Physical Products – 5 Things To Know (2020)
What is a physical product business?
With this kind of business you would produce physical goods – or get them produced to spec – then sell them via an online store or marketplace.
Of course, most physical product businesses are not 100% online, but the ideas and examples on this page all have a significant online component.
Physical Products are one of 19 types of online business and considered a Level 5 online business, according to our framework.
6 Levels and 19 Types of Online Business
Level 1 = Novice
Okay for side income or beer money, but hard to earn a living.
GetPaidTo
Contests
Level 2 = Intermediate
Best for earning a living online when you’re starting out, but hard to scale.
Remote Job
Freelance
Level 3 = Advanced
Easier to scale and higher income potential, but you usually need significant investment of time and/or money upfront.
Agency
Referral
Resale
Level 4 = Superior
Even more scalable and even higher income potential, but also more complex / difficult / expensive.
Authority
Digital Product
Level 5 = Distinguished
Most complex / difficult / expensive, but the rewards here can be massive.
Physical Product
Cloud Service
Marketplace
Social Network
Level X = Wildcard
These are the misfits. Many aren’t even considered businesses in the traditional sense, but they are all ways to make money online. You typically need a lot of time, money, or luck to succeed with anything here.
Trading
Investing
Esports
Betting
Gambling
Multi-Level Marketing
How can you make money online with physical products?
Here are the legit ways I’ve found to make money online with physical products…
Start a Print On Demand Business
This is something of a hybrid of physical and digital products. You would create the design or artwork that would be printed onto physical goods – t-shirts, mugs, whatever – before being shipped to the customer.
A third-party service like Printful or Merch by Amazon would handle the printing, packing and shipping.
Sarah Chrisp has achieved impressive success with this kind of business…
Sarah ChrispFounder of Wholesale Ted $60,000 monthly revenue from print on demand storeCreate and Sell a Private Label Product
To create a private label product you would find a manufacturer who already produces something similar, and have them produce a slight variation for you.
Add some good branding and marketing to the mix, and you’re off to the races.
For example, Michael Schneider’s private label product is a phone wallet that sells well on Amazon…
Michael SchneiderCo-founder of Gecko Travel Tech $88,000 monthly e-commerce revenueSell Your Arts and Crafts Online
Courtney Bleier and her sister teamed up to create and sell handmade jewelry via Etsy…
Courtney BleierCo-founder at Ann + Joy $4,000 monthly e-commerce revenueMass Produce Your Own Physical Product
At only 16 years of age, Kartik Gurmule got some luxury shoes designed in the UK, found a manufacturer in Italy, then started selling the shoes online and shipping worldwide…
Kartik GurmuleFounder of KASA, Co-founder of Dropshyp $80,000 monthly KASA revenueCreate and Sell Customized Physical Products
90% of Dane Jensen’s e-commerce sock business comes from designs submitted by customers…
Dane JensenFounder of Sock Club $1 million sock club monthly revenueCrowdfund Your Physical Product
Charles Harris is a pro at this, having run multiple successful crowdfunding campaigns, including one for a tangle-free charging cable that raised almost $4 million…
Charles HarrisFounder of SuperCalla Technology $3.7+ million crowdfunded for one productLicense an Idea for a Physical Product
Licensing an idea effectively makes you a silent partner in a business; you come up with the concept and the licensee does everything else.
Back in 2005, Nate Dallas was able to sell an idea for a board game to Mattel and earn $300,000 in passive income over the next ten years…
Nate DallasSerial Entrepreneur $2,500 monthly royalties for one product idea
Nate admits that the Mattel deal was exceptional; his subsequent licensing deals weren’t nearly as lucrative.
