Launching a product or an app can be an exciting journey. It does come with a significant cost, though. How much does it cost to launch a product or app?
Figuring out the exact numbers can be tricky since there are so many variables. Fortunately, we have the tools that will help you prepare for the road ahead.
Dispelling the Yellow Brick Road Myth
Before we talk about how much it will cost to launch a product or app, let’s dispel the myth that there’s a yellow brick road that leads to absolute product success. Or any company, including IdeaPros, that can promise you will be successful.
Shark Tank
So many people we’ve talked to had dreams of pitching their product to Mark Cuban, Daymond John, Kevin O’Leary, Lori Greiner, Robert Herjavec, and Barbara Corcoran at Shark Tank. Hey, we love watching Shark Tank too! But the reality is, it’s a lot harder to get on Shark Tank than you think. Did you know they end up featuring 1% of the people that have applied to be on the show? And only half of those get offers. And only half of the offers actually get done! Imagine what the odds of getting chosen as a partner are!
Being on Shark Tank is great for the publicity and exposure, for sure, but it is far from a guaranteed success.
Kickstarter
Another popular path people often try is Kickstarter. Kickstarter is a great way to raise funds and awareness. It may even land you solid angel investors and venture capitalists. But most serious investors aren’t even going to look at you unless you have $1 million in sales and can show that you are growing very quickly.
On crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter, you have about a 70% chance of failing to raise any money at all. To have a chance of being successful on Kickstarter, you have to have a dedicated team, a professional campaign and months and months of preparation. Even if the Kickstarter campaign works, it is important to understand that it is not just the money that will get you where you want to be. It is a process, the team and hard work.
Invention Promotional Companies
Do you think your idea is so great and unique that you can just get a provisional patent and the big box retailers will storm through your doors offering you licensing deals? Not a chance – don’t even think about wasting your money like that.
What’s the answer?
The real solution requires real entrepreneurial thinking. And that means money, hard work, persistence, and a never-say-no attitude. Crazy huh? Yep – that’s the definition of all of us entrepreneurs, at least according to most of our friends and family!
So, what do I have to do?
Validating the Product
“You can’t build a product until you know what you’re building, who you’re building it for, how much they will pay for it and what is it going to cost you.” — Fred Cary, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of IdeaPros.
Before you get your product or app out there, you have to validate it and that involves figuring out a couple of important things:
- What’s going on in the marketplace?
- What are your competitors doing?
- How are you going to get the customers you need?
- Can you keep those customers happy?
Having a great idea is wonderful, but it is only a starting point. We’ve prepared some amazing tools that will help you go through the whole process and estimate the costs you will have along the way. Also, on our blog, you can find articles related to the validation process, like how to identify your target market and how to get the funding that you need for your startup.
Estimating the cost to launch a product or app
Our budget estimation document is a tool that can help you predict the cost of products and apps – it uses ranges that we’ve found to be accurate. You will notice that the estimate ranges are quite wide because the amounts depend on many factors that influence the price. If the rough estimate of the total budget is $600,000.00 that amount represents what you would pay as an entrepreneur to get all the services you need. When you partner up with IdeaPros, our team absorbs a lot of that cost and the amount goes down significantly.
These numbers are just estimates. Of course, it is possible to do competitor research for a few hundred dollars rather than $10,000 or more. But if you just order a report without having an expert to analyze it and make strategic decisions from it, it would be like you buying an xray and then trying to read it yourself.
“It’s one thing to know WHAT TO DO and a completely different thing to know HOW TO DO IT and how to analyze your data.” – Fred Cary
Related Reading: Starting with Nothing: How to Bootstrap Your Business
Staying on the Right Path
“Can I skip a couple of steps and go cheaper on some of the sections in this budget when launching a product or app?” If you are planning a successful launch, you have to do your research and learn how to be different from your competitors, brand your company, and design everything properly. Do great marketing, know your suppliers and manufacturers, and get yourself out to the public. Staying on the right path and taking ALL the steps seriously is the only way to stand out and make a difference in the market.
“There are competitors for just about everything you want to do. If not, there is no consumer demand and without consumer demand, you have zero.” – Fred Cary
The only way to know if there is a demand and what the competitors are doing is to do proper research. Even if you are short on money, let’s say you have $10.000 to spend, start with the research and make sure what you have is not only a good idea, but it is something you can bring to market AND capture meaningful market share. Once you have validated it, you can present it to potential investors and start building from there.
In summary, there are no cutting corners. No national retailers are waiting for your napkin idea. There is a remote chance you’ll find yourself on Shark Tank. Focus. Work hard. Be smart. And, arm yourself with PATIENCE so you can focus on quality instead of speed. If you believe then believe you’ll have to work for it!
TIP: Need to raise money to stay on track? Check out this article to create a pitch deck to raise funds.
Partner With Us
Partnering with us will cost you more money than partnering with companies we’ve mentioned earlier, but your chances to triumph will be a lot higher too. When you understand the power of the right team and you are working with experts on your idea, wonderful things can happen.
The “Idea Pros” at IdeaPros can help you figure out the cost to launch a product or app idea you have. We also have 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 the actualization of their idea. Apply for an interview and let’s explore partnering together.
Want to see products we have launched? Check out IdeaPros Launchpad!