Reinventing the Inventor

This article was written by Tamara Monosoff of Entrepreneur.com

While creativity's essential to developing inventive ideas, those who wish to turn inventing into more than just a hobby must shift their mind-sets. That's because the role of serious inventor isn't limited to simply creating the newest gadget or gizmo.

It's easy to understand why many inventors feel that once the patent is filed, their product design is complete and their invention goes into production, they're almost home free in terms of getting their product to market. After all, it's taken a lot of time and effort to reach this point. In reality, though, the final element -- sales -- still weighs heavily on the invention's success and shouldn't be underestimated. To be successful, inventors have to look at their inventions as marketable products and have a clear sales strategy.

To launch a successful product, it's critical to approach the process from a business perspective. Fortunately, that doesn't mean you need an MBA or even specific experience in the business world. It simply means being as smart about running a business as you were about developing your idea. You already have an inventive mind and a creative spirit. You simply need to transfer those qualities to managing the business end of things. ...