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Working with Inventors to Enhance
Marketing Efforts
Cathy Cohn
Marketing Specialist
Overview
 Marketing at NIST

NIST’s Portfolio of Technologies

Marketing Campaigns

Tactical Marketing
 Commercial Assessment of Inventions

TEDCO Showcase
Marketing
Marketing is about meeting the needs
and wants of customers
Customer = Licensees, Partners
Look at everything we do through the
eyes of the customer
What We Market, NIST’s Portfolio
Market Areas
» Aerospace
» Agriculture
» Assistive Technologies
» Biotechnology
» Chemical
» Civil Infrastructure
» Communications
» Computing
» Cosmetics
» Defense
» Electronics
» Energy
» Environmental Technologies
» First Responders
» Healthcare
» Homeland Security
» Industrial Processes
» Information Technology
» Instrumentation
» Manufacturing
» Nanotechnology
» Optics
» Refrigeration
» Semiconductor
» Sensors
» Spectroscopy
» X-ray
Marketing Campaigns
Target Approach
 Target specific industry sector(s)

Identify target companies

INVENTOR
 Target the right person within the company

Business development, VP development, product manager

Person differs depending on size of company

INVENTOR
 Initial contact –”cold call”
 Sales presentation –value proposition
 Handle technical questions

INVENTOR
 Follow-up
Marketing Mix
The 4 P's of Marketing

Product – What is the “value proposition” to attract potential
customers?
Connect invention features with benefits
 Should be clear as possible for the technology business audience
 INVENTOR


Promotion – How will you promote the technology to your potential customers?
Personal selling, website, showcase, advertising in the Federal Register, etc.
 INVENTOR -conferences, publications, showcases


Place – Getting the product to the customer


INVENTOR
Price

What price should you expect?
Commercial Assessment of Invention
Disclosures
Review each invention to determine:

Field(s) of use and application(s)?

Target market, names of potential companies?

What problem does the technology solve?

What are the most valuable benefits of the technology?

Is the technology unique? Or do competing technologies provide similar
benefits?

Is the industry large enough?

Who is the competition?

Any regulatory hurtles?

Niches where this technology will be of Interest?

What questions will potential customers ask?
TEDCO Showcase
NIST and NIH
Technology Transfer and Commercialization Showcase
NIH and NIST Technologies
Discover and Commercialize Cutting Edge Bio-Imaging Technologies
Oct 6, 2009 at NIST

Creates awareness of technologies from Maryland’s Federal Labs available
for licensing and/or collaboration

Audience: Business developers, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers,
inventors, education officials, economic and workforce development
professionals
TEDCO Showcase
Day-long event
Formal welcome and keynote speakers
“Fast Pitch” presentations (24 talks, 7 minutes each)
Poster sessions
How to partner with Fed?
Resources
Facility tours
Challenge –Getting the inventors to understand the
audience
Cathy Cohn
Marketing Specialist
[email protected]
301-975-6691