One would think that people who invented complex equipment such as the radio, the airplane, the telephone and the electric light would have reaped the profits. However, it is a fact that inventors of simple, much-used and cheap to produce articles have made the greatest fortunes.
Devices that fulfil our need for a simpler, better and faster lifestyle and which contribute to our everyday comfort, convenience, and enjoyment of life have been the inspiration of inventors throughout the ages. When these inventions were patented and marketed properly they also contributed greatly to the wealth of the inventors.
Some of these simple and now indispensable inventions, which have made a fortune for the inventor, include airtight bottle caps, shoe-lace tips, the paper matchbook, the safety pin and the folding umbrella. All of these have made life much easier for the public and today we can't imagine how people managed without these items in the past.
But for every successful money-making invention there are hundreds that fail to make the grade. Many of these unsuccessful inventions have been patented correctly and even marketed properly and still fail. This can be for a variety of reasons – cost of manufacture, lack of originality, failure to work as advertised but the main reason for failure is a lack of demand or a failure to create a demand for the invention.
One needs to make the public feel that they need the invention, when previously there was no such awareness. Advertising and testing the market is now an essential cog in the very competitive field of inventions. There are literally millions of people who are working very hard to put their ideas and inventions to the test.
Marketing an invention needs to address the following factors:
1. Will it save on labour?
2. Will it save time?on labour?
3. Will it make life more convenient?
4. Will it save the buyer money?
5. Will it add value to the user?
There are other more complicated aspects to marketing an invention such as market saturation and economic climate, but once the inventor has done all his or her homework and protected the invention legally, there may be a small (or even large) fortune for the taking.
Perhaps inventors and potential inventors should take heed of Thomas Edison's maxim. He said: “I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others... I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent....”