How to start a home based 3D printing business and succeed

Want to know exactly how to start your own 3D printing business at home?

Of course, you’ll need more than a machine; there should be a clear marketing strategy, advertising, and other things you need to know. So, keep reading, we’ll show you how and what you need.

Printing as a form of business has been around for up to a century now, creating employment directly and indirectly for millions of people across the globe.

The print industry makes millions of dollars in taxes to the government from the sales, repairs, maintenance, and rendering of printing services.

On the other hand, the branding, sales promotion, and documentation needs of society are so large that they have become an essential aspect of business survival and expansion.

The printing business is a must for communities and organizations, whether small, medium, or large. They all depend entirely on print technology to ensure the smooth and efficient running of their businesses.

Small businesses are what have made developed society what it is today, and your interest in the 3D printing business at home is exactly what any developed country needs to maintain a strong economy or grow.

This article is just about to expose you to the wonderful opportunity inherent in the 3D printing business and how you can, from the comfort of your home, start experiencing dollar rain literally right from your living room or garage.

What is 3D printing about?

3D printing is simply known as additive manufacturing (AM). It is a computer-based design process that involves the creation of digital designs with three-dimensional art.

At the end of the entire process; from the computer work to the 3D printing process, you would finally have a physical object put together layer by layer.

It involves a complex but easy-to-learn technological process for creating a blueprint on your PC before making it a physical reality with the printer.

Why a 3D home-based printing business?

Ever wondered what home-based business you could start? – One that does not require so much financing and still gets a good return on your money?

Well, you just hit the goldmine! Industry experts agree that 3D printing is the next big thing to happen after the internet and mobile revolutions.

3D printing came just in time to disrupt the printing industry, that’s what’s trending for the past three years now, and there can be no perfect time to come in that now, even on a small-scale, home-based basis.

What do you need to get started?

The equipment required for a 3D printing business could include:

• A desktop or laptop
• 3D printers

Some of the recommendations you can pick from are:

• Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM)
• Stereo Lithography (SL)
• Powder Deposition Printer (PDP)

One thing to consider is that owning a 3D printer would depend on space, maybe garage space for the machinery.

You can rely on online 3D printing companies to finish up the process at very affordable rates. This is highly recommended for startups because being a small home-based 3D printing startup the financial requirements might be huge.

What can you do?

• Create your own design if you know-how, using Computer-Aided Design (AutoCAD).
• If you can’t design, you contract someone with the knowledge.
• Use 3D customized templates from online sources. There are so many you can try out and listed later.
• Either you purchase a 3D printer or contract online 3D printers online to get your task completed and delivered. The second option works fine for small startups till you can afford those expensive types of machinery.

Market survey and segmentation

The market has become highly competitive over the years; with so many persons offering the same service, even in the same locality and to the same potential client. Therefore, you must note the following:

• Create a niche for your business.
• To create a niche, identify the area of the market with high demand and of interest to you and then develop the needed skills to take on the market headlong.
• You can know the requirements of the market by going online to search for what printing needs are higher in the market in your environment. Read online blogs, search engines to find out more about your market.

Do you have a marketing strategy?

How do you intend to be seen, known, and accepted by the market? There is no business without patronage or customers.

You can use direct marketing, make special offers, give a discount for bulk purchases, etc.

Create an online presence to expose yourself to the world. There is several e-commerce sights and 3D print services site you can take advantage of to boost your clientele base. Sites such as shopify.com, 3Dhubs.com, shapeways.com can help you promote your business before companies that need your products and services.

Approach other businesses whose services can complement yours (B2B). While you go real-time using family and friends, you can also take advantage of sites like myeasy3D.com to promote your business further.

Now, we’ve talked about social media marketing tips & strategies that you can learn from for your small business.

Keynote as you plan to start

To succeed in your new 3D printing business at home, you must develop a business plan/ model to guide your entire operations. You can get samples of business plans/models online.

Ensure you keep track of your business and marketing activities in order to measure success. AlnoteNote that sales do not mean profit, so ensure your income at all times exceeds your expenditure by a very good margin.

In addition, always ploy money back into the business and think long-term. Next, grow your business, have a good customer relationship management plan. Always retain old customers while creating new ones. Finally, purchase and maintain your machinery regularly to keep them working optimally always.

How to handle supplies

Having regular supplies is critical to your business, and you sure don’t want to be disappointed when you need to make urgent deliveries.

Always ensure you do not run out of stocks before refilling your stocks. You can decide on the volume of stock by keeping records of your supply needs over time. Just make sure you have enough to work for a day or two before supplies come.

If you are involved in customizing promotional items you then have to do your market survey to know where to get at a reasonable price good enough to make a decent profit.

Always have a regular supplier because it gives you good credit ratings. Good credit rating helps you get more supplies than the cash you have at hand and continue doing business hitch-free. This allows you space to spread the balance conveniently.