the product around a new need, and project a product that is there to solve those needs. Study your customers and seek to understand their most nuanced preferences. And appeal to emotion- people make decisions with their hearts as well as their minds.

Thanks to: Alex Buznego of Inktel Direct.

11. It's the experience, stupid!

How to tell if your product is unique: When the Walt Disney Company needed to transform theme park rides, they looked beyond the ride itself, and focused on improving the overall customer experience. Because of this, their Fastpass innovation—a virtual line program that eliminates waiting in long lines for popular rides—became their best ride improvement initiative ever. Without changing one aspect of the ride itself, Fastpass improved the overall ride experience by eliminating long waits that customers previously experienced.

Thanks to: Patrick Lefler of The Spruance Group.

12. Framing that never gets old

How to tell if your product is unique: Jacklyn, a senior at Bishop Moore HS in Orlando, turns abandoned & distressed picture frames into useful jewelery display pieces. She paints and decorates an 8 x 10 frame or larger and "frames" a piece of wire mesh that can be used to hold pierced earings. The frame itself has hooks that holds necklaces and bracelets. The piece looks great on a bedroom wall or in a bathroom. The frames can be personalized with items including buttons, cork, keys, old sunglasses. I have ordered two as xmas gifts

Thanks to: Cathy Griffin of JB Designs.

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