How to Pick a Niche to Make Money with 3D Printing

Pick a niche. Think of some ideas for 3D prints. Put together a basic model. Tell people it exists. Sell it.

That’s the simple framework for making money with 3D prints. Don’t overcomplicate things.

“Okay sure, but what niche do I choose?”

After doing tons of research on making money with 3D printing, I noticed that question being a very common theme.

Let’s fix that.

I decided to put together a method that anyone can use to narrow down niches to make money with 3D printing.

Many people will read this, it is unlikely you will pick the same niche.

I came across this method from Alex Hormozi on YouTube.

Before we dive into the method, it’s worth noting the significant potential of the 3D printing market.

As of 2023, the global 3D printing market was valued at $20.37 billion and is expected to reach $88.28 billion by 2030.

This rapid growth underscores the opportunities available for those who can identify and capitalize on the right niche.

His version is related to “What Business Do I Start?” but it also works great for picking a niche for 3D printing.

What is Your Business Actually Going to Be About?

So Alex mentions something he uses called the 3 P’s framework:

• Pain
• Profession
• Passion

Almost all business gets born from one of these 3 P’s.

Niche Based on Pain

Firstly, we have pain.

It refers to something that you have been through personally and you had to overcome.

What daily frustrations do you face that could be solved with a 3D printed solution? Are there any problems you’ve noticed others struggling with repeatedly?

The example he uses is a wife who has 9 kids and what kind of issues she experienced looking after so many kids.

One thing that stuck out is how to feed them all, did she have a structure? Of course she did.

She had a process down of how to organize it all, had their own bags, all know whose it is, done efficiently etc.

She had a system, that is the start of a business.

In terms of 3D printing, have you ever thought about a 3D print that you could create that could solve a “pain” point in your life?

If you can think of a few, I’m sure there are many people who are also going through that pain and would love that same 3D print for themselves.

That’s the start of a potential 3D printing niche to make money.

Here are a few examples I came across.

Spider Dongle Storage

Funkybrother117 on Reddit needed a way to store his Logitech mouse dongle while traveling.

Needed a way to store my Logitech mouse dongle while traveling so I designed this little fella.
byu/Funkybrother117 infunctionalprint

Most mice have a slot where you can put the dongle in under the battery, but his higher end wireless mouse didn’t have it.

He was so annoyed that he modeled one for himself.

The way his backpack is designed doesn’t protect the sides of his laptop so he won’t just leave it plugged into his laptop while traveling.

One user even mentioned that he has been looking for something like this for a long time.

The creator was nice enough to share the Dongle Spider design.

Carpet Cleaner Hose

CruddyCuber on Reddit came across a problem many have experienced.

He needed a replacement part for a piece of equipment after his dog chewed up the end of his carpet cleaner’s upholstery tool.

The price? $53. That’s $43 + $10 shipping, just for the end of a hose.

He took matters into his own hands.

He modeled the part with a pair of calipers. Here’s how long it took him:

• 10 minutes disassembling the vacuum hose and swearing (a lot of swearing)
• 45 minutes designing
• 5 minutes of print prep (slicing, cleaning nozzle etc.)
• 70 minutes printing on the Bambu Lab A1 Mini
• 10 minutes removing support and reassembling

Total time: A little less than 2½ hours.

Bissell wanted $53 for this – I printed one for $0.63
byu/CruddyCuber infunctionalprint

Here’s his Fusion 360 timeline for the part.

If you were searching for the same part and it cost $15, would you buy it? That’s what you call a business.

If you could sell 100 units, that would be $1,500 revenue.

Prototyping accounts for over 54% of the global 3D printing market revenue as of 2023, highlighting the significant role of 3D printing in rapid prototyping and problem-solving.

• Medical and Assistive Devices: A 3D printing enthusiast created custom-fitted orthotic insoles after struggling with foot pain, leading to a successful business serving others with similar issues.
• Educational Props: A teacher designed and printed 3D models of complex molecules, making chemistry lessons more engaging and tangible for students.

Actionable tips for finding a ‘Pain’ niche.

• Keep a journal of daily frustrations or problems you encounter
• Browse online forums and social media for common complaints in various fields
• Ask friends and family about issues they face regularly
• Look for products with poor reviews and identify how they could be improved

Potential earnings in ‘Pain’ niches:

• Replacement parts (like the carpet cleaner hose): $15-$50 per item, with potential monthly earnings of $500-$2000 for popular items.
• Organizational solutions (like the dongle storage): $10-$30 per item, potentially earning $300-$1,000 monthly with a variety of designs.
• Customized ergonomic products: $30-$100 per item, with possible earnings of $1,000-$3,000 monthly for well-designed, problem-solving products.

Gather up a few niches that you can relate to pain and let’s check the next P.

Niche Based on Profession

Moving from pain to profession.

While pain points can lead to great business ideas, your professional experience is another rich source of potential niches.

Your day job or past work experiences have equipped you with unique insights that can be translated into 3D printing opportunities.

What unique knowledge or skills do you have from your current or past jobs? Can you think of any tools or products that could make your work easier or more efficient?

In the video, Alex Hormozi talks about a lady who quit her job as a registered dietician at a hospital and started teaching other registered dieticians how to bill insurance.

This came about because she had to work 6 days a week (12 hour plus days) and only had 1 day a week she could bill her personal clients on the side.

She had to figure out this really complex billing system and how to do it quickly.

She learned something from her profession and made a business around this system.

How this can refer back to 3D printing is to think about what 3D prints could serve a purpose in your profession.

If you sat down with a paper and pen, then wrote down some ideas of what 3D prints could be used in your workplace, I’m sure you could come up with a few.

This could be your niche to make money 3D printing.

Here are a few examples of a professional niche making 3D printing profitable:

• A reddit user by the name technikal works in an office and spends his downtime coming up with things people want on their desks. They are mostly accessories less than $20 like business card holders, pen cups, keychains etc. He draws up the model on Fusion 360 and throws it on Etsy.
• Another user mentioned he makes extra money by getting his boss to pay him to build his machine and incorporate it into the workplace.
• Architectural Models: An architect uses 3D printing to create detailed scale models of building designs, offering a unique service to real estate developers and city planners.
• Customized Tools for Trades: A plumber designs and prints specialized tools for hard-to-reach pipes, solving a common problem in his industry.

Cory Selling Car Parts

Here’s an interview with Nikko from Nikko Industries and Cory who makes on average $4,000-$6,000 a month selling 3D printed car parts (interior).

His website is CarChains3D and you can see some of his products in the picture below.

He gives customers a few material finishes:

• Textured ABS
• Plain Carbon Fiber
• Honeycomb Carbon Fiber
• Chopped Carbon Fiber

So this could count towards the profession, pain, and passion side together.

Maybe he had the desire to get interior parts installed but they cost an arm and a leg.

Pain: By 3D printing his own custom interior parts, he probably saved tons, or wasn’t even able to buy parts for some models.

Professional: He’s been a mechanic all his life working for Chrysler and still currently works for Audi. He learned of the demand of these parts while buying car parts from his dealer.

Passion: He loves cars, he is a 3D printer enthusiast. Put that together and you have a niche/business to make money from 3D printing.

So here’s a little backstory from the interview.

His wife bought him his first 3D printer in 2018 and he played with it for a little and it became his thing.

When it comes to making money, he started with doing keychains of people’s cars then it tumbled into more things, going from keychains and signs to 3.5″ mounts for Holley systems (carburetors).

The guy Cory buys all his car parts from told him there was this new Holley coming out and no one is making anything to mount these screen and a bunch of guys have them, then it blew up from there.

The automotive industry represents over 23% of the global 3D printing market revenue in 2023, demonstrating the technology’s significant impact in this professional sector.

Actionable tips for finding a ‘Profession’ niche

• List all the tools and equipment you use in your job
• Identify inefficiencies or bottlenecks in your work processes
• Talk to colleagues about their biggest work-related challenges
• Research industry-specific forums or trade publications for common issues

Potential earnings in ‘Profession’ niches

• Office accessories: $5-$25 per item, with potential monthly earnings of $200-$1000 for a range of products.
• Specialized tools or parts: $20-$200 per item, potentially earning $1000-$5000 monthly for in-demand, industry-specific solutions.
• Car parts (like Cory’s business): $50-$300 per item, with possible earnings of $4,000-$6,000 monthly as demonstrated.

Put together a list of profession niches, so you should have pain and profession niches. Now onto the last P.

Niche Based on Passion

Now that we’ve explored professional niches, let’s look at passion-based opportunities.

We’ve explored how pain points and professional experience can guide you to a profitable niche, but don’t overlook the power of your personal interests. Your passions can be a spring of ideas for 3D printing businesses that you’ll truly enjoy running.

These are the things that you are always interested in. The articles you read, the YouTube videos you watch, the podcasts you listen to in your spare time.

The stuff you are inherently interested in. That you love and can’t get enough of.

What hobbies or interests do you spend most of your free time on? Are there any products or accessories related to your passions that could be improved or customized?

Alex uses his own example of being someone who is into fitness and loved to read a blog called T Nation that had all the lifters, trainers and coaches that would talk about stuff.

Every night while eating his meal, he would read all the new T Nation articles.

Even the people he worked with convinced him to start a gym and even offered to front him the money to start one because he was so obsessed with fitness.

Here are a few examples of a passion niche that makes money 3D printing:

• A reddit user Vicious-Venus said her co-workers significant other does 3D printing as his job and does mostly cosplay props, Star Wars, and Lego figures/accessories. He gets most clients from Instagram as well as going to Comic Cons as a vendor.
• I came across a Swedish maker called Model Craft who 3D prints scaled army models of soldiers, weapons, badges etc.
• Mad_schemer on Reddit comments – “there was a guy just last week who’d stumbled into a niche selling parts for weaving looms to little old ladies. He was on track to pay for his printer at least.”
• Board Game Accessories: Rod, a 3D printing and gaming enthusiast from the 3D Printerly Profits Skool community creates and sells custom games and game pieces
• Pet Products: An animal lover designs and prints customizable pet tags and feeding solutions, catering to fellow pet owners looking for unique items.

The niche you choose for 3D printing isn’t the last thing you can ever choose.

You can choose one niche, try it out for a few weeks, then try another niche, then another.

In that time, you might end up stumbling onto another niche that someone mentions to you.

It’s a game of trial and error. If you never trial, how do you expect to find the niche that enables you to make money 3D printing.

Actionable tips for finding a ‘Passion’ niche

• Make a list of your hobbies and interests
• Join online communities related to your passions and note recurring topics or problems
• Attend conventions or meetups in your area of interest to gather ideas
• Think about how 3D printing could enhance or solve issues in your favorite activities

Potential earnings in ‘Passion’ niches

• Cosplay props and accessories: $20-$200 per item, potentially earning $500-$3,000 monthly, especially around convention seasons.
• Miniatures and gaming accessories: $5-$50 per item, with possible monthly earnings of $300-$2,000 for a variety of designs.
• Niche-specific solutions (like loom parts): $10-$100 per item, potentially earning $500-$2,500 monthly by serving a dedicated customer base.

Note: These figures are estimates only. Actual earnings may vary greatly depending on numerous factors including market conditions, product quality, and individual effort.

North America leads the global 3D printing market, accounting for over 33% of global revenue in 2023, indicating strong opportunities for home-based creators in this region.

Now that you’ve considered pain points, professional experience, and personal passions, which area do you think holds the most potential for your 3D printing business?

Step by Step Guide for Niche Selection

Here are the stages of niche selection.

A lot of people are stuck on the first step of having any niche, so we start with self-reflection and move forward from there.

1. Self-reflection: List your personal experiences (Pain), professional background (Profession), and interests (Passion).
2. Brainstorm: For each category, write down potential 3D printing ideas.
3. Market research: Investigate demand for your ideas using platforms like Etsy, eBay, or 3D printing marketplaces.
4. Assess feasibility: Consider your skills, equipment, and time constraints for each idea.
5. Prototype: Create a sample 2D drawing or CAD model for your top 2-3 ideas.
6. Gather feedback: Show your prototypes to potential customers or online communities.
7. Analyze profitability: Estimate costs and potential selling prices.
8. Choose your niche: Select the idea with the best balance of passion, market demand, and profitability.

Emerging Trends in 3D Printing

As you consider your niche, it’s worth looking at current trends in the 3D printing market.

These could provide inspiration or highlight areas of growing demand:

1. Functional Prototypes: Many small businesses and inventors are using 3D printing for rapid prototyping. Could you offer services to help bring new product ideas to life?
2. Customized Consumer Goods: From personalized phone cases to custom-fit earbuds, there’s a growing market for unique, made-to-order items. What everyday products could you customize with 3D printing?
3. Education and STEM: With more schools incorporating 3D printing into their curriculum, there’s potential in creating educational models or kits. Could your niche involve designing learning aids?
4. Home Improvement: DIY enthusiasts are using 3D printing for custom home solutions. Is there a gap in the market for specific home improvement items? Giovanni, a member of the 3D Printerly Profits Skool community has a brand around a home accessories collection designed for 3D printing.
5. Health and Wellness: From custom orthotics to ergonomic aids, health-related 3D printed products are on the rise. Does your experience or interest align with this trend?

Consider how these trends might intersect with your identified pain points, professional experience, or passions.

A niche that aligns with growing market trends could offer significant opportunities.

Staying Updated with 3D Printing Market Demands

To continually identify new niche opportunities, it’s crucial to stay informed about the latest developments in 3D printing.

Here are some ways to keep your finger on the pulse of the industry:

1. Follow 3D Printing Blogs and News Sites: Websites like 3DPrint.com, All3DP, and 3D Printing Industry offer regular updates on new technologies, applications, and market trends.
2. Join Online Communities: Participate in forums like Reddit’s r/3Dprinting or Facebook groups dedicated to 3D printing. These can be great sources for user insights and emerging needs.
3. Attend Virtual or Local Meetups: Many cities have 3D printing meetup groups where enthusiasts share ideas and discuss new developments.
4. Subscribe to Industry Newsletters: Sign up for newsletters from major 3D printing companies and marketplaces to stay informed about new products and market demands.
5. Explore 3D Printing Marketplaces: Regularly browse sites like Thingiverse, MyMiniFactory, or Printables to see what’s popular and identify gaps in the market.
6. Follow Influencers on Social Media: Many 3D printing experts share insights and trends on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

The more informed you are about the 3D printing market and demands, you’ll be able to identify emerging niches and adapt your offerings to meet new market demands.

Remember, the 3D printing landscape is constantly evolving, and staying ahead of trends can give you a significant advantage in finding profitable niches.

Summary

The 3 P’s framework – Pain, Profession, and Passion – provides a structured approach to finding your 3D printing niche.

By examining your personal experiences, professional background, and interests, you can identify unique opportunities in the 3D printing market.

Remember, success often comes from solving specific problems or catering to niche interests.

Join my 3D Printerly Profits Skool Community to engage with like-minded people who enjoy 3D printing and want to make money with it.

Next steps:

1. Complete the step-by-step niche selection process outlined above.
2. Learn or improve 3D modeling skills relevant to your chosen niche.
3. Set up an online presence (website, social media, or marketplace store).
4. Create a small inventory of products.
5. Start marketing your products to your target audience.
6. Gather customer feedback and iterate on your designs.
7. Expand your product line based on customer demand and your capabilities.