Our Idea Hunts are calls for ideas around a specific opportunity that we put to our 13,000-member inventor network. BIG will help define, draft, and publicize the innovation spec, either based on our Club insights or those provided by our client. Then we will organize, evaluate, and prioritize submissions, prepping them for review. BIG can also assist in innovation development and inventor contract negotiations, based on our client's needs.
How it works
BIG has a disciplined process for bringing innovation to life for our clients.
- Identifying the opportunity: Critical to success is solving the right customer problem. Some of our clients come to us with a well-defined need, and others rely on us to help find white spaces for innovation and customer pain points with our Innovation Clubs.
- Writing the spec: BIG drafts the Hunt spec for inventors, which typically includes everything from guidelines and submission information, to market/customer research, detailed parameters and production requirements, entry forms and confidentiality agreements, and prize information (optional). Our clients approve the spec prior to Hunt kick-off.
- Publicizing the Hunt: We broadcast the Hunt via email, packages to our top inventors, fliers to design groups and inventor clubs, notices on our site, and via other outreach such as speaking engagements, banner ads, etc.
- Processing and presenting: Submissions are recorded, sorted, and prioritized by BIG. For inventions of high interest with poor visuals, we might prepare renderings. BIG preps a report, summarizing our observations about consumer pain points and opportunities for inventors, as well as presenting the best inventions.
- Developing: At your option, we can assist in advanced development for additional fees. We help shape a plan for refinement, outlining process, timeline, and participants. Then calling on our partners and open source network, we can manage any or all phases of development--from positioning through design, IP, sourcing, packaging and marketing.
- Negotiating: There would be some compensation (beyond our service fees) for inventions that our clients wish to license or bring to market. BIG generally handles inventor contract negotiations for clients at their request. As a third party experienced in dealing with independent inventors, we're usually able to reach agreement quickly and amicably.
Services summary
- Idea Hunt innovation spec
- Publicizing the Hunt
- Reviewing, screening and prioritizing submissions
- Ongoing management of and interaction with inventor network throughout the project
- Presenting our conclusions about expressed consumer needs/innovation white spaces, plus most promising concepts to client
- Inventor negotiations, as the client desires
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