Do you have a business plan? – 18 August 2014
Investing in patent, design and trade mark protection is no different to investing in other assets, in that it is important to have a plan at the outset. This should involve an assessment of the costs, the risks and the benefits.
It’s important to approach the plan in objective fashion. All too often, inventors are so excited by their (potentially very good) idea that they fail to see the long, difficult and uncertain road from that idea to a profit.
“Okay, you’re technically gifted and have a great technical idea, but do you have the commercial acumen, sales skills, financial resources and energy to find investors, a manufacturer and a distributor?”
As Roger La Salle eloquently puts it (here):
“The problem is business plans are too often prepared by the champion of an idea and these people are already convinced about the likely success even before they start. The task of actually documenting the business case is seen as a necessary and troublesome precursor to getting investment funding.
With this mindset, how could a well-researched and objective business plan be developed? The fact is, it’s almost impossible.”
Putting together a business plan is a time for sober reflection, a time to put enthusiasm aside, to decide how best to allocate your project resources and whether the project should proceed at all, to reduce the risk of starting on a journey that you can’t complete or that is unlikely to lead to profit.
This simple diligence at the start of a project is a first and critical step towards a successful project outcome.
