How to Take Your Unique Idea to Market
It takes more than an undeveloped idea to earn royalties. You will need to develop your invention or business method well enough to complete a patent application, obtain international patent protection, create marketing materials, locate potential licensees and negotiate a licensing agreement. Although the entire process could take years, it could be well worth your time and effort if your idea turns out to be marketable.
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Instructions
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Reduce your idea into specifics. The best way to develop your idea is to begin preparing for a patent application. In order for a patent application to be accepted, it must contain specifications--including drawings, graphics and instructions--of a sufficiently comprehensive nature to allow someone to manufacture or duplicate it without references to outside sources.
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Perform a "prior art search" by browsing patent applications on the PatentScope search engine maintained by the World Intellectual Property Organization. Determine if there are any prior inventions that are identical or very similar to yours. If so, your invention cannot be patented. If you find nothing, there is still no guarantee that a non-patented invention will not invalidate your patent application.
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Retain a patent attorney to help you create legal claims to establish that your invention is novel, useful and inventive. Novelty means that no one invented it before you did, useful that it performs a specific function, and inventive means that a creative leap above existing technology--as opposed to an incremental improvement--was required to invent it.
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File a preliminary patent application under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office acts as the receiving office for such applications in the U.S., although offices exist in several locations worldwide. The International Searching Authority (ISA) will conduct a thorough prior art search and issue an opinion on whether your invention is novel or not. You should also request a comprehensive opinion on the patentability of your invention.
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File patent applications with the patent offices of each country in which you desire patent protection, using your specifications, legal claims and the ISA opinion. Once these patent offices accept your application, your invention will be considered "patent pending." If a patent is granted, protection will apply retroactively to the date you first filed your application under the PCT.
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Ask a manufacturer to estimate the marginal cost of producing your invention. The marginal cost is the cost per unit to mass produce the product, as opposed to the cost of producing a single prototype.
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Create marketing materials in order to promote your invention. These materials should be prepared from the point of view of a businessman, not an inventor. They should identify a market need and show how your invention meets that need better than any product on the market, at a lower cost. You will also need to prepare a market research report that includes an analysis of potential competitors. Your final marketing presentation should be a professionally produced, multimedia package.
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Search manufacturer's directories and membership lists of trade associations for potential licensees. Patent attorneys are also good sources for companies that may be willing to market your product.
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Give your marketing presentation to several different companies. Since you will probably be better off offering non-exclusive licenses, don't be afraid to give presentations to several different companies.
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Negotiate license agreements with interested companies. Be sure to insist on minimum periodic royalties in order to provide your licensees with an additional incentive to aggressively market your invention. The assistance of an attorney is important at this stage.
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Tips & Warnings
The United States is one of the few nations in the world that patents business methods.
Don't publicize the details of your idea or try to sell it until you have filed patent applications in every jurisdiction in which you desire protection. Prior publication or use can render your idea permanently ineligible for patent protection anywhere in the world.
References
Resources
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