July-August 2013 Do you know this guy?tbic.us/image/Newsletter/2013_07_TBIC_DRAFT2.pdf · Do you know this guy? ... Knock on every door looking for the right opportunity and don’t

Do you know this

guy? Page 5

Tampa BayThe

“Inventors Helping Inventors”The Tampa Bay Inventors Council is here to help you succeed, forge ahead, maintain your

purpose and achieve what you intend to. Everyone in this group is behind you.

Visit our website: www.tbic.usGET NEWS UPDATES: www.tbicnews.blogspot.com

JOIN US EACH 2nd AND 4th WEDNESDAY

EVERY MONTH!

MEET WITH US AT:Tampa Bay Innovation Center

7887 Bryan Dairy Rd., Ste. 220Largo, FL 33777

July-August 2013

Wayne’s Words . . . . . . . . . .2

Recap of Recent Meetings . .3

Sites Built for Inventors . . . 12

Dues and Dont’s . . . . . . . . . 15

Don’t Fowl Up Your Invention with Poor Marketing . . . Page 8

What do you want to a c h i e v e ?

This is the first thing you should ask yourself before you decide to go down the path be an inventor. Are you

in it for the money? Do you want to make a difference in the world for someone you know or for others who may benefit from your idea? Do you want to create an industry and start a business? Are you a tinkerer and just love to come up with nifty innovations? Is there another reason you have to chart this course?

Whatever the reason you choose, it is important to keep sight of the things that matter to you. You should avoid becoming so focused that you ig-nore the foundation of your life, your friends and family and finances. Far too often people chase a dream only to discover that they have lost more than they have gained. Some neglect their loved ones and health to make money and when the love or health is lost, the money is not enough to fix it. Try to be smart about your ef-forts and remember that the important things in

life need attention too. If you don’t maintain a balance in your life you may tilt to one side and never recover. Take some time to stop and smell the flowers, breathe, develop a perspec-tive and think. If you only rush blindly with your head down, there is a much better chance of running into a wall.

All that being said, it is persistence that will win the day. Don’t bet on a lame horse but if you believe you have a winner, keep riding it if you want to see the finish line. Your goal will

be determined by what you hope to achieve but getting to it may take blood, sweat

and tears. Time and money will like-ly be in short supply and your effort will have to make up for much of that. You have the 2% inspiration but will have to muster the 98% perspiration. Remember the power

of numbers and every rejection just brings you one step closer to that ac-

ceptance you desire. Knock on every door looking for the right opportunity and don’t be shy. If you can avoid being greedy, foolish and insufferable, you might make a deal and get your idea public. Try to understand what you want to achieve, work very hard towards your goal but remember to Breathe!

Wayne Rasanen, President, Tampa Bay Inventors Council

Page 2 Tampa Bay Inventors Council • July-August 2013

Wayne Rasanen

Need to Reach TBIC?Office: 727-565-2085 or call: 727-251-4056

George Mouzakis [email protected] Address: 7752 Royal Hart Dr. New Port Richey, FL 34653

Website Info www.TBIC.usVisit our website for information about current and past happenings. You can also download current

and past newsletters in Adobe PDF format. You will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer. If you don’t already have it, go to:

www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.htmlto download this free document viewer.

Information and articles printed in this newsletter are not necessarily endorsed by the TBIC and may not be applicable to everyone

Monthly TBIC meetings are held every 2nd and 4th Wednesday of EVERY month .

All meetings start at 7 p.m.at Tampa Bay Innovation Center, 7887 Bryan Dairy Rd., Ste. 220, Largo, FL 33777

General Meeting SummaryMay 8, 2013

For tonight’s meeting, members had been previously asked to bring in invention proto-types they are comfortable showing, in order to participate in tonight’s workshop. It’s about the marketing concept known as “The Tag-Line.” The room’s tables and chairs were rearranged into groups with one inventor seated at each ta-ble group. Everyone else was seated in the table groups too. There were five inventions total.

Guest speaker Dan Jenkins is the founder and president of Grapple Hook Marketing, a local marketing firm that promotes industrial prod-ucts. He also teaches marketing and business related courses, workshops and seminars. His workshop tonight was titled “Tag-Lines, Brain-storming and Exercises.”

Dan began by explaining the basics. A tag-line is all about first impressions of a product and/or a brand. It’s a word or slogan, created by the company, that appears in advertising right next to the logo. The purpose of the tag-line is for the company to place a positive first impres-sion of itself or its product into the mind of the consumer. A truly brilliant tag-line is one that’s expressed artfully and delivered persuasively. Marketing professionals place huge importance on the tag-line because it educates and commu-nicates about the product and its brand in one very short concise statement.

Developing a convincing tag-line is not as easy as you might think. It can never be done individually. The best way to develop one is through a couple of brainstorming sessions, which was the purpose of Dan’s discussion and exercise tonight.

At each group of tables was one inventor who brought in his/her invention project. The five inventions were: A tiny computer key-board, a small footstool to enable a woman to paint her toenails, a jar-opener, a small purse to enable a woman to carry her cell phone and an ultra-lightweight off-road motorcycle for para-troopers.

After Dan finished explaining the basics, the exercise was for each group to brainstorm a rough draft of an effective tag-line for that group’s invention product. Future sessions are recommended in order to fine-tune the mes-sage, but tonight’s beginner exercise taught us the basics and gave the five inventors plenty to think about.

It was great! The brainstorming exercise went something like this: First, after each per-son looked at, touched and interacted with the product, he/she quietly wrote down rough ideas for a tag-line. STOP. Then the papers were shuffled to each other, and each person wrote brief thoughts about the product’s features, advantages & disadvantages, comparisons to competition, what type of person would buy it, etc. After a few minutes, STOP.

Then things started to heat up. In hurry-up fashion, group members had to call out words that first come to mind when thinking about the invention’s purpose. The inventors wrote down the lists of words. While this was happening, Dan bounced from group to group firing every-one up. After five minutes, STOP!

Next, start stringing the written words to-gether into phrases. Hurry up! How does this product make you feel? What does it make you think of? What connotation and vision do you see? Louder! Write it down, inventor! Hurry up; ideas are slipping by! CATCH ‘EM! New words or phrases can be added later as they pop into mind, but write these down now! After several minutes, STOP! By this time, getting everyone to stop was hard to do. All papers were handed to the inventors to take home and study.

Doing each step in hurry-up fashion is the key to this exercise, because tag-lines are all about first impressions.

This was fun and exciting, yet the feedback and response to each invention was phenomenal! Each inventor ended up with a list of ideas to further analyze and carefully consider as an ef-fective tag-line. Each inventor agreed that he/she would never have come up with most of these ideas alone. As mentioned, each group ideally would meet again for further refinement, but we got the basic concept of tonight’s exercise. Of course, the real thing would be done by each in-ventor’s business team, but we get the idea.

We now know how to conduct a real brain-storm session to create just the right message to the intended audience. Many heads are better than one, IF they know an effective procedure and IF they follow it. If they don’t, they end up spoiling the broth. Thanks to Dan Jenkins we now know the procedure for developing an attention-getting, mind-riveting, thought-pro-voking tag-line! Check out his marketing firm’s website at www.GrappleHook.com.

Past Meeting Summary

Tampa Bay Inventors Council • July-August 2013 Page 3

Continued on Page 4


General Meeting SummaryMay 22, 2013

Wayne made a quick announcement about a recent important change in the United Inven-tors Association. This long-established and well-respected national organization has al-ways been independent inventors’ collective voice in the nation’s capital and one of the best sources of inventor education. www.uiaUSA.org

The UIA has always had a policy of thor-oughly investigating every business that ad-vertises on the UIA website. Evidence of a company being predatory toward or taking advantage of independent inventors would re-sult in the company being dropped from the website.

Not any more. Wayne’s message was that the UIA has discontinued performing due-diligence of its advertisers. Nothing else about the organization appears to have changed. But proceed with caution whenever patronizing any of the businesses that advertize through the UIA.

Crowdsourcing and crowdfunding have been the subjects of several recent club meet-ings because they are very new and so impor-tant to independent inventors and other types of entrepreneurs. Both require heavy use of the internet and social media. A quick recap of both from an inventor’s standpoint:

Crowdsourcing: An inventor posts the basic idea of the invention on a crowdsourcing host website and receives feedback and suggestions from virtually anyone. This info from the gen-eral public is valuable for product-develop-ment by designing the invention according to how customers really want it to look and feel. Crowdsourcing is also used for team-building purposes by attracting talent who are interest-ed in participating and profiting.

Crowdfunding: An inventor posts the basic idea of the invention on a crowdfunding host website and receives money from people who wish to either donate or invest.n Donation Crowdfunding: The people expect very

little or nothing in return from the money they do-nate to the venture.

n Investment Crowdfunding: The people expect to earn a healthy profit from the money they invest into the venture. Also called Equity Crowdfunding.Tonight’s guest speaker, June Hollister, is

a local self-employed crowdfunding expert.

June teaches an extensive course about this subject. More about her course later. Her dis-cussion tonight was all about raising money through donation crowdfunding.

June says crowdfunding is simple but re-quires lots of effort. It’s the planning and preparation that will make or break your cam-paign. Most people start a crowdfunding cam-paign quickly and without much thought or planning. And they fail. Your chances for suc-cess depend on your ability to work on all the components of crowdfunding. Skip just one step and your project will not reach the total amount of money you had hoped for.

Crowdfunding host websites differ from each other somewhat, but they all have one thing in common. You must know how much money you intend to raise. This dollar figure must be posted on your home page.

For inventors the big three hosts are Kick-Starter, FundAGeek and IndieGoGo. June likes IndieGoGo best because with the other two, if your campaign does not reach the in-tended dollar amount, you must give it all back. But with IndieGoGo you keep however much you got.

June recommends you always ask for much less than your project needs...for now. The idea is to receive small amounts of money from many people. If your project needs $20,000 post a goal of $10,000. You can always do a second campaign later. She has noticed that projects with smaller posted goals tend to get more donations than larger ones. So aim low!

Social media is the biggest part of your campaign. Once the campaign is launched you must orchestrate a huge flurry of blogging and the like through FaceBook, Twitter, LinkedIn and others. Your campaign will last about 60 - 70 days, and you will practically live on social media the entire time.

But even before launching your crowdfund-ing campaign, you must use social media. The pre-launch stage is about 14 days; you must heavily promote and market your project that entire time. The pre-launch must convey: “Coming soon, get in on this early...NOW!” The idea is to get your name out there, get your invention known to the right people. They will be your first customers, after the launch. Also during the pre-launch stage, go to MeetUp events and hand out pamphlets.

Past Meeting Summary (Continued from Page 3)

Continued on Page 6


Continued on Page 7

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by Jerry ChautinOriginally printed in the

Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Monday, May 6, 2013

[Editor’s note: This is the first in the series of three articles about an-gel investors and front-end venture capitalists.]

I met Brian Garr three years ago at Sarasota’s Hayatt Regency hotel. The Boca Raton based

entrepreneur had come to Southwest Florida to meet “angels” - venture capitalists who invest small amounts of seed money in fledgling companies.

Garr was one of six presenters invited to pitch to angles at the Gulf-Coast Venture Forum event. He is

the chief executive of LinguaSys, a technology company that makes voice recognition software that translates communications into dif-ferent languages.

Unlike traditional bank lenders, venture capitalists do not require business owners to pledge collat-eral, sign promissory notes or make loan payments.

Instead, they are willing to take more risk than banks and in return they want to own stock in your company. They hope for double-digit returns on their investment and even fantasize about stumbling upon a company that quickly grows into another Staples, Microsoft or Google.

Garr snagged two angles and

You Just Have to KnowWhere to Spot an Angel


To start a donation crowdfunding campaign, you need:n A known dollar goal.n A cause/project/venture. For inventors, your proj-

ect is the step (in your business plan) that you are raising the money for.

n A written description of your project and your in-vention.

n A crowdfunding host (IndieGoGo, KickStarter, FundAGeek, etc.).

n A website, blog and social media connections.n A catchy domain name.n A payment reception method (PayPal, credit card

system, etc.)n Videos and images. Many.n Press releases.n Rewards.

Regarding rewards, June suggests:n Give rewards that cost you only labor, not money.n To ship rewards outside the U.S., clearly state that

the donor must pay shipping. Overseas shipping is expensive.

n Show picturers of every physical reward you offer.n Give rewards even for the lowest donation incre-

ments.n For $1 give a personal phone call from you.n For $2 give exclusive e-mailed updates about the

project’s progress.n For more money give discounts or coupons for the

product.n For bigger donations give away the first few units

of your product.n Have a recognition page with the names of the big-

gest donors. After launching, be prepared for unexpected

volume! June says this happens so often. So have lots of rewards ready to go.

There is so much to crowdfunding! It fol-lows the psychology of marketing, which is little more than making people happy by giv-ing them what they want. But there are many details. Knowing them and doing them right is what makes a crowdfunding campaign a big success. June teaches her CrowdFunding Boot Camp about once a month in a local hotel. The cost is about $1,000. That includes the 3-day, 2-night intensive training, meals and hotel bill. CrowdFunding Boot Camp will give you all the knowledge and tools to succeed. June promises you will leave with a plan in hand and the connections to make it happen! Get full info at www.CrowdFundingBC.com.

General Meeting SummaryJune 12, 2013

Every Saturday afternoon from 4 to 6 p.m. a national live call-in radio show named “My Cool Inventions” broadcasts on local station AM 860 WGUL. The show actually is live from the local studio right here in the Tampa Bay area. Its two hosts interview inventors and featured industry guests, and discuss issues related to bringing inventions to market. And they promote invention products. Both reside locally too.

Those two hosts were tonight’s guest speak-ers. Akos Jankura and John Cremeans, two powerhouses of the direct-response marketing field, are helping inventors nationwide to get their products sold. They are also looking for the best innovations to feature on their radio show.

Akos Jankura has worldwide direct-re-sponse sales of about a billion dollars and is known as “The Solutionist” . He is a regular on HSN and in 2011 won the Electronic Retail-ing Association’s Best Live-Shopping On-Air Guest award. He has also invented several of his own inventions that are currently selling worldwide.

John Cremeans was one of the world’s very first on-air home shopping hosts and is known as “The Doctor of Shopology”. John has logged over 30,000 hours of live TV and pre-formed over 100,000 successful product dem-onstrations - representing known brands in ev-ery category. He has over $2 billion dollars in Accumulated Sales. His largest one-hour total was over $2 million dollars.

All of that was accomplished before either one even got into radio! You can listen to their radio programs (live and previous ones) anytime from their website www.MyCoolIn-ventions.com. The site also includes lots of inventor education, news and info. MyCool-Invention’s motto is: We Lift Families One Inventor at a Time.

These guys understand new products! Espe-cially consumer products. Because of today’s consumer-driven economy, distributors, mar-keters and retailers now have an unsatiable appetite for new products to peddle. On-line stores, infomercials and shopping channels have sprung into existence in response to this new wave of consumerism. Akos and John are


Continued on Page 10


came back again the following year to pitch the angel group for more money.

Raising capital is a continuous process.“We are now 14 people on four continents,”

Garr said last month about growing his com-pany. And, he added, “Mark Cuban bought 23 percent of our stock over the past 12 months.”

Cuban is best known to TV watchers for his role as a venture capitalist on Shark Tank. He owns the Dallas Mavericks basketball team and Landmark Theaters and holds stakes in a num-ber of other high-profile enterprises. His backing of LinguaSys could make it easier for Garr to raise additional funds.

Garr said that his original angel investors have doubled their invest-ments and they continue to own stock in LinguaSys.

I asked him what lessons he learned that might be helpful for Herald-Tribune readers.

“My advice, as always, is never listen to the folks that tell you why you are or will fail,” he says. “Almost every entre-preneur plows his own path based on his passions.”

Passion is one of the traits that venture capitalists look for. But to get your foot in the door, you have to be pas-sionate about the right industries.

Most venture capitalists want their investment to be paid back within three to five years and select the indus-tries that have the capacity to grow quickly.

Furthermore, investors look for opportunities that they understand. So if a venture capitalist was previously in pharmaceuticals, for exam-ple, it is highly unlikely she will invest in your hardware store.

To learn more about the process and types of companies that the GulfCoast Venture Forum’s angels seek, check out its website www.gcf.AngleGroups.net. It hosts events throughout Southwest Florida, and you can fill out an on-line application to pitch your company.

On a grander scale, you can attend the 2013 New York Venture Summit on June 18. Accord-ing to its advertisements, the “13th annual sum-mit will showcase 50 of the hottest early stage and emerging growth technology, live sciences

and clean-tech innovators.”But event if you do not attend, it can be en-

lightening to peruse the list of venture capital-ists named and research the kinds of deals they seek. Go to www.YoungStartUp.com/NewY-ork2013/overview.php.

Ralph McNeal, a seasoned venture capitalist, author and SCORE volunteer, says “Some of the best ideas are missed by the venture capi-tal companies because it does not fit into their

portfolio.”To illustrate his point, the Nevada

resident notes that there were inves-tors “that missed out on Apple Com-puter, McDonald’s, cable TV, cell phone franchises and dot-coms which were high flyers and gave good returns on initial investments.”

Even though Apple is in his ex-amples, Steve Job’s garage-built computer enterprise did get early seed funding from a non-traditional type of venture capi-tal firm that is backed by the U.S. Small Business Admin-

istration. Apple received its capital from a small busi-ness investment company (SBIC), a venture capital-ist licensed and partially

funded by SBA.McNeal says that SBICs

are “private venture compa-nies.” They “are capitalized

by individuals, corporations and sometimes the local and

state governments.”Additionally, SBICs raise capital with SBA-

guaranteed debentures. Its rates are below that of conventional bonds and the proceeds are in-vested in small businesses.

You can read more about the SBIC program and download a directory of SBICs at www.sba.gov/sbic.

Jerry Chautin is a volunteer with Manasota.SCORE.org, a local nonprofit SBA resource partner offering free business advice and mentoring. He is SBA’s 2006 national “Journalist of the Year” and a former entrepreneur, commercial mortgage banker and business lender. He writes and blogs about busi-ness and commercial real estate strategies for several publications and financial organizations nationwide. Contact him at [email protected].

Spot an Angel (Continued from Page 5)


by Harvey Reese of Money4Ideas.com

I have lately been browsing the inventors’ newsgroup on the Internet, and although the level of intelligent discourse is impressive,

the subject matter is sadly revealing. Someone will post a question about the patenting process, and like flies to honey, immediately a half-dozen patent lawyers or semi-pro patent appliers join in. “Should I get a PPA?” “What about an NDA?” “Can someone clarify the First to Invent laws here in America ?” “How about a utility patent, or should I get a design patent?” “And what about the PCT?” “And the PTO?” And on and on. It’s not that the questions aren’t sincere, or that the responses aren’t informed, it’s just that so much of it is so screamingly repetitive and totally beside the point.

Assuming, of course, that the point is to make money by licensing ideas.

So much attention is paid to process that no one seems to have the time or inclination to ask about the business of inventing. No one asks, “How can I get an appointment with the chief executive?” “How should I prepare my presentation?” “What kind of ques-tions should I be prepared to answer?” “How do I handle the not-invented-here syndrome?” “Do I need a prototype?” “Should it be in a consumer package?” “Do I need to worry about store displays?” “How do I line up appointments at a trade show?” “How do I get a professional appraisal of my idea?” “What are price points?” “Discounts?” “Markups?” Nobody asks these things; they only ask about patents and for advice about how to prevent someone from stealing their idea.

It’s not surprising that so few patented products are ever commercialized. Many, of course, are simply not worth a licensor’s time, but more often the inven-

tor simply hasn’t a clue about what to do next. Inventing they know; patenting they know; ev-erything else is a dark void.

Years ago, when Singer talked about his new sewing machine, he said he didn’t give a damn about the invention; it was the money he was after. Many inventors, I’m afraid, have it the other way around. How can they invent for the marketplace when they know nothing about it? Does that make sense? Does a tailor custom make a suit and then look around for someone it fits?

I don’t consider myself an inventor; I’m in the inventing business. I don’t invent for the joy of inventing; I create new products solely for com-panies to profitably manufacture and distribute. Whether any product of mine winds up with a patent is only incidental. Some do, some don’t.

But that only has to do with the nature of the idea. It has nothing to do with its val-

ue. I don’t know how many products I’ve licensed over a long career

( c e r -

tain-ly more

than a hun-dred) and while I can’t

claim to have successfully licensed every product I’ve

presented, I can say that I’ve never been turned down based on whether my idea was patented

or not.Someone in the inventors news-

group recently posted that he and his wife created a new product that couldn’t be

patented, and wondered if it was worth pur-suing. Someone else immediately logged

on to tell this poor guy with great authority to forget it. “No manufac-turer would pay to license a product that his competitor could knock off without penalty.” This is utterly wrongheaded advice and serves to

illustrate how woefully uninformed

Marketing Your New Invention: The Chicken or the Egg?


many inventors are about the business world. It should be obvious that manufacturers introduce non-patented new products every day of the year. In this fast moving economy of ours, they understand that the one who’s first with a prod-uct can add millions to his bottom line before the competition even learns of the product’s ex-istence. You show a marketing executive a great product, patented or not, and he’ll be ready to do a deal. Those who run these companies may be venal, but they’re not stupid.

If your inventing activities haven’t yet brought you the rewards you feel you deserve, let me gently suggest a different approach. First, don’t invent anything . . . at least not yet.

Before you do anything, select an industry that interests you. Next, wander through stores, go to trade shows, read industry magazines, talk to retailers and wholesalers and keep at it until you feel confident that you understand how that in-dustry works (along the way, it wouldn’t hurt if you also read a book or two about marketing.) Next, assured that you un-derstand the indus-try, select a company that’s close enough to home so that you can easily get to it, and concentrate on inventing a product for that company.

Repeat after me: LEARN THE MARKET FIRST, THEN CREATE THE PRODUCT. When you do it the other way, you wind up supplying solutions to problems that don’t exist and providing answers to questions that have never been asked. When you understand the dy-namics of the market-place, how prod-ucts are bought and sold and how profits are made,

you won’t waste time inventing a product that could never attain sufficient volume to warrant a licensor’s capital investment. Also, before investing your time and money, get an expert without an ax to grind to give your idea an hon-est appraisal.

Next, because you targeted a company close to home, you’ll be able to make a first-hand, first-class presentation. When I present a new product idea to a prospective licensee, more time is spent in discussing how to market it than on the product itself. I show a great prototype in a great consumer package. I show him what it’ll look like in a store. I tell him what it’ll cost to produce, what kind of mark-up he can get, how my product beats out the competition, and a best-guess estimate as to how much volume he can expect to do. I give a turnkey presenta-tion with all the bells and whistles. All my pros-pect has to do is nod “yes.” I even have a con-

tract in my briefcase and have more than once walked out with a signed deal and a check in my pocket.

If you try to make a presentation by mail, nothing will happen. Your presentation will

probably wind up in the wastebasket. If you visit personally, there can only be a few out-comes, all of which are beneficial.

The worst-case scenario is that the guy will think your idea stinks. So what? Maybe it does have a fatal flaw . . . isn’t it good that you

found out? Move on. Be a pro. If you can come up

with one idea, you can come up with another.

In the meantime, you’ve developed a contact.

The next scenario is that the execu-tive won’t like your idea, but if you lis-

ten closely, you’ll learn what he would like.

“Nah, I can’t use this, but I’ll tell you what . . . if you could come

up with . . . (fill in the blank) . . . then we’d really have

Marketing Your New Invention: The Chicken or the Egg?




plugged into this. They understand how a new product must “fit” into a specifically defined market. They understand the importance of the right “look and feel” a new product needs to satisfy the desires of that specific market. They know a winner when they see one. And a loser too.

Some of their points tonight:n Don’t pay anyone for opinions about your inven-

tion. Just go forward. The “good eyes” will notice your invention’s value, and they will come to you.

n Go to real trade shows, not inventor trade shows. If you have something to sell, rent a booth. But if you’re only looking to hook a licensing deal or find a manufacturer, just walk the floor and network with appropriate booths.

n They consider crowdfunding to be overrated be-cause each project gives so little information or content. But they acknowledge that time will tell if this remains so.

n Radio is the cheapest way to sell to lots of people. Yes, your own website is cheaper, but it’s never go-ing to reach nearly as many people as a radio ad. Radio is the best way to drive lots of people to your website. And radio stations are organized accord-ing to target markets. Advertising your new prod-uct on the radio, on just the right stations for your product’s category, is a winning marketing strategy that’s surprisingly affordable.

n To discuss your invention on their show, you must have it protected by a provisional patent applica-tion or better. Unless your product is unpatentable, in which case you are welcome to appear with it.

n Before any business can become a sponsor of their show, their staff performs rigorous due-diligence. MyCoolInventions is just about to unveil

Genesis – The Search for America’s Top Product Invention. It’s a regular recurring competition. The winners of Genesis will en-joy prizes of national marketing and advertis-ing campaigns worth over $50,000 each. But even without winning, you and your inven-tion will receive massive exposure just by competing in Genesis. And it doesn’t cost anything to enter.

We inventors in the Tampa Bay area are running out of excuses! So many resources are now available for us! Akos and John are part of this; they have much to offer. Tune in their radio show, go to their website, integrate what they offer with all the other resources...and move forward to success!

General Meeting SummaryJune 26, 2013

Club president Wayne Rasanen was out of town, so club vice president Kirk Hamlin con-ducted the meeting.

Kirk began by encouraging those of us who will be showing our business plans to investors to include a chart of accounts in the plan. A chart of accounts is simply a categorized list of the transactions conducted by a business that affect the company’s money. The chart is used to supplement the same information contained in the business’s accounting books, but in pic-torial format. Assets, liabilities, revenue & ex-penses; it should all show up on the chart in addition to being buried in the books. Potential investors have always “grubbed through the company’s books” when considering whether to buy into the business (or buy the business outright). But the chart’s pictorial format is quicker for today’s busy tycoons to review and digest. Today’s investors want to see a chart of accounts in the business plan, yet amazingly, many businesses are not aware of this and fail to provide one. Don’t let this happen to you.

Tonight’s guest speaker was successful in-ventor and longtime TBIC member John Ph-anstiehl. For over 30 years John has created breakthrough new products in both consumer and industrial markets, all designed with the core advantages of little or no competition, high profit margins, ease of manufacture and low tooling costs.

He showed some of his products; all were in their retail packages and all have very impres-sive sales:n PrepPen®: A tool for sanding smooth a very small

area, great for detailing work. Distributed by 3M, Radio Shack and Star-Bright.

n ProGauge®: Paint thickness gauge for the auto body industry.

n ETG®: Ultra-accurate electronic version of the ProGauge.

n ChipKit™: Paint chip repair kit, also for the auto body industry.John has a long history of developing

& patenting an invention that solves a problem, building a business around the invention, growing the business by sell-ing more and more units of the invention, then selling the business and licensing the patent to the new business owners. And



then starting on the next invention idea.He explained that building a business

around a patented invention creates more value, compared to only patenting the inven-tion and licensing it. The sale of the business with subsequent licensing of the patent brings the inventor a lot more money, compared to licensing alone. But starting, running, growing and selling a business is hard work and there is much to learn; it’s not for everyone. Licensing alone has its advantages. Every inventor must decide which path to choose.

Recently John decided to change paths. He decided to licence alone. And why not? He made a ton of money from all of his previ-ous companies, and now would like to cruse a little.

Making this change of paths requires John to shift his thinking about the business of in-venting. Reading is always a major part of preparing one’s mind to make a shift of think-ing. So John wisely read “One Simple Idea” by Stephen Key. Stephen Key is the famous marketer who has helped so many inventors to understand business in general and the market-ing mindset in particular (www.InventRight.com). Key lead this very club through one of his live in-person training seminars about two years ago.

John attended and met Stephen, bought the book, read it and loved it!

In accordance with Key’s book, John changed his website’s look and feel (www.NewProductsForLicensing.com), rewrote his products’ marketing material and revamped his approach to attracting business people to the opportunities his products provide.

Has John’s shift resulted in blast-off suc-cess? No, not yet - this is brand new for him. But he’s happy and absolutely committed to this new direction. He likes focusing on sev-eral inventions at once, rather than focusing on one invention at a time and on running the business he built around it. He can now put lots of inventions on the market in a short time. John’s mind has many inventions in there; he can now pop them out much quicker. Yes, John Phanstiehl is happy with his new direction.

Stephen Key recommends spending the least amount of money before developing an invention idea. An inventor should first file an inexpensive Provisional Patent Application. It’s cheap (about $100) but valid only for one

year. Use that year to “test the waters,” per-form marketing studies to find out how much interest there actually is for the product. Key explains how in his book. If people really are interested in paying money for the product, then and only then should the inventor start spending big money on a Utility Patent Ap-plication plus manufacturing or licensing ar-rangements. This is John’s new strategy.

John says one of the most powerful tools an inventor has is absolutely free: the press re-lease. It’s a description of the new invention, written by the inventor but in a style which im-plies that a reviewer examined the product and wrote the release. A press release must never feel like sensationalized advertising. John strongly suggests sending your press release to an appropriate magazine’s New Products column. Especially a magazine you intend to advertise your invention product in.

First, read the column and notice that it’s ac-tually a collection of press releases. Make note of writing style and length, then write yours similarly. Second, submit your press release. Third, coordinate your ad schedule so that it begins in the same edition as your press re-lease in the New Products column. This is a common practice and the magazine staff will do this coordination for you. John has success-fully done this trick many times with many products.

John also says to attend trade shows pertain-ing to your invention product, but make abso-lutely sure each trade show is right for your product. It’s not good enough to simply call the staff of an upcoming trade show, describe your product and then ask if displaying in the show would be right for you. The guy on the phone will always say yes because he gets paid to sell booths. Don’t trust him! Don’t even call him. Find out yourself if your product actually would fit in with the theme of the show, the presenters in the other booths and the attend-ees. Displaying in the wrong show is an expen-sive waste of time.

Before the meeting ended it was announced that the two guest speakers in the last meeting, Akos Jankurs and John Cremeans of MyCool-Inventions radio show, said they would like to participate in our club’s 30th anniversary event this coming 01 Oct. Stay tuned for further de-velopments!

And please make plans to attend.



U.S. Gov’t.U.S. Gov’t. General Information Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.FirstGov.govUSPTO Depository Library (UCF, Orlando). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://library.ucf.edu/GovDocs/PatentsTrademarks/default.phpSATOP-Space Alliance Tech (NASA helps inventors; free) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.SpaceTechSoluttons.comSBIR/STTR (gov’t. wants inventions) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbirNat’l. Standards (gov’t. helps inventor’s business) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.nist.gov/tipD.O.D. Tech Match (military R&D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.DODTechMatch.com

Patent Offices, Patent SearchU.S. Patent & Trademark Office. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.uspto.govEuropean Patent Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.epo.orgGoogle Patent Search. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.google.com/patents

State Gov’t.Florida Department of Revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.state.fl.us/dorNew Business Start Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sunbiz.orgUSF Technology Incubator (free help to inventors; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.incubator.usf.eduTampa Bay Innovation Center (STAR TEC, business incubation; Largo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.tbInnovates.comGazelle Lab (biz incubation; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://GazelleLab.com

Inventor’s Education, Advice, Books, Lessons, Info, Etc.Edison Inventors Ass’n. (non-profit inventor’s club; Ft. Myers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.EdisonInventors.orgInventors Council of Central Fla. (non-profit inventors’ club; Orlando) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventorsCouncilCentralFLA.usWorld Intellectual Property Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.wipo.orgNational Inventor Fraud Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventorFraud.comUnited Inventors Ass’n. (large nat’l. org.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.uiaUSA.orgInventors Digest (magazine) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventorsDigest.comPatent Café (inventor’s issues) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.PatentCafe.comInventionScore(evaluation service, Patrick Raymond) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.MyInventionScore.comInventor’s Blueprint (training, Ryan Grepper) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventorsBlueprint.comEdisonNation (education, contests, info) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.EdisonNation.com Everyday Edisons (P.B.S. show, contests) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.EverydayEdisons.comIdea Next Step (on-line contests) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.IdeaNextStep.com From Patent to Profit (Bob DeMatteis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.FromPatentToProfit.comInventor Mentor (Jack Lander) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.inventor-mentor.comThe Basics of Patenting & Innovating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.inventors.about.com/od/firststepsAsk The Inventors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.AskTheInventors.comInventions.com (inventor’s directory). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.inventions.comLloyd Marketing Group (Lisa Lloyd) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.LloydMarketingGroup.comInventNet - Inventor’s Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventNet.comMIT-Lemelson Inventors Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://web.mit.edu/inventIntnat’l. Federation of Inventor Ass’ns. (Budapest, Hungary) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.invention-ifia.chIntnat’l. Development Enterprises (nonprofit, 3rd world inventing) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ideorg.orgInnovation TRIZ (problem solving method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.innovation-triz.comASIT (inventor’s problem solving method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.start2think.comInvention Machine (R&D problem-solving software). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.invention-machine.comKeyWord Patent Search (workbook) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.USIntellectualPropertyAttorney.com/PatentSearching.htmlStephen Key (inventor’s blog, coaching) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .http://StephenKey.com

Product Design, Prototyping, ManufacturingR&R Associates (product design, prototyping; Sarasota) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.RnRAssociates.comInvention-Aids (rendering & virtual prototypes, Mal Greenberg; Tampa) www.invention-aids.comDuracon, Inc. (Voytek Beldycki; Venice) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.DuraconInc.comDelaney Manuf’ing (Injec’n molding, product des., prototype; Bradenton)www.DelaneyManufacturing.comChapman Mold (Brooksville). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.chapman-mold.comSource Direct (design, manufacture, distribution; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.TheSourceDirect.netOaks Partners, TAEUS (design strategy, Dan Messick; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.opLLC.usTrident Design (product design, prototyping, licensing) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.trident-design.comEMS, Inc. (product design, prototyping; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.ems-usa.comeMachineShop (product design, prototyping, free CAD). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.eMachineShop.comMachine Design (rapid design & prototyping info.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://MachineDesign.comSociety of Manufacturing Engineers (Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://chapters.sme.org/159/homepage.htm

Marketing ServicesInnovative Product Technologies (Pam Riddle-Bird; Gainesville) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventOne.comHill, Coniglio & Polins (market research, planning, ads; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.HCPAssociates.comMy Marketing Dept., Inc. (Allen Jernigan; St. Pete) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.MMDept.comGrapple Hook Marketing (mkt. research for industrial products; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.GrappleHook.comMy Cool Inventions (radio show, marketing; Tampa). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.MyCoolInventions.comPackage Management Group, Inc. (packaging & marketing; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.pmg-packaging.comMarket Launchers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.MarketLaunchers.comIdea Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.IdeaVillage.comWal-Mart (new product contests). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.GetOnTheShelf.comImpama (invention marketplace) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.inpama.comOne Stop Invention Shop (Don Debelak) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://OneStopInventionShop.net

WEBSITESBrief descriptions in parentheses.


Licensing AgentsInvention Home (household products) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventionHome.comDaVinci Legacy Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.DaVinciLegacyGroup.comPlanet Eureka (Doug Hall) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.PlanetEureka.comNext Techs (patent sales broker, venture capital) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.NextTechs.com

Patent Lawyers, Patent Agents, Legal ServicesAtt’y. Referral Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www,AttorneyReferralOnLine.comEd Dutkiewicz (reg. patent att’y.; Dade City) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.EdDuke.comDavid Ellis (patent att’y.; Largo). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://Publish.pDesigner.com/DavidREllis/index.jspDave Kiewit (reg. patent agent; St. Pete) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.patent-faq.comSmith & Hopen (reg. patent att’y.; Clearwater) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.SmithHopen.comStephen Powers (patent agent; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.GulfCoastIP.comMike Colitz (reg. patent att’y.; Dunedin) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.colitz.comBrent Britton (reg. patent att’y.; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ssd.com

Inventor’s All-In-One ServicesBig Idea Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.BigIdeaGroup.netQuirky (crowd-sourcing, evaluation & assistance) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.quirky.comIdea Connection (innovation hosting) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.IdeaConnection.comInnovative Consulting Group, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.biz-consult.com/ICG/Obvia Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.obvia.bizDesign My Idea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.DesignMyIdea.comJetta Co. (toys, electronics; Hong Kong) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.jetta.com.hk

Trade ShowsInvention Connection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.InventionConnection.comTrade Show Nat’l. Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.tsnn.comERA Invention Showcase (Electronic Retailers Ass’n.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://retailing.org

Catalogs, Mail OrderNat’l. Mail Order Ass’n. (info. about catalogs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.nmoa.orgCatalog Link (info. about catalogs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.CatalogLink.comCatalog Times (learn to sell thru catalogs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.CatalogTimes.comTilbury Direct Marketing (agent representing many catalogs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .http://CatalogRep.com

Business Data & Info.SCORE (Service Core Of Retired Executives). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.score.orgSmall Business Development Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.asbdc-us.orgSmall Business Administration (loans & loan info) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.sba.govEntrepreneurial Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.entre-ed.orgStart Up Nation (business education) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.StartUpNation.com/topics/11/Inventing.htmFlorida Women’s Business Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.flwbc.orgWorld’s Market Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.WorldOpinion.comThomas Registry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.ThomasNet.comHoovers On-Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.hoovers.comIndustry Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://Research.ThomsonIB.com/

Funding, Angel Investors, Venture CapitalAngel Capital Ass’n. (angel groups, non-profit) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.AngelCapitalAssociation.orgAlliance of Angels (angel groups) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://AllianceOfAngels.comNational Venture Capital Ass’n. (VC groups, non-profit) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.nvca.orgFlorida Venture Forum (VC education, non-profit) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.FloridaVentureForum.orgQuintic Capital, LLC (angels, VC, coaching; Tampa). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://quintic-capital.comGo4Funding (angels, VC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.Go4Funding.comAngelList (secret website) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . http://angel.co/CEO Space (international networking club) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.CEOSpace.netFundAGeek (crowd-funding) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.FundAGeek.comKickStarter (crowd-sourcing) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.KickStarter.comIndiegogo (crowd-funding) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.IndieGoGo.comTIE Tampa (Intnat’l. biz network; Tampa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.TieTampa.com

CAD Software (Computer Aided Design)CAD Std (free 2D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.cadstd.comAlibre (free 2D & 3D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.alibre.com/promos/online/personal.aspCoCreate (free 3D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.CoCreate.com/products/PE2/ModelingPE2.aspx

Parts, Supplies, MaterialsDon’s Salvage Yard (used stuff; Clearwater) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.DonsMarineSalvageYard.com Skycraft Electronic Parts (new parts, Orlando) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.SkycraftSurplus.com American Science & Surplus (mechanical & electrical) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.sciplus.com W. M. Berg, Inc. (small parts supplier) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.wmberg.comMcMaster-Carr (industrial supply) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.mcmaster.comAmerican Plastics Supply (supplier & manf’er.;Clearwater) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.AmericanPlasticSupply.com G-Wiz Fab-Lab (machine shop education & rental; Sarasota) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . www.gwiz.org

ADVERTISE WITH TBIC!TBIC is now accepting advertisers for the TBIC Newsletter! If you would like to place

an ad please contact the TBIC Main office at: 727-565-2085


Inventors Digest is the offi-cial publication of the United Inventors Association. TBIC is an affiliate member of the U.I.A. and therefore TBIC

members are entitled to a dis-count on the price of Inven-tors Digest subscriptions.

Regular Price Discount Price$36 for 1 year$27 for 1 year

TBIC Members can get this discount when subscribing

(or renewing) ONLY by phone or snail-mail, not through Inventors

Digest’s website.

Phone: (800) 838-8808 Ask for the Account Manager

and explain that you are a TBIC member and ask for the discount.

Snail-Mail: Send your check and a note that explains the above to:

Inventors Digest520 Elliot St., Suite 200

Charlotte, NC 28202

TBIC Members are entitled to receive Discount Subscriptions to Inventors Digest Magazine!

something to talk about.” Now you have some direction. With the problem recognized, the solution is just a matter of application. Next, maybe there’s nothing wrong with your idea, you’re just in the wrong place. “Nope, it’s a nice idea but I’m afraid it isn’t for us. But you know what? If you show this to Universal Whiplash, I think it might be right down their alley. Ask for Frank Snerdley, and you can tell him I sent you.” Well, not only do you now have one contact, but you’re on your way to making another.

Finally, the best thing that can happen is the guy loves your idea, and is ready to do the deal. None of these events happens through an unsolicited mailing.

The professional product developers I know all work in this manner. Before I sit down at the drawing board to create a new product, I’ve al-ready selected the industry, selected the target company (plus a few back-ups), and wandered through stores until I sensed a niche. Before I embark on a voyage of creativity, I know ex-actly where I’m heading, why I want to get there, and what to do when I arrive. There’s nothing serendipitous about it.

If you’re not yet successful, perhaps you’re going about this inventing business in the wrong way. Don’t get hung up on the process of inventing and protecting. Yes, of course certain products warrant patents and ordinary precautions should be taken. However, be-fore worrying about the patents and the non-disclosure agreements and first-to-invent laws and the fears that someone might steal your idea, worry about its place in the market and the needs and requirements of the guy you hope will license and produce it. He’s the one writing the royalty checks. If you make him happy, everything else will fall into place.

Don’t worry about the egg, worry about the chicken.

Harvey Reese’s article appeared in MarketLaunch-ers’ newsletter. Harvey’s latest book is “The 12 Amaz-ing Secrets of Millionaire Inventors.” Visit Money4-ideas.com. Paul Niemann runs MarketLaunchers.com, where he lists his customers’ inventions on his website’s invention database so they can be seen by companies that search for new products to acquire. Visit www.MarketLaunchers.com or call Paul Ni-emann at (800) 337-5758 or [email protected] for more information. Reprinted with permission.

Chicken or the Egg?(Continued from Page 8)


Visitors WelcomeThe Board of Directors of TBIC

wants to welcome all visitors. Ad-mission for visitors is $5.00 per meeting, unless accompanied by an active member. We hope that you can see the benefits of becom-ing a member! Our Bylaws allow visitors to attend two meetings without obligation to join.

Dues DescriptionsStudent Member

A Student Member at the $25 rate must be an active student enrolled in an accredited school. They may attend meetings and receive the Newsletter.

Sustaining MemberA Sustaining Member ($75 per year- see below) enjoys the benefit of attending meetings, seminars, socializing and networking with other members, receiving the Newslet-ter and participating as a reviewer in our Focus Groups. They are allowed to present their protected product to all of the various companies (such as informercial and catalog companies) that come to the TBIC to find new products for the market. Members usually find other members with the prototyping knowledge they need, and pay that member for their time and for prototyping materials used. Sustain-ing members may ask to have a free Focus Group done on their product and are allowed to display their product in our designated display area.

Members are invited to write letters for inclusion in the newsletter. Email to [email protected], fax to 727-547-5490 or mail to TBIC at our office address. Letters should be brief, to the point, and be accompanied by member name, email address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity, taste and length. Letters will be printed as room permits.

Officers & Board of Directors

President Wayne Rasanen

Vice President Kirk Hamlin

Secretary Rob Aiken

Treasurer Mark Peterson

Board Members Lloyd Arnel

Voytek Beldycki Brad Bridgham

Pam French Joe Navarro

Founder Ron E. Smith

Please Respect the Other MembersAt a recent Board Meeting, several members said they

have received complaints about talking in the back of the room while the meeting is in progress. Some of our mem-bers are hard of hearing, and as such find it difficult to hear the presentation if it is competing with other noises. While we acknowledge that networking is vital for all of us, we ask that our members try to network before or after the presentation. It would also be appreciated if all cell-phones were put on silent.

Thank you! - Your Board Of Directors

Visitors WelcomeThe Board of Directors of TBIC

wants to welcome all visitors. Ad-mission for visitors is $5.00 per meeting, unless accompanied by an active member. We hope that you can see the benefits of becoming a member! Our Bylaws allow visitors to attend two meetings without obli-gation to join.ADVERTISE WITH TBIC!

TBIC is now accepting advertisers for the TBIC Newsletter! If you would like to place an ad please contact Aletha Turner at [email protected] or contact the TBIC Main of-fice at: 727-565-2085

Have you Expired?Just joking, but it may be more

appropriate than you think! There might be a good chance that your TBIC membership has expired without you realizing it!

Never Fear! We have made things rather simple for you to know! If you received your news-letter by mail, look at your mailing label on the back of this newsletter and you will see an expiration date printed clearly above your name. This date reflects the end of your six-month or annual enrollment. This makes keeping up with your renewal date fairly simple!

Pay close attention and if, for some reason, the expiration date shown is incorrect, please notify us at [email protected] and we will look back in the treasurer’s records to verify your expiration date. Thank you!

MEMBERSHIPMake your inventing

process more e�ective and more fun!Bring a Friend!

A few bene�ts you will enjoy with your

membership:Bi-Monthly Newsle�ersInformative Speakers at

Regular MeetingsFree Workshops

Updates on Legislation a�ecting the industry

Current Industry NewsFocus Groups

Inventor-Related Computer Programs

Inventor’s LibraryFormal Presentations to

Marketing Media Representatives

Let’s see your ugly baby…Most people who conceive

of a new idea or give birth to a new innovation will typically fall in love with it and think it is the most beautiful thing in the world. In their eyes, it is the promise of a brighter future and a contribution to future generations that justifies our time on earth as having made the world a better place for our time living in it. Our ideas are

like our children in that with proper nourishment; they may grow and become mature. They can begin to have an impact of their own and become important to other people who you may never know.

Like our children, we start out by wanting to keep them safe so that strangers won’t steal or hurt them. We don’t want anyone to know that a special thing is coming until we are sure that it has been secured. So we patent them and make sure that anybody who looks at them has signed an NDA. We might even post pictures of them on the web or talk about them on Facebook or Twitter. These are our babies and despite what we think about them, to many others, they are freaks of na-ture!

They are odd and different or would have never made it through the patent process. This means that people will laugh at them, make fun of them and call them stupid. And this time it’s not just strangers, even our families can be cruel about their opinions. You have to understand that no idea is going to be right for everyone and that just because some may mock your “ugly baby”, there may also be others that recognize it as a swan and see the true beauty beneath its rough exterior. This is your target market and the only one which really matters. These are the people who you must connect with if you want to make the sale. You may have to hear a hundred people say “no” before you find one to say “yes”. That means that you have to get your baby out there, hold it above your head in the crowd and yell! Let people know that they can adopt your baby and take it home. License your idea or sell your products to the people who need it.

Failure to get your baby out there just means that it will stay at home devouring your resources as it grows older while slowly driving you crazy. Don’t let that happen to you! Take every reasonable opportunity to demonstrate your idea to the public and share it with the world. We just had a wonderful opportunity to show our inventions at the Bay Area Renais-sance Fair that hardly anyone took advantage of it. We could have another “inventors fair” this year but I want to know that you will be there if we do. Let me know at [email protected] if you are ready to demonstrate your ideas and that we should have another event. TBIC is ready to help you but you have to be willing to help yourself too. Do you want to have a TBIC hosted inventors fair? Please let me know, I want to see your ugly babies!!!

Wayne Rasanen - President, TBIC

Page 2 Page 15

Dues DescriptionsStudent Member

A Student Member at the $25.00 rate must be an active student enrolled in an accredited school. They may attend meetings and receive the Newsletter.

Sustaining MemberA Sustaining Member ($75.00 per year- see below) enjoys the benefit of attend-ing meetings, seminars, socializing and networking with other members, receiv-ing the Newsletter and participating as a reviewer in our Focus Groups. They are allowed to present their protected product to all of the various companies (such as informercial and catalog com-panies) that come to the TBIC to find new products for the market. Members usually find other members with the prototyping knowledge they need, and pay that member for their time and for prototyping materials used. Sustaining members may ask to have a free Focus Group done on their product and are allowed to display their product in our designated display area.

Members are invited to write letters for inclusion in the newsletter. Email to [email protected] or [email protected], fax to 727-547-5490 or mail to TBIC at our office address. Letters should be brief, to the point, and be accompanied by member name, email address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity, taste and length. Letters will be printed as room permits.

2010-2011O�cers &

Board of DirectorsWayne Rasanen - President [email protected]

Andrew Yauch - Vice President

Gayla Kilbride - Treasurer

Robert Aiken - Secretary

Board Members; Wojciech Beldycki Earl Deen Kirk Hamlin Allen Jernigan Mark Peterson

Founder Ron E. Smith

Please Respect the Other MembersAt a recent Board Meeting, several members said

they have received complaints about talking in the back of the meeting room while the meeting is in progress. Some of our members are hard of hearing, and as such find it difficult to hear the presentation if it is compet-ing with talking in background. While we acknowledge that networking is vital for all of us, we ask in the future that our members try to network before or after the pre-sentation. It would also be appreciated if all cell-phones were put on silent answer during the meeting.

Thank you! - Your Board Of Directors

Wayne Rasanen

T.B.I.C. Prorated Sustaining Membership Dues Schedule $75 per year, prorated.

Renewal date: 01 January.

People who join in the month of:

Jan.

Feb.

Mar.

Apr.

May

June

July

Aug.

Sept.

Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

pay this amount: until...

$75

$69

$63

$57

$51

$45

$39

$33

$27

$21

$15

$9

...until the following Jan. 1st. Then they renew their membership for a full year at $75.

Newsletter StaffExecutive Editor George MouzakisContributing Editor Robert AikenTo submit articles, send emails to: [email protected]

Submissions must be received by the first Tuesday of odd months.

The Tampa Bay Inventor’s Council (TBIC) is a corpo-ration as defined in Chapter 617, Florida Statutes, as a not-for-profit. The corporation is organized exclusively for charitable, educational and scientific purposes. The TBIC is a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation, which allows the receiving of tax deductible contributions of goods and ser-vices. There are over 150 active members willing to share their expertise and experiences with fellow inventors.

N a v a r r o D e s i g n I n c Office: 727.581.0766 | Mobile: 727.421.1941

[email protected] P O B O X 2 6 2 8 | L A R G O | F L | 3 3 7 7 9

I n d u s t r i a l & M e c h a n i c a l D e s i g n

P r i n c i p a l D e s i g n C o n s u l t a n t

Over Twenty Five Years | Design | Engineering | Manufacturing

J o e N a v a r r o J r .

Extensive Experience Consumer, Commercial, Medical, Industrial,

Military, & Aerospace P las t i cs , Me ta l s , Compos i tes

3D CAD design using Pro/Engineer www.ptc.com

CAD models for Visualization, Prototype & Production Rapid Prototyping (3d printing), Tool Making, CNC, Analysis,

Graphics, Patent Drawings

P roduc t Des ign Concept to Produc t ion

Des ign fo r Manufac tu re 3D CAD Design

Documents

July-August 2013 Do you know this guy?tbic.us/image/Newsletter/2013_07_TBIC_DRAFT2.pdf · Do you know this guy? ... Knock on every door looking for the right opportunity and don’t