Creating a patent business strategy
It’s time to think about distributing a patent application. But before we do that, you need to have a business plan in place. Well, a mini business plan. All you need to do is start thinking about what you will do with your patent, if and when you get one. Will you license it to other companies to use? Will you manufacture and sell it yourself? Ask yourself which markets are you likely to target? Do an invention research and decide on the most appropriate countries to target with your invention. This will help you priorities where you would like to submit a patent application. Schedule a assembly with a patent professional, usually a patent agent or lawyer. Discuss your invention, and bring alongside a detailed document describing what it is, what it’s useful for, the need it solutions, its potential market, problems with current products etc. The more descriptive and self explanatory your document is, the better. Use your invention notebook from step two and your invention research from step 3 to write this document. This will help your patent lawyer understand your invention better, and assist him in drafting your application quickly and efficiently. Bring up any similar patents or patent applications that came up in your invention research and patent search. Based on how comfortable you feel with you patent search, decide whether to order an additional search from a professional patent search service or depend on your own results. At the end of this assembly a patent professional should be able to tell you if he has enough information to proceed and apply for a patent. Or, he might suggest a more comprehensive paid out patent search, or point out some issues with your invention idea. While it is possible to draft your own patent application, the consensus is that you are better off using a professional, a patent lawyer or agent. There are costs associated and you should budget for a professional patent search, attorney’s fees (how much is dependent on the number of hrs a patent lawyer works on drafting your application), and the fees for distributing the application for each country in which you are intrigued. Once your patent application has been submitted, your invention idea is now protected. While your invention will not necessarily receive patent protection, no one can apply for a similar patent in the country in which you utilized for the same idea. Your application will have precedence. You can start working towards creating your patent idea prototype, selling it, licensing it etc, and approach people disclosing your invention idea without fear.
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