nice post Greg.

Gary, I’m not an engineer but I have worked with a few and learned that making something “work” is only half the challenge. Making it work with as few parts as possible is the other half. Often times inventors overlook ways to simplify the engineering of an invention which is crucial to commercialization. It may be worth your while to submit a complex idea because the talented team at E.N. are not inventors they are the people who do all the dirty and expensive work of modeling it, breaking it down to component level, testing it, wrenching their brains to make it not only practical but the simplest and most cost effective as possible for obvious reasons one of which is to eliminate the knock off parasites from being able to do it for less. These successful products you see that only require a three part die to mold often times came to them as a cluster@#$% of parts and unnecessary applications from the inventor.
E.N. may turn your complex idea into a much simpler commercially viable product or at least give it a fair review that you can build upon.
Also as a side note I think it is important to recognize that E.N. is one of the few businesses that are expanding in this current economy while most are contracting. Even at that they still have to be very thoughtful about what products and when to launch into this environment.
The bottom line is that there are numerous variables to consider above and beyond an ideas complexity.

I actually have a Patent Pending idea with working prototype with a large manufacturer Who made and designed my product and can handle large orders where would that put me in the process of admission?

In almost every case, the search sponsors select, manufacture and market the ideas that are submitted, not EN. Walk through any major retailer and you will see shelves of simple products. A complex idea does not increase your success rate, but a good idea does.

Well Gary, we may just agree on ONE thing…If it’s the Jack I know, I adore him!!! I soooo miss you Jack—and wish you’d come back! ;-) But I love our late night emails!

Thanks for the email “shout out” Jack. It is appreciated. If you come back to EN send a friend request.

I think the key point everyone needs to remember is EN is still a very young company. It takes a year or more to bring a product to market. The many G8’s that have been chosen go through the process of design, prototyping, testing, re-prototyping, more testing, branding, test market, and eventually to store shelves. We have to let this process occur before making a judgement. Personally I think 2012 is going to be a year where EN makes its mark on the market.

Also, out of the thousands of submissions, there can only be so many G8’s. Of Course there’s going to be many dissatisfied customers.

Nice posts Betsy. Many do not realize what it takes to get to market. Team Talva is now waiting to see if there ASOTV pic will pass testing.
If not, we will at least know that EN has done everything possible to make our product a hit. Keep your fingers crossed for us.
It is now up to the consumer to see if they like what we came up with.

I guess Gary that I have different friends on the EN forums. I have close relationships with many people who are having their products either prototyped now or are having Infomercials made. I am in contact with people who have simple gadgets and intricate exercise equipment. If you think I sound like a spokesman, that’s pretty funny. I just like to tell a REAL situation and wonder why someone like you feels you know what is really happening. Some people have certainly been let down…but what, they’re out a submission fee?

Just watching shows like Shark Tank or Pitchmen has taught me how many people spend their life savings and end up with NOTHING but heartache. You think Eggies was simple to make. I sure would never have paid tens of thousands of dollars. And no G7 is going to be picked unless the company has done market research to know if it will even be purchased.

If I sound like a spokesman to you, great. But you sound very un-educated about what it takes to produce a product, get it onto store shelves and have it make money. I have spoken to several people today who have been annoyed by your post. I just decided to answer your post because I think lots of your insinuations are wrong and insulting. So good luck. Hope you can easily take a product to market for 20 or 25 dollars!

Gary,
I would not want you to name names. That was never my intention as I had not considered your stated percentages and knowledge that all ideas are rejected with an R8 was based on a dozen people that you had spoken privately with…my apologies.

Jeff, the contract lays it all out. Payments will come with a detailed report at the end of the year, for up to 20 years or as long as the product lives. EN also has the right to pay more frequently than once a year. Besides royalties, the inventor also gets a cut of branding and licensing fees. I also get a detailed report from EN at the first of each month. It’s really fascinating and exciting!

Mike, I am not going to name names, but I have talked privately with nearly a dozen people who have used EN and other invention sites. If they wish to come forward and tell you themselves they can do that.

Betsy, I am glad you had luck early with EN, but that is now making you see things through rose colored glasses. I have seen many of your posts and you seem to have become the EN spokeswomen. You must of misread my points above. I was just warning Jeff not to waste his money on complex submissions because history at EN is proving that they will be rejected. I was telling him to keep it simple. Eggies so you know was very easy to tool.

Thanks Betsy for such a detailed post. I’ve been curious about the timeline for the process. I’m sure every thing is different, but it’s fun to hear how it progressed. Even the part about the egg recall was fascinating. I’m sure that had to have soo freaky when that happened in the middle of such an exciting time. Can I ask if you’ve seen a royalty check yet? Do you get them for a certain time period or till they decide not to sell it(if that would ever happen…they look like fun and I know my wife will be getting some. She likes to watch the carbs, so this would be perfect for her.

Hi Gary,
If you don’t mind me quoting you; “reports I hear is 80-90% of G7’s are EXTREMELY easy to manufacture and the other 10-20% probably aren’t much harder and they still all get rejected with R8”.
I’ve always been curious as to some of the stats behind the scene myself…would it be alright for you to share your sources? Thanks!

Wow, I guess everyone is entitled to different opinions. I personally don’t think spending 20 or 25 dollars is a waste of money to have a submission have the chance of getting presented to huge companies and having a pretty intense IP search. Mark Stark’s prosthetic hand being chosen as a publicity stunt? What a bizarre thing to say.

Jeff, I submitted my Eggies idea at the very end of October 2009. It was picked 2 months later. Within 4 months, I’d seen the prototype. Within 6 months the Infomercial was ready to air. BUT THEN, in the summer of 2010—-there was a national egg recall. So that delayed the process by 6 months. The Infomercial started testing in January of 2011. By April it was deemed a hit. It started being shipped to store shelves this past July. Now it’s the beginning of November and almost 2-million units have been sold. Yes, it’s been 2 years if you want to count the day I submitted the idea until now. BUT, Wow….it’s been a fun, fascinating ride. It hasn’t seemed slow at all!

Gary, I just hope all the best for you. EN isn’t for everyone. But I’ve learned that it’s a perfect fit for someone like me who has ideas and thru EN’s many partners has an outlet and a chance to have them chosen. If you think every idea that is chosen should have a million units manufactured instantly, you’re wrong. Many companies nowadays may test a few thousand units in certain key stores to see if they sell. If they don’t, the item may be dropped. It’s kind of like stores are now doing their own infomercial type testing.

If you read the book ‘The Amazing Bottle Tops Are Here’ you’ll also learn the POLITICS involved in even making it to store shelves. You could have the best product in the world, but it’s CRAZY hard to get a retailer to take on your product as an individual.

Some people here at EN have had their products picked for ASOTV testing and their products haven’t met the scientific metrics needed to make it into stores. Those people then get the Infomercial and the prototypes and I know that some of them have landed their own licensing deals. And what did they spend, 20 bucks? Not bad, for about $100-thousand dollars (if not more) worth of material.

If you have great ideas that you think are too complicated for EN to chose——go for it. I know of a brilliant scientist who is thrilled to have the chance to submit ideas. There are no guarentees. If people are sure their idea will be picked, and then it’s not, that will be disappointing. That EN can get our submissions in front of big companies, I think is quite amazing. But, even these companies know that the final judge is the consumer. Anyway—-good luck.

Hi guys, your right Jeff, reports I hear is 80-90% of G7’s are EXTREMELY easy to manufacture and the other 10-20% probably aren’t much harder and they still all get rejected with R8. I don’t personally know anyone successful at EN yet. The rule for submission at EN seems to be keep it very very simple or forget it, you have wasted $25. Everything depends on tooling costs at EN. I don’t see one product success here yet that requires more than a three part die to mold. I don’t think a single product here uses a die with a single tool added like a tool capable of making an inside threaded cavity which requires the tool to rotate to be remove from the die.

Kevin the prosthetic hand was a publicity stunt for EN. It got them exposure in at least one magazine. If you examine the design you will find that most of the parts are very simple to tool. Many are duplicates and all could be molded in a two piece die in a single operation. Also it sure doesn’t fit the mold for mass marketing and profitability. It’s a great idea thou and it is nice to see EN gave it a chance..

I have some fantastic ideas, but only two are as simple as their four hit products and I cannot afford to waste money on EN if this is the case. All the “Successes” point out that simple is in at EN. EN rather pick three dozen simple ideas and get them rejected than present a more complex idea. Complex meaning a product that requires a die with multiple tools or coring. It’s sad they won’t even show these ideas.

I hope they start reconsidering these ideas soon because they are much less prone to being ripped off by competitors in China, they will hold their value longer, have higher price points, and because the very very simple ideas are going to become much fewer and far between.

Jeff, Everyday Edisons and Edison Nation and are not the same thing. Everyday Edisons finds products that are far enough along or simple enough that they can get the product developement to market done within the span of filming a season. When casting for EE they make it clear they are casting for it.

Live product searches are bringing product possibilities to companies to fit those companies’ needs.

As Seen on TV products also tend to be simpler or nearer market readiness and those move faster than typical corporate product development. I believe it was mentioned on one thread that it was over 18 months from submissions to shelf on Eggies.

So, hoping to see an LPS submission on store shelves quicker than two years is probably setting oneself up for disappointment. Open searches are even more complicated because they don’t start with a known licensee. So, somewhere in their development lifecycle they also need to identify potential retail or other sales outlets and other elements inherently covered in sponsored searches.

I’m concerned about that Gary which I’m guessing most are. I do see successes, but how few and far apart are they. There’s so many hidden aspects of these sites to know what actually happens to your submissions after they are submitted. Do they only look for submissions that can be put on their show? I don’t see why the inventing process has to be a long process. Quirky does it really quick. If something needs protecting, then you can file a PPA and then you get with your product manager at the factory and start working on it. I’ve gone through the process myself and I’m in no way near the level that EN is. I’m not talking about the advanced inventions like the hand or the Nano one….but most of the products I think could be quick. I haven’t been here long, but how long did it take for Eggies to go from submission to shelf? Does anyone know? I need to watch the show episodes, I just haven’t had time. I’m more curious about the submissions to open searches. How many here have had their products licensed and received royalties from EN? Also, did they have prior protection for them….anyone?

Hi guys…at the risk of sounding argumentative, which is hardly my purpose, there are two technical EN/EE products in the pipeline. One is Mark Stark’s prosthetic hand. The second is the Doctor Farahi with a yet-to-be disclosed Nano- technology product in the upcoming EE season 4. Both appear to be very high tech.

Also, the inventing process is quite the long process. Ken just posted on another patent thread the details of his determination to get his product patented and it was 4 years. With EN’s staff and expertise, I can venture to say that it can be done in half that time, but for a fairly newly patented business model (EN’s), I believe their pace is better than average. I also believe that one should hang on to their hat, because large things are in the works…according to that timeline. I’m thinking…busting wide open.

Jeff, I have got to know many people here and not many have had any luck. A lot of G7’s with no results. Let’s hope as EN matures as a business they will get bolder and start presenting more complex ideas. Their successes so far say very simple to manufacture is in period. I am sure the customers would response favorably to more advanced ideas even with higher tooling costs if the products are cool and potential profits were stellar.

Jeff there are no other sites like Edison Nation. This is truly a trustworthy company and for $20.00 you can become a star if you
have the Wow product the sponsors are looking for. Good Luck!!

http://www.edisonnation.com/success-stories, and more are in the works.