EEVblog #887 - The Economics Of Selling Hardware

Comments · 346

• OZ

  @ozturner · 10 years ago

  Hi Dave, well done.  You've explained in roughly 26 minutes what has taken me about 24 years to learn.  I'm in the finance industry now and your numbers are spot on (as a minimum!).  It's wonderful to see a tech savvy person who is also finance savvy.  Keep up the great work.

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• DR

  @DrScientistSounds · 10 years ago

  I've been a small scale electronics manufacturer for 10 years and this video is very accurate and appropriate, nicely done Dave.

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• SE

  @seb_so · 10 years ago

  The 'profit' comparison between direct sales and reseller use would seem more useful if you were to take into account the opportunity cost of doing your own distribution: You may make 47K a years more by doing your own distribution, but if the additional work of doing all the shipping and handling means that you have to spend an extra 1000 hours working on this project, while you could be earning (just to pick a number) $ 60 an hour doing other work, you are actually losing 13K by doing all the work yourself.

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• GA

  @GadgetAddict · 10 years ago

  Thanks for the video Dave. This will be a good reference point for those who argue a phone that costs $50 to make should be sold for $51.

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• SC

  @scropion86 · 10 years ago

  any new video or blog about applying for quality certificate like FCC or UL or CE.  this information is badly needed

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• FR

  @FranLab · 10 years ago

  Very true - the price is what it is!  The realities of production....   It is always a challenge to sell a product that is not built down to a cost, and the higher the quality build, the more labor cost in production, and the volume of production is always reflected in the end price.

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• QO

  @QoraxAudio · 7 years ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwrkfHadeQQ&amp;t=664">11:04</a> &quot;Don&apos;t pay for marketing&quot;<br>Best advice I&apos;ve heard in a long time.<br>Marketeers are frauds.

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• EI

  @eingast7798 · 10 years ago

  I founded and ran a electronic company in the past (sold it now). IMHO a distributor is worth the mark up. Although in the first moment 60% (sometimes more) does not sound &quot;fair&quot; (=easy money you think you can have yourself), but the most important issues are: Reach far in the market to have huge volumes and do the work that you as an engineer probably dont enjoy: Dealing with stupid, time consuming customer and doing paper work, like single shipping, customs and national regulations in foreign countries etc. I did both, started selling the product myself and afterwards having an exclusive worldwide distributor (to whom I now sold my company). Also keep in mind: You might want to have time to develop further new projects in the future.

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• RI

  @Rizon1985 · 10 years ago

  This guide is completely wrong. Here are the true economics of selling hardware:<br>1. Think about something you want in your life<br>2. Now invent impossible but believable promises and an impossible but believable price<br>3. Put it up on Indiegogo and Kickstarter<br>4. Keep posting some promising updates every few weeks until you have all the money you&apos;ll ever need in your life

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• JH

  @jhonbus · 10 years ago

  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwrkfHadeQQ&amp;t=530">8:50</a> - Dave starts experiencing a bizarre increase in the number of uCurrents &quot;lost in the post&quot;

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• PE

  @peteellacott5131 · 10 years ago

  So how do I become a reseller. &nbsp; : o D

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• SY

  @Systemrat2008 · 10 years ago

  An electronics manufacturer in China showed me one of there products a yellow water proof AM / FM radio. It was well built and I was tempted. The cost was US $ 1.72 each with a minimum order of ten thousand units.<br><br>A year latter I see this unit in Dick Smith for A$ $39.95.<br><br>Dick Smith went bust but if you look at the prices at other electronics shops they are what the market will bear not cost plus margin.<br><br>My pet hate is things are 5 cents less than the next dollar value $29.95 $ 49.95 etc.

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