Update on Manufacturing/Selling my Aftermarket Screens
Hello WA friends,
Many of you will recall some earlier posts I made discussing how I took a leap of faith and invested in equipment, parts and supplies to begin manufacturing an aftermarket screen because it is a vital component of a screen printing machine I am promoting, and I discovered that the company which used to manufacture these aftermarket screens was no longer offering them.
After deciding that this would be a product I would begin manufacturing in my own company, I subcontracted with a local metal fabrication shop to produce the metal frames for my screens, I began to produce them and field test them to ensure adequate quality and durability. Once I was satisfied with the finished product, I took some product photos and then placed them for sale on eBay.
I created my first post on WA about this new venture on March 11 and was asking the community if I should place them on eBay or Amazon... or both. If you didn't see that post, the link is here:
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/klthayer/blog/which-path-to-choose-or-do-i-choose-both
Then on March 14, I had someone leave a comment on my product review post for this machine I am producing these screens for. That person complimented me on my review, then proceeded to state that he wished he knew where to find the screens for this machine, which is the very same product I had just started producing ! If you missed that post and would like to read it, the link is here:
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/klthayer/blog/first-sign-im-on-the-right-path
At the time this guy commented on my review, I still hadn't placed my product for sale yet or added any affiliate links to it. On March 19, I wrote a post on WA about placing my product on eBay, which I had done that same day. This post was my third post in relation to this new venture I've undertaken. If you would like to read that post, the link is here:
https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/klthayer/blog/i-just-posted-my-newly-manufactured-product-on-ebay
Once I had placed my product on eBay, I found the email for the person who left the comment on my review page, and informed him that my company was manufacturing the screens which were now available, and I let him know where he could find them. He did email back and thanked me for letting him know, but as of yet, he hasn't made any further contact, or purchased one of my screens.
I then went a few weeks where nothing happened. This was all during my father's passing and funeral, etc., so I didn't mind that I hadn't received any response to posting my product for sale, since I was distracted anyway, and it wouldn't have been a good time to be trying to get orders produced, packaged and shipped out.
My First Sale
Then, on April 8, I received an order for my first sale! This was a great relief because, while I hadn't expected a large influx of orders and couldn't have handled such if I had, I had begun to question whether or not my initial hunch about there being a market for these screens was correct.
On April 18, I decided to post my product on Etsy as well, since I already had an active account with some of my other products already posted there. The very next day, I received an order for one of my screens from my Etsy ad. This was very encouraging, since I really wasn't expecting any orders from Etsy. I had, in fact, been going over the rules, and watching training videos on how to place my product on Amazon, as I was preparing to post my product there, as well.
When I had posted my eBay ad, I didn't want bids on it so I set a fixed price, and then eBay had an option to offer a discount if the buyer ordered two screens in the same order, so I selected that option to entice buyers to purchase more than one.
On April 19, I received another eBay order, this time for two of my screens. This was an even greater relief, and I began to regain some confidence in my initial hunch that there was, indeed; a market out there for this product.
On April 20, another eBay customer ordered one of my screens. That was the fifth screen I've sold, and at present haven't received any additional orders, although I'm quite confident that more will come. I knew that it would take some time for my targeted customers to find my ads and begin ordering my product. That is kind of a good thing because I've been filling these orders as they've come in, and was quite rushed in doing so. I plan to spend this weekend making more so that I have some ready to go when I do receive additional orders, which I know I will receive in due time.
I still haven't placed my product on Amazon, as I decided to wait and see how things go with the two ads I've placed before placing any more. Besides, as I stated, I need to build up an inventory before getting any additional orders.
Looking at the traffic stats for my eBay listing, I've had 2098 impressions, my click-through rate is 1.6%, listing page views is 54, and my sales conversion rate is 7.4%. The other day, just prior to my most recent sale, I had 7 people that had placed my product on their watch list, now that number is down to one.
Nevertheless, I now believe that my hunch was correct, and that I'll have these trickle sales coming in periodically, which is exactly how I wanted it so that I would not be overwhelmed with orders I wouldn't be able to produce quickly enough, nor left with a bunch of equipment and supplies I'd purchased for nothing due to not getting any orders at all.
Conclusion
So, I just wanted to update everyone on my progress and what has happened with my new venture and product. I'm very pleased with what has occurred thus far, and I have great expectations that I will continue to receive these trickle sales as my targeted audience finds my product ads. This is all very satisfactory to me, and is, in fact, exactly what I had hoped for. Thus, I feel I'm still on the right track, and things are progressing pretty much in the manner that I perceived they would. This makes me very happy and excited indeed!
The picture I used for this post is actually one of my screens on my stretching machine in my shop.
Thank you all for your support, and for reading my post.
Kevin
Recent Comments
19
Hey Kevin, well done. Is it a computer monitor or what kind of screen? So, you're an electronics guru? I would have placed ads on more platforms to maximize the potential for sales. However, you should ensure you have a few in stock after testing that they work so that you can deliver quicker. I'm not sure how long it takes you to make one.
No, it is a screen for a personal screen printing machine called a Yudu. The machine is no longer being manufactured but there are many people, such as myself, who use these machines to do screen printing. These machines work great as long as you don't use the poor quality accessories that were originally sold to accompany the machine. The most important "aftermarket" accessory to have when using these machines is the quality aftermarket screens that are custom-made to fit this specific machine. There was another company who was supplying these aftermarket screens for many years, which is where I purchased several of these screens over the years to use with my own Yudu machines in my screen printing operation. However, after I'd posted a lengthy review of this machine on my website and was planning to add affiliate links to all the aftermarket products, I discovered that this company was no longer selling those screens. When I discovered this fact, I decided that I would begin manufacturing these screens to sell in my own company. So, that's what I did, and this post is essentially what has happened so far. I've attached a pic of what my screens look like once I've made them and they're ready to sell. It takes me about an hour to make one, not counting time for the glue to dry.
Oh, ok... Interesting indeed. What do you screen print with this machine exactly? How do you use it?
I mostly print humorous t-shirts using patterns I have come up with and designed. I also do prints for random customers such as business logos, or custom shirts for gifts, etc. Using this machine is great for the home user because it is compact and lightweight, and performs the functions of printing press, screen exposure unit, (and backlit drawing table), and screen drying racks. All of which would require separate equipment if using traditional screen printing equipment. It's great for screen printing from home, for example, which is my niche.
You should also use Etsy to list your printables and physical items. Then promote your Etsy shop on your blog for more intense exposure. 😀
I do have some of them on there, but haven't had much luck marketing my printed material there. However, I did just have someone hit me up last night to see if I would offer a wholesale price on 10 of my screens! 😃
They highly recommend using paid advertising to boost your rankings and get more sales. You don't need a big budget. $5 per day = $150, and can easily give you 5x to 10x ROI. As your profits increase, you can increase your ad budget accordingly for even higher sales. I highly recommend that you do a course on how to maximize your sales on Etsy.
Well done Kevin. Make sure your eBay advert is keyword rich as it will hit Google's first page if you do it correctly.
Paul
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Very awesome, indeed, Kevin! You will soon start seeing more sales, my friend! Well done!
Jeff
Thank you 😊
You're very welcome! 😎👍