Inventors Get Rich

We wish we could turn our great idea or invention into a million dollars.  There are advertisements all over the TV and internet for invention advisors (promoters) who promise to help you patent and market your invention.

I am a patented inventor (USP# 5,638,251) with dozens of other inventions that are still corporate trade secrets.  Here are a few things I've learned along the way.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC.gov) has found that many invention promotion firms claim - falsely - that they can turn almost any idea into cash. But, the agency says, smart inventors can learn to spot the sweet-sounding promises of a fraudulent promotion firm. Here's what they say about how to follow up if you hear the following lines:

• "We think your idea has great market potential." Few ideas - however good - become commercially successful. If a company fails to disclose that investing in your idea is a high-risk venture, and that most ideas never make any money, beware.
   

• "Our company has licensed a lot of invention ideas successfully." If a company tells you it has a good track record, ask for a list of its successful clients. Confirm that these clients have had commercial success. If the company refuses to give you a list of their successful clients, it probably means they don't have any.
   

• "You need to hurry and patent your idea before someone else does." Be wary of high pressure sales tactics. Although some patents are valuable, simply patenting your idea does NOT mean you will ever make any money from it.
   

• "Congratulations! We've done a patent search on your idea, and we have some great news. There's nothing like it out there." Many invention promotion firms claim to perform patent searches on ideas. Patent searches by fraudulent invention promotion firms usually are incomplete, conducted in the wrong category, or unaccompanied by a legal opinion on the results of the search from a patent attorney. Because unscrupulous firms promote virtually any idea or invention without regard to its patentability, they may market an idea for which someone already has a valid, unexpired patent. In that case, you may be the subject of a patent infringement lawsuit - even if the promotional efforts on your invention are successful.
   

• "Our research department, engineers, and patent attorneys have evaluated your idea. We definitely want to move forward." This is a standard sales pitch. Many questionable firms do not perform any evaluation at all. In fact, many don't have the "professional" staff they claim.
   

• "Our company has evaluated your idea, and now wants to prepare a more in-depth research report. It'll be several hundred dollars." If the company's initial evaluation is "positive," ask why the company isn't willing to cover the cost of researching your idea further.
   

• "Our company makes most of its money from the royalties it gets from licensing its clients' ideas. Of course, we need some money from you before we get started." If a firm tells you this, but asks you to pay a large fee - up-front or to agree to make credit payments - ask why they're not willing to help you on a contingency basis. Unscrupulous firms make almost all their money from advance fees.

Inventor Protections

The American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 gives you certain rights when dealing with invention promoters. Before an invention promoter can enter into a contract with you, it must disclose the following information about its business practices during the past five years:

• how many inventions it has evaluated,

• how many of those inventions got positive or negative evaluations,

• its total number of customers,

• how many of those customers received a net profit from the promoter's services,

• how many of those customers have licensed their inventions due to the promoter's services, and

• the different names the company has operated under.

This information can help you determine how selective the promoter has been in deciding which inventions it promotes and how successful the promoter has been.  Check out the FTC.gov website for more information.  Choose an invention promoter carefully if at all.

Here's what you can do before you spend big money on a patent:

• Read books on the patent and invention process

• Do a free patent search on your own by using the US Patent and Trademark Office USPTO search engine

• The USPTO has great resources for inventors including US patent law that you should understand before going too far with your invention patent process

• You can file a US patent disclosure on your own for $10.00 but that may not help you in the long run if you don't take action on the patent process soon after.

• You can actually do all the work yourself to get a US patent for less than $1,200.

• Patent attorneys and patent specialists can greatly ease the process and speed it up though it will take three years or so no matter what you do.  That service comes at a price of about $5,000 to $20,000 just for the patent.  Oh, and don't forget the ongoing regular patent maintenance fees.

• Conduct a market study to see if the product or idea you have might sell in large enough volumes to make a profit.  Understand that if you are having it manufactured, marketed, distributed and/or sold by others your net take on the total sale might be only 5 to 20%.  Everyone along the way has to cover their costs and make a profit too.

Yes, you can make money on a patentable new invention.  Follow the guidelines above, read some of the great books on the subject and you can avoid making others rich at your expense.  Good luck and have fun.  Read Invent Your Way to Freedom.