I am so lost about licensing.

[Twiizlar]

Ok so I have this idea and its in the food/drink business. I dont really wanna give out my idea but i have to prepackage something. My idea would be about the packaging. What does it take to get a company to license my product. For example, say i want to prepackage a hamburger that all you have to do is warm up and eat. What would it take to call up mcdonalds or wendeys and ask them (BTW this isnt my idea). I was thinking maybe you have to have sales and patents or something idk.

 

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[Vigilante]

edited to delete my own stupid soap box post that didn't apply to the original question.

 

[Vigilante]

By the way... if your last name is Patel you should be in the hotel business.

 

[Twiizlar]

I dont get what you mean by write them a check. Arnt we coming up with the ideas and they are writing us a check? Also am i supposed to call customer service because i cant find any other number. And if i have to what do i ask?

 

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[PatrickP]

I dont get what you mean by write them a check. Arnt we coming up with the ideas and they are writing us a check? Also am i supposed to call customer service because i cant find any other number. And if i have to what do i ask?

I am not understanding this either.

You have an idea for a package which you would sell to mcdonalds right?

 

[Twiizlar]

That was just an example. I was trying to explain my idea without giving it away.

 

[Mike39]

I dont get what you mean by write them a check. Arnt we coming up with the ideas and they are writing us a check? Also am i supposed to call customer service because i cant find any other number. And if i have to what do i ask?

Your bringing them an idea that will make them money! you are making money for them like you are writing the check they will be getting from using your idea!

 

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[PatrickP]

That was just an example. I was trying to explain my idea without giving it away.

No I 100% understand you post.

I don't understand how vigilantes post applies to the question you asked in your original post.

 

[PatrickP]

Your bringing them an idea that will make them money! you are making money for them like you are writing the check they will be getting from using your idea!

No I think Vigilante is talking about if you go to Donald Trump and say you want to use his name on a shirt and you will pay him X% for every shirt you sell.

The OP is talking about selling an idea to McDonalds for a new way to package a product. They would pay the OP and then it is theirs to use as they like.

 

[Vigilante]

LOL. I might have totally missed your point! Wouldn't be the first time. I was assuming you wanted to license something FROM them. If you want to license TO them, the sequence would be similar though. So you want to license your packaging idea TO them? That is a tough proposition. Not impossible, but tough. In that case, you would absolutely want to have a patented idea FIRST. You have intellectual property to protect. You can't sell them an IDEA. You have to sell them a process, a protected technology or system, or something tangible. Selling an idea is abstract, and at a minimum would have to be an idea that was insulated by a patent.

Sorry for the soap box above. I thought you wanted to license a brand or someone else's intellectual property. (patrick was right as to how he interpreted my original, now deleted response). You want them to license from you. That is WAY harder if you are starting with an idea, and nothing more. That's a long road that I have never travelled.

Hopefully someone can come along that can help you better get started down that path.

 

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[Vigilante]

When contacting a company, NEVER waste your time calling customer service. If it is a publicly traded company, look up their stock profile on Yahoo Finance. Start at the very top of the company, with the CEO's office or office of one of their executives, which you can get on their company profile in Yahoo Finance. If you start at the bottom, you will maybe NEVER get up the ladder. If you start at the very top, you will almost always get immediately referred to the right internal decision maker.

 

[PatrickP]

LOL. I might have totally missed your point! Wouldn't be the first time. I was assuming you wanted to license something FROM them. If you want to license TO them, the sequence would be similar though. So you want to license your packaging idea TO them? That is a tough proposition. Not impossible, but tough. In that case, you would absolutely want to have a patented idea FIRST. You have intellectual property to protect. You can't sell them an IDEA. You have to sell them a process, a protected technology or system, or something tangible. Selling an idea is abstract, and at a minimum would have to be an idea that was insulated by a patent.

Sorry for the soap box above. I thought you wanted to license a brand or someone else's intellectual property. You want them to license from you. That is WAY harder if you are starting with an idea, and nothing more. That's a long road that I have never travelled.

Hopefully someone can come along that can help you better get started down that path.

Well I for one am glad you missed the point because you SURE opened my eyes to something I never knew much if anything about.

I get the feeling you could EASILY write a book on your experiences and be able to sell quite a few copies.

If you ever do PLEASE post about it here and feel free to send me a PM I get the idea I would learn more from that one book than in years of searching.

Thanks!

 

[BeingChewsie]

When contacting a company, NEVER waste your time calling customer service. If it is a publicly traded company, look up their stock profile on Yahoo Finance. Start at the very top of the company, with the CEO's office or office of one of their executives, which you can get on their company profile in Yahoo Finance. If you start at the bottom, you will maybe NEVER get up the ladder. If you start at the very top, you will almost always get immediately referred to the right internal decision maker.

Yes. If you have trouble getting a number, try investor relations, they always seem to be able to get us in touch with the right people.

Sue

 

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[DeletedUser2]

we have licensed products out, and are just finishing licensing a product IN.

having been on both sides of the fence, I suggest you start with Stephen Keys "one simple idea"
he is on this forum and often will respond to questions directly.

if you are putting a product out,
try to aim for non exclusivity if you can.

or make them pay for that.
always get something up front. even if its an advance against royalties.


IF your are licensing something to sell, most wont want to give you exclusivity so aim for a "ramp" period. we just got a 18 month ramp for a product, where we have a couple channels (internet, tv radio and direct mail) meaning they wont license to any new people while we ramp those channels. however we are not protected on retail wholesale or other channels.

if its an idea, a provisional patent will protect you long enough to get it to the markets and determine if its viable. if you get a licensor to take it, you can file the final patents.

go get the book, will short cut all the "what if"

 

[Eskil]

zen******* - what is Stephen's username on here?

 

[Graham Chong]

zen******* - what is Stephen's username on here?

StephenKey

 

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