The Entrepreneur: Bob Evans,
53, founder of Bob Evans Designs Inc. in Santa Barbara,
California
Product Description: Force
Fins (www.forcefin.com) are swimming fins with a flexible
blade and a "V" design that propels a swimmer faster and
with less effort than traditional fins. Evans' company has a
product line that incudes 24 models, each selling for $200 to
$500.
Start-Up: $400,000 in
1985
Content Continues Below
Sales: $1.5 million in 2002,
primarily through swimming and outdoor retail stores nationwide
The Challenge: Staying ahead
of the market when a number of competitors sell lower-priced, more
traditional products
For nearly two decades, Bob Evans has found success using
innovation to his advantage. Here are his secrets for staying ahead
of the competition:
Steps to
Success
1. Love what you do. As Evans
explains: "My wife has two rules: No fins in bed, and no fins
on the kitchen table. That's because I love designing new
products and I'm always thinking of fins. I have them
everywhere in the house." Evans is adamant that "Force
Fins are the finest fins for military and recreational swimmers,
divers and fishermen," and he loves producing what he believes
are the best products on the market.
| SEAL OF APPROVAL | |
| One way to crank up
word-of-mouth advertising is to get product reviews. Most magazines
that deal with specific topics will consider reviewing your product
if you send them a sample. Sometimes clubs offer a member review
service that you can use as an endorsement, too. One such program
is run by the 850,000-member Handyman Club of America, which can
distribute product samples to hundreds of its members. The product
receives a quarter-page spot in the club's HANDY magazine, and,
if it tests well, you'll receive the Handyman Seal of Approval
to place on the product packaging. For more, contact Product Test
Coordinator Ryan Jones at rjones@namginc.com. |
2. Know your product. Says
Evans, "I worked my way through college and then helped
finance my product development as a freelance underwater
photographer." He knew firsthand the shortcomings of existing
fins, and the initial inspiration behind his product line came from
observing fish. They use the split-V shape of their tails to
channel water behind them, where it generates the most forward
force.
3. Test, test, test. Nothing
kills a product faster than poor quality or poor performance.
"There is no room for sloppiness in any business," says
Evans. You have to test your product and make refinements for as
long as it takes to get the product right. For Evans, that meant 37
different prototypes of his first product before it was introduced.
But you don't have to spend a lot of money to develop the right
prototype. Evans' first prototypes were made with chicken wire,
newspapers and a resin coating.
4. Have at least one meaningful design
principle. Evans actually has two. The first is that the
fin should generate the forward force, and the second is that a
swimmer shouldn't have to work a fin both ways. "A fin
shouldn't need a strap to stay on," he explains.
"Like a propeller, its forward thrust should keep the fin
on." These principles are powerful because the benefits are
obvious to the end-user.
5. Ignore your competition.
When you have a clear vision of what you want to deliver to
customers, don't clutter it up by worrying about what your
competition is doing. Says Evans, "I never go around a trade
show looking to see what other designs people are coming up with.
It contaminates my mind, and I do better creating products just by
what I feel is right." Here's another reason to ignore the
competition: Following others doesn't make you a leader in
innovation; it tempts you to do what the competition has already
accomplished.
6. Listen to what customers say about
your products. Not all swimmers need the same kind of
fin. For instance, underwater photographers need maneuverability,
while other swimmers need great forward speed. So Evans developed a
product line with many models-24 in all. "I listen to
what my customers tell me," Evans says. "I try to define
my fins like a surgical knife, giving each end-user exactly the
product they need."
7. Promote flexibility in your
manufacturing process. While many manufacturers run off
to Asia for cheap production, Evans takes another approach.
"My goal is to be able to build a prototype in just two weeks
and then be in production in less than two months," he says.
"I adjusted my tooling so that when a customer need comes in,
I can respond quickly." This kind of flexibility helped Evans
fulfill a recent order from the Navy. "They needed a fin for
divers carrying a heavy payload. They didn't need
maneuverability; they needed high forward thrust. I prototyped the
product and delivered the order inside four months." And
customers pay a premium for his fins in order to get performance
that fits their needs.
Lessons
Learned
| TESTING THE WATERS | |
| Are you struggling
to produce a low-cost prototype? Visit www.inventorhelp.com, the site of Jack Lander,
prototype columnist for Inventor's Digest magazine.
You'll find books specifically for inventors and a series of
reports, including How to Save Hundreds of Dollars in Making
Your Prototype. Every inventor should read this one to
understand the prototype process and all the options open to
inventors--even if you don't plan on actually making the
prototype yourself. |
1. Understand what's most important
to your customers. Different customers will want
different types of products. In Evans' case, infrequent users
of fins just want an inexpensive fin that works well. But people
who swim a lot, either as a hobby or as a work-related activity,
need high performance. The Force Fin line is expensive, but the
extra hundred dollars is a worthwhile investment for someone who
considers swimming a vital part of his or her life. Inventors
shouldn't try to be everything to everybody. Pick one customer
group--in Evans' case, serious swimmers--and then develop the
products they want.
2. Don't be afraid to stand
out. Subtle changes in product configuration can easily
go unnoticed by the market. Force Fins look totally different than
a traditional fin. They're V-shaped, have ridges that channel
water out the back and are much less rigid than traditional fins.
Even though prospects might not understand the benefits
immediately, they'll take a look to see why those fins feature
a new design.
3. Impress customers with
performance. New product designs are typically sold
first to what marketers refer to as "pioneers"--consumers
who willingly try out new products. Each pioneer who buys a product
and likes it may persuade anywhere from 10 to 100 or more other
prospects to try out the product. This kind of word-of-mouth
advertising is what sells a new design--but it only works when
pioneers declare that the product delivers on its promises.
4. Customers change, so you had better
change, too. Needs and expectations can change. When
customers think a product is important, they expect it to be
designed just for their application. Serious customers, ready to
invest in what they want, don't want to make do with a product
that's designed for infrequent users.
Don Debelak is the
author of Think Big: Make Millions From Your Ideas.