The inverted funnel

Inverted funnel: In growing product manufacturing companies, SCM + GTM = how your resources, teams, and products align around your customer.

If you are an entrepreneur looking to commercialize a new product, or a growing product manufacturer seeking to expand your production and sales, identifying your target customer is likely your first hurdle for a successful go-to-market strategy. Maybe you have years of research to look into or maybe you are working off of instinct, but you will need to identify your customer and your respective sales channel.

Many products can have success through B2B, B2C, or distributors, but identifying which is best for your specific product will mean the difference of achieving commercialization. Not having a process of validation through your channel of choice could stunt your product’s success.

We believe the best way to turn theory into action and validate your pathway for successful commercialization is through utilizing the inverted funnel method. Keep reading and we will cover why the inverted funnel is best suited for growing product manufacturers over the traditional sales funnel, followed by tactics for its implementation.

Traditional Sales Funnel Failures:

Countless product manufacturers are spending their entire marketing budget on awareness campaigns or taking a shotgun approach to direct sales, putting ads in front of anyone and everyone. We can’t blame them for this, as marketing companies have been preaching the sales funnel philosophy for decades. But with the offering of hyper focused advertising, it’s time for product manufacturers to flip the funnel and start marketing smarter.

If you already have a base of customers purchasing your product, there is no reason to spend money on additional awareness campaigns. You know who to go after. Product manufacturers need to invert the sales funnel, communicate with current customers, and find individuals with matching characteristics.

If 90% of your current customers spend more time on LinkedIn than Facebook, why would you pay for Facebook ads? If your customers exclusively read trade publications, why pay to be published anywhere else? For many, it is because they don’t know which watering holes to find their customers in, so they take a guess and throw their marketing budget at it.

If you are not interviewing and surveying your customers, how can you expect to reach others like them? Marketing should not be a one-way communication from companies to customers. Two-way dialogue with customers is necessary for better understanding of their wants and needs and to grow your market reach effectively and efficiently. Listed below are questions and tactics for yourself and your team to better align with your customer:

The confluence of marketing and sales with a specific focus on industry:

• Do your marketing materials directly relate to your sales activities?

• Do your sales and marketing teams have the same customer in mind when creating materials or targeting customers?

• Do your marketing materials speak for themselves and to an audience of industry experts in a way that lends credibility and authority to your brand?

• Is your sales team trained enough to “talk shop” with customers about the industry? Does your sales team have the materials to make rock-solid cases for the value/need of your product to customers?

• Is the sales team relaying feedback from customers to the marketing team about the materials?

• Is your marketing budget being spent on the right channels so potential customers see your content before the sales team touches them?

• Is your sales team interviewing current customers to know where and how to reach new customers and sharing that with the sales team?

The fallacy of marketing based on “Best Guess” Ask current customers:

• Where would you look for a product such as mine?

• What considerations are involved before marking a purchase?

• What are their pain points and which would be the most valuable to solve?

• Product Manufacturers must ask themselves: Who is my customer and why? Do they already want my product?

Customer as the influencer:

• Your customers are your highest priority and at the heart of your decisions about where, how, and how much to invest in marketing, sales, service, and customer experience initiatives. Learning how to align with your customers allows you to effectively target new customers, keep existing customers and develop internal strategies to improve customer engagement.

• The customer should be your north star with every part of your business pointed towards them. Sales, Marketing, and Leadership should all be pointed toward the customer and aligned together in efforts.

Sales & Marketing Validation:

• How did you decide on your channel for sales (b2b, distributors, b2c)?

• Were there any biases, assumptions, or guesses in your decision process?

• How have you validated that it is the best channel for your product?

• How you are validating your marketing choices?

• Do you have an open line of communication with customers regarding your marketing and its effectiveness?

• Do you need to reassess your marketing strategy based on customer feedback?

• Are your sales meeting or exceeding your projections?

• If not, wherein your process is the failure (marketing, sales, fulfillment).

• Is your marketing bringing the return on investment you projected?

• If not, are you interviewing customers to validate your approach or identify how you should pivot or what needs improvement?

#invertedfunnel #Vessel #VesselScale #SCMGTM #customerastheinfluencer #bettergotomarket #customercentric #salesfunnel #gotomaket #productmanufacturing #Idahomanufacturing

Researching Product Prototyping Companies — And Finding the Right Fit

For many organizations, the decision to research product prototyping companies can feel like a leap forward in the production process. However, hiring such an external resource is often necessary — due to limited time, expertise, and potential budgetary constraints. Without these limitations, businesses typically see shorter time to market and tap into unlimited professional resources.

The research process may seem time-consuming — but by investing time on the front end, you’ll be more successful in selecting a company that is the best fit to build your product prototype.

Clarify Your Needs

Before beginning your search, make sure you know exactly what it is that you’re looking for. It’s helpful to thoroughly understand your project, your deadlines, and your asks. Also know that product prototyping companies may not be able to accommodate all of your needs. So, expect to be somewhat flexible, especially if this is your first time building a product prototype.

Enter your search with an idea of what you want and what you expect. Get as granular as you

can, considering timeline and scale. Make a list of your must-haves and nice-to-haves and be prepared to negotiate.

Evaluate Technical Capabilities of Product Prototyping Companies

When you’re interviewing potential employees, you ask that they meet minimum requirements for a particular job. Can they operate a computer? Use essential tools within your organization? Communicate well? When hiring a company to build your product prototype, you’ll need to ask similar questions.

At the most basic level:

• Are the product prototyping companies you’re considering capable of completing the project within your specifications?

• Do they offer the range of services needed for your project?

• Do they have the resources to dedicate to your project?

If you answered yes to these questions, move on to the next criteria.

Identify Interest and Communication Frequency/Style

If you’re ready for a product prototype, you’re likely dedicated to seeing your product come to life. Your passion has driven you this far, and you’re extra motivated to begin next steps — so the company you work with should be similarly enthusiastic. When determining a company’s interest, ask yourself:

• Do the product prototyping companies you’re considering share your passion?

• Are they excited about working on your project?

• Can they propel your project to the next level?

When assessing a company’s communication frequency and style, it’s wise to look at your expectations. Specifically, will they communicate to your standards? Some product prototyping companies provide written updates once per week, others schedule calls every month, some do a combination of both. What are your preferences? Will your possible candidates work with these? Some may be formal while others more informal — what is best for you?

When you find a company that will work with you in a way that meets your needs, you can

advance them to the next step in your search process. Of course, you may not find a company with a communication style that aligns perfectly with your own, but find a team that is willing to compromise, if necessary.

Ask the Right Questions

Once you’ve found a product prototyping company that is technically competent and communicates well, it’s time to begin the next step: evaluation. As with an individual employee, many can do a satisfactory job and communicate to your liking, but finding one that goes above and beyond requires further evaluation. Approach this step like you would when hiring a new employee; doing so will provide further information about a company’s technical expertise and communication style.

It may be helpful to ask questions that address past projects and company wins. If they are available, request specific case studies or customer success stories, as these will provide guidance as you make your decision.

You’ll also want to know what tools they’re using, how key team members collaborate, what sort of timeline they expect, what their QA process is like, who owns specific rights to things, how scalable projects are, and what limitations they may have as they see your project from development to market. Of course, there will be a number of product-specific questions on your list. too.

Do Your Research

Your next step will be to check references. Product prototyping companies want your

business, so they’re going to put their best foot forward. Your job is to see through veneer to determine what a company is actually like and if they’re capable of meeting your needs.

Look at testimonials on their website, but don’t be afraid to ask for references from a company you’re considering. When you speak with a reference, ask what the product development experience was like, how the team dealt with conflicts, or anything else that may be pertinent to your project. Look at the company’s past work, outcomes, successes and failures.

The Right Fit

By spending time evaluating product prototyping companies, you’ll get an idea of how they operate. You’ll also familiarize yourself with their values, priorities, etc., which should help you determine whether or not each specific company is a good fit. If a place checks all the boxes but gives you pause (even if you can’t identify the reason), make an effort to articulate your concerns to the product prototyping company, and see if they are able to address them. This is the last step in what can feel like a lengthy process.

Though the research and assessment process may seem tedious, the steps above are crucial to helping you finding the right company to build your product prototype. By aligning with a company that meets your criteria, this will ensure you are successful in developing your product prototypes.