1. They are not testing their target market BEFORE getting a long term patent
In the journey from original idea to a product on your shelf, your product is going to change. This is a wonderful thing! If you get feedback from your target market and use that feedback to refine your idea, you are guaranteeing that you will have a product that people will want to buy.
2. They aren’t sharing their ideas with the public out of fear of their ideas getting stolen
So how do you test your target market before you get a patent? Provisional patent applications (PPAs) are the cornerstone of a smart protection strategy. As an inventor, I’d say they are the best and most useful tool I have ever learned. PPAs enable you to put “patent pending” on your marketing materials for 12 months while you put your idea out there and see if it is viable. PPAs are a low cost solution for protecting your idea and being able to market it. Check out my PDF Guide to Patent Success to learn about this and more.
Download the Patent Success PDF Guide by filling out this form:
3. They are not speaking with manufacturers before getting a patent
As we said in point 1, from the moment an idea first forms in your head until the product is on the shelf, your invention is going to change. A crucial part of this process is speaking with manufacturers before filing a long term patent.
The manufacturers may give you advice on how to make your product cheaper, more environmentally friendly, more efficient, etc.
Or the manufacturer may inform you that the price to manufacture your product is simply unviable in your market. No matter how great your product is, if people are not willing to pay for it, it will never make money.
4. They are using the wrong type of confidentiality agreement with manufacturers
Many inventors know about NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) but do you know about NNNs? NNN agreements have some extra clout in the protection they give, and have a very specific use case. It protects you at one of the times you’ll be most vulnerable, dealing with manufacturers. Want to learn about the why’s and when’s of using an NDA and an NNN? Who should always be signing one, and it’s a big red flag if they don’t? Who might sign one? Who will never sign one? Where you can get them for free? I teach you all of this and more in a simple PDF guide.
Download the Manufacturers and NNN Confidentiality Agreements PDF guide by filling out this form:
5. They are buying patents that don’t allow for innovation
The widespread problem with the patent industry is simply a matter of bad timing – doing things in the wrong order. Utility patents are a fantastic tool intended to encourage you and make inventing more worthwhile. They give you 20 years to profit from your invention. And then at the end of the 20 years, your technology becomes accessible by anyone, and the whole world can benefit from it any way they choose.
But people are being told to buy traditional patents at the wrong time, by people who don’t have enough real-world business experience to understand why.
When you file a long term utility patent, you are not able to update details about your product. This means that if you file the patent before speaking to the manufacturer or your target market, your patent will likely be rendered useless, and you will have just wasted thousands of dollars. When you file a provisional patent application, you can make unlimited updates.
It’s important to remember that filing a Provisional Patent isn’t just about saving money. The traditional methods stifle innovation, slow inventors to a crawl, and are a tragic waste of resources.
6. They are wasting money on the wrong type of patent search at the wrong time
When you ask an expert what the first step is in the patent process, they’ll often say a patent search. I get many requests for patent searches from my clients. My response is always the same.
“They’re a waste of time and money. There’s a free way that’s actually more effective.”
Patent searching, if done the old way, becomes quite expensive. $2000-3000 is common for an exhaustive search by an experienced pro. The good news is there’s a better way that’s cheaper, and radically more effective.
This is called an Active Patent Search. It’s a more efficient form of patent searching. This technique shoots straight for the patents that matter – active patents held by profitable companies.
This searching technique cuts the crap, gets the essential results, saves you money, and most importantly, encourages speed and action.
I offer a free PDF Guide that will teach you how to use various search engines to search for actual products and companies similar to your invention, rather than patents. Yes, that’s FREE instead of $3,000 for a method that is more effective and efficient than the traditional way!
Download the Active Patent Search by filling out this form:
7. They are avoiding protecting their idea because they don’t have the money or feel intimidated
This is why The Pragmatic Penguin was born.
The average cost to get through the protection phase is $18,400. When you work with The Pragmatic Penguin, you will get extensive protection for just $999.
Even better, we make it fun. We talk like humans, there are zero hidden charges, and we have a super cool penguin mascot to make everything more fun.
I am an inventor and entrepreneur. I actually care about your success and truly want to see you living the life of your dreams. I want your ideas and products out there in the world. I know the world will be a better place when your inventions come to life. So that’s what I’m here for. I know you have a dream to change the world and make an impact, and I want to show you the first steps for how to make that happen.
