Throughout the United States, hundreds of thousands of inventors are hard at work. There are more than 150,000 independent inventors in the state of California alone!
Do you have a great idea for an invention? Would you like to invent something but aren’t sure where to begin?
Wherever you’re at in the invention process, this article is for you. Read on to learn everything you need to know about how to create a product from scratch.
Choosing a Product to Create
If you love the idea of being an inventor but are struggling to come up with a great product idea, these tips can help you with the brainstorming process:
- Create a list of common problems and think about how you can solve them
- Pay attention to current trends on TV, online, and in magazines
- Think of ways to improve existing products
- Revamp an old product
- Add to an existing product
- Find ways to combine products
It also helps to do a bit of crowdsourcing during the brainstorming phase. Post online surveys or reach out to your social media followers to learn about their problems and how you can solve them
How to Create a Product from Scratch
Once you’ve come up with an idea for a product, it’s time to get to work turning your dream into a reality. Here are the steps you need to take to create your product from the ground up:
Start with a Concept Sketch
The concept sketch is the first step you need to take once you’ve got an idea for a product.
Sit down and draw out your idea. This will help you visualize exactly what you want. Start on paper to help you get your ideas out without worrying too much about perfecting a digital image.
Having paper sketches handy can also help you later when the time comes to submit a patent. You’ll be able to defend your ownership over the idea better with hand-drawn sketches than with digital images.
Create a Virtual Prototype
Once you’re happy with your hand-drawn sketches, then you can move on to creating the virtual prototypes. There are lots of digital design tools out there than you can use to create this prototype.
If possible, look for one that allows you to create both two-dimensional and three-dimensional renderings. Three-dimensional renderings are especially important for looking at your product from all angles and creating a photorealistic prototype.
Create a Physical Prototype
Now, it’s time to get to work on your physical prototype. When you’re shopping for materials to create your prototype, Industrial Polymers Corporation recommends using a high-quality general-purpose molding rubber.
This is a convenient, affordable tool that will help you create a variety of parts, including the following:
- Concrete parts
- Plaster parts
- Plastic parts
- Rubber parts
You can also use it to create reproductions of architectural stone.
Find a Manufacturer
After you’re satisfied with the physical prototype, you need to locate someone who can manufacture the product for you.
When you’re just getting started and are in the testing and production phase, it helps to work with a manufacturer who offers free samples and access to three-dimensional printing. This will help you avoid wasting a lot of money while you’re still perfecting your product.
Be sure to get estimates from multiple manufacturers and suppliers, too. That way, you’ll ensure you’re creating your product in the most cost-effective way possible.
Bonus Product Creation Tips
These basic product creation tips will get you pretty far. If you need some more guidance, though, consider these bonus tips to ensure your invention is a success:
Don’t Work Alone
It’s true that many inventors like to work alone. That doesn’t mean it’s the best approach to take, though.
Sometimes, it helps to collaborate with others to come up with a better idea and find new ways to solve people’s problems.
Remember that crowdsourcing and reaching out to current customers is also a great way to test products and find out what people actually want to see from you.
Do Plenty of Research
Whether you’re working alone or as part of a group, it helps to do plenty of research before you sink too much time into a particular project.
Doing adequate research will help you ensure you’re solving a problem that people actually need to be solved. It’ll also help you avoid accidentally duplicating a product that already exists.
Practice Your Elevator Pitch
Once you start sharing your product with investors and sellers, you’ll need to be able to explain in a matter of seconds what it is and why they should care about it.
The better your elevator pitch is, the better off you’ll actually be when you start trying to profit off your invention.
Spend plenty of time practicing this and testing it out to see what kind of description people respond to best.
Keep Testing
Make regular testing a priority as well. Test throughout the creation process and keep testing once you think the product is complete.
Regular testing will help you ensure you’re putting the best product out on the market for people to buy. It’ll also help to increase your customer satisfaction rates since you’ll have worked out the bugs before you start trying to sell the product.
Start Creating Your Product Today
The process of creating a product isn’t exactly an easy one.
From coming up with an idea to testing that idea and making sure it works properly, there are a lot of steps you have to take in order to get a great product out there for the world to see.
Now that you have this information on how to create a product from scratch, though, the process will likely be a little easier for you. Keep this information in mind to ensure you create a product that people can safely use.
Do you want to learn more about creating a product? Do you need advice on promoting that product once it’s complete?
Either way, we’ve got you covered. Check out our business articles today for all kinds of advice on every part of the product-making process.
