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THE ONLINE INVENTOR
(since 1998)

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

Publisher: Paul Niemann

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FAMOUS / INFAMOUS Quotes …

"Warning: Humor may be hazardous to your illness," – Ellie Katz, as seen at famousquotes.com

"A sense of humor... is needed armor. Joy in one's heart and some laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life." – Hugh Sidey, as seen at famousquotes.com

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Article 1: "Approach Things from a Different Angle, by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

Article # 2: "The Marketing Mix," by Paul Niemann of www.MarketLaunchers.com for the January / February issue of Inventors’ Digest

Article # 3: "The Creative Mix," by Paul Niemann of www.MarketLaunchers.com for the January / February issue of Inventors’ Digest

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Article # 1: "Approach Things from a Different Angle, by Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com

A while back a semi truck hit a low bridge and got stuck. For more than half an hour, the driver and the police officers at the scene were trying to figure out how to get a 60-foot trailer dislodged from the bridge. They had considered many different options, including using a crane and other heavy equipment to pull the truck out.

Stuck on their dilemma, a young boy approached the men with what he thought was a solution to their problem. The first couple of men that the young boy approached brushed him aside, explaining that they didn't want to be interrupted while trying to figure out how to get the trailer free.

Finally, the boy was able to convince one of the men to listen to him.

"Why don't you let some air out of the tires?" he asked.

So they agreed to let some air out of the tires, which lowered the trailer enough that the driver could simply back the truck out.

How does this relate to your inventing efforts?

There are times when each of gets stuck when trying to solve a problem – whether it be doing a patent search, trying to make a prototype work correctly or trying to get a company to license your invention. The next time you run into a problem, try approaching it from a different angle. Like the little boy who figured out how to get a semi truck un-stuck from a the bridge, you might just figure out your own solution by approaching your problem from a different angle.

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Paul Niemann is president of MarketLaunchers.com, specializing in building web pages for inventors, where they can be seen on his web site's Invention Database (www.MarketLaunchers.com). Their Invention Database is seen by companies looking for new products to license in. He also builds complete web sites for inventors and small businesses. To get your own web page or a complete web site, visit www.MarketLaunchers.com or call Paul Niemann at (800) 337-5758.

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Article # 2: "The Marketing Mix," by Paul Niemann of www.MarketLaunchers.com for the January / February issue of Inventors’ Digest

Marketers – which includes inventors – are always trying to figure out how to sell their products, assuming that there’s some kind of magic formula that works every time. While there’s no magic formula that guarantees your product will succeed, there are some tried-and-true formulas that increase your chances for success.

In the advertising class that I teach at Quincy (IL) University, we discuss the importance of what marketers call the marketing mix, which is also known as the 4 P’s of marketing. The 4 P’s combine to make up the marketing equation of virtually every product that is on the market. The 4 P’s are:

Product
Place
Price
Promotion

If you’re manufacturing your invention and marketing it yourself, it’s vitally important that you learn and understand the 4 P’s, and make the right decisions about each. If your game plan involves licensing your invention to an existing manufacturer, it’s still important that you learn how your invention relates to the 4 P’s of marketing. Understanding these principles will enable you be better able to discuss your product’s profit potential with a licensee. The bottom line is that when you understand the marketing mix, you increase your chances of receiving a licensing agreement to sign.

The product concept includes the following: The actual product, plus the packaging, brand name, trademark and logo.

Place refers to the distribution channel, which is how your invention gets from the manufacturer to the consumer. The distribution channel will include all or some of the following: manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor and retailer. In some cases the distribution channel may consist only of the manufacturer and the retailer. One of the benefits of licensing your invention rather than assuming the responsibilities of manufacturing and selling is that the licensee will usually have an established distribution channel.

The third P of the marketing mix – price – can sometimes be the hardest element to determine, as it is common to underprice a product or service. If you price your invention too low, then you may lower the perceived value AND lower your profit margins. On the other hand, setting the price too high will scare off some potential customers. To determine the optimum price, it is usually necessary to do some research and test different price points before you set the final price.

The final P – promotion – consists of any or all of the following: personal selling, exhibiting at trade shows, advertising, direct marketing, telemarketing, public relations, brochures, sweepstakes and coupons.

Given the situation, any one of the 4 P’s can be the most important element of the marketing mix, and any other one can be the least important. For example, for a commodity type of product like gasoline, the product is the least important of the 4 elements while the price is the most important element.

Every marketing plan must have the four elements: Product, Place, Price and Promotion. Omitting any one is a sure road to failure.

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Article # 3: "The Creative Mix," by Paul Niemann of www.MarketLaunchers.com for the January / February issue of Inventors’ Digest

The advertising strategy used to get your product onto the market is the creative mix and, like the marketing mix, it consists of four unique elements:

The target audience
The product concept
The communications media
The advertising message

The target audience refers to those whom the marketing efforts are directed. It includes potential customers as well as those who influence the purchase decision.

Over the years I have asked many inventors who will buy their product. Far too many times, the response is: "Everybody." Unless you’re selling water or air and have a monopoly on either, you don’t have a product that everybody wants. No product is designed for everybody. No product can be all things to all people.

Markets can be defined broadly, such as, consumer markets vs. business markets. You can also break your market down into more specific categories, such as adult men, working women, teenage girls, parents with pre-school children, etc. Each is a different market.

If your product could logically be targeted to several different markets, start out by selecting one or two of the best. There are several ways to do this. For example, you could target the biggest market and/or the market with the least competition.

The product concept is the same in the creative mix as it is in the marketing mix: the actual product, plus the packaging, brand name, trademark and logo.

The communications media refers to how the buying public will learn about the product. The major media are TV and radio (also known as broadcast or electronic media), newspapers and magazines (also known as print media), direct mail, outdoor advertising (billboards, subway advertising and buses) and interactive advertising (web sites and e-mail).

Each medium has its own advantages and disadvantages; there’s not enough room in this column to list them, but it’s up to you to determine which medium (or combination) is best suited to reach your target audience.

The advertising message is the set of promotional messages that you create for your target audience … what you plan to say in your ads and how you say it.

As you work to develop your invention, keep the marketing mix and the creative mix in mind. Whether you plan to manufacture your product or license your rights to your invention, success depends on understanding the whole process of product development.

Editor’s Note: As a rule of thumb, direct mail is usually the best media to use when selling to businesses. Your direct mail efforts should always be followed up with a phone call to each prospect. Depending on the nature of your product, the most effective method may involve direct selling, although it is not one of the major types of media.

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Until next month, Successful Inventing To You!

Best Regards,

Click here to read the October 2002 issue.