Many of the comments are left by engineers and product development specialists, and reading through them on a weekly basis can be both informative and insightful. An example of a Quirky-initiated product that was available for presale at the time this feature was written follows. On January 25, 2011, the product had presold 226 units of the 980 units needed to go into production. According to the Quirky Web site, 401 people helped influence the design of the product.
Real Opportunity or Quirky Idea?
Quirky addresses the potential downsides of participating in its service head on via the Q&A portion of its Web site. The most obvious downside, from an inventor’s point of view, is that once an idea is placed on Quirky’s Web site, it is there for anyone to see, even if it isn’t one of the weekly winners. This facet of Quirky’s offering has caused some observers to wonder if Quirky won’t systematically attract novice inventors, who are likely to submit the least promising ideas, rather than experienced inventors and product designers, who are likely to submit the most promising ideas. Inventors and product designers may shy away from Quirky’s site fearing that their ideas will be stolen and used by someone else.
So is Quirky a real opportunity or just a “Quirky” idea? What do you think?
Discussion Questions
1. In what ways was Ben Kaufman the ideal person to start Quirky? If you were an investor in Quirky, would you have any concerns about his qualifications moving forward?
2. Do you think Quirky’s basic business model, described in the eight steps shown previously, is sound and fair? If you could suggest any changes, what would they be?
3. Do you think the concern that Quirky will systematically attract novice inventors, who are likely to submit the least promising ideas, rather than experienced inventors and product designers, who are likely to submit the most