By
Mary
Bellis
If you have absolutely no money and
you want to get your invention into the marketplace, it is very likely
that you will not be able to turn your invention into a commercial product.
By no money, we mean someone who is unable to earn money above living expenses,
raise money, or borrow any money. However, if you are willing to work,
you can find an opportunity for yourself. The most fundamental piece of
advice I would give a newbie trying to raise money for his/her invention
is this; conduct yourself in an appropriate businesslike manner. An email
inquiry asking for financial support penned in an informal manner and full
of grammer and spelling errors will get no response. The same goes for
badly penned snail mail and muffled or confused sounding phone calls.
Below are several different sources
of invention funding that you can approach to borrow or raise the funds
needed to bring your invention through the several stages of the invention
process and to the marketplace. It is suggested that you could join a local
inventors group to learn from those in your area who have already accomplished
what you hope to accomplish: raise money, find backers, get a patent etc.
-
Venture
Capital & Technology Incubators - Venture capital or VC is
funding invested, or available for investment, in an enterprise such as
your invention that offers the probability of profit along with the possibility
of loss. According to Whatisit.com, "Venture capital is the second or third
stage of a traditional startup financing sequence, which starts with the
entrepreneurs (inventors) putting their own available funding into a shoestring
operation. Next, an angel investor may be convinced to contribute funding.
Generally an angel investor is someone with spare funds and some personal
or industry-related interest - angels are sometimes said to invest 'emotional
money,' while venture capitalists are said to invest 'logical money' -
that is willing to help give the new enterprise a more solid footing."
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Grants,
Loans, and Government Programs - Community
of Science (COS) funding and grant opportunities for research and development,
the Defense Department's SBIR and STTR programs, the Department of Energy
(DOE) grants, the National Institute of Health grants, SBA procurements
and grants hot list.
-
Student
Programs for Invention Funding - Student
programs and invention competitions - includes college and pre-college
programs.
-
For
Canadian Inventors - Research
our links for Canadian invention funding, innovation information, research
money, grants, awards, venture capital, support groups and Canadian government
patent offices.
-
Entrepreneur
- It is quite an undertaking to manufacture, market, advertise, and distribute
your own invention or intellectual property. Ask yourself, "do you have
the spirit necessary to become an entrepreneur? If the answer is yes -
here are the resources to self-educate yourself in the art of becoming
a successful entrepreneur.
Next
page > Resources
Introduction
Lesson 1: Understanding
Intellectual Property.
Lesson 2: What
can I Patent?
Lesson 3: How
Do I Know if my Idea is Patentable?
Lesson 4: Conducting
a Search for Prior Art.
Lesson 5: To
Patent or Not to Patent.
Lesson 6: How
to File for a Patent.
Lesson 7: Proving
this Idea is Mine.
Lesson 8: How
Do I Make Money?
Lesson 9: How
Do I License My New Invention?
Lesson 10: How
Do I Create a Business Plan?
Lesson 11: How Do I Raise Money?
Resources
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