If you are developing a new product, a protytype can really help you work out costs and the likely market. In this article David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you create a prototype.

About Me and CARES (child aviation restraint)
I am Louise Stoll,   Grandmother  “of a certain age”.  I am American, married, with 5 grown children, and nine beautiful grandchildren 2 – 15 years old.

Talk about the mother of great ideas…
Six of Britain’s most respected female entrepreneurs have thrown their weight behind a groundbreaking new initiative that supports mums in business.

If you are developing a new product, research is critical for many reasons. David Fannin of Sorcit has some tips to help you succeed, and introduces a new concept, Presearch.
Most new products fail before they get off the ground. Some experts estimate that the new product success rate is no higher than 14%. This results in wasted time, money and opportunity.

Prima Baby, Baby Expert and Hippychick have got together to help one mum turn a product idea into reality. If you’d like to win a year’s mentoring plus inclusion in the Hippychick catalogue, find out more here. There’s a webchat today about the competition on the Baby Expert site too.

Got an idea you’d like to realise?   Or an existing product you want to improve?    David Fannin of Sorcit Design has years of experience working with major blue chip companies on innovative product ideas. He shared his tips for getting your product idea off the ground last month. In this new article for Family Friendly Working  he explains how to make sure that your design has the key elements to ensure that it will succeed:

If you’ve had a great idea for a product, watch out for our new series of articles from Sorcit. David Fannin of Sorcit starts this off with his Top 5 Tips for Developing a New Product

Research the market well before committing to potentially expensive development costs.
Make sure your product has a Unique Selling Point.
Where possible ensure you protect the intellectual property of your idea/brandname.  Patent Attorneys are a good source for initial advice.
Develop a good working prototype which can be used to sell the idea to potential buyers & investors.  This …

 
Reports on the Credit Crunch have indicated that it is affecting women in employment more than in previous downturns. New website Mothers of Innovation aims to be an antidote to recessionary gloom and a breath of fresh air for working women and mothers in the UK.
Founder Sarah Dawnay set up Mothers of Innovation after she was made redundant from her job; with the only available earning options seeming to be corporate roles which make no allowance for women with young families, or pyramid selling schemes that were either patronising or …

Read about how some ordinary folk got their bright ideas on the market in the Daily Mail. You can find out more about mumpreneur Rachel Bloom and her invention, Hug-a-Bump here. I trialled the maternity support belt Rachel devised during my recent pregnancy, and can say how well made and comfortable it is – a great invention Rachel.