Life: Designed

Soon, I’ll be the proud owner of a digital product shop. What will I be selling? Well, at the start of this week I wasn’t exactly sure. 

I’ve done some market research to help me come up with a few loose concepts. And when I say loose, I mean very loose. I knew I wanted to make products for creators like myself to help improve their work. My concepts were an icon set, a seamless pattern pack, and a PNG pack. For the most part, that was the extent of my concept. 

I took this week to refine those details and make my ideas more specific. I defined what the problem was and, therefore, my solution and how it would stand out in the market. I identified key features, where I’d sell it, and how I would measure the product’s success.

Abstract to Concrete

Beauty Icon Set

My first product idea is a Beauty Icon Set. This idea was the most fleshed out from last week. This week I just focused on defining the why behind this product. 

The Problem? Creators in the beauty industry cannot find icons that fit a wide variety of use cases and representation. This leads to people with curlier hair types and various skin types being underrepresented.

The solution is my product idea: a downloadable, diverse icon pack that represents a variety of people, not just one type of person. 

It will feature an icon for each curl type (2a-4c) and skin type (dry, oily, combo, normal, sensitive as well as more standard everyday icons. It’ll be consistent in design so each icon feels like it goes with the others. This product stands out because most packs do not offer a wide variety of hair and skin types, so this fits an untapped niche offering representation.

I’ll ideally sell on Creative Market if I’m able to get a shop approved; if not, I will sell on Gumroad for about $15-20.This product will be a success if I make a sale and a customer finds what they’ve been searching for.

Tile Seamless Pattern Pack

My second product idea is a Tile Seamless Pattern pack. 

The problem is that life now feels too artificial and generic; some current seamless patterns lack that authenticity we crave and the artisanal attention to detail we’ve lost along the way.

The solution is a downloadable pack containing 5-10 patterns inspired by tile patterns found in real life. It will feature designs inspired by real-life tiles, patterns that are seamless, and have edible colors. The pack will add an authentic, homey, and classic feel to any design.

Again, I’ll sell on Creative Market if I’m able, and if not, Gumroad for about $15-20. This product will be a success in my book if I make a sale.

Paper Cut-Out Overlay Pack

My final product idea is a paper cut-out overlay pack. 

The problem is that creators are stuck with digital graphics that feel flat, sterile, and mass-produced, making all their work blend in with everyone else’s.

The solution? A pack of high-quality, handmade PNGs that come in a variety of shapes and colors to spice up digital content. It will feature high-quality images with transparent backgrounds, pre-assembled compositions, and single assets, and be handmade. This handmade aspect will give it a competitive edge; it’ll have a lot of variety in its contents, adding a fun, unique flair to content. 

Like the last two, I’ll sell on Creative Market if I can, or Gumroad, this time for about $10-14. I’ll measure success by making my first sale on this product.

Peer Feedback

I pitched each idea to some of my peers to get another perspective. I was looking for general thoughts as well as what people with curlier hair types than myself (I have 2c/3a curls) thought would be important to include in the Beauty Icon Set if I picked that concept. 

I’m still waiting to hear back about specific hair textures and icons people think are important to include. I’ll be looking into this topic more as I brainstorm icon ideas. 

What I did hear is that my peers thought each product was attainable and could be successful. People could see the potential for growth in each product and opportunities for shop expansion down the line. I even had feedback saying they could see themselves using my products.  

Most of all, what I gathered is that I should go with my gut and create the product I felt most drawn to. That’s how I got to my final decision…

My Chosen Product

I could see myself making each of these products at some point in the future. Hopefully, if time permits, I will. For now, though, I have to choose one concept to make into a reality. 

I’ve chosen the beauty icon set idea. I chose the icon set because it fills a necessary niche, and I would love to help provide iconographic representation for curly girls like myself. I’m excited to see what I develop and how the final product will turn out. 

I don’t have a ton of experience with icon design, and that’s a big reason I want to go with this product. This will have the largest learning curve for me out of all three product ideas. Over the next 5 weeks, I’ll have dedicated time to learn and develop this skill, making me much more likely to make this product a reality. I can see myself having an easier time working on the other ideas later when I have less time to dedicate to them. 

Next week I start the creation process! So, follow along to see my digital product creation journey.