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THE ONLINE INVENTOR – December 2007 issue

http://www.marketlaunchers.com

Editor: Paul Niemann

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Dear Inventor –

Here’s another right-to-the-point issue for you, with two good articles.

In other news, if you wish to reach more than 2,200 inventors by advertising in our humble little newsletter, please e-mail me at [email protected] or call (217) 224-8194 for details. Thanks.

Now, on with this week’s issue …

Best Regards,
Paul Niemann
Paul Niemann
http://www.MarketLaunchers.com
800-337-5758
217-224-8194

FAMOUS / INFAMOUS Quotes …

“That’s an amazing invention, but who would ever want to use one of them?” – President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, after Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone to him at the White House

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Article # 1: “Put your Product on the Market by Going thru the Back Door” by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Article # 2: “Giving Your Invention a Head Start” by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

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Article # 1: “Put your Product on the Market by Going thru the Back Door”
By Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

I spoke with a successful inventor and MarketLaunchers.com customer last week about the possibility of representing other inventors who have created products in the same industry.

It got me thinking that this would be a good topic for our humble little newsletter.

He licensed his invention to a sporting goods company and now has 26 companies that distribute his invention. I suggested that he start to represent other inventors.

Why would it make sense for you as an inventor to find and approach other successful inventors like this one to see if he would rep your product?

There are at least 3 good reasons:

1. Because he already knows the industry and its main companies, including which companies are open to looking at new products from outside inventors.

2. Because he already has relationships established with his manufacturer and the 26 companies that distribute his invention. Some of these companies have already asked him if he has any other products to license.

3. Because some companies prefer to deal with established vendors who have multiple products. This makes sense when you realize that a retailer would rather deal with 50 vendors, each of whom has 10 products each, rather than 500 one-product vendors. Think of the amount of man hours and paperwork that this saves.

Why would it make sense for the inventor to rep other inventors’ products?

Because of what is likely to happen next: When a product becomes successful, it gets knocked off. So the next step is to have a second and then a third product to bring to the market, in order to stay in business for a long time.

So the $64,000 question is then: How do you find successful inventors to see if they would rep your product?

Look at new products that are in the stores where your product could be sold; also do Google searches in your industry; also read your industry’s trade magazines because they sometimes have stories of new product launches. There’s a successful inventor or company behind every one of them.

You can also contact the sales reps who supply the stores in your industry with products. They already have relationships established with the manufacturers that they sell for, and they might be able to get you a meeting with a key decision maker at that company.

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Paul Niemann runs MarketLaunchers.com, building web pages for inventors. Having your own web page allows you to show your invention to companies when you’re unable to present it to them in person. It serves as your “online brochure.” Plus, it can be seen by companies who search MarketLaunchers.com’s invention database for new products.

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FAMOUS / INFAMOUS Quotes …

“The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time” -- Inventor Abraham Lincoln

Article # 2: “Giving Your Invention a Head Start”
By Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Can we begin this story with 3 simple questions?

1. What’s the hardest thing about going on a diet?

2. What’s the hardest thing about starting a new workout regimen?

3. What’s the hardest thing about beginning a job search?

ANSWER: Getting started!

Getting started is also the hardest part of getting your new inventions on the market. After all, why should a company be willing to take on that risk? Why should they believe in what you think is a great new idea?

Here’s one way to make that decision easier for them: Begin by having a small production run of anywhere from 10 units to 100 units, and then begin selling them.

There’s an article in the current issue of Forbes magazine in which the magazine’s publisher, Rich Karlgaard, says that some of the major innovations were first embraced by individuals rather than big companies. He cites as examples the Web, search engines, the Blackberry, and social networks such as MySpace and Facebook. The entire article is at http://www.forbes.com/columnists/forbes/2007/1126/031.html

One reason that companies tend to avoid risk is that the decision makers tend to look bad when they make decisions that don’t work out. So it’s easier to NOT make a decision – which to you is a decision of NO.

By paying for a small production run, you can build what companies want to see before saying YES, and that is a track record and a revenue stream. By doing this, you eliminate some of the risk for them – which makes it easier for YOU to get them to license your great new product.

So you might want to consider producing a small production run if you can afford it and if it makes financial sense.

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