Almost all kids, if not all, love colorful rubber bands. As a kid, for sure, you also loved colorful rubber bands. Today, these cute little things have become better as Silly Bandz introducing new concepts that the kids have learned to love.
The man behind the successful branding of Silly Bandz is Rob Croak. However, his journey towards success was not a plain straight line. He had to meet bumps along the road before he made his product the next big thing in the market.
Offer something new
When Croak went to China sometime in 2007 for a business trip, he saw some animal shaped wristbands. These items have been sold in Japan for many years already, but these were not yet popular in the USA.
When he returned home, Croak, along with his team of designers set out to create some prototypes. Silly Brands started to dominate retails stores across Eastern US in summer of 2008. Today, the products of the brand can be found in at least 30,000 stores in 15 countries around the world. The official Facebook page of the brand has more than 1 million “fans” that shows how the public accepted this innovative take on rubber bands.
The secrets behind the success
When asked about the secret of the brand, he said it is about proper market understanding and branding. Business owners need to be observant to what people are wearing, he said. He added that business owners should know what websites the people are visiting and where certain things are leading.
He clarified, however, that he had to commit some mistakes along the process before he managed the right branding efforts for his products. Croak faced many financial issues in the past, but he has learned his lesson and promised to stay focused squarely in the coming years. He is also confident that he can sustain the profitability of his business if proper marketing strategies would be continually implemented.
To sustain the popularity of his products, the company is in the process of producing new prototypes. He said he makes sure their team listens to the comments and suggestions of their fan base to achieve what the buyers want.
Focus on the target market
The main goal of the company is to cater the brand to teens, high school kids or even adults who are looking for affordable and fun products. Croak’s products are just between $5 and $10—rates that are very affordable considering its target market.
According to Marshal Cohen, analyst for the marketing firm NPD Group Inc, Croak’s team has been implementing a good marketing strategy. He highlighted the importance of moving quickly to produce more new products since the target market might get tired of the existing ones.
Without a doubt, Silly Bandz imposed an effective branding and marketing strategy. The team behind the brand was not afraid to take the risk of introducing something new. They keep on imposing changes on their current line-up of products—something that the target market has taken positively. Apparently, the 30,000 stores where the products are sold have brought in millions. While the products are actually cheap, the volume of sales has swollen over the years inspiring the team to introduce more in the coming years. This year, the company is set to launch a new line-up of products again based on a creative design team that Croak has been working with.
This shows that even small businesses can make it big in the market. All it requires is creativity and innovation to introduce a unique product that can sell like hotcakes in the market. Now, almost everyone knows about Silly Brandz. The brand is not as “silly” as it sounds; it keeps inspiring budding entrepreneurs to start their own ventures – even with a limited capital.
