Coming up April 16-18, 2013 is the Spree Show, which is the world’s largest show for the Cart, Kiosk and Temporary Retail Industry. For full details check out www.spreeshow.com

This show is ideal if you have an accessory that goes with items sold on carts, such as a cell phone or iPad accessory. Your product can either be the feature product on the cart or kiosk, or it can be something that complements the main product. Carts and Kiosks continue to be more popular, and now with lots of retail space open, there are even stores that open only for a month or two. Read the rest of this entry »

New inventors almost always totally ignore packaging and marketing till they have spent a ton of money getting ready to manufacture their product without ever considering how to package and market it, including what type of distribution to use. Selling the product is very difficult, and it is an area where inventors run into stiff resistance. When you approach a prototype company of course they will help you out, you are paying them. The same principle applies to manufacturers and anyone else you pay. But in marketing and distribution, you are asking people to invest their own money and resources in your product, and they won’t do it unless they believe the product will sell. I feel you need to iron out your sales and distribution plan before spending money on your product, and have a clear idea how you will sell your product and who you will approach to sell your product. Without effective marketing, all the other money you spend will be wasted. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ll start out by stating upfront that I’m not a patent attorney, and that you should also get final advice from a patent attorney on how strong your patent claims are.  But I feel inventors need to have some understanding of their patent claims as they are often not nearly as strong as people feel they are, and they need to understand those strengths to decide if a patent is even worth investing in. My goal for this newsletter is to give you insight into the written word of the patent claim so you can better analyze the information you receive from your patent attorney. Read the rest of this entry »

Last newsletter we mentioned the importance of having your manufacturing cost be 20 to 25% of your projected price. This newsletter covers how to determine what your projected manufacturing cost will be. In reality most inventors have no idea how to estimate what their product will cost in large production. Often they only have quotes for prototypes and small production runs which can be very high. Inventors often don’t know the impact of tooling cost either and how those costs should be incorporated into their final product cost. To get a better understanding of their manufacturing, I recommend inventors can follow these six steps: Read the rest of this entry »

Products sell best when they are perceived to be a good value compared to products that are direct competitors and also other related products. The fact is that your product doesn’t exist on its own, rather it exists in a competitive world. Read the rest of this entry »

In my last article, I discussed 10 points to consider in a preliminary product evaluation and how to determine if you should move ahead. This article discusses how to evaluate a product idea after it is developed further to see if you should keep spending money through the final product design and then product introduction.

When you start out with an idea you have a vision of what the product will be like. After working on the idea for a while, the product starts taking shape and you have something people can react to that will indicate how the product will sell. You are entering a phase where you may be spending a lot of money, and may need to get investment partners.  So you need to take a deep breath and reevaluate where you stand. Inventors tend to move forward with lots of enthusiasm at this point. But that can be a big mistake as now is your last stopping point before a major investment. Read the rest of this entry »

Here are 10 points to use to evaluate whether or not your idea is worth pursuing. Read the rest of this entry »

Would you like to sell your product through Taylor Gifts’ catalog? Now’s your chance to submit your product.

Here is the info from Taylor Gifts/Get Organized:

DON’T WAIT FOR THE NEXT TRADE SHOW

TO PRESENT YOUR NEW PRODUCTS

EMAIL US YOUR NEW PRODUCTS TODAY!

We are assembling our January 2013 catalog now and have limited time!  If you have new items and want to be the first to hit the streets, email us a brief description, cost and attach a photo (less than 5), to newproducts@taylorgifts.com.

We also want to hear about your great success stories.  If you have products that are currently out selling others, send us the information on those too!

These submissions will be reviewed within 24 hours and you will receive instant notification if your product is selected for our catalogs or website.

The Merchandising Group
Taylor Gifts/Get Organized!

Getting a new product on the market requires many skills and inventors often benefit from teaming up with someone with complementary skills to launch their invention. I personally feel inventors are better off with one or two members on their team providing support, assistance and most of all a variety of input in the decision making process. Many partnerships start out high on enthusiasm but then bog down as the team’s expectations of their partners are not fulfilled. Then the inventor is worse off than they were without a team.

But this letdown can be avoided if you outline your expectations in an agreement, even if it is a checklist, that you share with prospective members of your team. These are the items that I recommend you discuss and document: Read the rest of this entry »

Often inventors get into a routine that revolves around looking for a problem that affects many people and where they feel that they can create a great solution. Then they make sure the product can be made for 20% of the retail value and they might have a winner. But there is another way, one followed by kids for generations: just get a wild and crazy idea and try it out. Read the rest of this entry »