How does an entrepreneur get product/protoype to market?

Question

I've developed prototypes and played with ideas but how do I move from prototype to production. Is there any books or resources that explain the process. Most resources I've found are too general.

Answer 1

Here are some book titles that are relevant:

* Bringing Your Product to Market: Fast-Track Approaches to Cashing in on Your Great Idea, 2nd Edition by Don Debelak
* Entrepreneur Magazine: Bringing Your Product to Market by Don Debelak
* Product Idea to Product Success: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Making Money from Your Idea by Matthew Yubas

Hope that helps! I wish you much success & happiness in all your ventures!

Answer 2

Moving from prototype to production is not an easy thing to do. Are you well financed? If you have the money then I would start talking to some people that can produce your item. Find out what the costs are going to be to produce it.... mold fees, minimum production runs, shipping cost, retail packaging costs, digitizing fees, raw materials. I would also start marketing your item to prospective buyers. Make sure that your prototype is of production quality, meaning it looks and operates the same as the finished product will. See if there is interest in your product and who will purchase it from you. Then that will give you an idea of how much you should produce for your first run. You may even get firm commitments from some buyers.
You need to make a choice where you will produce your item. Will it be domestic or overseas? Domestic to start might make the most sense but it will cost you more. Overseas is a bit tricky but will cost less over the long run. Without more info its hard to lean either way for where I would produce it. One of the things you could do is use a trading company or someone like me who does OEM manufacturing overseas. They will take the guess work out of the production for you. They will give you what the price will be and if you can live with it and maintain the margins you want then all you will have to do is market it. Hope this helped. Good luck.
Oh if your idea is one that should have a patent then make sure you have at least a provisional patent in place before you go showing your idea all over the place.