Making the Most of a Conference: 3 Nuggets

I'm still in the clouds after attending the Women's Conference 2010 a week ago, but it feels essential to cull some nuggets about making the most of attending a conference. Here are three things I did:

1. Have one or more goals in place before you attend a conference.

At the Women's Conference 2010, I wanted to meet a Caroline Bouvier Kennedy whom I admire for the courage of her convictions. I also wanted to enlist her assistance in getting the KleenSlate Paddle considered for New York Public Schools. Kennedy sits on the Board for the Funds for Public Schools in New York. I met Kennedy at the conference and gave her the KleenSlate Paddle. She autographed two of her books--one for me and one for my mother-- and I give her a copy of The Right Sisters. She was so genuine as she shook my hand, looked me in the eye, and said, "I look forward to reading your book!"

2. Do your homework

Because a number of celebrities were participating in the Women's Conference, including Oprah and Michelle Obama, hotels were sold out, but I was prepared having booked an awesome hotel months in advance. Security was unusually high because of the prestigious presenters, so programs were given out at the last minute. Despite 15,000 women in attendance, I managed to secure a program ahead of everyone and located a seat for the main event close to the stage. The KleenSlate Concepts booth was next to the book store--an ideal location. We had an amazing team managing the booth with 1500 paddles to give away. Most importantly PINK was part of the conference theme, so our Pink Paddles were a big hit!

3. Be Prepared for Unique Opportunities

Maria Shriver opened the Conference with a March on Alzheimer's to raise money to combat the disease. I had joined the Dano Sister Team months before the conference The sister team had inspired me after hearing about their father and this debilitating disease. Never having met them in person, I used my Pink Paddle to find them in the crowd of 1000 women. I wrote DANO Team on the Paddle and walked around until someone said, "Are you looking for us?" The DANO team was declared the #1 fundraisers. We raised four Pink Paddles and cheered as the announcement was made.

Because I carried Paddles and The Right Sisters with me everywhere I went, I managed to give them to Maria Shriver, Jane Fonda, and Sister Terry Dodge (one of the Minerva Winners). As I was leaving the exhibit hall, I heard someone call, "Gayle." When the women turned, I realized she was Gayle King--Oprah's best friend. I handed her a Paddle and asked her to get it to Oprah and let her know I would like to help her school in Africa. As she walked away, I watched her. She was surrounded by cameras snapping her photo. In her hand was the Pink Paddle. SWEET!

I'm grateful for the inspiration I gathered at the conference and totally satisfied that I did a good job of promoting my product in such an awesome setting.

Pink: A Business Story

As I prepare to attend the Women's Conference 2010, the color pink comes to mind. Pink has long been associated with girls and women, but I'm not a traditional kind of woman so pink was never my color.

When I first invented the Kleen Slate Paddles, I wanted them to be in bold colors-- red, yellow, blue, and green. Pink was simply too pale for my product and the powerful image I wanted to convey. But then an interesting thing happened. First, my son hooked up with a gal who loves pink. Then, my granddaughter turned out to be a lover of pink. Both of them cajoled me in their own way: "Why isn't there a pink paddle?"

Which gave me pause. Why was I resisting this color when there were clearly those who adored it? My son's girlfriend and my granddaughter represented potential customers, and I wasn't giving them what they wanted.

I started thinking differently about pink. This was the color that represented princesses, royalty in the world if you will. And then I remembered that pink ribbons are the symbol for breast cancer awareness. Suddenly I realized that by making a pink paddle, I could develop my customer base AND support an important cause: Breast Cancer Awareness.


Today, KleenSlate Concepts sells pink paddles, and we donate 5% of the sales of these paddles to the National Breast Cancer Awareness fund. This weekend, I'm going to the Women's Conference, where I will promote my pink paddles in acknowledgment of Breast Cancer Awareness Month: October!

This story about PINK is a business story because it illustrates four essential business principles that I hold dear:

• listen to your customers;
• think outside of the box (especially outside of your personal preferences);
• look for connections between your product and larger more global issues;
• give, donate, contribute.

Next week, I'll tell you what the Women's Conference 2010 power house speakers--Michelle Obama, Maria Shriver, Erin Brocokvich, and others--had to tell us.

Entrepreneurial Advice on the Interent

I recently added The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur (TPE) to my Great Reading blog list on the side panel here at Inventor Mentor. Mike Michalowicz offers a wealth of information on entrepreneurship, and I highly recommend subscribing to and reading his blog regularly, especially if you are just getting started.

Mike writes practical as well as cutting edge articles related to staying alive and well in business. This week, for instance, he has a fabulous post about how to get free resources and services. Mike invited a number of entrepreneurs--including moi-- to offer suggestions about free resources and services. Check it out.

These entrepreneurs promote bartering, giving to get, and saying "thank you" to name a few. My blurb on TPE advises entrepreneurs to carry product with you where ever you go and give it away to promote good will and attract customers.

And let me add: Seek the free advice offered by others all over the Internet, especially on blogs.

Finding the Right Fit: Who Needs Your Product

I recently stumbled onto the blog Departing the Text written by Meryl Jaffe, a mom and a school psychologist who is exploring the edges between a child's learning profile and school demands. It doesn't take rocket science to get that one size does not fit all, but it does take a discerning mind like Jaffe's to understand the frequent ways in which children do not fit neatly into educational practices which are expected to work in the classroom. There are always exceptions, and it's disconcerting to teacher, parent AND student when the fit is not right.

Since I'm always looking for a fit for KleenSlate Paddles I was particularly interested in Jaffe's blog post: No Brainer: Handwriting Trains the Brain by Creating Multiple Paths. After discussing how handwriting engages the brain, Jaffe goes on to list non-traditional ways to get kids writing, such as making greeting cards, having a message center in the home, and writing notes to the tooth fairy. Next, she lists some products that teachers can use in the classroom to get students writing.

That's where I leaped to action. I left Meryl a comment describing the Kleen Slate Paddle as an ideal product for getting students writing frequently in the classroom. When students have a Paddle with dry erase marker with an attachable eraser at their desks, everyone can respond in writing to questions thereby building pathways in the brain all day long.

Meryl is no slacker. Not only did she shoot me an email message thanking me for the comment, she also included my comment in a post a few days later entitled: Ways Around Exceptions: Handwriting and Dysgraphia. In this post, Meryl responds to the difficulty some students have with forming letters and keeping track of the sequence of letters. One child had this to say about his problem, known as dysgraphis: "I can't think and write at the same time." So Meryl lists insights and alternatives to help kids with dysgraphia, and among them she mentions the KleenSlate Paddle.

Parents, educators, AND entrepreneurs can learn something from Meryl's blog Departing the Text. Keep your eyes open for the right fit for your child, your students, OR your product.

Water Issues Require Invention

Today is Blog Action Day. Bloggers around the world are writing about water as a global issue. In response to this topic, I want to put a call out to inventors reminding us of our role in solving problems.

Let's start with a little history.

In 1880, inventor Lester Allen Pelton applied for a patent for the Pelton water wheel. By 1890, Pelton turbines were generating thousands of horsepower to drive all kinds of equipment. By the time of his death in 1910, Pelton's turbines were in use at hydro-electric plants all over the country.

In almost every type of power plant today, water is a major cost. In fact, our power sources would be impotent without water. Plug your iPhone into an electric socket for charging and half a liter of water must flow through miles of pipes, pumps, and the heat exchangers of a power plant.

Two inventions arriving more than 100 years a part are intricately tied to one another by water. In terms of Blog Action Day, they can be connected to one of the biggest dilemmas in world history:

A human thirst for water is competing with a hunger for energy.

Nearly one billion people on our planet, many on the continent of Africa, lack access to clean water which causes untold struggle, including disease and death. On a single day in the US, more than 500 billion liters of water travel through power plants--that is more than twice the water flowing down the Nile River in a single day. The inequity is astounding.

Only radical new ideas can address this issue. Inventors, like Pelton, are needed to envision solutions. Even seemingly inconsequential inventions--such as those requiring limited technology or those made from recycled materials-- can be part of the solution.

Only by recognizing the problem can we take actions that will contribute to the solution.

Being A Winner: Kidlutions Product Award

I didn't invent the KleenSlate Paddle with the idea of getting awards, but each time my products win awards, a rush of pride and gratitude washes over me.

I was so excited when I got the Kidlutions: Preferred Product Award that I just wanted to shout it out. Kidlutions and founder Wendy Young recognize products that "enhance social-emotional development" in children and teens. To be sure, I wasn't thinking about social-emotional development when I came up with the idea of the paddle. I was responding to my fellow teachers who were asking for assistance.

That's what is exciting about awards. They catch you by surprise. I remember when I was at a trade show and the paddle won Best of Show. Conference-goers had voted my product the best thing they saw at that particular show. WHOA! How thrilling that was.

The Kidlutions award was equally thrilling. Recognition is always welcome, especially the kind of acknowledgment that underscores an inherent value in your product that extends beyond the scope of its original purpose. Wendy Young describes the paddle as empowering kids with confidence and a can-do attitude.

YES! I know this terrific aspect of my invention. And it feels great that others see it too.

Blogs to Read

Hey, I just added two great blogs to my blog roll:

Womentorz

"Womentorz™ is a marketplace of the latest inventions made by women where each inventor has their own storefront. We provide a community and supportive environment to assist in all areas of bringing a product to market."

Invention Addict

Steve Bozzone's blog is dedicated to inventors and their inventions. It has posts on how to be more creative, help with patents, cool and not so cool inventions and inventor spotlights.

Womentorz is all about women supporting women and Invention Addict is about innovation and creativity, so both of these blogs speak to things that are dear to me. Please take a minute to visit them. I bet you will get hooked after just one visit.

Bidding Farewell to National Inventor’s Month

If you are ever in Washington DC, visit one of the 10 Smithsonian museums. The Smithsonian Information Center in the Castle is centrally located at 1000 Jefferson Dr., SW, Washington, D.C. Ten of the Smithsonian museums in Washington, D.C., span an area from 3rd to 14th Streets between Constitution Avenue and Independence Avenue, approximately 1 mile (1.6 km). Most have free admission too! A great adventure for curious adults and kids. Maybe it will inspire the next inventor to take action.

Bidding Farewell to National Inventor’s Month

The Right to Invent and Profit

This week, librarians, booksellers, and readers every where are celebrating the right to read by observing "Banned Book Week"--Sept 24-Oct 2. According to the American Library Association, "Banned Book Week" underscores each American's right to "intellectual freedom."

It's not likely, that my book, The Right Sisters: Women Inventors Tell Their Stories, will be banned. However, my motivation in part for writing The Right Sisters stemmed from discovering how women were once banned from getting patents for their inventions. In other words, they were denied the intellectual freedom to invent and profit from their creations.

In 1793, Sybilla Masters invented a corn refining machine. However, the patent for her method was issued in her husband’s name. The paperwork actually reads: for “a new Invencon [sic] found out by Sybilla, his wife.” In the early days of this country, women’s rights were overshadowed by those of men. The cultural norm at that time dictated that a woman’s place was in the home.

By the late 1800s, women were finally granted patents for their inventions, but as the stories in The Right Sisters relate, our journey toward intellectual freedom and enterprise continues to be challenged even in the 21st century. Last week, I wrote a blog post about the challenges women face when negotiating with big companies. That's why organizations like Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) and web sites like Women Negotiating are necessary resources for women.

Just as librarians and booksellers work to maintain our freedom to choose what we read, these organizations work to maintain women's rights in the world of business. We have a right to invent and a right to profit.

Let's celebrate our right to intellectual freedom. Post a comment about a challenge you faced head on to secure your rights.

Invention Addict Blog- Inventor Help and Practical Advice You Can Depend On: WHERE GOOD IDEAS COME FROM by Steven Johnson

Invention Addict Blog- Inventor Help and Practical Advice You Can Depend On: WHERE GOOD IDEAS COME FROM by Steven Johnson

Watch Steven Johnson and tap his brain!!! Today I am inspired.

Break the Rules

When I was first getting started, I accidentally broke rules because I didn't know better. For instance, when I went to my first trade show, I didn't even have a booth. I just went dressed in whiteboard costume with my product in little bags and started selling them.

Later, a mentor told me that breaking the rules could work in my favor. But I already knew this from my adventure at the trade show.

Of course, you have to be smart when you break the rules. In other words, you can't be offensive or insensitive. You also have to be lawful. One way that I break rules is by approaching some of the unspoken rules playfully.

For example, one of my rule breaking escapades was recently featured on the blog Women Negotiating.

A supposedly smart person told me that I could not sell my product to a big box retailer without a man accompanying me to negotiating table. So when I managed to get an appointment to present my product, I glued a large photo of a man's to a Popsicle stick so I would have a man with me. This tactic got a big laugh AND landed me the deal.

What kinds of rules have you broken in order to get what you want and need for your product. If you are not a rule breaker and you want to learn how to get what you want, check out the Women Negotiating website for lots of great ideas.

Speak Up 2: Talking to Clubs and Organizations

Last week, I talked about the value of speaking to clubs and organizations. Speaking up helps an inventor/entrepreneur to network and promote a product. It is also can be kind of scary. You only get a few minutes in which to make an impression and convey your message, so it's important to do it right.

I joined Toastmasters to improve my speaking skills, so I do my best when I went out and spoke to organizations. Toastmasters is an international organization that has groups that meet in just about every community--even my small rural community.

At Toastmasters, there is no instructor; instead,you learn from other participants as each speech and meeting is critiqued by a member in a positive manner, focusing on what was done right and what could be improved. You learn skills by filling a meeting role, such as giving a prepared or impromptu speech or serving as timer, evaluator, or grammarian.

Here is what I learned at Toastmasters:

• Humor is important;
• People want to be entertained while being informed;
• Know your audience so you can deliver the right message;
• To be prepared you have practice, practice, practice.

I highly recommend joining Toastmasters to become a better public speaker. And then go out and speak up!

Speak Up I: Talking to Clubs and Organizations

I've never been shy. My first marketing ploy was to dress up in whiteboard clothing at a trade show to demonstrate the eraser I had invented for dry erase markers. One of the first things I learned when I went into business was that I had to speak up and talk to people about my product, my business, and myself.

I'm a tad more subdued in my approach these days, but I know the value of talking ever time I get the chance. Speaking at local clubs and organizations is a particularly delightful and enterprising opportunity. Most organizations, like Lions and Rotary, have lunch or breakfast meetings to which they invite speakers. I've taken to wangling invites to be a speaker at such meetings. I can hear you thinking: Why in the world would she want to talk to Kiwanis or Soroptimist Clubs? Let me speak to that.

Just last week, I gave a talk at a Sons in Retirement (SIR) meeting. SIR is an organization for men who are are retired from full-time, gainful employment. They have a monthly luncheon meeting that includes a featured speaker. The organization espouses no political party, religion or sect of any kind, nor promotes any cause regardless of how worthy. However, they are a bunch of really cool retired guys who are interested in all kinds of things.

So I told my story to the guys at SIR, and as always, I emphasized how my story shows that the American Dream is still accessible. I told them it takes hard work and perseverance to take ideas to market, but for anyone willing to do the work and ask for help, it is possible. Then I told them all the ways that I worked hard, and I closed by asking for help. That's right! I put out a request for investors, and one gentleman approached me after the meeting to find out more. We will be having lunch soon.

So the answer to why I speak at groups is basically this: I like to tell my story in the hopes that it will inspire and inform AND I also know that connecting with people this way opens doors, especially if I am boldly willing to ask for help. Remember, I'm not shy!

In my next post, I will say more about crafting a talk that fits the needs of the group to whom I am speaking. Tune in for more on speaking up!

Outsourcing

At the start of their journey, most inventors hope to manufacture their product in the United States, but as the women in The Right Sisters reveal, financial challenges often compel inventors to outsource the manufacture of their invention to a third part outside of the United States. I was one such person, and though I'm now finding ways to manufacture stateside, I have learned some important lessons about about outsourcing.

Most importantly, I learned that when you can't manufacture in the USA, you need to establish excellent relationships with the third party with whom you are working. The great distance as well as language barriers and cultural differences make this a challenging task. That's where networking comes to play.

I met Michelle Bonn through Big Fish Nation Nation, a business development program. Michelle is the owner of Expedient Trade, LLC, an international sourcing and manufacturing service company located in Buffalo, NY. Her expertise extends to international trade and manufacturing project management, so she was an excellent contact to help me negotiate some of the hurdles I faced while manufacturing in China.

I was drawn to Michelle's excitement, enthusiasm and drive as well as her expertise in the business of importing and manufacturing overseas. I was especially impressed by the fact she outsourced with women in third world countries--not to make money, but to help them to start businesses. I hired her to assist with outsourcing the manufacture of some of my new products.

Michelle's knowledge of importing and exporting and her relationships with customs was invaluable. When the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSIA) issued new laws, she found a qualified manufacturer to ensure that our products were constructed to be safe for kids. Michelle than helped KleenSlate secure the required Compliance Certificates. When I needed the advice of Chinese lawyers, she set up the communications. As our prototypes began to arrive for the new products, she listened to what needed to be changed and helped facilitate the necessary corrections. She understood that we wanted to be a leader in the dry erase industry and knew that meant delivering quality products to our customers.

Working with Michelle Bonn helped me build strong relationships with my manufacturing partners and underscored the value of surrounding myself with experts to help negotiate the intricacies of my inventor journey.

Back to School Gifts

One of the greatest pleasures of being in business is giving away KleenSlate products to worthwhile causes. That's why I was thrilled when Julie Kenny included KleenSlate paddles and markers in the Jewels and Pinstripes Back to School Gift Bag.

Jewels and Pinstripes is a gift bag company that is dedicated to raising money for charitable causes. Each year the gift bag project helps a charitable cause. This year, a gift bag will be auctioned to benefit the Care to Learn Fund.

According to the press release:

The gift bag, valued at more than $1,150, includes a wide assortment of fashion-forward children’s products to prepare top celebrity kids for their first day of school with such essentials as lunch boxes, eco-friendly apparel, accessories, kid-friendly stationery, jewelry, learning aids, gift certificates and many other fabulous products.

KleenSlate paddles are one of those fabulous projects!

Not only is my product coupled with "a wide assortment of fashion-forward children's products" (Woohoo!), I am proud to be connected with the Care to Learn Fund which strives to lift children out of poverty.

Pockets of Inspiration

One of the women inventors in the The Right Sisters, talks about the importance of staying upbeat during trying circumstances. Beth Butler, who gives motivational talks at teacher conferences, tells teachers, "If you're not refreshed and rejuvenated to start your day, how can you deal with twelve or seventeen preschoolers?" Beth practices what she preaches by taking time for herself at the start of each day to pray or read inspirational material.

I've found a great way to insert a little pocket of inspiration into the start my day. Each morning, I get my cup of tea and head to the computer to check my email. Since I subscribe to "Inspire Me Today," I always find an inspiring message tucked in among the business messages.

Gail Lynne Goodwin's website and blog is a fountain of inspiration for she broadcasts words of wisdom and encouragement. At the website, you can subscribe to a steady flow of inspiration that arrives daily in your email inbox. If you are like me, you will often click into her website from the message to read more. For me, this little pocket of inspiration launches my day, filling me with determination and enthusiasm.

ADVERTISE

What do you think of when you see the word ADVERTISE?

Do you see a print ad in a newspaper, magazine or phone book? Or maybe you think of those magnetic business signs that folks put on cars. Business cards are another way to get your company name out there. Advertising is an essential business practice.

In the 21st century, you also have to advertise on the web. Early on, one of my mentors told me that I need a cyber-presence and he urged me to get my business website up and running as quickly as possible. Writing a blog like "Inventor Mentor" is another way to have a cyber-presence.

Recently I found my business advertised repeatedly by others on the World Wide Web.

In July I was the featured inventor in the "Flash of Genius" column in the July 2010 issue of the USPTO online newsletter InventorsEye. I wrote about this honor in a previous blog, "Protect Your Ideas."

Then Dane Carlson ran a fabulous vidcast on his blog in a segment called "That's My Business #102." In this 3-minute production, Rich Whittle interviews me about starting my business while pictures of my products appear on the screen as I answered his questions.

And this week, an article about KleenSlate Concepts was featured on the Marquette segment of Examiner.com. This site writes web-based articles related to specific geographic locations, in this case the upper peninsula of Michigan, where my erasers on now being manufactured. The article is called "Back-to-school COOL with KleenSlate (R) Concepts." In this article, my business name and the value of my product is promoted in a region I might not otherwise have been visible.

Advertisement like this is priceless and free. Each piece is unique in tone, emphasis and format thus providing a fresh look at KleenSlate. Best of all, the KleenSlate name is locked into these sites virtually forever and has the potential to come up in web searches for a long time to come.

What do your customers want?

I find it incredibly important to listen to what my customers want. This tactic has served me well in the past to improve my products, packaging, and the specials that I offer.

For example, when I first invented the eraser for dry erase marker, I was listening to potential customers who didn't want to take the time to reach for the block eraser and wanted something on the end of the marker. Later, when I was selling the eraser, teachers started asking about hand-held whiteboards, and that's when I invented the KleenSlate Paddle. When I heard teachers say that they disliked the scent of dry erase markers, I developed a marker without an odor.

I've learned that it is essential to listen to my customers if I want to grow my products and my business. Since my business caters to educators, I plan to take some teachers to lunch in the next few weeks. I've created a list of questions to ask them:

• What are the biggest challenges you have in your classroom?
• What tools do you use that you frequently tell others about?
• What's one thing that's not working in your classroom right now?
• When buying a "widget" tool for your classroom, what features are important to you?
• What annoys you when dealing with suppliers of educational products?
• What's on your wish list?
• If you could invent a product that would make teaching easier, what problem would it solve?

My focus at lunch will be to ask the question and LISTEN to the answers!

What about you? Who do you need to take to lunch to grow your business? What questions will you ask? How can you hone in on what your customers needs?

Book Signing

Last Saturday, we held a book signing to promote The Right Sisters in our local community. We invited family, friends, and business associates and sent a press release to the local newspaper about the event which was held in a coffee house on the main street.

We were delighted with the steady stream of guests who came to wish us well, buy books, and get them signed. Most gratifying, however, was the number of inventors who showed up.

The target audience for The Right Sisters is people who are interested in the inventor's journey, so when these folks arrived in response to the announcement in the newspaper, we knew that we were reaching our intended audience. Some of these inventors had a fledgling idea while others were farther along in the journey. One women told about her mother who had invented a product and applied for the patent but had died unexpectedly. Now the daughter wanted to continue the journey for her mother.

The Right Sisters has the answers these inventors are seeking. They were eager to begin reading the 10 stories told by modern women inventors. For us, talking to other inventors was energizing, so meeting these guests was a reciprocal experience.

Paying for Patent Protection

August is National Inventors Month. In 1998, the United Inventors Association of the USA (UIA-USA), the Academy of Applied Science, and Inventors' Digest magazine initiated a month long event to celebrate invention and creativity.

I found it interesting that during the month that honors inventors, I got a Google alert about a backlog at the US Patent Office that is thwarting inventors' ability to protect their ideas. According to an article on CBS News "the current wait for a patent is, on average, three years, or 36 months."

The consequence of this backlog is that many inventors find their ideas "knocked off" by large prosperous companies. When we interviewed women for The Right Sisters, nine of the ten women had dealt with knock-offs or copies of their products.

The CBS News article goes on to report that the patent office is self-funding, meaning that it operates on the fees charged for patents. The charge for a patent application is around $1000 with a discount for small enterprises. One theory suggests that if fees were higher, thereby increasing the operating budget of USPO, the process would speed up and protection would come more quickly.

This is a crucial IF for independent inventors who operate on a shoestring budget. While we are anxious for protection, we are often dealing with tenuous financial constraints. It's important to recognize that the increase in patent application fees would be added to patent attorney fees that are often necessary to write a strong patent application.

The dilemma this creates for inventors is confusing and difficult to sort out. If you are an inventor, would you be willing to pay higher fees for quicker protection? Why or why not?