tech-company, productSo, to preface this, maybe I ought to wait until it’s easier for me to figure things out, nevertheless, here’s the issue.
There’s this invention I have the concept for that is actually somewhat simple, so I’d rather not go into the details too much at this point.
Here’s the challenge I have:
it requires a certain kind of material that can be made in different ways depending on what’s needed for the product to function, and in order to have the material made for it, I’d need to pay something up front.
I’d also accordingly have to show the maker of the material that there will be a definite demand for the product before they’ll make it.
What I’m asking is if there’s a site, kind of like Go Fund Me or Indiegogo, where in this case, I could basically make the invention except for the material and show and explain how it would work with the model. If a lot of people would like to have it, they could show that on the website, and then I’d be able to show the manufacturer that there is a demand for the product I’m trying to develop.
You can go the well-traveled route of IndieGoGo-style funding campaigns and hope that you garner enough orders to get the attention of a manufacturer, but it sounds like you’re putting the cart before the horse, IMHO. That’s kind of an inverse way of doing things that doesn’t always work out. Keep in mind there’s a world of difference between what people say they’d buy and what they actually give you money for. That’s always the problem with consumer research studies of potential new products - people “love” the product until it comes time to buying it, then they find a million things wrong with it.
Using a site to get “votes” may not work either, because the manufacturers know this too. If they’re giving you grief about manufacturing, then they’re going to want to know how many “hard buys” (payments in hand) you have, not how many people “like it” on Facebook or any other web site. Yo’re better off finding a manufacturer first who can make your product at a reasonable price, then go from there.
You know, you can always go to a custom fabricator and have your product built without a single question from them about its viability. After all, they only care about whether or not you can pay to have however many widgets you want initially built. The risk is all yours as to whether you can sell them, not the manufacturer’s. They were paid to build, and that’s the end of their involvement.
Now, some manufacturers may go the extra step of trying to figure out whether the size of your order makes sense for them in the first place. There are costs to retooling machines, making any specialized dies or other tools required, training people to build and assemble, and so on. If they don’t think there’s a longer-term potential market for your product, then some manufacturers could say no to building anything for you, and that’s perhaps what you’ve run into.
That being said, there are countless numbers of small fabricators that would take on your business. It’s all a matter of you having to slog through the process of finding the right one for your circumstance, most notably what your budget is going to be. Prototyping is expensive, unless you can have your item 3-D printed to show people as proof-of-concept.
I hope this helps.
Good luck!
In terms of the most capital raised for inventions and concepts, Kickstarter and GoFundMe are the best websites. You have the best chance of gaining some kind of investment/traction from the large communities of those sites.
Certainly! Platforms like Invision and Moqups allow you to build a prototype that doesn’t rely on materials to successfully pitch your design, interactivity, etc. You can easily plan, test, and validate your product to speed up the development of your idea. For additional reference, look into Leanstartup practices, and learn about the value of creating an MVP (minimal viable product) in 2-6 week sprints. This allows you to enter market faster, and perfect as you go. A good case study to also look into is Jake Knapp’s experience when he built a robot in 5 days. He details the account online and also in his book, Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days. I hope this helps, keep innovating Tom!
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