$40,000 is a lot of money. Maybe not for flashy sales presentation materials, a bonafide US patent application, industrial artist renditions, 3d computer models, soft tooling guaranteed to produce thousands of parts and a couple dozen prototypes that aren't quite what you want, but will be the next time around after the tooling is changed. But's it is significant money if what's missing are interested responses from the hundreds of companies all over the U.S. that product introduction packages were sent out to. Gloom and doom, that's for sure but it can get worse. More sophisticated tooling will result in less expensive parts and why not put it together and sell it ourselves the not to be beaten inventors might ask themselves. It won't be that much more money and we can't quit now, I never want to hear or think about anyone saying.
Visions of grandeur conceived by the inventors or half true promises of others that might suggest they have customers in the wings? Whatever the reason, it's unfortunate and should never happen and it's no one's fault but the people who wrote out the checks. And we have to remember that in all likelihood, services provided were done so with excellence by people who do so because they want to stay in business. But the future of their businesses is not a function of how much product you sell. It has nothing to do with it. It's up to you, and only you to know how much product you will sell long before you start spending the dollars to pave the road to envisioned success.
Getting caught up in an idea happens often. Investing big bucks in it before knowing its true value happens less often but unfortunately not enough less often. Knowing how hard people work for their money, none of us ever want it to happen to anyone. All prevention is are a few cautious steps at a time.
A good idea will sell itself in it's most basic form. There is no need to invest a small fortune in product development and tooling costs to bring a new product concept before others for market testing and concept promotion to industry. You alone are probably the best vehicle for promoting and selling your idea. No one has the process locked up for placing a product concept before corporate executives. In fact, the executives might be tired of the glossy brochures and shiny prototypes showcasing product concepts they know they can't sell. And they might even shake their heads at the thought of product development costs already invested in to get the idea before them.
There is a less glamorous approach without bells and whistles. Invest only a small amount of money but a lot of your time at the grass roots. Start out with a provisional patent ( $115.00) that will allow you to safely review your concept with as many people as you can allowing you to note their perceived value, monetary and usefulness, of the concept if they were able to purchase it today. Have a small engineering study done that will confirm your invention can be manufactured at your desired cost as well as enough information to have a bare bones working prototype fabricated. With your product specification, provisional patent and prototype, your idea will now have worth, identity and credibility. With your new tools, market test it again with people that are representative of your intended market base. Compile your data and decide yourself if you have a winner or not. If you still feel good about it, go out and sell the idea yourself. Companies have rules about how they want to receive new inventions from the outside. Follow them and they will review it. You will show more enthusiasm and desire than anyone else if they decide they want to discuss your invention. If they do like it, the new product development process and the thousands of dollars that will follow will be their expense and not yours. If your idea turns out to be one that no one is really interested in, you haven't spent a fortune. And it doesn't mean you won't come up with another.
Good luck with your idea, spend wisely and move cautiously. I have my fingers crossed and all your friends do as well, that it lands with all the other successful new inventions in our busy global marketplace.
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