SOUNDING THE MARKET
"People are always to be found who think anything with which they are
not familiar cannot be good."
If the average inventor goes out among his friends with his invention
and asks them their opinion of it, he will hear some such expressions
as this: "Old man, you are a marvel!"; "You will be a millionaire some
day, sure thing!"; "That looks a big winner!"; "Beats anything I ever
saw!" and so on. But such comments are absolutely worthless. Many an
inventor's head has been turned by just such praise. It is all
well-meant, best-intentioned, and highly gratifying, but as an
indication of what will be likely to happen to your invention it is
worse than valueless. It is grossly misleading. Your friends want to
encourage you, help you. They see only your invention's good points,
not its vital weaknesses. They are not "skilled in the art,"--are not
in a position to judge competently at all. Do not depend on any such
opinions. Go to a specialist in such lines. Will a stranger to you buy
your invention in preference to the ones already on the market? If so,
he exacts a lower price or a better article, which amount to the same
thing. Can you manufacture your invention and sell it at a good profit
in competition with others? Will the wholesalers handle it? Can they
do so at a good profit? Has it good selling and talking points, or do
you need to make excuses for it? Is the field now over-crowded? In
this connection, remember the "Six Cardinal Patent Tests," especially
the fifth and sixth. Is there a large, constant, public demand for my
invention or its product? And is there killing competition in the
class to which my invention belongs? Get the advice of a specialist.