Creating & Selling a Physical Product: A $25,000 Experience

Welcome to Silicon Valley Girl, where we're diving into my experience of selling a physical product online and making $25,000 - and learning how to do it yourself or find an easier way!

1. The speaker sold a language-learning planner and made $25,000 in revenue.
2. This was her first physical product that she created and sold online.
3. She previously focused on an online marketplace that matched language schools with students.
4. She decided to create a physical product because she wanted people to be able to hold something produced by her team.
5. There are three ways to start selling a physical product online: creating it yourself, finding the best product from an exhibition and reselling it, or finding a product on a Chinese web store and
6. The speaker chose the first option and hired a copywriter, designer, and checked every single text herself to ensure perfection.
7. She emphasizes that marketing is just as important, if not more so, than the product itself.
8. She gives an example of a vacuum cleaner ad that she saw everywhere, which led her to purchase it even though she didn't need it.
9. She stresses the importance of upselling and creating a lead magnet for people to buy more expensive products in the future.
10. The speaker mentions that her business model was not perfect because she did not use the right platform, which made shipping and managing everything difficult.
11. She also discusses costs, such as hiring a copywriter from Russia for $2,000 and paying a designer $2,000 to design the planner.
12. Printing costs were around $9,000 because she wanted the paper and cover to be of high quality.
13. She mentions that it's possible to leverage cheaper labor in other countries like India, Thailand, or the Philippines.
14. In total, her costs were $13,000, but she made $25,000 in revenue, leaving her with a profit of around $7,000.
15. She recommends using platforms that manage payments, deliveries, and storage for you, such as Volusion.
16. These platforms also help automate emails and follow-ups to increase the likelihood of customers returning.
17. For marketing, she reached out to bloggers and offered them a free planner in exchange for a post about it.
18. She emphasizes the importance of building relationships with bloggers and offering value upfront.
19. She also mentions that it's important to have a social media strategy and build your personal brand.
20. The speaker advises against sending bad products to influencers and instead focusing on building genuine relationships.
21. She encourages entrepreneurs to share their products in the comments below.
22. She hints at future videos about building a personal brand and social media strategy.
23. The speaker emphasizes that marketing is crucial and can sometimes be even more important than the product itself.
24. She encourages upselling and creating lead magnets to increase revenue in the long run.

Source: Silicon Valley Girl via YouTube

❓ What do you think? What is the one thing that sets apart successful online sellers from those who struggle, according to your experience of selling a physical product online? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!