Inventors and small business owners often must consider how best to invest their limited funding, time and energy to achieve maximum promotion, market research and make contacts for funding. They try to reach not one, but many objectives at once that rival or come close to the results achieved by well-funded companies.
Inventors desiring to sell or license their inventions often consider attending trade shows as part of their efforts. In the trade show genre, there exists many alternatives for the inventor, each having their own purpose. This article discusses their relative strengths.
Industry Trade Shows
“Industry trade shows” (i.e. medical, sporting goods, toy shows, etc) are highly recommended as a source of distribution and large scale sales once a product is fully launched and well on its way. However, an industry trade show is not designed to help independent inventors and small businesses launch new products or technologies.
The mindset of industry trade show attendees is to find products that are completely ready for mass distribution and sales, already fully funded and in mass production. The attendees are often seeking a full product line, not a one-product vendor. These attendees have certain job constraints and responsibilities and are rarely the appropriate company officials who can approve a high-risk venture with an undeveloped concept. Therefore, these buyers are often the wrong contacts for inventors.
The companies exhibiting are basically there to write larger orders for their products. Their marketing sales reps are trained to introduce their company’s products and services. More than likely, because of their exhibiting objective, they will not be the company’s key decision makers and are also the wrong contacts.
Most of the companies exhibiting typically subscribe to the “NIH” (not invented here) policy and utilize these shows to introduce their own new products. On the whole, they won’t consider any new technologies that were not conceived, created and developed through their own company’s R&D facilities. In essence, you are back to square one. Although nothing is etched in stone and there are exceptions to every rule, these industry trade shows, which can easily run several thousand dollars just to rent space, can be a very high risk gamble of the inventor’s limited funds, time and energy during the new product’s initial development stages.
Most inventors in the early idea stages, with only a blueprint, rough prototype and limited samples for demonstration, will most likely be out of place and end up disappointed at an industry trade show. Rarely, if ever, will buyers, licensees, investors, or those looking for something in the early stages of the invention process be found at the industry trade shows.
Of course, in the later stages, when an inventor has finished product already in production, industry trade show can be invaluable. These shows target well established manufacturers, distributors and jobbers in the industry and are highly recommended as a source of distribution and large scale sales once a product is fully launched and well on its way.
Invention Expositions
There are numerous inventor expositions that take place throughout the country. Some have been around for decades and are run by numerous inventor clubs or government agencies which cater to their local members or districts.
It is important to note that no two fairs or expos are alike in look, function or audience. The group’s management experience and budget limitations will determine where it is held, how much promotion will be conducted, and how efficiently the show will be run. It may be a gathering of 10-20 inventors at a table top display in the center of a public mall in a suburb on a Sunday; or 50-100 inventors at a small town community auditorium for a weekend; or even a 3-4 day event in a hotel complex in a larger city. With few exceptions, these shows are free to the general public who come from the surrounding areas, and some of the shows may even generate local and possibly even national publicity.
It is essential for the inventor to determine his specific goals and then research whether any of these types of shows can fulfill any of his needs. For example, attending a regional or state show close to home an be very useful to get some experience in displaying, or to gather preliminary research to help determine pricing, design improvements, or even to sell a limited product run to raise cash for the next phase of development.
For the exhibitor, it can be rather inexpensive to participate, and can be very beneficial under the right circumstances. But the price of the show should not be the sole determining factor.
Research indicates that invention expositions are rarely are an effective source for finding buyers of technology like licensees, investors, etc. Therefore, while inventor’s fairs or expos can play an important part in the marketing mix, in conjunction with other avenues necessary for commercializing technology. They should not be used as a substitute.
Which is the Best Vehicle?
Whether considering an industrial trade show, expo, or invention trade show, the best vehicle will be determined by the inventor’s specific needs and whether the type of show can fulfill those needs. Any of these shows are good if it is the “right” type of show at the “right” stage of the invention’s development. Therefore to differentiate between expos and invention trade shows, inventors should research the shows to find out what facility they’re held at, how many exhibitors sign up, how many and what kind of attendees participate, how many speakers they have, what is included in the price, etc. Then verify the track record of each show by talking to past exhibitors and participants to determine whether the show is successful, mediocre, or inefficient.
Do conventions make anyone successful? Absolutely not. The successful person does it by study, hard work, and taking the proper action. What they give inventors is a vehicle, an opportunity to showcase their invention to the right mix of buyers and investors. Through the conventions they can increase the odds that they will get up to bat.
Bottom line, inventors should evaluate and use a variety of vehicles in their marketing mix because using just one source limit’s the possibilities for success. For example, exhibiting in expos, invention trade shows and industry trade shows at the right stage of development, supplemented by advertising in excellent publications prior to exhibiting in the shows will increase the inventor’s chance of finding a match by being able to select from a multitude of key contacts, instead of taking a risk with the first product development guru contacted.
The process of inventing is ongoing, and it is important to realize that any kind of marketing vehicle is not an end in itself. A good analogy is that the process of marketing an invention can be like launching a space shuttle. The success of the launch will depend on the amount of time spent and the quality of preparation done prior to the launch. But once it’s launched, it’s just the beginning! Like booster rockets that take the shuttle into orbit, follow-up work on leads and contacts must be done to complete this phase.
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