After over 20 years in this industry, I know inventors are creative, ambitious people. They are the individuals who see a problem and envision a solution to that problem. Too often, however, they take a difficult pathway as they strive to bring their invention to the attention of potential buyers. Most inventions fail because the initial precious resources are misdirected and spent on inadequate prototypes and filings for full patents before the idea is developed into a viable business concept. An effective business planning process will address such issues as cost and potential return on investment, which should be 8 to10 times the direct cost of manufacturing. In today’s uncertain economy, a further goal must be to develop the idea in such a way as to minimize the risks to a licensing firm.

Without the services of an experienced product development and management (PDM) company, inventors may spend $15,000 or more on patenting and as much or more on ineffective prototyping of an invention that is not yet ready for commercialization, only to discover that the idea is impossible or too expensive to produce. Working with a PDM company, you can take the sketch you drew on a crumpled napkin and help develop it into a real product with potential readiness for the marketplace.

From crumpled napkin to tangible product, you will need to take the following steps: 1. Have your product evaluated 2. Assess the reception from the market and 3. Build support for your product.

Evaluation

Your invention will be developed by a product designer, or sculpted or modeled in 3D CAD. This step in the process enables the PDM Company to evaluate your idea for feasibility. The issue of feasibility has a number of dimensions: First, does the invention provide a clear-cut solution to a problem? You need to answer this question before spending large sums on prototyping and patenting fees. In addition, can the invention be manufactured? Perhaps most importantly, does your invention have “financial feasibility”? That is, is it likely to make an adequate return on your investment, and on the investment of the organization that buys or leases your invention from you?

An experienced PDM company will assign a Product Development Team with representatives from marketing, engineering, manufacturing, testing, quality, finance, intellectual property management and any other needed discipline to work with you. The team will address your invention’s entire life cycle, from development through production to support.

Market Receptivity

Don’t spend thousands on prototyping and patenting an idea that doesn’t have the potential to find a ready market. You have probably been thinking about your invention for years, and you’re sure that everyone will want one. That may be true, but it’s best to assess the market objectively. Are you sure your idea is unique? Someone else may have “gotten there” before you, with a similar invention, or with different approach that solves the same problem that inspired you.

A PDM company will use focus groups and market testing to help refine your product, differentiate it, and give it the edge it needs to reach its ultimate customers. This is the point at which your PDM Company will join forces with your patent attorney to work with you as strategic partners.

Product Support

A purchaser or licensee will require certain information before they can understand the benefit of your invention. They will want to know that you have developed a product forecast based on market feedback and engineering analysis. They will want to know that your product and its production processes have been validated, and that you have obtained all needed regulatory approvals and certifications.

Additional tools to support your product may include virtual prototyping and manufacturing analysis, selection of materials and technology, and development of direct cost to manufacture, focusing on development of a recommended end sales markup of 8 to 10 time the manufacturing cost. End-user documentation, operating manuals and maintenance instructions may also be required. Working with a PDM company is a cost-effective way to develop these tools and make the idea you once sketched on a napkin into a real product with value in the marketplace!

Vall Iliev is the president and CEO of Vallmar LLC, Stow, Ohio, www.vallmar.com, a product development and management company founded in 1984. Vallmar works with inventors to design, plan, develop, and validate ideas so they may be brought to market. Vallmar clients range from individual inventors to large manufacturers and nationwide retailers.

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Manufacturing Quotes for Your Product

Last week’s focus was on the importance of quality presentations. This week, we will discuss how to obtain manufacturing quotes and their importance in moving an invention closer to market.

One critical step in the invention process is obtaining manufacturing quotes. As an inventor, you must know the cost of your product in order to be taken seriously by potential partners. The manufacturing cost will play a role in many of your financial projections.

The best way to obtain manufacturing quotes is to work with a prototyping company that regularly works with inventors and has experience working with products in your given industry.

You want to ensure that the company you choose to work with has the capability to produce production quality drawings, help you choose the proper materials for your invention, has engineering experience to ensure your products integrity, and has vast experience with prototyping and going to production.

Here are some things you want to look out for:

1. ‘Prototyping company’ where you speak with a salesperson rather than an engineer.
2. A company that will not sign a basic non-disclosure agreement.

One prototyping company that we recommend is Vallmar LLC which is based out of Ohio.

Vallmar follows a five step model which is critical to inventor success.

1. Research
2. Design
3. Engineering
4. Prototyping
5. Production

Many inventors do not have the resources to go to production. Obtaining quotes will give you more information about what it will take to get your product to market.

Having already conducted your market research and having a general idea of the price point at which you can sell your product, your manufacturing cost per unit will help you determine your anticipated gross margins at various volumes of production.

It will also give you a clear picture of the overall total investment it will take to get your product to be production ready. Costs will range from engineering to molds. These costs play a vital role in your discussions with partners who will be taking a risk in working with you.

If nothing else, the quotes will give you an idea of what the other party will have to risk and may make you a little less greedy. Remember to value what others can bring to the table. It is rare for someone to become successful trying to accomplish everything on their own. Many inventors have no interest in “sharing the pie”, however, it will mean nothing if your “pie” sits there rotting while you’re still waiting on a fork to eat it.

This week: How to get manufacturing quotes

Next week: How to Create Company Contacts to Fast Track Your Invention to Market

About the author of this article:

Lindsey Yeauger is the Director of Communications for Idea Buyer LLC, a new product development company that owns and operates IdeaBuyer.com- The Online Marketplace for Intellectual Property. The site gives inventors the opportunity to showcase their intellectual property to consumer product companies, entrepreneurs, retailers, and manufacturers. You can email her at Lindsey@IdeaBuyer.com.

Developing a product is when the rubber meets the road, when theory meets practice, when ideas become real. While it would be impossible for any one article to give a blow-by-blow list of specific steps for making every kind of product imaginable, there are some definite principles that can and should be followed. Doing so ensures that your product development efforts result in something far more likely to succeed on the open marketplace.

With that being said, let’s dive in!

Do not get overly attached to your original conception.

Some inventors make the mistake of worshiping their original idea for what the product will look like when it is done. Many do this because they are afraid of becoming like entrepreneurs on the other extreme of the product development spectrum: those who never make any progress because they keep junking the product and starting from scratch. In fact, both of these approaches are wrong. The key to successful product development is to hold true to your idea without being so rigid that you refuse to make rational changes.

For example, let us say you are developing a new kind of water filtration system that is going to put the existing models to shame with its never-before-seen, super-accurate and top-secret filtration technology. In conceiving this new filter, you have decided to make it as an add-on to the sink faucet. That is, it will attach to the faucet and automatically filter water when someone turns it on. But let’s say you come across a questionnaire or focus group. It says that faucet filter sales have been in decline for two years. However, it shows consumers are quire enthusiastic about pitchers that will filter the water they pour into it.

If you are a smart product developer, you will strongly consider adapting your incredible new technology to this method. Refusing to acknowledge this trend and make anything other than what you originally thought of is the kind of stubbornness that kills otherwise great products. Do not let that become your story!

Set realistic deadlines for yourself and adhere to them.

Without deadlines, product development can devolve into endless “do-overs” and “back to the drawing board” sessions that become little more than a sinkhole of wasted time. Of course, a certain amount of mistake and retries are to be expected when developing a product. Trying to eliminate all of them would be impossible. Instead, the goal is to set reasonable deadlines for yourself.

If you are vexed by a particular problem, give yourself a set amount of time to solve it before moving on to the next issue. If you cannot resolve the problem in that amount of time, make a judgment call. Will a few more days suffice? Or is this something you should put on the back burner while you satisfy other pressing demands of developing the product? Prioritizing is key, and learning to do so will be an incalculable benefit to you. It will give your progress a sense of physical reality and keep you anchored to a plan.

Of course, your ultimate deadline should be one for completion: when do you hope to have the product developed by? Impose a deadline on yourself even if there isn’t one. The sooner your product is developed, the faster you can get it to market and begin reaping the fruits of your labor.

Get feedback from those outside your family and friends.

As you develop the product, show it to people at various stages. Collect feedback from them on what they like, what they do not like, and what they would like to see instead. Many inventors forgo this valuable feedback loop because they fear that sense of rejection. No one likes to hear that what they have worked on for months might not be so great after all.

So rather than seek the cleansing of truth, many inventors simply hypothesize to themselves about what people would think about the product. This is completely insufficient. Instead, your goal should be exposing your product to as much critical scrutiny as possible. This means to look outside your family and friends. While they are often concerned first and foremost with not hurting your feelings, outsiders will often be quite blunt about what you should do differently. Far from being a bad thing, this is actually invaluable.

If you show your product at various stages to say 20 people, and 14 of them make the same suggestion that you never thought of, that is an enormous help. You can be reasonably sure that this suggestion is something the people in your market would want as well.

To develop a product, you need to walk the tightrope of maintaining your vision while also respecting reality. By keeping an active mind, you will only strengthen your product and increase its chances for success.

Eric Corl is the Founder and CEO of IdeaBuyer.com, a marketplace for new technology and products that gives inventors the opportunity to showcase their intellectual property to consumer product companies, entrepreneurs, retailers, and manufacturers. You can email him at EricCorl@IdeaBuyer.com.