After the NDA—Is it a problem worth solving?

 

By Brad Griffin, VP/Product Development, Practicon, Inc.

In a series of upcoming articles, I’d like to recall and share some of my experiences as a dental product developer since 1987 and some basics about how our own product development process works at Practicon, Inc. Free advice is worth the cost, but maybe something herein will help someone who is equally excited about an idea for a better “mouth” trap.

You’ve executed an NDA with Practicon and/or another potential product development partner. You have our permission to disclose your idea to us. Besides going above and beyond to deserve your trust, Practicon is obligated not to use or share your idea with any other party for the duration of the agreement unless,

1. such information is specifically designated by the inventor as no longer confidential, or;
2. such information is now or becomes publicly known but through no fault of Practicon, Inc., or;
3. a license is granted to Practicon, Inc., or;
4. such information was known to Practicon, Inc. on or before the date Practicon, Inc. obtained such information from the inventor.

Remember that “yes” to an NDA is only agreeing to review the idea, confidentially, for the purposes of determining whether Practicon is a capable manufacturing and marketing partner for that specific concept. An NDA is NOT a commitment by Practicon to follow through all the way to product launch. Until a Product License Agreement (PLA) is signed between the inventor and Practicon, usually at the point where we can see past the obstacles of physics and cost, we do not guarantee that any new idea or product under evaluation or in development will be manufactured, marketed, or sold by Practicon. Similarly, an NDA alone does not bind the inventor to Practicon. While we believe our expertise, cooperation, and assistance sets us apart in dentistry, the inventor is free to submit his/her idea to any other potential development partners at the same time. If the idea progresses within our product development process as far as a proposed PLA, only then would the inventor have to choose and commit to Practicon as the exclusive manufacturer and marketer, or whatever premises and duration the agreement sets forth.

So, what comes after the NDA? Your disclosure itself, a.k.a. the “sales pitch.” It is Practicon's job to sell an inventor on why we are a good choice as a development partner, if we believe we can help. In turn, it is the inventor’s job to sell Practicon on why his/her idea deserves a share of our limited product development and marketing resources. My next article will include a Practivations Questionnaire, a list of questions every inventor should answer about his/her idea as a matter of clarifying its grand purpose (a term you may recall from Article 1), how it works, its uniqueness, its main components, and other details. That information should accompany any sketches, photographs, videos, or samples you will use to disclose your idea to us. The more complete your explanation, the better decision we can make on how to move forward. But before we get to that detailed list of questions, let’s look at the first and most important product development question of all: Does it solve a problem worth solving? 

James Dyson, the brilliant mind behind Dyson products, built a $5 billion company on “solving problems others have ignored.” Any inventor, engineer, and designer with a dream of seeing his/her idea become a reality should enjoy studying Sir Dyson and his company. I am proud to say Practicon has had a similar philosophy going back to 1982. As a small family business, our survival depended on being different and not “swimming with the sharks.” On a much smaller scale than Dyson, in an industry serving a professional population less than most capital cities, Practicon found a home focusing on “Practical Innovations for Dentistry.” In other words, we have succeeded by focusing on products that provide unique solutions to common problems in dentistry, problems worth solving. The degree to which an idea aligns with that focus governs whether we pursue a new product concept at all.

For Practicon at least, what is a problem worth solving? Consider these questions:

1) Is the problem specific to your own technique or practice, your patient demographics, your specialty, or dentistry in general? The broader, larger, or more common the problem, the better.

2) Does the problem already have one or several perfectly acceptable solutions? The more ignored, unaddressed the problem, the better.

3) Can the proposed solution and the need for it be understood on a basic level with simple graphics, photography, and a headline in a matter of seconds, or would it require a 30-minute demonstration? The easier and faster it can be understood, the better.

In summary, a “problem worth solving” for Practicon is usually a problem common in dentistry, typically underappreciated, and quickly communicable through visual media. We don’t have a Practicon Product Hall of Fame, but if we did, the inductees would have one thing in common: they solve a problem worth solving.

If you are reading this without a product idea poised for submission, and no hope for such, let me share this story: I remember when I was a “junior” product developer, maybe 10 years old, sitting among a pile of magnets, coil springs, coat hangers, and blocks of wood declaring that everything that could be invented had already been invented. I’ve since read of similar declarations going back to 1899. To believe that to be true, one would have to believe that every challenge and problem facing humankind has been solved. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. And often, the most common problems are the simplest problems. If I had the chance, I would ask you what small problems plague your practice every day. What one annoyance or stumbling block which, if eliminated or minimized, would have an immediate, positive impact on your practice productivity, patient care, profitability, and professional enjoyment? Or dare I say, the world?

Sometimes we compensate for little problems in our daily routines in ways we do not even realize. Open your eyes to those things and take a closer look. As a non-dental example, if you never lost your car keys again, would that make a positive difference in your life? Could that problem be as easy to solve as putting a hook by the door? (Note to self: stop by hardware store on the way home.) There are lots of key hooks out there already, but the inventors of the Tile® wireless key finder took this simple problem seriously. They decided this was a problem worth solving! Apply that thought to your dental practice and see what pops up (and don’t forget to write it down ASAP).

In our next article, I’ll provide the Practivations Questionnaire, a helpful next step on the path of discovery that hopefully leads to a successful product. If you’d like to receive links to these articles regularly, please let us know by subscribing here: www.practicon.com/practivations. Otherwise look for future articles on our website under the Practivations tab at the bottom of our home page at: www.practicon.com.

Next up: Practivations Article 5: The Practivations Questionnaire

Practicon was founded in 1982 with a vision of advancing dental health and increasing practice success through improving patient education. Building on a mission to Make Dentistry Better, we have grown to become a trusted developer and marketer of “Practical Innovations” that provide effective solutions for common problems, sold alongside a growing line of brand-name supplies. Customers describe Practicon’s products as creative, unique, and hard-to-find, many inspired or designed by dental professionals looking to improve patient care and productivity. Our product development mission is to develop exciting products that are relevant and useful in everyday practice—or in short, practical innovations.