Professional manufacturers are looking for professional customers

You are going to launch your own product. Of course you want to work with professional and specialized manufacturers. The requirements on the factories are high, the price must be right, you require a top quality and your customization wishes should not pose a problem. But professional factories also expect professional customers. This means that you have to do some preliminary work to convince the factories to cooperate with you. A business relationship should pay off for both sides in the long run.

Therefore, your product knowledge and how clearly you communicate your ideas to the factory are particularly important. Customers who only want to get extensive information from a factory and then end up jumping off are a big problem for factories. The more the customer knows about his product, the better. Here is a list oft he most important things that you should know about your product before contacting a manufacturer:

• What are your requirements for your product (material, surface, branding, designs, etc.)?
• Quantities (first order and forecast for further orders)
• What makes your product special (is there a special feature to which special attention should be paid during production)?
• Are there known vulnerabilities? (direct addressing of known vulnerabilities can be helpful)
• Know your competitors! Analyze your competitors' products (e.g. if you might infringe patent rights)
• Do you want to produce a new design/ shape or choose from existing products and just put your own label on it?

If you want to create your own design you also should take the costs for new molds into account. Which ones work well and where do you see space for improvement? How can you differentiate your product from others? Do you need a customized packaging? Please prepare the designs for it and send the vector graphics to the factory. To make it even easier for the factory, it is best to compile all relevant information about your production request in a document in advance, so that as few questions as possible remain open and the factory can send a meaningful quotation. In addition, it is interesting for the manufacturer with whom he works together. Just as you want to know as much as possible about the factory, the factory also wants to know its customers as well as possible. A little self-image of you, your company and the planned products will also support the chances of a successful cooperation.

Now let's get going! We wish you lots of fun and success for your next production.

Sourcing Manufacturing