Turn an Idea into an Invention

Thomas Edison may be known for his inventions, but you can be, too. There are still great discoveries yet to be made and your invention could be a significant advancement for the 21st century. You may be too late to discover the typewriter or electricity, but there are still ideas out there yet to be formed and yet to be documented. You may have some untapped brilliance sitting up in your brain right now, ready to take form. Take a chance and start turning your ideas into realities. Start developing prototypes and see what kinds of new products result.

You may think you have a great new idea, but how do you know if your product is something people will want to buy? When you do get to the final stages in the development of your invention, there are numerous things to consider. Take a look at the following areas to see if your idea has a chance on the market.
Effectiveness

As a child, do you remember games that you were so excited to get only to have the pieces fall apart on you? The quality of a product will quickly become evident when people start to use it and realize the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of it. How well does your invention work? If it works well, you probably have a great product on your hands. If it doesn’t work well, you may to continue the development process before trying to patent and market it. Make sure that your product is well tested and you are confident in its quality.

Inventions continue to last because nothing new has been conceived to replace it. The light bulb is still effective because we haven’t found anything better to replace it yet. The typewriter became outdated as computers became simultaneously more sophisticated and easier to use. Ask yourself; is my product able to replace any existing inventions?
Audience

The things that an elderly person may find useful are very different from what a child finds useful. Who will find the design of your product appealing? If your product is designed for teenagers, keep in mind that many teenagers have little income and therefore may not have a large amount of money to spend on your product. If your product is designed for children, consider the hazard of small parts which children may try to swallow.
Materials

Depending on the materials needed to produce your invention, you may have an easy time or difficult time marketing your product. Consider the 1985 movie, Back to the Future. The DeLorean that Dr. Emmet Brown designed was problematic because it needed plutonium to run. If your invention requires plutonium or another material that is hard to come by, your product probably won’t be easy to produce.

Keep in mind that our society is becoming increasingly concerned with the use of sustainable and eco-friendly materials in the things we buy. Can your invention be made with recycled or other earth friendly materials? This may be an important aspect to your product’s success on the market.
Cost

The materials, labor, and other basic administrative costs add up in your expenses quickly. You still want to be able to gain a profit from your invention. How much do you estimate it will cost an average consumer to purchase your invention in comparison with how much it costs you to produce it? If it gets to expensive for the consumer in order for you to break even, there’s a chance people won’t be interested in buying it. The cost-benefit analysis must be examined when you come up with new inventions.
Also, consider how you may sell your invention. Could you sell your product on TV? Will you sell it online? Few businesses will last without an online presence in today’s society. So, you probably will have to create a website, even if it is to just post your contact information. These things will cost you extra money, so make sure to consider these factors as you get ready to market your product.

You do not have to get a patent to be able to sell your product, but you’ll want to get one if you want to claim the idea as your own. Great ideas are formed every day, so you don’t want to wait to get yours patented. Once you have considered the factors above, if you find you have a great invention on your hands, the next step is to patent the idea before anyone else can do it.