Success at Ponoko

We’re almost there with another groundbreaking service!

Out with the old …
Being a creator can be unbelievably frustrating – it’s just so much easier to have an idea than it is to make it real, let alone get other people to love it too.

And it’s frustrating because the manufacturing industry is not exactly cuddly and inclusive. Unless you have a pile of time, cash and contacts, getting something made (and to market) is off the list completely.

… In with the new
But Ponoko has changed all this – and provided a single online place for you to make and market your product ideas.

Ponoko has made it possible to get going with no upfront costs and no minimum orders. You can test an idea, put it out there and see what happens. (18-year-old Alan Chao did just that. He spent $39.33 to get going and within a few days he had his product in his hands. Within 24 days he had his first customers and within 8 weeks he wooed global design company, Veer.)

Within minutes of being on the Ponoko website you can make and sell a unique creation, from scratch! You can choose your materials and know exactly what you’re getting. You can merrily prototype ideas til the cows come home.

Ponoko gives you exactly what you design so your products are consistent – the accuracy is unmatchable. And, if you like, everything can be finished off by hand. Not only that, but once you’ve made something once you can quickly reproduce as many as you want with a few mouse clicks – and that’s when the profit margins really kick in. Design once, sell many times.

And, for high-end designers, the idea of keeping 100% of the proceeds of a sale rather than receiving only 50% from a retailer or just 5% from a traditional manufacturer is kinda attractive. So too is getting products to market quickly and inexpensively. Look at what Nervous System and Chris Jackson have achieved! Test ideas and succeed/fail fast, then move to the next idea – great fun!

… But that’s not all folks!
As we’ve been developing the world’s new way to design, make and market your product ideas, we introduced our Designmake Prime service (an addition to our original Designmake Free service). Prime provides a lower cost option, opens up more creative options, and blasts you into the retail world. But we’re very ready to take it to the next level.

 
Ta da - Value Prime!!!
So we’re introducing an update to our current Prime service – to give you more for less.

Value Prime = Designmake Prime PLUS:

• Make stuff for even less – If you’re just getting started or tracking along nicely, you can wave goodbye to the current $1.35 per minute Designmake Prime making rate. And if you’re ready to go to the next level, then bulk pricing is for you.

• Ship stuff for even less – We’re launching a brand spanking new shipping calculator! Because we’re re-opening our San Francisco making node, you’ll get stuff delivered faster and cheaper.

• Materials catalog delivered – Although a picture can tell a thousand words, you can’t beat holding the real thing in your hands to know what you’re really going to get.

• Mix with fab people – Get together with like-minded people, bring your ideas, your projects, your questions, and fabricate your stuff live.

• Get a make grant – We’ll sponsor you when you want to present your creations at events. Whether it be your regular local meet up or an international show, we’ll help you get there.

 

Say what?

These new features are only available to users of Designmake Prime. Let’s look at them all in a little more detail:

ONLINE STUDIO

You can submit more design files to us – email quotes for dxf designs
We want to work the way you work, not the other way around. When we started, we could only work with eps files. Right now, we provide instant online quotes for eps, svg, jpg, gif and png files. Prime users will have yet another choice – email your dxf design files to us and we’ll send you back a quote as quick as we can.

Are dxf files important to you? Get Prime!

 

ONLINE FACTORY

Request your own materials – timbers, plastics, fabrics, metals, what else?
Forget about our materials catalog. And forget about paying full price for a minimum order size from materials suppliers. So long as you can think it and we can cut and source it, you can make your products out of any material you want.

At the moment you can choose from 255 variations of 15 different materials and we’ll be making 5 new materials available online too.

But it gets better. Prime users will be able to make your ideas from ANY material you request that we can cut and source. This means you can throw out our existing online catalog and go wild.

So if you want cotton, balsawood, cherry, walnut, foam, delrine, polypropylene, or anything else that comes to mind – just let us know and together we’ll make it happen.

Want to go your own way with materials? Get Prime!

Materials catalog - delivered all the way to your door
You can’t beat holding the real thing in your hands to know what you’re really going to get. So we’ll send our entire online catalog to you!

What samples in your hot little hands? Get Prime!

Your orders are prioritized ahead of all others – priority queue for making
Our turnaround times vary from job to job, depending on how busy we get at any point in time. But as a Prime user, your orders won’t get stuck in traffic. They’ll be sent to the top of the list and processed first.

Delivery times matter? Get Prime!

 

ONLINE SHOP

Earn buyer trust – ‘Certified Shop’ badge
People are more likely to buy online when they can buy with confidence. One of the ways you can earn trust with potential customers is to be certified by us and display a ‘Certified Shop’ badge in your showroom. (We’ll verify that you are who you say you are by mailing you a special code that you’ll need to email back to us.) The ‘Certified Shop’ program is only available to Prime users.

Want buyers to know you’re on the level? Get Prime!

Generate business by making other people’s ideas real – bid on customer design/make jobs
Ponoko ID makes it possible for anyone to get their idea custom made by a pro designer. There has been more than $100,000 worth of product requests. As a Prime user, you’ll get priority access to these product requests before they’re released to everyone else. It’s a great way to earn some extra money, help someone else out, and get new ideas on the sorts of things people want to buy.

Want to make things for other people? Get Prime!

Get noticed by the big guns – promotion to over 200 US retail design stores
If you want your products to be seen by some of the leading retailers throughout the US without knocking on each of their doors yourself, you’ll need wholesale exposure. As a Prime user, we’ll work with you to identify the right products and the right pricing – then tell retailers (like Urban Outfitters, Target plus Velocity Art and Design) about you.

Want main street retail exposure? Get Prime!

Get a make grant – sponsorship to present your creations at events
Whether it be your regular local meet up or an international show, we’ll help you get there with either free making, materials or shipping – or a combo! We’ll also give you cards to help spread the word about Ponoko.

Want support for your next event? Get Prime!

 

SUPPORT

Get design/make/sell support – talk to us on Skype IM or phone us
Have you ever wanted to just pick up the phone and call us to work something out? Well now you can. As a Prime user, you’ll get us live for one hour a day to all the one-on-one design support you need to get the absolute best from our service.

Rather talk to a real person? Get Prime!

Get it right before you push go – one-to-one expert consultation on design files
The more complex your design, the greater the chance that not everything will turn out exactly according to plan the first time around. To help you perfect your design sooner, Prime users will be able to submit their design file(s) to our expert community panel for a free appraisal. You’ll get a 6-point report on how your design file(s) stack up before you push go on the making process.

Want to get it right before you pay? Get Prime!

Learn more about successful making – live design/make expert webinars
Our blog is full of inspiration and tips – but the more you know the more you want to know, right? Prime users will get exclusive invitations to live online webinars that will get you up close and personal with the ins and outs of our latest materials and manufacturing processes. It’s all about you getting the best results possible without it costing the earth.

Want to get the most out of our materials and manufacturing processes? Get Prime!

Learn more about successful marketing – live marketing expert webinars
Are you selling as many products as you’d like? A great idea needs a great sell. Prime users will get exclusive invitations to live online webinars showing you how to best market yourself. You’ll learn everything from the nuts and bolts of setting up your Showroom the right way (so search engines can find you easily), who to contact to link to your Showroom (and what to say), how to set up and run a blog, optimal pricing strategies, through to how to create the all-important prospect list and love them to bits.
 
Want to be an ace marketer? Get Prime!

Mix with fab people – Get together and make
Meet with like-minded people, bring your ideas, your projects, your questions, and fabricate your stuff live. A great way to get a project moving along and meet the people who make it happen.

 

COSTS

Make stuff for even less – wave bye-bye to $1.35 per minute
When you make things with our Designmake Free service you pay $2.00 per minute for the laser cutter to do its thing. And if you make things with our standard Designmake Prime service you pay $1.35 per minute. So if it takes 20 minutes for the laser to cut out your design, it will cost you either $40.00 or $27.00 (plus materials and shipping).

But Prime Value users will get everything they make at a special locked-in price of $0.87 per minute. And, as with Designmake Free, there are no setup fees and no minimum orders!

And if you’re ready to go to the next level, then bulk pricing is for you. Tell us, we’ll make it happen.

Is cost important to you? Get Prime!

Save even more on shipping – wave hello to a new shipping calculator!
In addition to 50% off the packaging cost you get as a standard Prime user, you’ll get a whole new set of shipping rates and delivery timeframes depending upon whether you want to ship from our United States node or New Zealand node.

Is cost is important to you? Get Prime!

 
So there you have it – Value Prime!
We’ll be launching this new service real soon. And because you’ve joined this exclusive “Ponoko Latest” group, you’ll get access to a special launch offer that will make it a no brainer for you to join up. This offer will not be available to anyone else.

You are in prime position to score a really sweet deal!

In the meantime, feel free to let the questions flow. You can leave questions or comments below or email service [at] ponoko [dot] com