First Impressions are Everything

Last week’s focus was on conducting market research. This week, we will discuss the importance of quality presentations.

First impressions are extremely important. Psychologists say first impressions have a “primacy effect”. The “primacy effect” in essence is the base for all impressions moving forward. So, if you make a bad first impression, all future opinions will be influenced by the first negative impression.

Solomon Asch, a famous psychologist, performed an experiment in which he provided two groups of students with a list of character traits of a speaker prior to his arrival.

The first group was given a list that described the speaker with ‘cold’ traits while the second group was given a list describing the speaker with ‘warm’ traits.

Upon the completion of the speech, the students were asked to describe the speaker as either cold or warm. Overwhelmingly, the students of group one rated the speaker as “cold” and the second group overwhelmingly rated the speaker as “warm”.

The significance of the experiment was that each group had listened to the same speaker give the same speech. It demonstrated the impact that first impressions have on an individuals view whether it is a reference someone has made, a cold call, or a letter you have sent.

This factor is extremely important for inventors to realize. Keep it in mind throughout getting a product to market. Not setting a proper first impression can hinder your progress significantly.

For Example:

• A product development executive receives a hastily recorded and unplanned voicemail about a ‘great idea’ and never returns the call.
• A customer sees a poorly packaged product and questions its quality in a split second leading them not to buy. The packaging is later improved - the customer still questions the products quality.
• A potential buyer receives a package with unimpressive materials - she never opens the presentation.

These types of situations happen on a daily basis for many inventors. While a product may be of high quality, many inventors forget that their behavior and presentation has a large impact on whether that quality will ever even have the opportunity to be evaluated.

EVERY interaction is a presentation. You should have verbal ‘material’ prepped for plan phone calls and tangible materials for group and individual presentations.

Let’s use a man named “John” who has invented a new flat tire repair product as an example.

John calls a potential distributor and leaves a voicemail saying, “Hi, this is John. I found you online and I have a product you are really going to be interested in, call me at xxx-xxx-xxxx and I’ll talk to you more about it”. Do you think John will get a call back?

The chances are that he will not. Contrast that with a voicemail discussing the same product such as this, “Hi, This is John Williams from Tire Doctor. While conducting research, I found that your company is the largest distributor of fix a flat online. Our team recently received a patent on a new version of fix a flat which has shown to fix up to 50% larger holes and holds for 4x as long making it the strongest and longest lasting product on the market. Additionally, the product is produced at a fraction of the cost allowing for us to provide larger margins for our distributors. Please call me at your convenience at xxx-xxx-xxxx to further discuss a potential partnership”. Will John get a call back?

The chances that he now will get a call back will go up exponentially. He has, in his ‘first impression’, demonstrated higher value, intelligence, and courtesy.

Additionally, if you get a call back but have poor presentation materials it is likely you will be working uphill against a force you could have avoided. Presenting your product deserves a good amount of time and thought.

Your initial presentation should be no longer than 10 pages in length in size 14 font (people will not read what is hard to read). The presentation should talk about your products features and benefits and should ALSO emphasize the benefits to them whether it is a distributor or a direct retailer.

If you are interested in personal hands on services to help position your product for presentations to potential buyers, feel free to email me at Lindsey@IdeaBuyer.com for further consultation.

This week: The importance of quality presentation materials

Next week: How to get manufacturing quotes

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.

Research is Key!

Last week’s focus was on creating a prototype and drawings for your invention. This week, we will discuss how crucial it is for you to research everything about your invention. Because next Thursday is a holiday, we will be sending out the newsletter on Wednesday, so watch for it a day early!

Being told to research may remind you of being in school and preparing to write a report. Well that is basically what you will be doing. Hopefully this won’t turn you off to the idea of it, because it is so important for your invention.

Now that the internet has made it so easy to access information, at times it can make us forget about the good old fashioned LIBRARY. I would recommend using both. The library has a lot of the same information that the internet has, but it will always be free. With the reliance upon internet search engines, companies have begun to charge you for information that was certainly published in a book, and that book is probably sitting at your local library.

Here are some search engines that I would recommend using, other than our beloved Google.

1. The Thomas Register

The Thomas Register is a great tool for specified searches on manufacturers and suppliers.

http://www.thomasnet.com/index.html

2. Hoovers

Hoovers offers a searchable database of companies, executives, and expert advice.

http://www.hoovers.com/free/

3. IndustrySearch.com

IndustrySearch is a great resource if you are looking to do market research on the tech or manufacturing sectors.

http://www.industrysearch.com/

If these websites do not allow you to find the information below, try visiting the library.

With that in mind, let’s talk about what you should be researching. If you haven’t done one already, you certainly need to start with a search on potential competition. Some of you may be saying that your product is the first of its kind so it won’t have competition… WRONG!

You created your invention to solve a problem. Chances are there is already something on the marketplace that is currently being used to solve that same problem.

Research that product and the companies that it is affiliated with. Find out how long it has been on the market, how it is being manufactured, sold, and distributed. Write up a summary of the information that you have found, it may even be beneficial to do a comparison with your product.

After analyzing the results you may consider placing your product on a similar path.

Using your competitor as an example, you will need to find out who your potential users are, down to demographics. Demographics for the consumers of your industry can be found when doing your industry research. Before you begin that, start by asking yourself who is going to want to use your product and why? Try to narrow down as much as possible, WHO your target buyer is.

Start your industry research by narrowing down what industry your product should be placed in. Get as specific as possible. For instance, if you have invented a new type of pencil, you might consider your product being sold in through the office supply industry. An industry more specific to your product like writing utensils would be more beneficial. Specificity allows for more opportunities. Consider if you had gone with office supplies as your industry, you would have lost out on the school supply market.

The market that you are going to be supplying your product to is constantly changing. Some markets change with consumer spending, and some don’t. Some markets only last a year. It is extremely important for you to research the market’s history, and the anticipated changes that the market may go through. These changes will affect your product, so they are extremely important to be aware of.

Industry and market research can be frustrating and time consuming. As an added down side, much of the information on the internet is usually not free. Here is a tip for finding out information about your market or industry:

Find out what publications are specific to your product. Think about which of them would have the same or similar target audience. Look at the media kits and advertising information that they are providing for their advertisers. They have already paid to have this information researched and typically, they are placed on the website.

This write-up of all of the research you have conducted, will be a great tool in your decision making process, and also something you can use in a presentation for potential buyers or investors.

This week: In-depth Research… CHECK!

Next week: The materials needed for a great presentation!

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.

How do I protect my intellectual property and still move it along in the sale process if it is not yet patented?

Sound familiar? Lately, that question has been asked most frequently by our members to our Idea Buyer staff.

Well, let me first say that you need to get your intellectual property protected before it slips or is ripped from your fingers. Patents are the best way to do this. However, something important to understand is that patents protect inventions and not ideas. Without something tangible produced from your idea, a patent is not worth much. The USPTO only can legally protect those who do something with their idea. So, before filing for a patent or provisional patent, create a prototype or model.

If you do not yet have a tangible example of your idea, with or without a patent, use caution when
talking to others. Your idea should be on a strictly “NEED TO KNOW” basis. If they don’t need to know, don’t tell them. You only set off the chain reaction for them to go tell others and for one of those others to capitalize on your idea.

For those whom you decide “NEED TO KNOW”, have them sign a non-disclosure agreement. The
contract will ensure that both parties involved understand that the conversation(s) you have about your IP will remain secretive. And if for some reason the person violates that contract, you have the
documentation necessary to file a law suit.

Still, the best way to protect your IP is to create a working prototype as proof of your concept as soon as possible. Only a patent will protect you, and only if you have visual embodiment of your idea.

So let’s talk patents.

For the majority of inventors, filing a provisional patent is a good idea. It is a way to protect your idea for 12 months while you find out if there is a real market and demand for your product, making it worth the extra money to file a full patent.

If you have the necessary funds and feel more comfortable, you can certainly go to a registered patent attorney. For a provisional patent they will charge you about $1,800.

Have just enough money to cover the filing fees? File the provisional patent yourself!

This is USPTO’s official application for a provisional patent:

http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/provapp.htm

Unfortunately, it is not “user-friendly” but it does break down each step of the process and what should go into it.

Another option for filing yourself is Legal Zoom. The website offers legal documents in a user-friendly fashion.

http://www.legalzoom.com/provisional-patents/provisional-patents-overview.html

Either will work and will end in the same result.

Until you have your IP patented, I would like to share a way of thinking about IP sales:

“Selling intellectual property is like selling a cake. Show the buyer how good it looks. Show the buyer how good it smells. Let the buyer taste how good it tastes. You can show them why it will work and why it will sell, but you don’t have to give them the recipe.”

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.

I’ll just sell the patent!” Ever find yourself saying this as a kind of all-purpose declaration of how all your hard work will eventually pay off? The truth is that while selling a patent can be very lucrative, certain steps need to be followed. In this article, we will offer 10 tips to make your patent selling efforts more effective.

1) Target your efforts

Of all the tips on this list, this is the one you should circle, underline, write on your forehead and read to yourself when you look in the mirror each morning. You cannot sell a patent to someone who does not want it. While this seems obvious enough, many inventors (especially those with Inventor Baby Syndrome) cannot fathom why totally unrelated companies are not interested in buying their patent. To ensure that this doesn’t happen to you, do some research at the Thomas Register. There, you can search for manufacturers and suppliers by the field they are in. This will provide you with a nice, long list of targeted, potential buyers.

2) Do not be greedy

Remember the old saying: pigs get fat, but hogs get slaughtered. The idea is to not be too greedy in setting or insisting upon a price for your patent. This sounds easy to say in theory, but difficult to do in practice. The key, however, is to remember an all-important truth about patents. Many of them produce no income for their owners. In fact, some patents even expire while the owner fails to capitalize upon them! This does not mean you should be desperate to sell, but it does mean that you should not be turning away reasonable offers. Do not try to squeeze every last drop out of the buyer.

3) Make your patent look appealing

Why should someone want to buy your patent? You had better ask yourself this question, because anyone thinking about buying it is going to be wondering the same thing. Is there a large market waiting to be capitalized on? Does your patent position the owner to jump in before competition gets fierce? Is your asking price paltry compared to the expected profits? These are the types of things you will want to emphasize in your selling efforts. Focus on benefits to the buyer. See step 6 for more on this crucial point.

4) Get legal advice before the sale

Selling a patent is not like holding a garage sale. There are complex laws governing how and under what terms a patent may be sold. Therefore, you should not attempt to sell yours without getting competent legal advice. A patent attorney, while expensive, can ensure that your sale takes place in compliance with the law, and in such a way where the other party cannot use “weasel clauses” to back out later on. Consider this a must in your patent selling efforts.

5) Create a powerful presentation

The ins and outs of a powerful patent presentation are beyond the scope of this article, but suffice it to say that you should have one. Fortunately, IdeaBuyer has a comprehensive how-to article on this very subject! See our article “10 Tips for Creating a Powerful Presentation” for practical guidance and key considerations to keep in mind.

6) Decide whether selling is truly what you want to do

Some patent holders are unaware that they have other options besides selling. The other main option is to license your patent, or grant someone rights to it without actually turning over the patent itself. The advantage of this approach is that you can capitalize on the patent in the form of royalties while still owning it, and being able to revoke it if certain conditions are not met. Of course, selling may still be the best option, but you should make sure this is the case before you sell.

7) Run the numbers before setting an asking price

While you don’t want to be greedy (as per tip number 2), you also want to make sure the price you get is worth your while. This becomes important if you are already capitalizing on your patent in some way, such as by selling a product. You want to make sure you make enough from selling your patent to replace that income and then some. Otherwise, why not just keep the patent for yourself? Tally up the profits you’ve been making and try to get a price at least 10x the yearly amount that you make. This is the standard calculation in corporate acquisitions and a good starting point for patents you are already making money from.

8) Bring the underlying idea to market first

Most patent holders want to sell precisely to avoid this task, but think about it from another angle. If you are a potential buyer, which are you more likely to buy: a totally unproven patent that just sounds nice, or a patent which has already been capitalized on, and demonstrated its success? If you are at all entrepreneurial, and you feel you are up to the task, you should definitely consider bringing the patent to market. This will make the task of selling it far easier, and allow you to claim the residual income that result after some initial hard work.

9) List your patent on a patent listing website

Thanks to the Internet, patent holders have a whole new medium for selling their intellectual property. One of the best ways is to use listing websites that bring buyers and sellers together and help them complete sales in a safe, legal way. IdeaBuyer.com, for example, allows patent holders to list their patent and help ensure that only relevant potential buyers will see it. They will also receive assistance in negotiating with buyers and closing the sale in the proper way. No matter which site you use, patent listing websites are worth looking into.

10) Attend trade shows

One great place to find patent buyers is at trade shows. If you have a technology or software patent, for instance, it may be worth your while to set up a booth at a tech expo where relevant professionals and corporations can see what your patent is all about. It is a more proactive approach than placing ads and can sometimes be highly effective in getting the patent sold.

Chances are, some of these tips will fit your style, strengths, and weaknesses more than others. Just pick the ones that suit you best and you should be well on your way!

Learning To Sell Your Patent

So, you have ensured that your intellectual property is securely yours by getting a patent- NOW WHAT?

Often inventors patent their intellectual property and then are stuck on how to go about selling or licensing it. Is this you? Good news, I have some ways to help get you out of the waiting stage and on to the moving along stage.

Here is a quick lesson in sales, marketing, and advertising important for inventors:

Lesson One: Appearance
By now you should have not only a patent, but also a working prototype or at least a great drawing. Keep in mind, people interested in buying your patent will not only want to read your full patent (pages and pages of legal jargon and small print), they will want to see it packaged in a manner that makes it worth buying.

What I may consider basic, some people may not be aware of how these things can affect their sale or non-sale of their patent. Appearance is crucial in the business world. People say they don’t judge others based on appearance, but let me be the bearer of bad news: THEY DO! You and your patent material need to be dressed as nicely as the amount of money you want to sell it for. If you are looking to sell the patent for a dollar then feel free to dress it like something off of a dollar menu at your local fast food restaurant.

Of course, I do not recommend this. Simply wear a suit, show up with well written and easily readable material packaged in a visually pleasing way.
Okay, now you and your patent are visually appealing to potential buyers. Where do you find them?

Lesson Two: Research
It’s called good old fashioned research! A library or internet search engine should suffice.

You need to find the potential users of your patent. Who would want to use it and why? What industries would this fall under? Come up with 10-20 potential users. Then based on industries begin your research for companies that would sell to your potential users (the potential user may be the company itself).

Lesson Three: Contact
Once you know which companies you will be targeting, start contacting them! Start by sending them a professionally written letter making them aware that you are looking to sell your patent and enclose a clear and concise description of your patent.

If you are having trouble getting into contact with companies through direct mail, try attending a trade show! They are a great way to meet people in your target sales group and also to gauge interest in your product. You may also meet other inventors and gain valuable knowledge of the market you are trying to get into.

Lesson Four: Advertise
How will people know that your patent is for sale if you don’t make them aware? Advertising that your patent is for sale will only help you.

Let’s say “Joe” is interested in buying your patent. Joe looks on IdeaBuyer.com under patents for sale and does not see your patent listing. How will he buy it? He won’t. Joe will end up coming across hundreds of other great patents for sale and invest his money in them. Do you want Joe’s money or do you want to give it to someone else?

A patent buyer interested in buying your patent can’t buy it if he can’t find it for sale.

Recapping today’s lessons in selling your patent:
1: You and your patent material need to look like they are worth what you are selling them for.
2: You must research! You need to be the one able to answer all of the questions about your product, its markets, industries and potential users.
3: Get the word out! Write a professional letter to potential buyers letting them know your patent is for sale.
4: Advertise. No one will know your patent is for sale unless you tell them.

Now get moving!

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.