You don’t need to be a genius to generate new invention ideas. But, what exactly does it take for you to come up with a singular creation? Invention can’t necessarily be caught in a bottle, but there are ways to set yourself up for success. Researching, observation, brainstorming–all of this can help. On top of all that, being ready to strike when the iron is hot is an invaluable sense.
If you want to create a new product, your ability to develop, exploit, execute and protect viable ideas gives you a competitive edge. Coming up with an original idea that will disrupt the market requires a fresh mind and fresh thinking. Here are actionable tips to help jumpstart those creative juices.
1. Observe Your Environment
When you start with an entrepreneurial mindset, you’ll have a different perspective on the ordinary things all around you. Gaining observation skills allows you to learn, recall, and understand your immediate environment.
Typically, your aim can be to identify a market gap, improve the existing options, or bring an idea or concept from one industry to a new one. A good idea satisfies a need, want, or fixes a problem. The trick is to see the need and come up with a creative solution that bests fits it. Take the time to listen to what customers are saying about other products or services. If possible, let them share the problems they face every day and see if there is something that you can do about it.
2. Find Your Niche
When starting out, specialization is a more effective tool than targeting different markets. Find a market that you understand well so that you can come up with good ideas within it. This allows you to engage with things you’re familiar with, learn their flaws, and develop improvements.
Note down the fields you know well and are passionate about. Focus on your passions, interests, and hobbies will naturally generate the perseverance required to succeed. Determine the profitability and viability of your niche. Research the competition and weigh the market size to see what’s missing. Once you’ve defined your niche, you can start digging deeper to find areas you can improve or replace with something new and better.
3. Determine Problems
Are you good at anticipating problems before they occur? Do you have a keen eye for identifying problems that other people can’t see? This can be a valuable skill to help you come up with great invention ideas. Take the time to distinguish things that are not perfect or up to par in your niche. Listen to what people complain about or the things that bother them most. Even those trivial complaints and issues can be great for generating new ideas.
Create a list of the common problems in your niche and see if you can create one solution for multiple problems. Your idea should be effective and inexpensive for your target customers.
4. Timing Is Important
When it comes to idea generation, time is a major factor that can help to validate the viability of your idea. Products and ideas get phased out over time, and the last thing you want is to create a short-term idea.
Startups are known to fail due to inadequate funds and poor marketing, and worst of all, poor timing. Creativity and motivation can give you all you need to come up with an idea. But, ask yourself, is it the appropriate time to launch your idea? The last thing you want is to create a product that works, but people aren’t ready for (here’s looking at you, Google Glass). You’re the only person responsible for making it succeed.
5. Connect the Dots
Idea generation depends on your ability to determine the relationship between two or more different things. When certain factors are connected, they can give a clear view of your idea and its viability in the market.
If you’re creating one solution for many problems, you want to take the time to determine the relationship between the problems. It’s all about identifying the connection points! Come up with a hypothesis that will allow you to develop those connections.
6. Test the Idea
Now, you have thing idea for the next big thing, but you’re not sure if it’s going to work. In this scenario, it helps to test it. And, this should come first, before building a business plan or getting a trademark for your idea.
Build a minimum viable product (MVP), which is the simplest form of your product that you can sell. Having an MVP version of your product idea is important during the development process. This allows you to make changes and tweaks based on the feedback you get.
You can give people the product for free and let them provide their opinion after using it for a while. Or, create a test group and ask the people to assess your idea.
7. Tweak Your Idea
At this point, you have enough feedback from the product test to help you fine-tune your idea. List out all the things that people were frustrated about and find an effective fix for each.
The way you see your idea is not how everyone sees it. Your idea can be a good start, but it may need tweaking to get it ready it for the market. Also, bear in mind that you don’t need to address all the problems that your detractors pointed out. Focus on addressing the big issues.
8. Is It a Good Idea?
After all these steps, it all comes down to you. Do you believe in the idea? What’s the future like for your idea? Are you committed? Some ideas will be profitable while others will fail. Learn to drop an idea before you waste your time, energy, and money. Determine if your idea will be a remarkable option among the several choices available in the market.
If it’s the idea you believe is going to disrupt the market, don’t forget to patent it.
Invention Ideas – The Takeaway
Creating viable ideas for a business can be a time-consuming and frustrating process that requires time and due diligence. If you want to generate new invention ideas, be sure to take the time to reflect on your goals and limitations.
Many inventions take years to achieve fruition. Be patient and work diligently to ensure your idea becomes a reality. Don’t be afraid to talk to other people about your idea to get a sense of how you feel.
And when you’re ready to start the patent process, we’re here for you.
