How Products Come to Life…
We wanted to put your curiosity to the test and showcase how IdeaPros makes amazing products come to life! Designing and engineering a product that will fly off the shelf is a very strategic and meticulous process. We have broken it up into 7 phases to illustrate the process.
Keep in mind that this is more of a flow chart than a checklist. If something isn’t resonating with the target audience or manufacturing complications come up, you may have to go back to a previous phase to refine, test and tweak more.
The Design & Engineering Process
1. Define The Problem
You’ve already seen the problem you’re solving AND the solution in your head; you know your product is going to change the world. In the first phases of the idea design and engineering process, you have to answer some tricky questions. In the end, how do you know something can endure the scrutiny of the public once it is released, if it cannot endure an examination by a friendly team trained to ask the right questions?
This is how the engineering process begins: you tell us about your inspiration (The idea, invention that was inspired through you), we clearly define the problem (there was a problem and you came up with the solution, we take it to the design & engineering level) together, and see what the unique selling position of your product is that will make the problem disappear.
2. Do Your Research
The next step is to identify your users and determine the demographics and their specific needs. This research is important to the whole engineering process because it would be a terrible waste of time and money to continue further if you are not sure you have the right product to start with.
Identify your users and determine the demographics and their specific needs
Regardless of where you are at in the process and how much research you’ve done or plan on doing. Do your best to gather as much information about your Target Market or Markets, an engineer team can definitely point you in the right direction.
“At IdeaPros, we talk to the users as we want to make sure that when we are designing and engineering the product that we’re designing and engineering it for the right reasons.” – Mark Sousa
3. Decide On A Concept
After the research, we start brainstorming the engineering process and sketch several possible engineering models/solutions for our design and engineering partners. The sketching process is very important as it helps us make sure we are on the same page with our partners and that we are bringing their vision to life.
“We want to really realize our partner’s vision, but we also want them to be successful.” – Fred Cary
4. Refine The Product
We offer our partners two or three possible solutions. Sometimes they will pick something
from every option. This will help us choose the right direction to go into, knowing that what we are putting on paper at this point is something we will be able to engineer and create as a prototype.
5. Make A Rough Prototype
The next phase of the engineering process is “The Breadboard” phase. Wereate a rough prototype that won’t look exactly like the product, but it will work like the product. We want to be sure that the product will fulfill its purpose. This is when the product starts coming to life. The most important thing to understand here is that this is something that takes time, it is not about getting it done fast, but about getting it done right.
“You know, the Wright brothers were not the first to invent the plane. They were the first to perfect the plane.” – Mark Sousa
6. Define The Price And Start Rendering
Once we have our product in CAD (Computer-Aided Design) as well as the bill of materials, we can send it to our manufacturers for quoting to define the price of the product. After that, we can start rendering and creating high-end drawings and sketches for marketing use.
7. Brand Your Product
And last, but none the least, branding — finding the right color, the name of the product, creating a website where people can see the product even before it’s launched. Having a plan which will answer the how, where, and who is key to a successful launch of the product.
And of course, packaging — people sometimes forget how important packaging is. The packaging is the very first thing we see and it plays a huge role in our decision to buy the product.
“You can have the best chef in the world, but if you don’t have a good waiter, nobody will ever know.” – Mark Sousa
Choose Your Partners Wisely
IdeaPros is a Super Venture Partner™ who has the resources, experience, and tools to help you at this step or any step in the entrepreneurial journey.
We partner with entrepreneurs at any stage and who are ready to invest in their idea. Apply for an interview and let’s explore partnering together.