When you think about creating something new, it’s important to know what you’re trying to achieve. What problem do you want to solve? How will your invention help people?
Inventing something new is an exciting process that involves many steps. This article will provide you with 10 Tips For A Successful Invention.
1. Do your research
Before you start inventing, it’s important to do your research. This includes understanding the problem you’re trying to solve, the market for your invention, and the competition.
Doing the proper research upfront will save you a lot of time and money in the long run.
We’ve talked about it on many of our blogs but we will keep saying it over and over again, market research is the single most important part of developing a product. So please don’t overlook it!
2. Keep it simple
Over the years we have helped hundreds of inventors bring their ideas to life.
You want to know what all the most successful inventions all had in common?
They were all simple
This is often because manufacturing is more complicated when you have different mechanisms, multiple parts, materials, more complex products require thorough quality control, packaging & shipping costs go up. More rounds of prototyping involved, sourcing becomes more complicated, the list goes on and on.
If you exhaust yourself during the product development process you wont have energy when it comes to launching and marketing your product.
Just keep it small and simple.
The best inventions are often the simplest ones. By keeping your invention as simple as possible, you increase the chances of it being successful.
3. Make it user-friendly
Another important aspect of a successful invention is that it must be user-friendly. This means that it should be easy to use and understand.
What I’m about to tell you may be arguable… As a professional product developer myself, I strongly believe that Apples success has come from their drive to consistently create user friendly products.
Its no surprise that people like things that are easy to use, so make sure your invention is user-friendly.
4. Be original
To be successful, your invention must be original. This means that it should be different from anything else on the market.
If you study all the hottest trending products in every category year after year. You will find one thing they all have in common, “originality.
Now, this doesn’t have to be mean its 100% original, No, it means it has to be perceived as a new & original to the consumers.
Most often its about presenting existing technologies in a new perspective.
Take the fidget spinner for example, all it is a wheel bearing with pretty plastic colors. Then it was advertised as a fidget toy for people who have a hard time sitting still.
This is what I mean by “originality”, show the world something it wasn’t expecting and they will be drawn to it.
5. Get a patent
A patent is a legal document that gives you the exclusive right to make, use, and sell your invention. Without a patent, other people could copy your invention and sell it as their own.
6. Start Niche
This applies mainly to new inventors. After creating your product, you also have to market it. Marketing is easier when you have a narrow group of people you need to target.
If your invention is something that helps dentists do their jobs, you’ll only need to market to dentist.
Really focusing in on a niche will help you corner a market with your new invention, all while minimizing marketing costs.
Its always less expensive to invest time and money into marketing to a smaller group of people who you know will love your invention.
7. Great Products Are either Novel, Useful or Both
If you want your product to succeed, it must be either novel or useful… preferably both.
Novel means your product is new and different. There’s nothing else like it on the market.
Useful means your product solves a problem or meets a need that people have.
Ideally, you want to create a product that is both novel and useful. But if you have to choose one, go with useful. People are always looking for products that make their lives easier.
Studies have shown that people are either drawn to novelty or something that is useful.
There are three characteristics that draw us to buy something new:
1) it’s appealing to our emotions
2) it has a low perceived risk
3) They must believe that we can use this product to improve our lives in some way.
8. Does the final product price make sense to the buyer?
Heres a tip nobody is gonna tell you, most infomercials “as seen on tv” products have a price range of 19.99 to 29.99, and this has gotten customers accustomed to this type of pricing for new and novel products.
If your final product price is higher than this buyers will have a hard time impulse buying your product.
But every invention is different, some products make sense when they’re in the hundreds of dollars range, it all depends on the product and market niche that your operating in.
Just keep the pricing in mind when marketing your invention to the masses.
9. Get feedback
Once you’ve tested your invention, it’s important to get feedback from users. This will help you make any necessary improvements before you start mass-producing your invention.
You can get feedback in a number of ways, including:
– survey
– interviews
– focus groups
This feedback can help you improve your invention.
10. Never give up
The invention process is often long and difficult. It’s important to never give up on your invention. If you believe in your invention, eventually you will find success.
Creating a successful invention takes time, dedication, and perseverance.
Just think about it you are literally taking an idea from your head, bringing it to life and then introducing it to the world! Its not gonna be easy.
A lot of new inventors view their inventions as “golden tickets” to get rich, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Developing an invention and selling it, is just like any other business, it involves marketing, failure, and yes filing taxes…
Just stay persistent and smart and you will find success with your invention.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed reading our article, if you have any invention tips of your own feel free to share them in the comments below!
This is a great article. I really like tip number 10, “Never give up.” This is something that I definitely need to remember as I continue to work on my invention. It can be
