Eleven Best Places To Submit An Idea for An Invention

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Here at Invention Therapy, we teach you that the only way to make money with your invention is to build the product and sell it yourself. You may not agree with our list of the best places to submit an idea for an invention but we want you to know the reality of what it really takes to be a successful inventor.

There are no free rides in life. It takes hard work and dedication to turn your invention idea into a reality. If you are serious about being an inventor, you have come to the right place.

If you think someone is going to write you a check for your ideas, then you should go waste your money with those invention help companies and flush your dreams away.

In case you still need the list of places to submit your ideas. This list is ranked in order from best to worst so here it goes.

The Best Place To Submit Invention Ideas

  1. Kickstarter
  2. Indiegogo
  3. Gofundme
  4. Makerspaces in your community
  5. Quirky
  6. US Patent Office
  7. Seedfund Government Grant Programs
  8. Shark Tank
  9. College or Universities
  10. Friends and Family
  11. Businesses waiting to pay you for your ideas. (see video below)

Kickstarter

Crowdfunding is a very popular and another one of those great ways to get money for your invention ideas.

This has been one of my favorite ways to raise money for my inventions. I have been very successful with eight different Kickstarter campaigns. If you are realistic with your rewards and goal, it can launch your invention idea literally into space.

Competition is heavy on all these crowdfunding websites and they have fallen out of favor with many people interested in gadgets and technology. Just take your time doing the research and setting up your campaign.

Indiegogo

This is my second choice for crowdfunding and honestly, I never could figure out how to launch a successful campaign with Indiegogo. Unlike Kickstarter where humans pick featured projects and help promote them, Indiegogo relies on algorithms to choose which projects get promoted. If your project doesn’t hit certain milestones with people backing the project, it may never get real funding.

Indiegogo, in my opinion, is better for people that already have a social media presence and can generate interest in their campaigns without relying on the computer to pick which projects it wants to promote.

Gofundme

Gofundme is more of a “fund my life” platform but it has been used to help launch people’s dreams. I don’t know much about this website so you will have to decide on your own which platform is best for you.

We will be going over these in future blogs. Keep in mind that you will have to build a fully functional, working prototype before launching one of these campaigns.

Makerspaces

I have been known to make fun of makers and their spaces. It’s not that I don’t like what they are doing, it’s just that as an inventor it is my job to make things that I can earn money with. I can’t sit around all day and tinker even though I would love to.

For the inventor, these Makerspaces are great resources for tools and equipment but their “anti-establishment” attitude can conflict with the mindset that an inventor needs in order to make his or her product successful. Makerspaces are not really the best place to submit an idea for an invention but you will find people there with similar interests that can help you build your prototype. Visit one in your community and let us know how it goes.

Join your local Makerspace, learn things and have fun. Just remember that your goal is to build your prototype and get to the point where you are ready to manufacture.

Quirky

This website keeps showing up next to my search results on Google. that’s about all I know about it. They claim to take ideas and then pick good ones to turn into actual products. More information can be found on the Quirky website.

US Patent Office

Yes, you submit your ideas to the US Patent Office as a patent application. For those of you that are afraid of someone stealing your idea, this is one of the best places to submit an idea for an invention.

I hope you have really deep pockets and a good attorney because this part of the invention process is very expensive to do correctly and there still is no guarantee you won’t see your product ripped off and being sold worldwide.

There are many better ways for first-time inventors to protect their ideas. But again, if you have at least $20,000.00 to file plus the much higher expense of fighting any infringement, by all means, give it a shot.

Seedfund

Another result that has been showing up in my searches, the Seedfund appears to be a government-run program that funds risky and innovative technologies. This website interests me and maybe I will dig into it further in other posts.

Shark Tank

You should know that I have been asked to be a part of the Shark Tank TV show many times. Each time, I turned down the opportunity for many reasons but mainly because the effort was never worth the reward.

A few of my friends and colleagues have been through the process of elimination and made it to their appearance in front of the “sharks”. At no point in the experience did any of them claim that it was worth the effort.

This is something you will need to decide. If you do get the opportunity to appear on the show, just be sure you know the amount of time, effort and money involved. The huge amount of work that goes on behind the scenes for the inventors is not always worth the trouble.

College or Universities

If you are a college student, many universities have programs where students can do funded research to come up with innovations. The college will keep part ownership of your invention in most cases but if it is a complicated new technology, this could be the best way to go.

Friends and Family

If you have friends and family members that get excited about hearing your ideas, they may be the right people to turn to when looking to turn your idea into a reality.

Businesses waiting to pay you for your ideas.

When you find companies willing to pay you real money for your ideas, please let me know. I honestly don’t think these are the best places to submit an idea for an invention.

Not that all licensing deals are bad. If you lack the ambition or time needed to do this on your own, there may still be a few options with licensing. There are a few cookware, toy and tool companies along with large retail chains always looking for new ideas to stock their shelves. They do have active programs to help new inventors. These types could be an easy way to get started but I am sure the rewards won’t be life-changing in most cases and definitely a huge amount of hoops to jump through before your idea is chosen.


We are very passionate about inventing and helping new inventors empower themselves to do everything on their own. You have all the tools at your fingertips. All you have to do is believe in yourself and stop believing all the dishonest hype about businesses licensing your ideas. We all have big ideas and most of them are worthless!

Are you ready to become an inventor?

Getting your idea out of your head and into your hands is only the first in a long set of steps towards becoming a successful inventor.

First Steps To A Successful Invention

At Invention Therapy, we believe that the power of the internet makes it easier than you think to turn your invention idea into a reality. In most cases, you can build a prototype and start manufacturing a product on your own. Changing your way of thinking can be difficult. Being an inventor requires you to balance your passion with the reality of having to sell your products for a profit. After all, if we can't make a profit, we won't be able to keep the lights on and continue to invent more amazing things!



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