It’s maybe a little funny I ask it on the website itself, but how do I get more orders through 3D Hubs? My prices are very low, some of the lowest around antwerp but still no one sees my hub or isn’t interested in printing there. How can I get some more orders?
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I am still trying to figure this out, but I have tried a few things.
1) Talk to everyone about 3D printing. I have found that I love to talk about 3D printing, and people seem fascinated by what can be done. A small few people who you talk to will be interested in having something printed. An even smaller number will actually do it. so I see it as a numbers game. The more people you talk to the more jobs are generated from it. I have had 2-3 jobs from doing this. Encourage them to use 3Dhubs so they can leave you a review.
2) Search the forums. I was able to get a decent job by answering a general inquiry on a 3Dhubs forum. I have seen others get jobs this way too.
3) Work hard to ensure that the parts you provide are pristine. That way you get a good review. I would go as far as scrapping and reprinting until you get it right. Not only will this help you get a great review but it will also help you learn to make better prints in the future. I base a lot of my purchasing choices on reviews and assume that others do as well. Good reviews will bring in customers. I believe that 3Dhubs lists highly reviewed hubs nearer the top as well.
4) Seek out work in your local community. I have targeted a few shops (particularly shops that sell things of which I am interested). Try to think of things that would improve their business and or things they might be interested in selling in their stores. For instance, I have several stores that sell board games and hold tournaments in their shop. I am designing things that I believe the tournament goers would like and I will be offering them to the shop owners as prizes. I am hoping this will not only get my name out their and promote interest in 3D printing, but also that it might encourage the store to stock said prizes in their store.
5) Be creative. Identify problems or annoyances in your life and use your printer to solve the problem. This keeps you in practice. If makes your life a little easier and gives you something to talk to people about (see step 1).
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Thanks man, I can do something with that. But still, if I see people around me with 40+ reviews, while they charge 3 times more than what I charge, that is just wierd.
Filemon
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The beginning is most difficult as customers tend to choose Hubs with a lot of experience (lot of reviews). I always recommend just having a few friends (or family) place an order at your Hub and give you a review (has to be an honest one of course!). This will help you get started and will make all the difference. Hope that helps, cheers!
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Yeah, I imagine that they started at a cheaper price and raised rates after they got more work than they could handle. There were a few hubs that stood out to me when I started. They had 15+ reviews and one guy with more. Most of them have not gained any additional reviews and I have had steadily increasing orders. So find a price that you can handle and pays enough to keep you growing and let them charge their outrageous prices. 
I figure that if I play the long game I will be successful in the end.
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That is the problem. My proces are the lowest for abouth a month or 2 now and I have not had anybody place an order in all that time. I have had 1 order in all the time I am on 3D hubs, almost a year now I think…
try upgrading your hub with some nice print photo’s of achieved projects that are interesting to potential customers!
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It doesn’t seem like you have the most up to date format for laying out your machines. You have the same machine twice for the two resolutions. There is a new way of doing it.
You only offer PLA and Carbon Fiber. You have a good color range but maybe add ABS. I know my ABS outsells PLA 100 to 1. Also you mention hubs around you being successful. Maybe see what materials they offer.
Besides that, until 3Dhubs can give us more info about our hub, there isn’t much else without going out and actively trying to promote the hub like a full time job.
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Are you doing some marketing outside 3D hubs to bring traffic to your 3d Hubs page ? Maybe you should invest in some Google Ads referencing or do some advertising in news paper or other media…
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So, I wanted to bring this up again after 2 months. I’ve been able to gain 6 more orders now, wich is great I think. After checking my ranking around my city, I saw someone above me with 38 reviews, his pricing is so low! The problem is that he attracts everyone because of his pricing, while I know (from a friend of me that compared it) that his quality is way behind me, but he still has 4.9 stars reviews. So I dropped my pricing to prices that I think are way to low to print for, but I guess I’ll just have to gain more reviews first, so people thrust my hub more…
Sounds like things are moving in te right direction, keep us posted! Curious to see how things develop further
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Try actively doing advertisement.
