Product Startup - podcast cover

Product Startup

Kevin Mako of MAKO Design + Inventwww.makodesign.com
The Product Startup Podcast is the hardware product development industry's #1 podcast. From invention idea to getting onto store shelves, and everything in between. Hear how inventors, product startups, & small manufacturers created their inventions and launched their physical product businesses. Learn from the industry's top industrial designers, mechanical engineers, PCB designers, consumer product managers, manufacturers, patent attorneys, hardware investors, product sellers, wholesalers, retailers and more. Learn about industrial design / product design, prototyping, 3d printing, additive manufacturing, product manufacturing, marketing, selling, patenting, logistics, and product business scaling. Hosted by Kevin Mako, North America’s leading expert on product development for physical product startups, founder of Mako Design + Invent, keynote speaker, and Masters of Engineering lecturer.  Produced by MAKO Design + Invent, the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors.
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Episodes

233: Raising Money For Scaling Via a Crowdfunding Campaign

Will Ford is one of the world's top crowdfunding experts. As President and Co-Founder of LaunchBoom, the leading crowdfunding agency for hardware startups, he has helped thousands of inventors and entrepreneurs leverage platforms like Kickstarter or Indiegogo to establish and scale their product empires. Today, he explains in great detail why a successful crowdfunding campaign can lead to significantly higher post-campaign investments and increased sales across multiple channels to enlighten inv...

Jul 25, 202418 minEp. 233

232: Video Product Renderings for Your Invention

David Brown, one of our talented industrial designers at MAKO Design, is a true expert in hardware product video renderings. With a rich background in industrial design and design engineering, David has honed his product design skills to an exceptionally refined degree. Today, he's excited to share his expertise with inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. Imagine being able to visualize your product idea in stunning detail before it even exists – like a trailer for a new captivating horro...

Jul 07, 202420 minEp. 232

231: Selling Your Invention on Your Own Website Starting from Zero

Hamdy Albana is the founder of Push Analytics, a sustainable growth-centred marketing agency focused on leveraging data to propel brands from inception to millions in sales. Additionally, bolstered by a robust education in electrical engineering at NYU, he possesses a wealth of knowledge salient to hardware startup business owners. Today, Hamdy will share the benefits and nuances of selling products directly on one's own website as opposed to through online marketplaces like Amazon with today's ...

Jun 20, 202423 minEp. 231

230: Product Packaging Advice for Your New Hardware Invention

Elizabeth Corbett has served as a reliable expert in the packaging industry for a remarkable 30 years. She is currently the President of Enterprise Sales at AE Global, a company known worldwide for its inventive packaging design and manufacturing. With three decades of experience developing creative product packaging and supply chain solutions, she has collaborated with numerous major brands, including Tiffany, Starbucks, and Estée Lauder. Today, Elizabeth will share the wealth of knowledge she ...

Jun 14, 202417 minEp. 230

229: Overview of Patenting for Hardware Startups

Are you looking to secure a patent or curious about what kind of intellectual property protection will best protect your brilliant ideas? Tom Dunlap has all the answers you're looking for and more. For 22 years, Tom has been the driving force behind Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig. He also imparts his expertise in patent law at Lafayette College and has developed numerous books on the frameworks of IP protection. Today, Tom is set to share his insight into this important topic with inventors, startu...

Jun 07, 202424 minEp. 229

228: How to Build a Digital Community Before Launching Your Invention

Jon Davids, acclaimed for his book "Marketing Superpowers: Build a Brand So Good That Your Marketing Feels Like Magic," is the driving force behind Influicity. Having stood at the helm as Founder and CEO for over a decade, he has expertly guided hundreds of brands in fostering vibrant digital communities. Today, Jon will generously afford insight into the key pillars of developing a digital community for your new product venture to inform modern inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. He w...

May 30, 202415 minEp. 228

227: How to Sell Your Invention Direct to Companies as a Promotional Product

Jeff Lerner is the CEO of Misnomer, a Fractional Chief Marketing Officer and Brand Development Agency. He boasts an impressive career, having collectively raised $400 million through venture capitalists and formerly served as a marketing lead at Google for several years. Today, Jeff will draw on his extensive experience to afford insight to inventors, startups, and small manufacturers looking to sell their inventions directly to larger corporations for promotional use. He will detail effective s...

May 24, 202422 minEp. 227

226: Maximizing Your Invention’s Perceived Value Through Marketing

Valentin Radu, CEO and Founder of Omniconvert, wrote the book on Customer Lifetime Value – literally. He has collaborated with an extensive range of direct-to-consumer eCommerce brands to elevate their marketing strategies, which informed his development of "The CLV Revolution," a guidebook dedicated to revolutionizing customer value optimization for eCommerce businesses. Today, Valentin will divulge the core frameworks of his guidebook salient to today's inventors, startups, and small manufactu...

May 16, 202417 minEp. 226

225: Communication Silos for Product Design Stakeholders

John Conafay entered the manufacturing sector in 2014 after contributing to the United States Air Force for years as a communications and systems specialist. Following a wide array of collaborations with hardware startups and aerospace companies, he noticed a lack of refined communication tools, which culminated in the creation of Integrate – a unique software designed to streamline communication in the hardware development realm. Today, John will share how he made this discovery and how critica...

May 09, 202416 minEp. 225

224: Expanding Your Product Into New Verticals

Danny Angers, one of the pioneering Co-Founders of VOSKER cameras, uncovered something fascinating regarding how users were employing their products and used it to his advantage to expand his brand substantially. In just 5 years, VOSKER has grown to achieve an astounding $150 million in annual sales across 45 countries and boasts the distribution of over 2 million devices worldwide. Today, Danny graciously affords budding inventors, startups, and small-scale manufacturers insight into his experi...

May 02, 202417 minEp. 224

223: Mechanical Prototype Parts vs. Pre-Production Parts for Plastic Inventions

For nearly a decade, Tim Uys has spearheaded a diverse myriad of design initiatives as the Director of Design at MAKO Design + Invent. During his 25 years in the industrial design and mechanical engineering domains, he has made impactful contributions in senior design leadership and education roles, as well as to renowned companies such as Dell, Nike Golf, Qualcomm, and Ironman. Today, Tim draws from his abundant experience to enlighten modern inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on the ...

Apr 26, 202418 minEp. 223

222: Securing Grants for Scaling Up a Hardware Startup

In addition to amassing 25 years of experience in the manufacturing industry, Micki Vandeloo has dedicated nearly 15 years to assisting manufacturers with securing government grants to propel the growth of their product ventures. Impressively, as the President of Lakeview Consulting, she has collectively secured over $250 million for clients. Today, Micki will offer invaluable guidance for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers by systematically breaking down the requisite steps and nuance...

Apr 18, 202418 minEp. 222

221: How to Go from Prototype to First Manufacturing Run

With more than two decades of experience in manufacturing, Keenan Wyrobek stands as a highly knowledgeable figure in the industry. He is the Co-Founder and CTO of Zipline, an autonomous drone delivery enterprise boasting a workforce of 1,100 individuals that has secured funding in the hundreds of millions. Today, Keenan will divulge his extensive expertise salient to inventors, startups, and small-scale manufacturers. He will share how to best navigate the intricacies of the design for manufactu...

Apr 11, 202416 minEp. 221

220: How Storytelling Drives Consumer Product Sales

Akeem Shannon is the mastermind behind Flipstik, a consumer product startup that started with a crowdfunding campaign and has achieved resounding success leveraging the immense power of authentic storytelling. In addition to achieving over a million units sold and robust partnerships with over 3,000 resellers, Flipstik has garnered substantial attention from millions of consumers across various social media platforms, including the legendary Snoop Dogg. Today, Akeem will take listeners through h...

Apr 05, 202418 minEp. 220

219: Hiring Your First Team Members at a Hardware Startup

Kevin Lavelle, the Co-Founder and CEO of Mizzen + Main, a renowned men's apparel company that has its products distributed in hundreds of outlets and boasts 10 thriving retail stores, has embarked on a new venture: Harbor. Harbor is a pioneering pediatric device startup that recently secured $3.7 million in seed funding. Today, Kevin shares the insight he gained while successfully scaling his product business by imparting modern inventors, startups, and small-scale manufacturers with tips for hi...

Mar 28, 202419 minEp. 219

218: Best Sales Processes for Selling Hardware Products

Wesleyne Whittaker is the CEO of Transformed Sales, an esteemed organization dedicated to architecting sales methodologies that foster rapid and maximal growth with an impressive track record of collaborations with over 150 distinguished manufacturers and product brands. Today, Wesleyne will share the extensive knowledge she has accumulated on developing and effectively employing uniquely tailored sales processes pivotal to inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. She will elucidate the thr...

Mar 21, 202423 minEp. 218

217: Using Crowdfunding for Real Customer Feedback on Your Invention

Yuri Dvoinos is the visionary behind an illustrious portfolio of 15 enterprises that have collectively amassed tens of millions of dollars in revenue. Among his ventures lies the portable Jammy Guitar, a resounding success story that garnered $250,000 in initial funding during its inaugural crowdfunding endeavor, swiftly followed by a staggering $500,000 in its subsequent campaign. Today, Yuri shares how he accomplished these commendable feats and his insight into crowdfunding to inform modern i...

Mar 14, 202420 minEp. 217

216: 5 Key Tips For Starting Your Product Development Journey

Wade Harmidy, an esteemed project manager at MAKO Design + Invent, dedicates his meticulously cultivated expertise to guiding inventors and hardware startups through their product development journeys. Armed with an impressive academic background that includes an Honours Bachelor of Science degree and a Post Graduate Certificate in Quality Assurance, in addition to a prestigious Six Sigma Black Belt certification in Project Management, Wade is a beacon of knowledge in his field. Today, he gracio...

Mar 11, 202428 minEp. 216

215: Launching a New Product on Walmart Marketplace

Michael Lebhar is the visionary behind SellCord, one of the world's foremost Walmart Marketplace agencies that boasts a remarkable track record for facilitating sales exceeding a billion dollars for hardware startups and renowned brands on the esteemed Walmart.com platform. In this episode, Michael is poised to impart his vast insight into the power of Walmart Marketplace and its salience to modern inventors, burgeoning startups, and small-scale manufacturers. The guidance he affords encompasses...

Mar 01, 202416 minEp. 215

214: Affiliate Marketing for D2C Sales of Inventions

Alex Back, the innovative force behind Couch.com and the previous founder of Apt2B, solidified both enterprises as influential figures in the domain of affiliate marketing for physical consumer product brands targeting end-consumers directly. In this episode, Alex will provide comprehensive guidance to inventors, startups, and small-scale manufacturers seeking to understand the fundamental principles of affiliate marketing and how it can impactfully boost the success of hardware products. He wil...

Feb 22, 202425 minEp. 214

213: Researching How Your Product Fits on Amazon

Lesley Hensell, renowned for her 14 years of experience in Amazon sales, is the mastermind behind the revolutionary book The Amazon Incubator. Lesley also serves as Co-Founder at Riverbend Consulting, where she has directly assisted numerous Amazon sellers that achieve annual revenue ranging from $500,000 to $500 million by solving pressing issues, optimizing workflows, and maximizing business growth. In today's episode, Lesley shares her extensive insight into the intricacies of Amazon's sales ...

Feb 15, 202419 minEp. 213

212: The Customer Experience for New Hardware Products

Jason Friedman serves as CEO at CXFormula, a firm that assists entrepreneurs with elevating the customer experience. With almost 3 decades of experience, he has collaborated with a wide range of budding and established companies, achieving multiple successful business exits along the way. In today's discussion, Jason will share his insight into how modern inventors, startups, and small manufacturers can enhance their offerings and marketing approaches to drive organic growth. He will delve into ...

Feb 05, 202418 minEp. 212

211: Establishing Product Manufacturing Operations

Nikhil Joshi is the founder of SNic Solutions, a company he has run for 17 years helping scale product manufacturing operations. He has worked with almost 150 factories across 12 countries. Today Nikhil will share valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on how manufacturing has changed, the opportunities that exist, and how to ensure you properly plan for complex manufacturing as a hardware startup. Here are the key takeaways from the episode: The manufacturing proces...

Jan 28, 202421 minEp. 211

210: Using Ad Funnels for D2C Product Sales

Taylor Frame is the Co-Founder of Focus Funnels, a direct-to-consumer marketing agency that has been around for over 8 years and successfully collaborated with hundreds of businesses. Prior to this venture, he drove direct-to-consumer product sales for prominent brands, including The Gap, J.Crew, and Adobe. Today, Taylor will share the extensive knowledge he has amassed throughout his time in the product sales space integral to inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. In particular, he will...

Jan 19, 202418 minEp. 210

209: Materials Research for Consumer Product Design

Ori Yudilevich is the CTO of Materials Zone, a materials information platform for hardware product development. He has a Ph.D. in Mathematics in the field of differential geometry and served as a Lecturer in the realm of higher education for over 15 years before transitioning into the industry. Today, Ori will share valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on why materials research is so important to the hardware product design process, burgeoning trends in materials s...

Jan 12, 202416 minEp. 209

208: Choosing Quality Materials for Your Consumer Product

Kelley Thornton is the CEO of Tiege Hanley, a direct-to-consumer skincare product brand for men that has sold more than 16 million products in over 100 countries. Today, Kelley will share valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on the importance of materials selection for your new hardware product, how to ensure the use of the best quality materials when working with manufacturers, and why materials are important to both your customers and your product business. Here ...

Dec 29, 202321 minEp. 208

207: 4 Parts of Intellectual Property for a Hardware Startup

Steven Weigler is a seasoned attorney and successful entrepreneur who has worked for a number of large corporations in the intellectual property arena. Presently a Founding Attorney at EmergeCounsel, Steven is poised to share immensely valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers. Today, he will delve into the four types of intellectual property protection, how to use these protections to increase the value of your hardware product business, and how these protections work ...

Dec 22, 202320 minEp. 207

206: How to Sell Your Hardware Product Business

Dan Shea is the Managing Director of Objective, Investment Banking and Valuation. He has been spearheading mergers and acquisition deals as an investment banker in the manufacturing sector for over 30 years. Today, Dan will share valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on the salience of thinking about the value of your product and product business well before the sale, focusing on a quality product and customer needs, and adding innovation to increase the valuation o...

Dec 15, 202322 minEp. 206

205: Advances in Electronic Product Engineering Methods

Tomide Adesanmi is the Founder of Circuit Mind, an electronics engineering platform that supports heavily improved EE design and development. Today Tomide will share his wealth of knowledge salient to today's inventors, startups, and small manufacturers regarding how electronics product startups are leading the charge, best practices in the realm of electronics engineering regarding consumer product development, and tools for improving the electronics design process. Here are the key takeaways f...

Dec 14, 202323 minEp. 205

204: Build a List of Wholesale Buyers for Your New Invention

Collin Mitchell has been in the sales space for over 15 years, and his expertise is evidenced by his success in selling over 5,000 SKUs of product through the first of the many companies he has founded. He is currently a Managing Partner at Leadium, a full-service selling agency that helps companies scale up their sales efforts. Today, Collin will share valuable knowledge for inventors, startups, and small manufacturers on how to figure out what types of wholesale buyers there are, which ones ar...

Dec 02, 202319 minEp. 204
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