What comes First? Product Development, Branding or Marketing?

So, you have an idea for a toy or a game. What next? Should you start with product development, branding, or marketing? Each of these aspects is incredibly important in the invention process. However, there is definitely an ideal order for the development process. One that will allow each stage to inspire and guide the next. So, let's get into the ideal development cycle for your toy products.

Stage 1: Product Development

Product development actually encompasses branding and marketing. It is defined as taking a product from a concept all the way to market release. So, while product development is technically the first stage, it's the longest stage and encompasses parts of all the other stages. This stage is the process of perfecting, pricing, and testing your toy product.

Product Development is more than just coming up with the idea for your toy invention. It includes fully exploring every avenue like materials, colors, mechanisms, and anything that could make your toy stand out.

You start this stage by Unlocking Your Great Toy Ideas, a process I explain in detail in the very first episode of Making It In The Toy Industry podcast. That process includes competitive research, developing your concept through illustrations, renderings, and testing mechanisms. When you finalize your design, you move onto finding the best factory partner to create a pre-production sample with and to determine production costs.

Don’t rush the product development stage because it is THE MOST important stage. Most toy companies spend 6-months to a year in this stage alone!

So give yourself time to make sure your product is the best it can be. It’s understandable to have a desire to make it all happen fast - after all, you’re enthusiastic about your invention! But moving too fast can mean missing details.

As you get closer to the end of the Product Development Stage you should start switching your full attention to branding. You will need to do market research to see what competitors are doing and to define your target audience. That audience is going to lead a lot of your decisions in Stage 2.

Stage 2: Branding

Now that you know exactly what you’re going to be selling and whom you're selling to, it’s time to develop your brand.

Now, I know it’s tempting to start branding at the beginning of the product development process, (and yes, it IS a good idea to have a general idea of your brand throughout) but the specifics should be set in stone once you have a finished product that is nearly ready to sell.

To start building your brand identity, start by choosing your brand colors, and designing your logo. Second, choose your language - how you will relate to your target customers and buyers. Third, take all of this information and use it to inspire the ideal packaging for your product.

Your brand identity will continually lead your future marketing efforts, which is why it is best to finalize your brand identity before moving onto stage 3.

Stage 3: Marketing

Using everything you have learned in the product development and branding stages, you need to actually connect with people about your amazing idea! It’s important to focus on this 6-12 months before your product launches to build up the hype.

Your first step should be to build an email list.

An engaged following of your target customers who want to receive valuable content about you and your brand each and every week.

Social media is a great way to do this - build your following on every social media site you can find. Post on all your accounts every single day. I recommend planning and scheduling your posts with a tool like Later.com to make it easier to manage. Make sure your presence online reflects your brand identity.

But, social media isn't the only way to engage. You can also attend trade shows, and attend niche events that would fit your product. Make sure to research and schedule your event appearances in advance so you don’t miss any registration deadlines!

Another way to build up hype and funds for your product is to launch a Kickstarter campaign. However, this should come towards the end of your marketing plan because you will already need a following on social media, and an engaged email list to make it a success.

So, this is all a lot, and I’m really just covering the basics here, but it’s just to show how much really goes into the development process of a toy idea.

It can seem overwhelming but when you break it down into different stages and focus on one task at a time, you can avoid the stress and enjoy the process.

Would you like an easy to follow development checklist to keep you on track?

I've got you! To simplify the process of developing your toy product, grab this helpful checklist to guide you along the way! Download this FREE checklist here.

To learn more about developing your toy ideas, check out these podcast episodes.