What do I do when I have an invention but no money?

I've come up with an idea for a product which I believe would be quite popular and sell quite well. I also think that when mass produced it would be cheap to build.

It's a simple device intended for home use and would appeal to children adults and the elderly.

There is nothing else like it on the market, it wouldn't disobey any safety laws and doesn't require any power supply.

If I had some money I could probably build a prototype but things are pretty dire at the moment. Spec drawing is something I can do pretty well but where would I go from there? Can I just sell my idea to a company without proof that it's actually mine?

 

Patent it and hope your finances get better before the patent expires?

LOL
"Well mister, your invention idea was pretty good, but after our little interview, I went back and talked to our engineers, and it turns out one of them had already come up with the exact same idea on his own! The world sure is full of coincidences, isn't it! So no, we won't be buying your idea. Bye now!"

 

I wanted to patent a printer that phones could print to back in 2004.

I didn't even know if it existed or not at the time, but the patent was at least $750. Once I found that out, all hope was lost. :/

 

Yeah patents are pretty damn expensive. I get paid soon so I might grab a few bits and pieces and spend sometime in the garage knocking up a proto, at least if I have something tangible it's a start.

It's something that a lot of people could use and there are a few industries that would benefit from too.

 

Dragon's Den

 

Option 1: VC. They're vultures so be extra careful about everything. To get to a VC you need to be in Silicon Valley or NY and attend parties, shows, conferences etc. and talk up VCs. Don't bother emailing them your ideas, they don't read that (unless they specifically specify they do). It's fucking retarded, but that's the way it works.

Option 2: Bootstrapping on your own. If you really think it's profitable enough for someone to fund you, you might want to save up on your own and fund it yourself. A bit assuming, but you likely don't have any huge expenses (no house payments, no wife to bitch about getting a new car) so it might be doable. Pros: you keep more equity and control, cons: you might have problems managing the project without deadlines and VC monkeys breathing down your neck.

Option 2b: Find someone who might be interested in the product and is skilled at the things you lack skills at and cofound a company with them. Even better if it's someone you personally know and already worked with.

Option 3: Find a big corp in your domain and sell them the idea. You might skip the patenting part and patent it in their name as a contractor or employee or patent it first and try to sell it to someone later (you risk wasting ~$1k in patent-related costs). I'm not very familiar with this territory, but I know companies like 3M buy patents related to their business (materials, inventions, etc.) from individual people. Browse their website, call their HQ, w/e.

 

Nice advice, thanks. I think I need to mix 2 and 3 I can get a proto built soon and I know of a few companies who buy into these kind of things.

As for Dragon's Den, lol not such a bad idea (they even do online applications now) but I see that more as a you get lucky game show rather than a serious avenue.

My father is very business minded and likes the idea but he just keeps saying that without money you're going nowhere.

 

Dragons Den is one of the best options unless you get an investor.

 

If it's a fan that you attach to chopsticks to cool off noodles, we already have that.

 

Try and get a patent?

 

Hah, borrow from the bank? Only $15,000 to get you running?

 

No offence, but Dragon's Den is a rip-off show, where people who don't have a head for business (or can't afford a patent) get fleeced into releasing their ideas into the public domain.

If it truly is a good idea, maybe you should get a business loan, get it patented and then sell it. Usually, the combination of those three things will truly decide whether it's a worthwhile endeavor or not.

 

Have you seen HUNG on HBO??

well, that should give you a few ideas...

 

Save your money and go the route many successful businesses take if you want to be successful. Consult a patent lawyer, first.

 

Follow your dreams.
Be careful and best of luck.

 

If you don't have any money, the only way is to take up a loan, get a (good!) consultant+lawyer and register a first patent entry with a rough description of your idea (shouldn't be over 1000$, the real patent though will cost several times that money. An internationally valid patent can cost 40,000$, just to give you a number. That's what companies like Sony pay for each of their tech gimmicks' parts). Then contact companies that you think would be interested in manufacturing your product.

Until you're sitting in front of a company spokesman, you'll already have invested lots of time, effort and money, that's for sure. And even if you've got your first little patent, it's not sure that it doesn't exist already somewhere in China.

How do I know about that shit?
About 3 years ago, my mother's friend had the idea of a shower head that could measure how much water just had been used while showering: an environment-friendly shower head. She did all the things like above and invested about 12.000 Euros in those few years, all dealt on credit. It takes the right people a long time to figure out if the invention is unique. Several companies were interested, but they checked the international market for similar products and lately, an exact copy of mentioned shower head appeared on the Chinese export market.

And that's where the story ends. 16,500US$ debts, dream is over.

Just to give you an idea how it could turn on you. BUT if your idea really is unique, maybe you invest 15,000$ and get back 1,500,000$ a year. Try it if you're sure that this is your big chance

 

Ouch. I think considering that it would be better to not file a patent and just hire the mob to break anyone's bones who is copying your product.

 

Risk is the issue here. I could approach the bank for a loan but I have many other debts and I'm wondering if I really want to make matters worse.

I'm confident I could sell units but I couldn't even guess how successful it would be.

 

Wait until the recession is fully over and nobody is worrying as much.