The easy solution to instantly erase direct competition when selling products online from home

We live in a world of so many different brand names – Apple, Microsoft, Adidas, Superdry, Coca Cola, Pepsi; we see them, hear them and touch them every day. Even our children have ‘brand diarrhoea’ – name dropping every other word!

It’s easy to assume that only enormous companies could ever establish their own brand products and become household names like these examples, after all how can someone like you, a small business owner, selling products online from home, possibly go about creating a production line to put together your own brand products and add your custom branding to them?

Well, it’s not only possible to market your own brand of private label goods to sell online, but it’s actually quite easy to do so. Your stock room could soon be filled full of own brand products that boast your unique logo and design. What’s more, your branding is likely to persuade buyers to spend money on your goods!

It might sound too good to be true, but seriously, it’s not. You can benefit from creating and selling your own branded goods right now.

What is Own Branding?

First, it’s really important you understand exactly what the concept of own branding or private labelling is. To brand your own products you don’t need to convert your garage into a factory production line or hire an inventor to put together the latest and greatest product on earth. No, in fact all you need to do is to first find a product that is already being manufactured and is currently unbranded and then simply make it yours using your bespoke brand. Really, that’s a very basic way of explaining it but it doesn’t actually get any more complicated than that!

The product that you private label becomes your brand.

I know it sounds really simple – and that’s because it is. Many large companies use this exact process. They simply source a product from a manufacturer in China and then rebrand the finished product with their own corporate logo. What’s more, there is no reason why you can’t do exactly the same.

Think about the products you see on a day to day basis: e-Readers for example – you can easily find a supplier of these in China – just like Amazon did! They produced the Amazon Kindle.

What about Hair Straighteners? GHD’s are made in China and branded with GHD’s logo – making them the most popular hair straighteners of the moment. You could do that with your own brand…

You might be surprised to learn that many products that you know and love are in fact manufactured using the same process, in the same factory and on the same machine via the same production line. Branding is what makes the products differ.

When products hit the shops, buyers are usually paying for the brand, not the product itself and that’s why you can source a product, brand it yourself and do the same…

I know I make it sound really easy and to a point it is, but of course there are restrictions and rules to which you must comply when branding goods, namely ensuring that you aren’t infringing on any copyrights in the process. First though, let’s consider some of the advantages of creating your own brand and selling your products as part of that brand.

The Advantages of Own Branding your Products

Many people who decide to take action and start building an ecommerce business begin by utilizing current well known platforms such as eBay or Amazon. They also immediately assume that the bestselling products are the branded items and therefore they are the best things to sell to make the most money.

Whilst it’s certainly true that some online sellers do make a significant amount of money selling branded goods, those sellers are usually the exception to the rule. What normally happens is that there are so many sellers of a branded product competing for the same business that profits fall and fall until there is no profit at all and it’s a waste of time for everyone.

However, researching and sourcing unbranded products and then branding them as your own completely takes you out of this competitive arena and puts you in charge. Every unbranded product you can think of can be sourced from an array of suppliers, providing you with an enormous product choice and far better trade prices at the outset. This in itself is a great reason to consider own branding, but don’t forget that as well as the reduced competition you will also benefit from these specific branding related advantages:

1. Increased profits. Completely generic unbranded products tend to sell at the lower end of the price scale in any niche, whereas branded products automatically increase the amount of money that an individual is willing to spend on a specific item. So, by creating your own brand you will have the freedom and flexibility to position yourself at the place where you want to be in your market, be that at the top-end to attract a more exclusive audience, or somewhere in the middle to suit those buyers shopping for a bargain but with the reassurance that comes from a solid brand.

2. Increased credibility. It’s amazing how much you can raise your credibility through the simplest of steps. Having strong branding on your products that reflects in your eBay and Amazon accounts and follows through to your website can instantly convince a buyer to make the purchase. Tying the name together in as many different ways as possible subconsciously makes a buyer feel more comfortable in spending with you.

3. Increased exposure. As well as increasing the comfort level of a prospective buyer, getting the name of your brand onto your products can also potentially lead to greatly increased exposure. When your packaging and your product labels and your online storefront all come complete with the same name, logo and colour scheme, an existing buyer will feel much more inclined to track you down to make a similar purchase in the future and they will have no trouble remembering who you are! So, by purchasing a domain name and setting up a website that will tie into your branding will help you expand your business.

What Types of Products Can You Brand?

There are a huge range of different products that you can source and private label. In fact, the world is your oyster when it comes to researching and sourcing items that you can brand. If you already know the market that you wish to sell into then start your research into manufacturers straight away. If you aren’t yet at that point then that is the place to start; you could spend forever looking at the options for different stock in different market areas, so start with the market area and then find the stock to suit. Choose something that interests you, that you have some knowledge about or something that you have a related skill in to ensure you stay motivated throughout the process.

The actual branding process itself will differ depending on the products you choose. Small packets of goods may require nothing more than a label stuck onto the packaging, whereas an electronics item will look much more professional if the box or product itself has printed branding. Likewise, an item of clothing will really benefit from a stitched-in label, whilst something like stationary supplies will need nothing more than a sticker featuring your brand and logo.

The amazing thing about branding your own products is that you don’t need any special training or skills to start selling your own branded stock online right now.

It’s simply a step by step process to maximise your profits and minimize your competition, helping you work towards creating a group of loyal customers who will keep coming back.