MARKETING
YOUR
INVENTION
Yedidia Shofet came to us in September of 2011 and wanted to patent his “Portable Fly Catcher” so that he could market and sell his idea. We helped him design his idea into an actual product. Because Yedidia had an actual protected product for production he was able to secure an investor and a manufacturer. He has another new idea for a unique kitchen cutting board that we have designed for him and a third invention that we did all of his patent work on. He is actively marketing the first two products now because of finding an investor.
Yedidia Shofet – Inventor – Los Angeles, CA.
Hakeem Ogunmowo came to us in November of 2011 with the “Wonder Shower Net”. He invented the product about a year before that and had just gotten his first orders from stores across the country. He had us do his patent work for him so that his product was protected. He now has another product which we have completed the patent work on and he is looking to market that product through the same stores he is marketing to now. He is moving forward pretty quickly and we are there to help along the way.
Hakeem Ogunmowo – Inventor & Entrepreneur – West Lancaster, CA.
The Mars Rising Network
WE HAVE A LIST OF COMPANIES ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW INVENTIONS AND PRODUCTS FOR SUBMISSION. IF YOU SCROLL TOWARDS THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE YOU WILL SEE ALL THE INFORMATION NEEDED TO SUBMIT YOUR INFORMATION.
SO YOUR INVENTION IS READY TO MARKET
The marketing of your invention, and now your product, is the final step in your process and is dependent on your preparation with the earlier steps. By this point you should have a prototype made with photography for printed brochures or email brochures. This step is where you decide the proper path in which to move forward.
LICENSING OR SELLING YOUR PRODUCT RIGHTS
If you licensed or sold your product rights the assignee would be responsible for all of that
(See our Licensing section)
(An NDA can be used however our opinion is to have a Patent filed prior)
DIY – MARKETING & MANUFACTURING
Marketing your product yourself can be an advantage as long as you have the time and are willing to make the effort. Typically if you are marketing yourself it also means that you are manufacturing yourself as well.
(You should have Patent Pending Protection at this point for a DIY M&M)
Before you can even get a purchase order will have to provide certain legal and performance requirements. To sell your product directly to small retail (Mom & Pop stores) you would only need a UPC (Uniform Product Code) or EAN was the European Article Number and now is the (International Article Number).
TO SELL TO THE LARGER CHAINS OR BIG BOX STORES YOU WILL NEED:
GS1 US Barcodes, EAN Numbers, International & Shipping Codes
& Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) “You may purchase EDI Software as well”
(EDI) “This Company provides the service for a fee”
Covalent Works
14515 Briar Hills Parkway, Ste. 212 www.covalentworks.com
Houston, TX. 77077 PH: 800-496-3380 info@covalentworks.com
(GS1 US) (Previously known as the Uniform Code Council)
Princeton Pike Corporate Center “They oversee all worldwide bar coding”
1009 Lenox Drive, Ste. 202
Lawrenceville, NJ. 08648 PH: 609-620-0200 www.gs1us.org
You will need a Product Liability Insurance Policy. Every chain or large retailer will require this insurance which you can get from any insurance agent. Typically they require a minimum of a $5 million policy which will cost you per year whatever your product category will require. For simple products it is about $2000 per year average.
You will need your Manufacturing in place. Whether it is a USA or Foreign Manufacturer you will need to be set up and ready to fulfill an order within a time parameter. Manufacturing is usually the biggest hurtle because of the cost involved. Any manufacturer must be paid in full for the product or order delivery prior to shipping or releasing the product to you for distribution.
(SEE OUR MANUFACTURING SECTION IN THE INVENTORS WORKSHOP)
OR
CALL US AT 888-627-7747 FOR MORE INFORMATION
Financing is always the issue for anyone if they are manufacturing and fulfilling the purchase orders. Typically the inventor will either have the money necessary (which is not typical) or will need an investor. Getting a loan is impossible unless you have the collateral to cover the loan amount. The best method (which we have used in our own experience) is called Factoring.
Factoring is the method which even larger companies use to fulfill orders for the larger entities out there. (See our Factoring section in the InventorWorkshop for more information) Factoring is a financing company that will pay the manufacturer and you based on a purchase order from a creditor. This will pay you some money upfront and will pay the manufacturer for the product. There is a small fee or percentage for the service so you need to have the hard cost of inventory as solid as possible and add that percentage to your wholesale price.
Factoring can be used by anyone because it is the “Creditor” or buyer or retailer that determines the validity of the purchase order. As long as you have the previous “Must Haves” in place you will make the Lion’s share of the PROFITS. Performing this DIY process is more difficult to do in the beginning but it can produce big profits and will provide a platform for you to bring more products to the marketplace in the future.
MARKETING YOUR INVENTION TO
RETAILERS OR DISTRIBUTORS
Marketing your product is the second step in the process after you have a real product or prototype that you can show and advertise to the buyers and your manufacturing, insurance, bar coding, and all is in place. This of course is if you are doing all this yourself. Again if you are seeking a license agreement then you will skip all of this.
Marketing is NOT SALES. Marketing is what you do in order to gain sales.
It is getting your product in front of buyers whether that be consumers or distribution & retail.
TV – DIRECT RESPONSE – INFOMERCIALS
You may have a product that will do well for TV direct response. They are usually household items, tools, and things that help you around the house or office. Personal items more than professional items. You can license your product to them or you can manufacture the items. Each company has a different way of doing their business and you need to find out which company is the best fit for you.
With the TV marketing crowd you typically have 3 possible scenarios
1. If they like your product they may offer you a licensing agreement. If they do they will probably not give you any money up front and if they do it won’t be very much. If you can get 10% from TV that is pretty good however you may want so much per piece as it is easy to count that way. This
2. There are some companies that will pay for the infomercial or the ads themselves but you will be responsible for the manufacturing. They usually need enough inventory to fulfill orders for the first 90 days.
3. If you choose to manufacture and pay for the commercial there are call centers that provide the inbound answering service and sell the orders for you. This is the most profitable. The only negative is that Factoring companies will not work in this enviroment. The positive is that AS SEEN ON TV products are very good sellers in many of the large chains such as CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens, and all the drug store chains and gift shops. That is a huge market with many thousands of stores.
The retail market is separated into 3 markets
THE MOM & POP MARKET
The Mom & Pop market includes gift shops, convenience stores, and any other single store or a small group of stores. This Market can have over 100,000 stores in the USA but it is more difficult to get to each store. We have a list of these stores in the Retail Store & Buyer section in the Inventor Workshop.
THE CHAIN STORES
The chain stores are more the pharmacy chains, discount chains, gift shop chains, convenience store chains, and any national brand name that has 100 + stores. This is a very big number in the 100,000 + range as well.
THE BIG BOX STORES
Home Depot, Lowes, Target, Walmart, Kmart, Dixie Line, Big Lots, and many more make up this very powerful market. Most people think this is the first way to go but we can tell you going with the chains is probably the best way to go. They want to carry soemthing the Big Box stores do not carry. You can have an edge and go to the BB Stores later and in fact they may contact you. We have manufacturing in China and we can help with your manufacturing. Factoring companies will accept any of the chains or BB stores so it is very possible for you to manufacture your own product.
GO TO THE RETAIL & BUYERS SECTION IN THE INVENTORS WORKSHOP
DISTRIBUTION
Distribution can be the best of all worlds. Many distributors that supply the big chains and Big Box stores also deal directly with manufactures. The advantage in dealing with them is that if you license your product they will introduce the product and you will have sales much sooner. If you manufacture yourself you could have much larger orders even faster because of their connection. This can be a real winner for you so be sure and check it out in the “Distribution Center” in the Inventors Workshop.
THE INVENTORS WORKSHOP HAS ALL THE INFORMATION YOU WILL NEED TO FIND WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR AND
IT IS FREE FOR ALL INVENTORS
BELOW YOU WILL FIND A LIST OF MANUFACTURES – MARKETERS – AND RETAIL COMPANIES THAT ALLOW NEW PRODUCT SUBMISSIONS.
SOME ARE VERY LARGE COMPANIES AND SOME ARE SMALLER YET INFLUENTIAL COMPANIES. THEY ARE ALL LOOKING FOR NEW PRODUCTS AND INVENTIONS TO EITHER PARTNER WITH OR LICENSE.
IF YOU WISH TO PRINT THEM SIMPLY COPY AND PASTE INTO A WORD DOCUMENT AND PRINT THEM OUT
1. THE SHARPER IMAGE / ICONIX BRAND GROUP..High Tech..Electronics..Etc.
1450 Broadway 3rd Floor New York, NY. 10018 PH: 212-730-0030
Email: info@sharperimage.com www.sharperimageusa.com
Product Submission: productideas@sharperimageonline.com
Licensing: licensing@sharperimage.com
Sharper Image is alive and well and still has some stores across the country. They are
focused on online marketing and sales however they retail and wholesale as well.
Their line of products will always stay the same and they are actively seeking new
products. Go to their website to submit your product for evaluation.
2. SKY MALL, INC…..Sales through all airlines and travel..Airport Shops..650M people
see the Sky Mall Catalogs and website each year. Always seeking innovative products.
1520 East Pima Street Phoenix, AZ. 85034 PH: 800-759-6255 Fax: 602-254-6075
www.skymall.com Click on Inventors Submission at the bottom of the website page
and follow the instructions. If you need assistance please call us…888-627-7747.
3. GADGET UNIVERSE…..High Tech Gadgets….Have connections with Retailers and a
possible licensing opportunity. Smaller company but can be influential for you.
16060 Ventura Blvd. Ste. 158 Encino, CA. 91436 www.gadgetuniverse.com
Email: hyeung@aroamarketing.com They are easy to contact so a phone call is OK.
4. LISLE CORPORATION….a 100 Year old company with sales world wide for all types
of tools for the automotive industry. Go to www.lislecorp.com and click onto the top
IDEA PROGRAM and submit your invention. They license over 80 inventors at this
time and are always looking for more. Again easy to contact.
P.O. Box 89 | Clarinda, IA 51632 Ph: 712-542-5101 | FAx: 712-542-6591
5. NATIONAL PRESTO INDUSTRIES INC….1000 employees…$100M+…House Wares
Large kitchen and small appliance manufacturing company. Always looking for new
products and they work with inventors as partners or licensing. As you see the home
page scroll to the bottom and click on Inventors Info and follow their instructions.
3925 North Hastings Way Eau Claire, WI 54703-3703
PH: 715-839-2121 Fax: 715-839-2148 Website: http://www.gopresto.com
6. THE DIAL CORPORATION..subsidiary of Henkel KGaA…Yes…makers of Dial Soap
Actively searching for new consumer products or inventions. They manufacture and
can partner up however licensing is their more favorable position. They need personal
care (products and devices) for the skin-hair-feet-oral. They manufacture and need
products such as..laundry cleaners-additives-stain removers and devices-home air
filtering products and devises-auto surface treatments and devises-carpet and floor
treatment products and devises-pet products and devices-novel food packaging.
15501 N. Dial Blvd. Scottsdale, AZ. 85260 H: 480-754-3425 www.henkelna.com
Go to the home page and to the left you will see partnership programs..then step by
step submit an idea and follow the instructions. You need to have a granted patent or
a patent pending that is published by the USPTO or a design or utility application that
you have made public.
2900 hundred employees…Great company…very agreesive for new inventions
7. THE PROCTOR & GAMBLE COMPANY……Major Manufacture & Major Distribution
This company is so large that it is impossible to mention all the products and lines of
products they manufacture and market. They are very aggressive with new inventions
and inventors. You must have a granted patent or a patent in process to be able to
submit your invention. The main website is www.pg.com You can search for all their
lines of products to see if your invention fits their profile. To submit a new product
go to www.pgconnectdevelop.com Follow the instructions and you will be contacted.
1 or 2 Proctor & Gamble Plaza Cincinnati, OH. 45201…..513-983-1000
8. STAPLES…….The King of Office Supplies……they use a third party for new product
submissions. Once again they want to see actual products but they will work with
inventors as long as they have a granted patent or a patent in process and you are
willing to make it public and have a comprehensive presetantion.
Staples Corp. 500 Staples Drive POB 9328 Framington, MA. 01702 508-253-5000
Product Submission: www.pdgevaluations.com Follow the instructions and submit.
9. JARDEN CORPORATION……Sunbeam…Rival…Crock Pot…and many many more
Very large company with many subsidiarys. They will only consider patented
inventions although they may consider some in patent pending status as long as you
are willing to sign all the disclosures and conditions they set forth. There is no
submission form on any website of theirs that we have found. You need to write to
them and request the proper forms and such and then subbmit your invention by
mail. A company representative must receive it and present it to the panel. Write
“New Product Submission” on the letter and it will get to that department. You can
go to www.jarden.com or www.jardencs.com to see what products they
manufacture and see if you fit in their criteria.
Jarden Corp. 555 Theodore Fremd Ave. Ste. B-302 Rye, NY. 10580
PH: 914-967-9400
10. COLEMAN CORPORATION…..Big name brand to be sure….works with inventors that
have been issued or granted a patent. They will not look at anything that is in patent
pending status. You can go to www.coleman.com click on “company “at the bottom
and on the left you will see “Licensing Opportunity” – “Supplier Opportunity” –
“Invention Submission”….You may call for more information……….316-832-2653
However you mail your information directly to them at the address below.
The Coleman Company, Inc.
Invention Evaluation
3600 N. Hydraulic Wichita, KS 67219
