Turning Your Invention Into A Biz

Fortune Small Business:

Q: I invented a new way to produce electricity for which I am about to seek a provisional patent. If I get the patent, I know that there are potentially millions of dollars that could be made with my invention, but I don’t know where to go from here, and financially I am not in any shape to go it alone.

A: If you’re not in financial shape to bankroll your own business, you’ll need investors who believe in your idea and then a plan on how to execute the idea after you’ve actually raised some money, according to Ben Lerer, founder of startup Thrillist.com.

“I believe that all really good ideas will find investors - the hard part is executing on the idea once you’ve actually raised the money,” Lerer said.

Thrillist.com is a male-oriented e-mail service based in New York City with distribution in several cities. Lerer raised $1 million from investors and turned it into what he says is a multi-million dollar business that’s growing by 10% to 15% each month.

“In order to find people willing to invest money in anything, you need to move past the idea stage. Invest time and energy, if you don’t have money, to get it to the point where others will be interested and there’s an actual tangible product they can touch or see,” Lerer said.

Read more.

Photo by inventorsdream.

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