You Want The Truth? If you can handle it, Wal-Mart's panel of experts will tell you how good your invention really is.

When Jason Clute, 42, came up with his big idea in 1992-a devicefor propping up a sleeping baby-he never imagined the product wouldone day hit the shelves of Toys "R" Us and Wal-Mart."I was making the product for my friends," he says."I thought it would end at that, but they all encouraged me totry to put the 'Prop-A-Bye Baby' on the market."

Still undecided on what to do, Clute found his answer when afriend mentioned the Wal-Mart Innovation Network (WIN), whichevaluates new ideas. "I wasn't sure what to do," hesays. "But when I heard the evaluation was only $150, I said" 'What the heck, I'm going to give it a try.'" After all, my friends were all telling me I had a greatidea." So Clute submitted the invention-and learned the idearanked in the top 15 percent of all ideas submitted. It turned outto be all the encouragement Clute needed: In 1992, he launched DEXProducts and introduced the Prop-A-Bye Baby. Clute sold $3 millionworth of products last year, and today, DEX Products has annualsales of $20 million.

Don Debelak is a new-business marketing consultant and theauthor of Bringing Your Product to Market (John Wiley &Sons). Send him your invention questions at dondebelak@uswest.net

Winner Takes All

The WIN program stems from a cooperative effort betweenWal-Mart, Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield andthe Innovation Institute, a product evaluation consulting company,also in Springfield. According to Gerald Udell, director of theprogram "The program is open to any inventor with any type ofproduct." Today, for $175, inventors can get their innovationsevaluated by eight to 10 experts against more than 40 criteria. In1999, WIN, which started in 1990, evaluated over 1,200 ideas invirtually every product category.

The program started as a public serv-ice for inventors. Wal-Martwant to give inventors the opportunity to get their products on itsshelves, but didn't have the time to evaluate every single ideathat came in. So Wal-Mart now refers inventors to the WIN program.Once products pass the initial screening (about 8 to 9 percent ofall submissions do), Wal-Mart will consider striking a deal locallyto purchase the product. That doesn't mean, however, thatWal-Mart wants every idea that passes the first evaluation. "Ipassed the first round, but Wal-Mart felt I wasn't ready,"Clute remembers. "They worried I couldn't supply enoughproduct to fill their needs. I was told to go out and get somecustomers and then come back-and then they'd re-evaluate theirdecision. I started selling the product to baby stores and finallyreceived orders from Toys "R" Us. Then I went back toWal-Mart, and they agreed to take on the product."

What exactly does the $175 fee cover? According to Udell, thosewho submit products will receive a report based on more than 40criteria, such as start-up capital, whether the products are likelyto get meaningful patents, and whether the products can be safelydesigned and manufactured for a reasonable cost. Each inventor alsofinds out how his or her products fared in the evaluation and get abook that details each evaluation criterion. The evaluation reportis valuable because it not only states the worries the assessmentteam has, but also specifies any alternate channels the inventorshould pursue. Here's a general breakdown of submissions: 22percent are not recommended; 23 percent receive a "verylimited and cautious" recommendation; 28 percent get the"limited and cautious" recommendation; 7 percent getrecommended with reservations; 12 percent get recommended forchannels other than Wal-Mart; and about 8 percent receiverecommendations to Wal-Mart. Those lucky enough to win a positiverecommendation earn access to a list of the 2,000 firms in theWIN.

Results Are In

Clute appreciated the WIN program for a multitude of reasons.For one thing, he says, "I really didn't have any idea ofhow to evaluate an idea." That's something shared by mostfirst- or second-time inventors. Inexperienced inventors typicallyunderestimate the challenges inherent in introducing a new productto market, and they really should get an outside evaluation priorto spending any money (even before getting a patent). As Udellsays, "We try to help inventors assess the risk of introducingtheir invention." Assessing that risk ahead of time givesinventors a better idea of their chances before they moveahead.

In 1992, after Clute received his evaluation results, heattended the Juvenile Products Show in Dallas. "I reallydidn't want to introduce my product [on my own]," he says."I tried to give my product away to a manufacturer, but no onewould take it. I finally introduced Prop-A-Bye Baby myself, becauseI believed it might reduce the overall number of babies who dieevery year from SIDS [Sudden Infant Death Syndrome]."

No one knows for sure exactly which products will prove winners.Many factors-some of which are unpredictable-determine aproduct's ultimate success. How hard the inventor works, howquick he or she adjusts his or her product to market needs, and howwell manufacturing agreements are negotiated are just threeexamples. But unforeseen factors-like striking intrigue in theright buyer-make the process even more complex. Not even one of thebaby manufacturers initially approached by Clute thought theproduct would sell. But, two years later, a buyer at Toys"R" Us did. Thanks to that one person's support, theball started rolling for the Prop-A-Bye Baby. Some inventors workfor years before finding the key contact who believes in theiridea. Others never find that contact.

While inventors shouldn't view an outside evaluation orassessment as the final answer, they should consider it a goodstarting point. A third-party assessment of the situation helpsdetermine which obstacles need to be overcome and how willing he orshe is to commit the time and resources necessary to get a shot atsuccess. Such evaluations can also push hesitant BIZ Experiencess likeClute in the right direction. A little encouragement is often allone needs to move forward and create a million-dollar company.

If you've got an idea, consider having it evaluated by anoutside firm. it might stop you from spending thousands on a sureto flop-or prevent you from leaving a great idea on the backburner.

Words To The Wise

Sure it's a great idea, but will a patent protect it?

One criterion that should be used in any evaluation of aninvention is whether a meaningful patent can be obtained for aparticular innovation. According to Donald Kelly, former directorof the Office of Independent Inventors of the U.S. Patent andTrademark Office, "[The effectiveness of] a patent depends onthe scope and breadth of the claims." For instance, a broadclaim lacks details about the product design itself, while a narrowclaim includes a great deal of specific information. Kelly suggestsinventors perform "an analysis of the claims to see if anyrecited element could be eliminated or altered from the recitedform and still perform the inventive function. If so, the claim isweak and can be circumvented."

Here's an example: Patent #4,969,580 happens to be for ashampoo and conditioner hanger. The first claim is 40 lines longand full of specific information-an immediate indication that theclaim is too specific to be meaningful. Some of the specific itemsin the claim are: a hook; a support plate extending at right anglesthat allows the dispensing cap to extend beyond the support plate;a strap made of plastic with a loop; and raised ribs. A new productwould only infringe on the patent if it included every featurementioned in the claim. So, in this case, another productwouldn't infringe on the patent as long as it did not includeraised ribs on the strap. To review the entire patent, go towww.uspto.gov and do a patentsearch by number.

Resident Advisors

Selling to stores the easy way

It's a fact: Small retailers just don't have the buyingpower of big retail chains. So, to compete more effectively, theyoften enlist the services of resident buying offices, which help inpurchasing products economically so small retailers can be somewhatcost-competitive with mass merchandisers. Resident buying officespresent a good sales opportunity for inventors and smallmanufacturers because they can sell to many stores through just onebuying location. The resident buying offices also look out forinnovative products that aren't yet available at the bigdiscount chains.

For the names of some resident buying offices, check out thesedirectories at major libraries (all the following are published byBusiness Guides Inc.):

• Sheldon's Major Stores & Chains & ResidentBuying Offices

• The Directory of Apparel Specialty Stores

• The Directory of Drug Stores and HBC Chains

• The Directory of Supermarket, Grocery & ConvenienceStore Chains

• The Directory of Home Center Operators & HardwareChains.

Contact Sources

• DEX Products, (800)546-1996, www.dexproducts.com
  
• Innovation Institute, (417)836-5671, www.wini2.com