Google It…

I am presently working on sourcing components for our first product. This is an interesting example in how people either cannot use Google, or choose the convenience of a single trusted supplier over multiple suppliers.

In one case I found a component that I wanted to use. This component was fairly light, but there were significant price differences depending on where you purchased it. On eBay the part was $19.95 + postage. Another vendor had it for $11.95 + postage. A Chinese B2B site had it for $8.55  including postage. Including postage costs, the most expensive seller was about three times the cheapest seller. And those were only the first three I found.

I be fair, the eBay part was photographed upside down so you could not see the brand, nor search for it by name. But I found it using keywords. I found the Chinese supplier by entering Googling the name from the mid-priced supplier’s photo. So, are people buying because the mid-range supplier has them in stock? Well, no. They are out of stock, and it is actually faster to get them direct from China.

Right now I have two evaluation units on their way, and once they are here and working I will be buying a heap more direct. It is these cases of cost engineering that keep products reasonably priced.