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The Road to becoming a Successful Inventor

By Barbara Bigford

Interview with Barbara Bigford Wright from GPS for Success { Goals & Proven Strategies }

Interview Wright:

The process to create a product, make a prototype, research consumers’
needs, attend trade shows, find a manufacturer, and secure appointments with
buyers to large retailers is basically the same for any “widget.”
Since you have been through this entire process, what have you learned to pass
on to the millions of “wannabe” inventors and entrepreneurs?

Barbara Bigford:

You must believe in yourself and the goals you have laid out. When an
entrepreneur starts a business, time, money, and sweat equity is invested. Stay
focused and do not allow the negative people around you try to make you feel you
will not make it. That happened to me on a few occasions.

The one that is the most profound happened when I was at my second trade
show. I was so excited about my product, displaying it in the most colorful booth,
with all my sell sheets, and hundreds of blank order forms. My husband was at my
side and I was ready to roll. On that first day, I met the vendors across the way and
we started to chat. I told them the story about how the Beach Pockets Anchors were
invented, and how the entire invention process was a real learning experience. I
also told them how I had several smaller accounts and moderate ones too.

Then I mentioned how excited I would be to get my product into the largest

retailer in the world, Wal-Mart. As soon as I said this, one of the two gentlemen
said, while pointing his finger at me, “You will never get into Wal-Mart—don’t even
try.” I looked at him with a puzzled look and he continued, saying, “If you don’t
know a buyer or a distributor who is already involved with Wal-Mart, they would
never take a ‘mom and pop shop’ like you. And let me tell you, I have been in this
industry for over twenty-seven years, and I know what I am talking about!” Well, can
you imagine how that made me feel? I felt sad and disappointed . . . for about two
seconds. Then my own passion kicked in. I looked at this guy and said, “Well, you
don’t know me,” and I walked away.
So how does this story end? Within two years after those negative comments, I
figured out how to sell to Wal-Mart on my own.

I was approved to sell to six districts
first, and that year my patented beach umbrella invention did extremely well. The
following year I went back to the corporate offices in Bentonville, Arkansas, and
met with the buyer. I was then approved to sell to nine hundred and fifty of their
beach, river, and lake stores. The rest is history.

That is a perfect example of a negative person creating an obstacle, making you
think one way and at the same time crushing a desire, but why listen to people like
that? They are not you. They can only talk and give comments based on their own
beliefs and experiences. If you take that negative energy and turn it around toward
your passion, you will outshine them all.
As for your question on the actual process of “inventing,” here is what I suggest:

The first thing you need to do is to draw out your idea and put in writing the day,
time, and where you were when you came up with this idea. No matter what your
idea is, have it notarized just to show some type of “declaration” in writing. This
helps to protect you before you take your idea to a patent attorney or start engaging
in the process of the business plan or creating a prototype. I did this because I
realized that while I was shopping for my prototype supplies at hardware stores, I
might have given the idea to a clerk who seemed way too interested, stating he’d
had a “similar” idea. Even though I doubted him, the panic in my heart made me
realize do not tell anyone until you file a patent.

I later found out from the patent attorney, that you must never discuss your
invention idea with anyone (okay, maybe one trusted person). The reason is that
you won't be allowed to file a patent when your attorney asks you the big question.
“Did you discuss this with anyone?” Of course, your closest trusted partner is okay.
If you discussed it with several people and you disclose that you have discussed it,
you may not file.


Learn More about Barbara Bigford

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