The Key Reason Why Your Invention Isn't Successful... And How To Overcome It

You can no longer rely on having a better invention. In today's world, if you build it, they will not come. Having a better product is cost of entry, it's expected. And truthfully, everyone thinks their invention is better, faster, stronger.
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.

You did it! You turned an aha moment into a viable product.

To begin, I'm impressed. Most people are full of ideas and lacking in execution. That already separates you from more than 90% of people. Kudos!

Even so, you might be staying up late at night wondering why you haven't achieved the success you desire, and deserve. Perhaps your super cool website isn't getting the traffic you expected. Or maybe, that clever social media campaign isn't translating into web clicks. And, even though you got your product on a store shelf, people are still walking on by. You are not alone here. You are suffering the fate of most new products, great idea, little traction.

Think about how noisy the marketplace is today. The reality is that your product is one of a million other products out there. That leads to a lot of noise, and at best, indifference from your potential customer as they try to wade through it all.

You can no longer rely on having a better invention. In today's world, if you build it, they will not come. Having a better product is cost of entry, it's expected. And truthfully, everyone thinks their invention is better, faster, stronger.

So why do some inventions add to the noise, while others take a meteoric rise above it? I've seen hundreds of inventions come across The Shuuk, and those that succeed do one important thing differently.

While many put all their innovative thinking into their invention, the ones that succeed make everything they do innovative, from their product to distribution, marketing and sales.

Let's pause for a moment, and think about how it plays out in the real world. You've got this amazingly innovative product that is destined to change the world, yet you put it in a regular box with typical marketing, just like everyone else. Your competition is in a particular magazine, so you get yourself in that magazine. Your competition puts certain features and benefits on their packaging, so you do the same. Do you see what's happening? You poured all this innovative thinking into how your invention solves a problem, how it works, and what it looks like, but when it came time to market it, you went boring and traditional. If you want to stand out and give your invention a chance to succeed, innovation has to be in everything you do.

Are you one of the millions that own a pair of TOMS Shoes? They started the one-for-one concept and the 3rd bottom-line revolution. In essence, it's a canvas shoe, and I can name a dozen other shoes just like it. But, I can't name companies that have owned the concept of giving as part of their business strategy the way TOMS has. The innovation began with the idea of a shoe that changed the world, and then continued as they wrapped their entire business model in it. Is your entire business model innovative, or did you stop thinking differently once you had your invention?

2016-03-14-1457997393-1314604-TomsShoesOneForOne.jpg

Your True Nature includes bookmarks and other products with advice from nature; a tree, a dragonfly, the ocean. Clever idea, but do you know what really contributed to their success? The innovative in-store display stand that all retailers get. They didn't leave the display of their products up to the retailers where they would be thrown on a counter next to all the other products. They thought differently about how to own their space and believe me, it paid off. Does your display environment, whether that's online or in the physical world, scream innovation and intrigue potential customers?

2016-03-14-1457997420-2836073-YourTrueNatureDisplay.jpg

Flat Out Of Heels, recently on the Testing Ground Floor on The Shuuk, are collapsible, fold-able shoes for those times when your high heels have hit their pain point. Ballerina style slippers are everywhere, but Flat Out Of Heels is in vending machines in airports and nightclubs, ready to rescue women's feet in the moment when they need it most. They could have gone the traditional retailer path, but instead they decided to carve a new, more innovative one. Are you thinking differently about the paths you take to connect with your customers?

2016-03-14-1457997456-2972782-FlatOutOfHeelsVendingMachine.JPG

If you've been to the grocery store lately, a small white box in the water aisle has probably caught your attention. It's Boxed Water, purified water in an environmentally friendly package. Purified water, a dime a dozen. Environmentally friendly packaging, on every label. Water in a box, now there's something that turns my head. Does your packaging reflect your idea in a meaningful and innovative way?

2016-03-14-1457998038-2574413-BoxWaterOnShelf.jpg


Focus your efforts on enveloping your entire business in innovation and you will exponentially improve your chances of success.

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot