Leveraging Niche Products to Build a Business with Bernie Thompson Founder of Efficient Era and Plugable Technologies

Today we have Bernie Thompson founder of Efficient Era and Plugable Technologies. Plugable Technologies is a top worldwide brand for USB, Bluetooth, and charging devices. Efficient Era takes the software developed that helped Plugable become one of the larger private label electronics sellers on Amazon to the masses. Bernie has worked as a programmer for IBM, software manager at Microsoft and much more. He is also the author of "FlyWheels and Feedback Loops: A Guide to Success for Amazon Private Label Sellers." Here's a glimpse of what you'll learn: [1:00] Jeremy introduces his guest, Bernie Thompson. [2:00] Bernie talks about his early career at IBM and Lynx. [5:00] Strategies of selling globally. [9:30] Where should US based sellers start to branch out internationally? [12:30] The biggest challenges in taking your business internationally. [14:30] What does a product release look like for Bernie and his team? [16:00] Selling as a vendor to Amazon. [18:00] How often Bernie and his team release products & how they decide which products to release. [20:30] Why Bernie and his team release products via Kickstarter. [24:30] How Bernie got the domain name for Plugable and it got started. [29:30] Bernie talks about the first Plugable order. [31:00] Launching the second product. [32:30] Bernie talks about the early lessons from launching Plugable. [34:30] Staying competitive in the marketplace. [37:00] Handling negative reviews. [41:30] Using automation to stay competitive. [46:30] Achieving higher conversion rates. [48:30] The decision to open up Efficient Era to a larger audience. [52:00] The most popular aspect of Efficient Era. [54:00] Diversifying revenue streams. [56:00] Software and tools that Bernie and his team recommends. [59:00] Bernie tells his story of climbing a volcano in a dress. [1:00:30] Closing thoughts from Bernie. [1:04:00] Bernie showcases some Plugable products. In this episode… Can you really build a business off of niche products in today's marketplace? What does that type of business model look like? How does a business focused on niche products expand and grow? On this episode of Inspired Insider, you'll hear from entrepreneur and innovator Bernie Thompson. Bernie built Plugable Technologies, a brand focused on delivering USB, Bluetooth, and power-related devices. Through the process of exposing Plugable to a larger market on an international scale, Bernie and his team developed the software company Efficient Era taking their services and tools to ecommerce sellers all over the world. Find out what lessons and insights you can learn from Bernie's fascinating journey on this episode! As your company expands, you might be considering taking it to the next level and bringing your brand to new marketplaces overseas. What does that process look like? Where is the best place to start when taking your brand international? On this episode of Inspired Insider, you'll hear from business leader and disruptor, Bernie Thompson. Bernie and his team at Plugable were able to take their brand to an international marketplace with great success. Through this experience, Bernie has some helpful advice for business leaders and ecommerce sellers like you. One of the first pieces of advice that Bernie has to give is to consider expanding to a marketplace where there is no language barrier like Canada or the UK. To hear Bernie expand on this topic and give more helpful insights, make sure to catch this episode! The ecommerce industry is a rapidly growing sector of the global economy. How can business leaders like you take advantage of this massive surge? Is Amazon the best channel for brands to invest in or are there other channels out there that are poised to be the Amazon's of tomorrow? On this episode of Inspired Insider, you'll hear from ecommerce expert Bernie Thompson. Bernie strongly encourages business leaders to focus on getting their brand to perform well on Amazon and then consider expanding from there. Make sure to listen to this episode as Bernie shares more insights that can help leaders like you break into the ecommerce industry. In an increasingly competitive marketplace, your company has to do something innovative to stand out from the rest of the crowd? What is your plan to stay competitive and ahead of your rivals? On this episode of Inspired Insider, you'll hear from Bernie Thompson as he reveals how his company has kept its edge over their competition. Bernie says that the key to their success and competitive edge has been their ability to automate their processes as much as possible. This has led to greater productivity and increased innovation. Hear more from Bernie about the competitive edge of automation and how it impacted their work at Plugable on this episode! Do you know what your company's reputation is with customers and competitors? Does your brand have a good reputation for producing quality items and responding to customer feedback or is this an area where you need to improve? On this episode of Inspired Insider, you'll hear from business leader and entrepreneur Bernie Thompson. Bernie is passionate about helping leaders like you see the importance of knowing and improving your brand's reputation in the marketplace. Don't underestimate the importance of this topic! Learn what your organization can do to stand out from the rest of the crowd! Make sure to listen to this episode to hear more from Bernie! Resources Mentioned on this episode www.newegg.com www.efficientera.com www.ebay.com www.zendesk.com www.plugable.com www.protolabs.com www.prospershow.com www.thesellersconference.com Consumer Electronics Show National Association of Broadcasters Show   Sponsor for this episode This is part of the Skubana Ecommerce Mastery Series where top Sellers and Experts teach you what really works to boost your ecommerce business. Skubana is a platform to manage your entire ecommerce operation. *************** Rise25 is where entrepreneurs of 6,7, and 8 figure businesses come together live and in person every few months to solve their biggest business challenges through this high-level Mastermind group. Each member leaves each week with lifelong friendships and actionable steps to take their business to the next level. Check out Rise25.com - a group run by myself and cofounder John Corcoran. Rise 25 is application only.