Make 'Em Talk
Jump-start sales the simple way—with endorsements.
By Don Debelak •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Daniel Henry, 37, has what most would consider a perfectproduct: a kit that can fix damaged CDs in less than one minute.Wipe Out!, Henry's CD repair kit, costs $14.99 and works on 40CDs, saving consumers anywhere from $12.95 for new music CDs to$100 for high-end computer programs. Since CDs are made from aplastic that's easily scratched, Wipe Out! seemed primed totake off in the market. But overnight success didn't developwhen the product was introduced in 1996.
Henry's Esprit Development Corp., based in Long Beach,California, was finally able to push its sales over $400,000 in1999. The turnaround: Henry lifted sales with a private-labelagreement with Radio-Shack, as well as a presence in major retailoutlets like Borders Books, Sam Goody and Tower Records. This year,the company is finally gaining the momentum Henry originallyexpected. What turned the company into a budding success? Ravingtestimonials in dozens of magazines declaring Wipe Out! astechnology's latest miracle product.
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