What is Licensing?

Licensing is an agreement between and retailer and a product developer/inventor (YOU). The agreement states that the retailer will manufacture and sell the product for the developer/inventor.

Basically, its having other people spend their money to produce and sell your idea and you getting royalties in return. You don’t have to build your own business this way!

You don’t have to put any upfront money into creating your invention, you can just sell your idea!

You have a couple options;

(1) You can sell your idea outright for one lump sum (the idea is no longer yours to profit from)

Or

(2) You can choose to receive royalty payments based on each sale. The royalty payments are a lot less than if you were to create your product yourself and sell it, BUT you don’t have to spend a ton of your own money or try to find funding to build your product…all at the risk of it possibly not selling in the marketplace.

Companies are now looking more and more to find outside inventors (people like you with great ideas!).

They want to outsource their product development because it brings down the costs associated with having an in-house product and development team.

Also they see outside inventors as better product developers because they tend to be someone who has experienced a problem and is inventing a product to solve that problem.

One company that is seeking outside inventors is Proctor & Gamble with their Connect and Develop program. You can read more about this program in my article Submit Your New Invention Ideas to Proctor & Gamble.


a. Search through catalogs – Catalogs are a great place to look at all the companies that sell products similar to the one you are inventing

b. Magazines – There are thousands of magazines on just about every subject you can think of. By looking through magazines where you think your product might be sold, you can get a list of companies that might be potential licensees.

c. Stores that might sell your product – Think about what stores you would like to see your product sold in. Think Target, Walmart, Longs Drugs, etc.

d. Searching internet stores – Everyday, more and more internet stores are popping up. Approaching online stores about your product is a great way to go.

e. ThomasNet – This is a guide that lists thousands of companies that produce products

f. Industry Trade Shows – There are trade shows for just about anything and everything you can think of. This is a perfect place to find companies that are searching for new products…yours just might be the next one they choose to stock!

Proctor & Gamble is seeking YOUR well-developed ideas through their Connect and Develop program.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Jeff LeRoy, External Relations Manager for The Procter & Gamble Company about their Connect and Develop program which includes a needs list with new types of innovations that the company is seeking.

He wanted me to know that they encourage mom inventors to submit their well-developed product ideas or concepts.

“The more your idea has been developed, the better.” 

They like products that have already been tested on the market and have done well. 

For example, if you have a great recipe for a baked fruit or vegetable snack and you’ve trademarked the recipe, you’ve tested it around your neighborhood, maybe got some local stores to carry it, and received feedback from your customers that they absolutely love your snack….. submit it to Proctor and Gamble!  They may decide to work with you on developing the snack to be sold through their distribution channels.  If you can show to them that there are people who are interested in the snack and excited about buying it, Proctor and Gamble may want to partner with you on your product.  Read more

If you want some assistance bringing your new invention idea to reality, Jim DeBetta, an invention coach with nearly 20 years of experience offers information that will guide you through the frustrations of bringing your invention to market.

Because of his expertise, Jim has been featured in magazines such as Entrepreneur Magazine, Atlanta Life Magazine, Georgia Magazine, and Inventor’s Digest.

He shares his experience and his knowledge by offering seminars and he also does product reviews for your new invention idea for only $395! In your product review he will tell you:

  • Who should be your target market and what the current buying trends are for your target market.
  • What the best packaging would be for your product.
  • If your product has licenseing potential.
  • He will make suggestions on improving your product and tell you what he thinks you can sell it for.

    • If your not ready for the product review. I encourage you to sign up for his seminar ($99) if you really want to learn more about how to get your new invention idea to market. You’ll learn:

  • How to do it right the first time
  • How to save money by doing it right
  • Why so many people fail at getting their ideas to make them money
  • How to get your product in the stores of major retailers
  • Plus a bunch more information!

    • Check out the seminar for only $99.

    Are there enough people that would be interested in buying your product?

    Below are some ways to gather crucial data to find out if there is really a market for your new invention idea.

    (If you are concerned that someone will steal your idea, you can have them sign a non-disclosure agreement before you ask them questions about your product)

    Trade Magazine research – There are trade magazines covering just about every interest, industry, gender, and ethnic group you can think of. If you go to Amazon’s magazine search just about every magazine out there will show up for your keyword search. You can do a quick search for magazines in your product idea niche below:

    Internet research - Below are some websites where you can do research to find out if you have a large enough target market for your new invention idea: Read more

    Another important initial step in making money from your new invention idea is to find out if your product idea is something people want! YOU think your idea is great and that every person will buy one….but, you need to get concrete data to find out if people out there will actually buy your terrific product.

    The last thing want is to get stuck spending a bunch of money creating your product and then find out that it won’t sell. So doing thorough research before you invest any money into your new invention idea is crucial. Read more

    14 Essential Questions To Ask People About Your New Invention Ideas

    You’ll want to find out what other people think about your new invention ideas.

    If you are concerned that someone will steal your idea, you can have them sign a non-disclosure agreement before you ask them questions about your product.

    1. Do you like the product?

    2. Does it solve a problem that you have?

    3. Would you buy the product? Read more

    If you have a great idea that you want to invent, you’ll want to know that your idea is original.

    You first need to find out if there are already existing patents for your idea. If you have the funds you can hire a patent attorney to do a patent search for you.

    Or if you have little or no funds you can do a patent search yourself online. There is a great website called freepatentsonline.com where you can register for free and do patent searches.

    You will want to do a search with as many keywords that you can think of that relate to your product idea. For example if your product idea is for a new design for an ice chest, you’ll want to do searches for “ice chest” and words that relate like “cooler”, “ice box”, etc.

    You can also do a patent search at the US Patent and Trademark website. If you click Patent on the left hand side, then scroll down and click Search, you will come to a page where you can choose how you want to do your search. The Quick Search option is quick and easy. Read more

    There are many invention promotion firms who will advertise that they will take your idea to market for a fee that can range from $1,000 to $40,000. They advertise that they will contact manufacturers for you, give you a website to promote your product, and to promote your product in magazines and other media.

    Unfortunately there are companies that are scams. They conduct inventor fraud by operating in unethical ways.

    Here are some tips for determining if an invention promotion firm is legitimate or a scam.

    1. Check the U.S. Federal Trade Commission website. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s job is to protect consumers. If you type “invention promotion” in their search box on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission website, you will come up with some very helpful articles on what to look out for when dealing with these firms. Read more

    A Non-Disclosure agreement is a written contract between two people where one person agrees not to disclose information the other person shares. You would have anyone you tell about your new invention idea to sign one to protect your idea so they can’t legally steal it.

    Here is an example of a non-disclosure agreement:

    NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT

    YOUR NAME, and THEIR NAME, agree:

    YOUR NAME may from time to time disclose to THEIR NAME certain confidential information or trade secrets generally regarding Invention Idea.

    THEIR NAME agrees that it shall not disclose the information so conveyed, unless in conformity with this agreement. THEIR NAME shall limit disclosure to the officers and employees of THEIR NAME with a reasonable “need to know” the information, and shall protect the same from disclosure with reasonable diligence.

    As to all information which YOUR NAME claims is confidential, YOUR NAME shall reduce the same to writing prior to disclosure and shall conspicuously mark the same as “confidential,” “not to be disclosed” or with other clear indication of its status. If the information which YOUR NAME is disclosing is not in written form, for example, a machine or device, YOUR NAME shall be required prior to or at the same time that the disclosure is made to provide written notice of the secrecy claimed by YOUR NAME. THEIR NAME agrees upon reasonable notice to return the confidential tangible material provided by it by YOUR NAME upon reasonable request.

    The obligation of non-disclosure shall terminate when if any of the following occurs:

    (a) The confidential information becomes known to the public without the fault of THEIR NAME; or

    (b) The information is disclosed publicly by YOUR NAME; or

    (c) a period of 12 months passes from the disclosure; or

    (d) the information loses its status as confidential through no fault of THEIR NAME.

    In any event, the obligation of non-disclosure shall not apply to information which was known to THEIR NAME prior to the execution of this agreement.

    Dated: _______________________________

    ________________________________________________

    YOUR NAME

    ________________________________________________

    THEIR NAME

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