Fair Market Price

[shooter55]

Have been selling holsters and belts for a number of years by word of mouth advertising and never really followed what fair market value is for such items. Sure, they all got good pricing because I was not contemplating this as a main income. I have since made the decision to get more serious about it. I have invested in machinery, material, hardware, blue guns, and all the items associated. I am familiar with making a business plan, but to be honest, can't seem to get a handle on fair market value on holsters. The belts are simple enough. Holster pricing is all over the map. Can I get some evaluations as to how you price your items, and what you have done to build your following. I know it takes time and effort. I have built companies in the past, but never experienced such wide variances in price for a hand craft made item.

Don't want to be a Galco, DeSantis, or big corp supplier.

I currently have a Google AdWords campaign to drive people to my sight, but little response. Need basic pricing help.

Thanks for any input you feel can assist me.

Tim

www.defensivelineleathers.com

[shooter55]

Competition so bad that no one has a comment??????

[WinterBear]

Don't be discouraged yet. Not everyone that came to look at the thread is going to be able to offer you help (maybe they sell wallets or guitar straps, and have no idea about holsters). Or they may be a hobbyist like me, and not be able to offer you advice. Also, the holster makers that you may want to talk to may only pop in once every week or two--seems to be a busy time of year for them.

[dirtclod]

My advice would be set your price where it needs to be for you to make money and not worry about what everbody else is selling theirs for. If you worry about what somebody else is selling their stuff for you will never have any piece of mind. Sure some may be a little better quality but a lot will be worse quality. JMHO

After going and looking at your site i would make the pictures bigger and get a different color background for your pictures. It always amazes me that people have a whole website and put little pictures up of what their selling. Personally i want a picture big enough that i can see detail if i'm going to spend my money on that product.

Edited May 3, 2013 by dirtclod

[Denster]

No the competition is not that bad. In fact the market is so huge that anyone from a novice maker to the true artisan can sell holsters depending on price point and quality. Witness the influx of holster makers in the past few years.

You asked a question as to how to determine fair market value for your product?First I would suggest checking the sites of various holster makers that have established a presence in the market for example: Lobogunleather, Matt Del Fatti, Milt Sparks, High Noon holsters, K&D Holsters etc. Compare similar products from their lines to what you offer and their price point to yours. Then do a critical self examination of the quality of your product to what they offer quality wise. This should give you a basic idea of what your price point should be.

Second you need to inform folks why they should order from you. I checked your site and there is no information regarding the materials you use. It could be anything from Hermann Oak to Tandy bargain bin. Customers want to know. Information regarding what sets your holsters apart from others ie: design, construction tecnique, molding etc. Why should they buy from you when similar designs are readily available for 20 to 30% less from hundreds of others. Good photography front, back, sides, is important.

In the final analysys if you are getting hits on your site but not selling then either your price is too high or quality too low.

[shooter55]

Thanks Denster, dirtclod, and WinterBear for your input. Sometimes the obvious eludes me and clarity comes from others that are willing to help. I see all of your points and have implemented some suggestions for the site. I need to invest in a better camera and maybe a lightbox for better presentation. I appreciate your opinions.

Thanks,

Tim

[corter]

I think you need to do a few things that would help a lot.

First- Website. Your website is extremely text heavy, which doesn't sell product. Since people aren't going to get to pick up your product when they're shopping online you need to give them plenty of big, clean images. This will also draw them in and keep their attention. Also, clean up your navigation. Right now there are a lot of links at the top that do not relate to one another. Try using links like "Products", "About", and "Customer Gallery". Then branch off from there. Ditch the traffic counter, ditch the black background, and ditch the fancy fonts. You want your product to stand out on your website, because that's the only reason for your website. If the product has to fight with other elements to get the viewer's attention, it's not going to work well.

Second- Advertising. I can't stress enough that for your product, AdWords will do next to nothing. I'd recommend that you search out online forums in your niche, see what they're looking for, and work your way in to the communities. Read through the pages, and you'll know exactly what they want and exactly what they can pay for it. For example, you may read "wow, I really wish someone made a $60 black holster for XX gun." This is an in- being a small operation, you can have that product made in a day or two, and be the first to offer it. Even if you only make one to test the market, sooner or later you'll hit on something. The power of forums and online communities is amazing, and you can have a lot of success supplying just one of them if you find the right one. It's much easier to sell a product that people need than to first convince people they want it before they buy it.

Third- read a few business books. I always recommend The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss. It's a lot about internet marketing and 100% online business, but you can easily adapt the theories to selling a physical product online (that's what I did).

Fourth- pricing. Find a specific niche, be it working men, enthusiasts, law enforcement, whatever, and cater to them. Design your website specifically to them, make products they need, and figure out what they are comfortable paying for the products. Big pricing variances in leather goods are usually due simply to what crowd the company caters to, that's the reason some veg tan belts sell for $30 and some sell for $200. Same leather, different brand identity. Of course you'll always want pricing to be materials plus 10% plus your time, whatever that may be. Working from there, you can adjust up if you want, or maybe down a tiny bit to out price a competitor and sell twice as much, making it very worth your while.

[shooter55]

Thanks to all for your help. Will be working on the suggestions.

Appreciate it.