10 Steps Every Inventor Should Take
1. Have a Great Idea? Awesome, Start Documenting Everything:
It is important to create a record of invention before going any further with it. The record of invention should be written in ink and include a clear description of the idea, the date, your signature and the signatures of two witnesses.
2. Know The Ins and Outs Of Your Product:
You have an idea? Great, but there's more to taking an idea from a simple dream to reality. It's necessary to understand the product you'd like to develop and how to go about making it. Draw sketches and have an idea of exactly how you envision it would work if it were to be made. At times, inventors can get caught up in the idea and not so much in the steps needed to produce the product from start to finish. The best way to ensure your success is to contact an expert to get an understanding of the field that you're entering.
3. Make Sure Your Idea Is In Fact Yours:
Make sure your idea isn't out there already. Embark on a thorough researching journey for information, to see if there are products similar to yours already out in the market. Conduct research through internet searches and/or visit stores that might sell similar products or cater to products in your field. If your search produces nothing, then it's time to do a patent search. You need to do a patent search even if you have not found your idea through prior research, because over 97% of the patents that are issued to independent inventors never make it to the marketplace. But, if they are patented, and the patent is still active, then it is an infringement for anyone else to create that product.
4. The Importance of Non-Disclosures:
A non-disclosure document or confidentiality agreement (they are the same thing) is extremely important in protecting your idea and allowing you the time you need to develop your product. It is a simple statement that should be signed by anyone to whom you show your invention. It states that they have seen your invention and agree not to reveal its contents to anyone.
5. Build Your Team:
You are not going to be an expert in everything. You will be more successful in your venture if you can get the help of friends and other experts. It may mean that some of your team will keep their day jobs and work evenings, while you do the heavy lifting. Having trusted advisors and partners will increase your chances of success.
6. Project Funding
Product development is expensive no matter how you dice it up. Familiarize yourself with ‘Lean Startup’ techniques. The key item here is to fail fast, fail early, fail cheap. Unless you are already rich, you will need the help of someone who is, in most cases.
7. Validation
This really may be the most important step. This is where you take all of your assumptions, the “I think”s, and “probably”s and the rubber hits the road. Sell 1. Can you sell 1? Can you create and sell a MVP (minimally viable product). Sell the 1, then iterate and sell 10.
8. Protect Your Product:
Many of the pages for a patent application are made by scratch, by you, the inventor. This is not an easy, fill-in-the-blank application. Be prepared to communicate the ins and outs of your product in essay format. Always hire a professional patent agent or patent attorney. They will not only fully document your idea, but they will help expand the scope to cover obvious improvements and mitigate circumvention
Also be aware there are other intellectual property aspects like copyright and trade secret that can be used to help protect your idea and company.
9. Make a Plan:
Determine what you want out of your invention. Do you want a plaque on a wall or do you want to run a business. Identifying and setting your goals is critical to the success of your invention. Ideas are everywhere. Execution is gold. The successful monetization of an invention requires careful research into who will buy the product and how it will be sold. Now that you have the end points, the plan should fill in all of the details in the middle. You should have at the very least a rough plan in place before you make a prototype.
10. Licensees and Manufacturing:
Before scheduling an appointment with a potential licensee, you must first produce a professional presentation of your project that describes your product and why it makes good business sense for them to be the exclusive licensee. The presentation must answer all possible questions, like product need in the market, how it works, costs to manufacture and any other related questions. If you are not meeting with the company in person, you should send your presentation by mail, typically Fed Ex or First Class Mail. Your presentation is private and confidential and should be treated as such.
Now that you’ve gotten this far, read the “I Have an Idea, Now What?” Blog. It was written by our Chief Product Designer, Gabriel Goldstein, and is based on the presentation he gives periodically at SCORE.