But Where Do I Go?

People want to know where to go if they have an idea. Or people want to know where to go when they already have an idea but need materials, manufacturing, business resources, funding, networking...you name it, people are asking for help.

What is interesting is the number of people simply perplexed about where to start, where to begin, how to start talking with people about their idea, invention, business concept.

People are simply stuck and are really looking for some kind of direction; where should they go if they have an idea? Well, for starters if it's an idea/invention a great place to begin is with your state's inventors group or inventors network. In Minnesota, Deb Hess is the Director of the MN Inventors Congress (http://www.minnesotainventorscongress.org/). Located in Redwood Falls, MN, the MIC is a national resource. The MIC's Annual Conference is June 11-12 and is a great place to see cool ideas AND to be seen. While I won't be attending (my doc classes are the same weekend and I cringe at the thought of missing this event), product scouts, industry professionals, inventor exhibits, and a youth inventors exhibit are all part of the conference. There are some great industry guest speakers and super networking opportunities...again, I'm cringing that I won't be there.

My first "stop" would be the MIC. Then I'd suggest connecting with a local group or sign up to belong to one of the idea/inventor groups on social networking sites such as LinkedIn. If your state does not have one, how about considering creating one? If that's not an option, then connect with a neighboring state's inventors group.

When looking for resources I suggest taking a look at Thomas.net. Thomas is a great database for vendor suppliers. Another suggestion is to do word searches or phrase searches in on the web and remember to keep a database or piece of paper with search terms! Keeping a record of searched terms will help you by working efficiently, but then you'll also be able to track your progress.

Alright, for those folks out there that have been asking me these questions - thank you for stimulating the idea for today's blog.

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

Alright, I'm on a roll today - so, a question I've received is about doing business with someone you just don't like. Well, for whatever reason, not all people are going to like one another. That's just a fact and the "reasons" why are details...bottom line, if you don't click then move on and find someone who you do click with.

Why? Well, for starters you're paying them and why give money, especially as a SBO we work very very long hours for our dollars, to pay vendors/business associates/contractors, etc. for a relationship that's painful? What??

My questions to this person was, "if you were dating would you continue to invest time in building this kind and level of relationship? What kind of relationship are you looking for?" They then went on and on sharing stories of good relationships and yes, what they were looking for.

Those questions opened the door to a great discussion about business relationships, personal relationships, and building a business that stands for much more than our products! How cool is that?!?

While, breaking up is hard to do - the rewards mean seeking out people and vendors with compatibility and building a long-term relationship that's enjoyable!

Marketing and Advertising 101v Messy Face®

Advertising and Marketing 101 - Version Messy Face®

Why reinvent the wheel when inspiration is out there right in front of our faces? On any given day, society is inundated with marketing messages through advertisements. Just drive around the freeway and electronic billboards light up like the Vegas strip cheering for our attention and hooking peripheral vision. Then there’s the old fashioned static billboard that comes in a variety of sizes throughout even 2 lane neighborhood streets. Oh, and what about all the junk mail and complimentary magazines? Advertising and marketing pays the bills to print these forms of mass communication.

Okay, so if you’re still reading this blog you’re probably wondering where I’m going with all of this??? At least I hope you are…as a small business owner I could hire a firm to help me with my advertising and marketing needs – generally at a great expense or cost that is so out of reach that the proposal is laughable. This reminds me of a meeting I had at the beginning of MFD where I did consult with an advertising person – their rate was 30K for 10 hours of billable work for a ¼ year project. Hello??? The best part- they were a referral!! Laughable yes. But the only solution?? Well, if you’ve been following my blogs then you already know about my “chocolate chip cookie” mindset.

So, off to that – while these forms of advertising and marketing may seem like junk mail or a driving nuisance, they are FREE ideas of inspiration to spark marketing and advertising innovation for your own company. NOTE: I do not suggest nor am I suggesting plagiarizing OR violating any copyright or trademark owned by another company.

What I am saying is that these billboards, postcards, and magazines provide examples of advertising and marketing to be studied and ask questions like: what’s the overall message, what does the message say to the consumer, can I identify the target audience, what is the benefit of this company’s service/product, what colors are used, what colors are not used, what is the font, are there photos or other images, what is the overall layout like – AND how do these advertisements compare to similar companies within MY industry AND their industry?? What are the differences?

For Messy Face®, I needed to create an ad and I wanted a rockin’ ad…well, I was stuck in my office with writer’s block and decided to go for a drive…that’s when I started noticing all of these billboard ads and I went back to my office, brainstormed ideas, wrote them all down, did some sketching and contacted my graphic designer…to which we created an awesome ad (and I’ve already gotten a fair amount of feedback confirming the fact) – so, go for a drive, save that junk mail, browse through a magazine and hopefully, you’ll find some inspiration!

Young Tom Edison

So, you really want to know what it’s like to be an inventor? I wish I had a dollar for every time someone asked me, “what’s it like to be an inventor?” as if there’s some glamour to this profession! Watching the 1940 movie, Young Tom Edison, will give anyone a glimpse of what it’s like to be an idea person and inventor. The scene that moves me most is where Tom conducts an experiment at school, creates a lot of smoke in a backroom, all the while the town thinks the school house is on fire only to learn that Tom is back to his ole tricks of experimenting. The part that saddens me is the outcries of criticism from the townspeople, his classmates, and especially the school teacher.

Gee…I can certainly relate to both of these scenes. While I have not created smoke as an inventor, I know what it’s like to continue experimenting because I’m determined to figure out an idea. And while I have not been laughed at by my peers, on a couple occasions I’ve encountered in-my-face sarcasm. Funny about the sarcastic hecklers, they were both men of the same generation. Go figure – my research hat personality is curious to know the real root cause of their unruly behavior, however I prefer to focus on the plethora of Messy Face® supporters and the hundreds of times I’ve heard “that’s a great idea!”

Something else to remember about being an inventor is that we’re people who can see possibilities out of nothing. And in the movie, Tom continues to be self-motivated to develop more inventions regardless of the level of support from society. Well, we all know how Edison’s story ends….every day we experience the convenience of Edison’s inventions…and I wonder what those hecklers of Edison would be saying now?

Like Tom’s mom said, “something tells me that someday they’ll understand him the way we do.” So, next time you meet an inventor – just try to see what they see; it might spark something in you and before you know it, you too might be an idea-inventor!

If it was You, Would You Want to Know?

If it was you, would you want to know?

How many of us have been engaged in a conversation only to notice that the person we are talking with has something stuck in their teeth, lipstick on their teeth, or better yet, the clothes tag on their shirt bounces with every walk? But who would quietly and politely make motion to adjust the tag or suggest to someone that they have lettuce in their teeth?

My question to readers is, “if it was you, would you want to know?” If you answered, “yes” then I suggest the next time this situation surfaces, let it be discreetly known. If you answered, “not” then I suggest you check the restroom mirror frequently….

So, why am I writing about this on my blog…well, today I happen to receive an email from a PR company soliciting their PR services. I get a lot of daily emails and try to read all of them, well except the obvious spam…anyway, when reading this PR firm’s release I noticed the misspelling of a client’s name (the client was part of an overall list to show previous work). Well, I thought to myself, “If it was you, would you want to know?”

Since, if it was me, yes, I’d want to know, I replied to this person sharing the typo information and also posed the question if it was possible to retrieve the sent emails. I did not expect a thank you reply, complimentary services, or anything. I simply shared the feedback because if it was me, I’d hope that someone would tell me – which someone would think with not negative thoughts but share an act of kindness because if happened to them, they’d want to know.