New Page 2

*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************

THE ONLINE INVENTOR -- December Issue

(c) 2003 Market Launchers, Inc.

http://www.marketlaunchers.com/customer-testimonials.html

Editor: Paul Niemann

*****************************************************************
*****************************************************************

EDITOR’S NOTES:

If you’re looking for the perfect Christmas gift for anyone who’s interested in inventions, then check out Article # 3 below.

This issue has 3 more great articles for you. Enjoy!

Best Regards,

Paul Niemann
President of MarketLaunchers.com
800-337-5758
http://www.marketlaunchers.com/customer-testimonials.html

************************************************************

FAMOUS / INFAMOUS Quotes ...

"Inventions have long since reached their limit, and I see no hope for further developments," Roman Engineer Julius Sextus Frontinus, 10 A.D.

************************************************************

Article # 1: "6 Do’s & Don’ts When Submitting Your Invention for a Product Hunt," by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Article # 2: "Know When to Fold ‘Em," by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Article # 3: "Marketing Your Invention from Top-Down or Bottom-Up … Which Way is Best for You?" by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

************************************************************

Article # 1. "6 Do’s & Don’ts When Submitting Your Invention for a Product Hunt,"

As one of the judges for the UIA’s New Product Hunt, I had a chance to see some really great inventions, and many of them were very impressive. I also noticed how the inventors submitted them – some were very well written, while some left room for improvement. If you receive Inventors’ Digest magazine, then you saw that my previous Inventors’ Digest article (Nov. / Dec. issue) gave some suggestions of how to present your product as well as possible. Based on what I saw, I offer you 6 DO’s and DON’Ts that I think you’ll find useful.

1. DO: Explain how your invention benefits the customer BEFORE explaining what materials are used to make it. In fact, most of the submissions would have been just as good WITHOUT the details of how it’s made. Leave the technical stuff for later.

2. DO: If you’ve won awards, received media attention or scored high on independent evaluations, then mention it. If you didn’t do any of these, then don’t worry about it because most of the others didn’t either.

3. DO: Have a web page, because a picture really is worth 1,000 words, especially when each judge has nearly 400 submissions to evaluate. Although we can visualize what your invention is and how it works, you can show us how great it is by having a web page to direct us to.

4. DON’T: Tell your personal story about how you thought of the idea – it’s irrelevant, especially when each judge has nearly 400 submissions to evaluate.

5. DON’T: Make any claims that are difficult to believe, unless you can back them up with proof. Even if they’re true, it’s only natural to have a negative attitude to someone who says something that we don’t believe. Plus, it makes us less likely to believe other claims.

6. DON’T: Use words that are in the actual patent application that no one uses in everyday life, such as: aperture, aforementioned, said invention, etc.

# # # #

************************************************************

Article # 2: "Know When to Fold ‘Em," by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Like the Kenny Rogers song says, you gotta know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em. The best way to learn from mistakes is to learn from someone else’s mistakes, and that’s what this article is about.

Back in 1998 when Bill Clinton was being impeached, I created a card game called IMPEACHMENT that shed some humor on the situation. The game was played like gin rummy, but instead of playing to 500 points, it was played until one person accumulates 67 points, or votes, and impeaches his opponent.

The game received a ton of free press, and it sold quite well; in fact, I didn’t have to spend a dime on advertising because the media gave my game so much free airtime. It was on TV, newspapers, numerous radio stations, a couple of magazines and all over the Internet.

I then let a couple of friends talk me into creating a sequel game. I have to admit that it sounded like a good idea, and it made sense because I already knew the process and everything was in place for a follow-up product.

The resulting brainchild was actually better than the original game, but it wasn’t newsworthy like the IMPEACHMENT game was. As a result, the media hardly ran any stories on it. I eventually decided to advertise it, but it didn’t matter. The product died a slow death, and I was stuck with boxes of unsold inventory.

The moral of this story?

Sometimes there’s just no market for a particular product. If you find that your invention falls into this category, quit wasting your time and money on it. Instead, wait until you come up with a better idea.

You’ll be glad you waited. I know I am, as I’m now getting ready to launch another product, a book called Invention Mysteries, and I’ve found there to be a market for it. The following article gives the details.

# # # #

Paul Niemann specializes in building web pages for inventors, where they can be seen on his web site’s Invention Database by companies who are looking for new products. To get your own web page, visit www.MarketLaunchers.com or call Paul at (800) 337-5758. He also writes a syndicated weekly newspaper column and book about inventions, which you can see at www.InventionMysteries.com

************************************************************

Article # 3: Marketing Your Invention from Top-Down or Bottom-Up … Which Way is Best for You?

As you may know, I write a weekly syndicated newspaper column called INVENTION MYSTERIES. I’ve been talking to a large media organization over the past year about representing my column to newspapers nationwide. Last week, they said that they would send me a contract to sign, so it looks like I might be on my way to making it big with the INVENTION MYSTERIES column. Time will tell how successful it will become.

How does this apply to you as an inventor?

Many inventors dream of the day a big company will come along and buy their patent from them, bringing their product onto the market for them. For at least 95% of patent holders, this never happens. There are certain things you can do to increase your chances, though, such as making sales of your product BEFORE you begin to pitch the big companies on it.

In September of 2003, I began syndicating (selling) my column to as many newspapers as I could. By June of this year I had 16 newspapers carrying the column each week. In the process, I continued to pitch it to this large media company, as our paths were always crossing. Since they also sell to newspapers, I saw them as a possible colleague in terms of working together rather than looking at them as a competitor.

Why do they want to represent my column to other newspapers? Because it’s now a proven seller; they know that they can sell it because 16 papers already have bought into it as a result of my sales efforts. If you can begin selling your invention to customers, then you increase your chances of seeing a big company come along and buy your patent from you. You eliminate their risk by turning it into a proven seller. Good luck!

# # # #

INVENTION MYSTERIES reveals the little-known stories behind well-known inventions. Written by syndicated columnist and author Paul Niemann, INVENTION MYSTERIES is now available as a book. The 47 stories in this book will fascinate you and your spouse, co-workers and girlfriend or boyfriend. Beautifully illustrated with drawings of inventors and the inventions they created, it makes the perfect Christmas gift. To order a copy or two, please go to http://www.InventionMysteries.com

************************************************************
************************************************************

If you wish to distribute this issue of "THE ONLINE INVENTOR" to your local inventor group, as well as your fellow inventors, please send the *entire* issue by clicking Forward.

Until next month, Successful Inventing To You!

Best Regards,

Click here to read the November 2003 issue