We are so excited to share our recent travels to attend the ERA/D2C Convention in Las Vegas!
When bringing a new product to market, you will be hard pressed to find a better place to network with industry professionals and get a product exposure than the Electronic Retailers Association/Direct to Consumer (ERA/D2C) Convention.
This show brings together the industry professionals in what is commonly referred to as Direct Response, or As Seen on TV industry. The great thing about this industry is that practically everyone wants to review new and innovative products, and they are very open to looking outside their company to do so. Typically they are looking for products that solve a problem, are highly demonstrable and have a cost of goods below $4. As you notice many of the current infomercials out there start with an unsightly problem, introduce the product, and highlight the magical benefits the product has to solve the problem at hand!
We had such a great show and connected with some old friends including Allstar Marketing, Hampton Direct, Merchant Media, Lenfest, Idea Village and Tristar Products. While we have known most of these companies for years, it is always great to touch base with them and see their new products. Likewise, they like to see what we have in our bag of tricks to potentially license for their next big hit.
At this year’s show we had 8 products escalate with various companies; and while not all 8 will necessarily make it to market, it is exciting any time a product moves on to the next level. This is an indicator of the level of the professional product development we do and to our licensing team. We provide such high quality development and present these to professionals in a manner so that they can see the value in the products we are bringing to them.
A new product presentation by a large player in the industry.
Now in the Direct Response world, it is common for a DR company to do market research and testing before rolling out products. This naturally reduces their risk, but also provides valuable insight on the product offering and features that resonate with consumers. Finding that secret sauce in what makes a product a hit is an art and a science. This is done through surveying consumers, performing web tests, and even tests on television. Seeing the response and consumer feedback from these tests allows DR Marketers to tweak the product, change the commercial, I and possibly tweak the offer to get it just right to appeal to the largest population.
We have been busy with follow up to this show and working with potential licensees to get them the creative material they need to bring these products to the next level.
We are excited for the next steps and will keep you posted on our next big DR hits!