Gift Wrap Station Paper Holder V1.5 Update! by danielnc06 - MakerWorld I noticed this was posted only a few days ago and just blew up in popularity quickly despite not being part of a contest. It’s a clever model for sure, but I am just curious if more experienced people have noticed any trends for what sorts of models tend to catch a lot of attention outside of contests?
My limited experience so far has been that my models outside of contests get very limited views compared to the things I enter in contests.
I think it’s a combination of things. It’s partly hitting the right note at the right time. That user has some other models before and after and they have barely any attention. I saw the model, and certainly stopped to think about it. A gift wrap holder! Hmm, and we’re coming up on the season where a lot of people will be thinking about stuff like that.
Beyond that though, it may just be they have enough of a following, or that they’ve posted about it on social media. The time you release something can impact things too.
So, it’s kind of a combination of things, but I think the biggest thing is that it hits a nerve. In that we haven’t been flooded with Christmas stuff yet, and wrapping presents is starting to come up on people’s minds.
I have a range of very popular models and the rest aren’t.
Some hit it out of the park every time, we know who those are.
Many never get much love and not because their models don’t stand up to scrutiny.
Timing of launch and topical designs are good indicators for success. Quality photos with decent overlay text and easy to understand descriptions really help.
Look at successful models and see how they are presented.
I think a big part of it is finding a niche. Create something unique that hasn’t been done before, solves a problem, or fills a need. I have gained a pretty decent amount of followers this past year, and although most of may successful models are decor items and a couple of tabletop games, I have a lot of weird random stuff too and surprisingly some of those have been a hit. Any many things I thought were going to be a hit didn’t do much. Just keep coming up with unique ideas and see what sticks. You will be surprised.
I’ve been asked this question often of what you can design that’s popular and I basically only design stuff that I want and am fortunate to do well with those designs.
You can try to chase trends and it can work, but if you don’t want whatever you’re designing it’s likely others won’t want it either.
