New Inventor Top Ten Mistakes

1# Not visiting the United States Patent and Trademark Office Web site
Free inventor resources are available at www.uspto.gov. Free patents searches, free trademark searches, and free advice on how to avoid scams. This is the organization that issues US patents.

2# Promoting inventions that do not exist
Avoid paying for market studies, websites, promotion, non-functioning prototypes, and renderings for products that do not exist. In most cases, it will be cheaper to design and produce the real thing. If a company cannot produce a working prototype, they probably do not know how. Investors will question the lack of a working prototype.

3# Trying to make money and save money at the same time
Choose designers and engineers, by experience and capability not by price. Business is about making money and better companies will cost more. The same is also true for products. Remember most professional are available at hourly rates and spending a few hundred early on can save thousands in mistakes later.

4# Using a one-stop shop
Experts tend to be specialists. One-stop shops with design, patent and promotion services tend to be generalist. Using experts will get you better results for less money. Some one-stop shop companies may actually outsource engineering and prototyping to China where inventions cannot be protected without international patents.

5# Not using Google
Google is a powerful information tool. It is a great way to learn about invention and inventors. Google can locate forums where customers comment on existing products. It is also a great way to find out if company is really a product development company or just a sales machine. You can also do a video for Shark Tank, Pitchmen, Dragon's Den, and American Inventor, and learn how to work with investors.

6# Not understanding patent basics
Patents are used for protection. New inventors often do not understand how they work and who is responsible for enforcement. Confusing provisional, utility, and design patents could cost thousands of dollars. In addition, most new inventors do not understand the lack of protection if development or manufacturing is exported outside the United States. A good patent lawyer is worth the money.

7# Not recognizing sales pitches
First time inventors tend to gravitate towards sweet sounding sales pitches that promise huge profits, quick returns, and instant success. Typical schemes promise royalties, free manufacturing, and a low cost to get started. Most of these companies do not know how to create a working prototype and offer a one-page summary with a sketch instead.

8# Looking for quick returns
Your invention may be a solution for a problem it was not created to solve. It is important to plan for the long haul to give consumers time to adopt and discover it and even find new uses for it. For example, the Audio Cassette Adapter was created for CD Players not for iPods. Personal computers were around long before the internet and HTML.

9# Not representing their Inventions
The Inventor is the main point of contact. Investors, distributors and vendors all want to talk to the inventor. The inventor must understand the product, manufacturing, cost, lead-time and capacity. You are the Dell, Gates, or Jobs of your company.

10# Trying to avoid risk
Developing an invention is a risky. Attempting to secure free services, manufacturing, and engineering indicates a lack of confidence in the product concept. The inventor must have "Skin in the game".