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Ignore the Naysayers
Geography
Article 3
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 Newsletter - May 2015
 
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What the Naysayers Say
and why you should ignore them
 
There is ample evidence of the words of past "experts' and pundits of an era making them look really ridiculous to modern eyes,   but at the time they said these things they seemed to most people (those with little vision) to be eminently reasonable. 
 
Here's a statement attributed to Napoleon. " Its clear to anyone that "You cant sail  a ship against the wind by building a fire under the deck."  He was  talking about the ,then new ,steamship.  And what he said was true.  But Napoleon's vision was completely divorced from what a steamship actually does and how it operates.  something Napoleon had no familiarity with, being a General but not an engineer.
 
And his observation is the same reaction that most people have to a new technology.  They can only understand minor departures from what is the current solution to a process.   Henry Ford said that when asked what was needed to improve transportation, people recommended faster horses, not automobiles.  
 
The pundits of the early 20th century envisioned a world of air travel based on Zeppelins not airplanes.  Something like a 747 would be unimaginable to the mind of an average citizen in 1920.
 
So, if you are an inventor with a new and possibly revolutionary idea,  and you show it to some of these "average citizens",  [usually when you are trying to raise money]  you will most often be rebuffed.   
 
To succeed you need to make your vision perceptible to someone who will neither share either your vision nor  your expertise in a subject.
 
This is one of the reasons that models are so important.  You also need to be aware of the limits of your own vision.  In the chapter on "Cold" from the series "How we got to now", the author shows how after succeeding in building a giant business importing ice from the Northern to Southern states,  those same persons were oblivious to the onset of artificial refrigeration which eventually sank the ice trade.
 
To sell your idea to the average folk you need to be something of a showman.  Edison knew this to be true.  At one point he staged a parade down Broadway with women wearing lighted hats wired to generators to prove the safety of his electrical systems.
 
So view your invention from the point of view of the point in time where you are and think of visual ways to explain it to the average person of that era.
 


email  rblazey@businessmetamorphosis.com 

or  give us a call at  (585) 520-3539  

 

ITTr Logo
Geography

ITTr represents the owners of US Patents and patent applications but that does not mean we don't have foreign clients.  Often a client in another country will patent their invention both in their home country and in the USA.  In that case we are glad to represent the foreign client to companies that might want to license their US patent. 
 
 What makes this issue somewhat complex is despite the fact that where  its a US patent that they are licensing,  the licensing company may not be headquartered in the US.   The world is full of transnational companies and  many US companies have moved their headquarters overseas to take advantage of favorable treatments on taxes and other business issues.
 
At ITTr we are ready to represent the owner of a US patent for  any company that does business in the US no matter where its headquarters is located.
 
What we do not do is represent companies who don't own US patents or represent companies abroad that own both US and foreign patents.  Thus if a client is located in Germany and owns a US patent  and German patent we can represent them to US companies but not to German companies for use in Germany.
 
What we can do is represent the German client to a  German company for use in its US operations where the US patent will offer protection.
 
So if you are a foreign company that owns a US patent or application ITTr will be glad to represent you in the US.
 
If you hold what is called a PCT or world patent application and when you signed up you showed the US as one of the countries that you might wish to file in, then we can also work with you.  You would have to take positive steps to activate the US patent part portion of the PCT.
 
Since this whole topic can be somewhat confusing and dependent on specific situations, please contact us at ITTr if you have questions about foreign representation




For more information write to rblazey@ittrifecta.com or call (585) 520-3539

Course Corrections
OA Logo
In OA we are focusing on learning the Lean Startup methodology and how it applies to our businesses.  One of the things taught in Lean Startup is what they call a pivot  ( what I might describe as "course corrections".)

Lean startup focuses on what are called Minimum Value Products or MVP's.  The process steps call for testing each MVP to determine its acceptability to potential customers.   These MVP's are tied into related business models.

When it becomes apparent that the business model which engendered a particular MVP doesn't produce the desired results then it is time to consider a "pivot". 

A pivot implies a change of direction to a new course and this is very important, based on the results of testing the last MVP.

Lean Startup teaches that information gained from a market test is often more valuable than the revenue it produces.   An MVP that fails without the entrepreneur knowing why,  provides nothing of much value,  but one that fails for a specific definable and circumvent-able reason is much more useful. 

 Lets assume you have invented an organic ice cream.  Its loaded with healthy ingredients and everyone who tries it says its delicious.  However when you try to market it online sales are very disappointing.  The question is WHY? 

  If you carefully survey those who go to your website and decide not to buy,  you may learn that the repulsive pea green color of the ice cream is a definite turn off. That was something that you definitely didn't find out in your taste tests.  But its invaluable information because slightly changing the tint of the ice cream (MVP #2) provided a much more favorable result.

The question is how do you get customers to supply you with this valuable information?  That's a question for another time but  the use of surveys of various kinds is one way  of  answering it

There are many survey tools you can make use of and some are free like Survey Monkey and Jotform.  If you need professional help you can contact our sister company,  the Rochester Penguin Group.

 
O

to rblazey@rochester.rr.com or
 visit our website at www.opportunity-associates.com
 or call us at (585) 520-3539
We appreciate your responses to our newsletters.  Please send us your comments.  We are always interested in what you want to know.  See the New Letters to the Editor link in the block below
 
Sincerely,
 

Richard Blazey
Business Metamorphosis LLC

Comments and Letters to the Editor

 

To Readers of the BML Newsletter:

 

Many of you have wished to comment on articles in the newsletter and up until now there has been no mechanism to do so.  Now if you wish to comment you can just reply to this article.  Please mention the issue of the Newsletter (Month, Yr) and the title of the article you are commenting on.  Add your name if you wish

 

Best Regards,

 

Dick Blazey

 




 

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