Every week, my readers and social media fans contact me with questions about how to run or grow their small businesses. This question came from Jeremy Day @Jeremybrentday and I reached out to my invention guru Steve Greenberg @Stevetv for the answer.
Question: I have a very simple baby sanitation invention (patent pending) that I only want to license the rights to manufacturers to produce. What’s the best way to go about contacting them in regards to this?
Steve Greenberg: There is no “best way” to contact a company about your product idea. Each company is different. Some companies will only license an established product with a sales history, other companies only want products brought to them via product scouts or manufacturer reps. Still, others encourage inventors to contact them.
The best strategy is to target companies that you think “might” be interested in your product. Check out their website, then contact the company and ask who you should talk to about your idea.
I also recommend creating a short email that describes your product. If you have a prototype, then send a picture AND create a short video with your smartphone. Post the video and send a link to the video in your email.
Additionally, consider joining an inventors club in your area. You can find them on the UIA website. These clubs are a great source of information. Someone there will direct you to companies that are open to products from garage inventors.
If there are more questions, reach out Steve Greenberg via twitter at @stevetv.
Do you have a question about your small business? You can always Ask Smallbizlady, and if I don’t know the answer I’ll track down someone who’s an expert.
“Bright Idea Outside The Box” image courtesy of Master isolated images / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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