The Market for the Product

Definition of the market for this product: (Identify the groups of users, the geography, the problem to be solved and the way it is solved by the invention)

1. How readily visible are one or more applications for this invention in the commercial market? How valuable will the user consider this invention in meeting a need? How readily does the user recognize the need for this invention?

(1) There are no clearly visible applications for this invention.

(5) There is at most one visible application and it appears to be useful in meeting a user need and the user can readily recognize the need for this invention.

(10) There are multiple applications for this invention, more than one appears to be useful in meeting a user need and the user can readily recognize the need for these applications.

2. (MOA) What can we conclude from evaluating the positive and negative factors of industry health and industry trends?

(1)The dominant factors are negative and point to an industry that is not likely to be receptive to the introduction of this product.

(5) While there are some negative factors, the positive factors are of such significance that a cautious but forward approach is warranted.

(10) The industry factors are overwhelmingly positive with respect to growth and receptivity of new products and companies.

3. (MOA) What is the readiness of the market for this invention? To what extent will market development activities be needed to find and educate the users of this solution?

(1) Extensive market development activities will be required that will require substantial investment over a long period of time before meaningful penetration is possible.

(5) Market development activities will be required but the need for this invention and the readiness of the market is such that penetration can begin early in the life of the product and can grow rapidly.

(10) There is immediate readiness for this invention, the users are easily located and education of the users is minimal.

4. (MOA) How established is the business model for this product?

(1) There are no comparative pricing models, no established distribution channels, and no supporting promotional infrastructure for this product.

(5) This product requires inventing some business model rules but their similarity to existing pricing, distribution and promotion practices gives us confidence that a workable business model can be established.

(10) The business model elements for this product are well established or can be patterned after elements that have been proven to be successful.

5. To what extent are product line extensions possible for this product? (Example: engineering changes to address a different application area)

(1) This product is a one configuration/one application item that does not allow for extension.

(5) This product is derived from a platform that will allow extensions but the extensions are limited in number and the engineering/marketing costs are moderately attractive compared to the expected benefit.

(10) This product is derived from a platform that will allow a wide range of extensions at attractive engineering/marketing costs relative to the expected benefit.

6. (MOA) To what extent is this invention dependent on other products, technologies or organizations that are out of our control and could limit our success?

(1) There is substantial dependency on others and substantial risk that the dependency could stop our progress or ultimately cause our failure.

(5) There is a significant level of dependency on others but we believe the dependency is manageable such that no one point of dependency is substantial enough to cause our failure.

(10) There is little or no dependency on others and we believe there are virtually no other forces other than our own execution that will control our success.

7. (MOA) What is the size and growth rate of the market for the identified applications?

(1) The market appears to be less than $50 million per year in combined sales of all competitors or aggregate demand from all users who are capable and can be expected to purchase in any year and the growth rate appears to be less than 5% per year.

(5) The market appears to be between $50 million and $1 billion per year and appears to be growing at 5%-10% per year.

(10) The market appears to be larger than $1 billion per year with growth in excess of 10% per year.

8. (MOA) What will the position of this product be relative to other competitors offering solutions with similar products and competitors offering alternative solutions?

(1) There is a large competitive offering in the market. The competitors are entrenched. There is intense price competition. Our product offers no significant competitive advantages. The expectation is that this product would be one of several occupying a small position in the market. There are no substantial barriers to entry.

(5) There are a number of competitors who are prospering by meeting the growing needs of the market. Pricing is not one of the primary competitive levers. This product offers substantial competitive advantages that can be proven and will be recognized by the user. The expectation for this product is that it would not be one of the dominant players but could be a second or third level player. There are barriers to entry but they are neither an advantage nor a disadvantage to us.

(10) This market is not dominated by any single competitor or group of competitors. The product offers major competitive advantages that are easily recognized by the user. The product stands a reasonable chance of being a first tier player. There are barriers to entry that act to our advantage.

9. (MOA) What is the size of investment required to launch and to sustain the expected growth? How quickly can the results of this investment start to occur?

(1) The required investment exceeds our funding ability. From first investment in marketing, we expect more than one year to be needed before significant revenue is realized.

(5) The required investment is within our funding ability but substantially greater funding than planned could be required. We expect to realize significant revenue 6-12 months from first investment in marketing.

(10) The required investment is within our funding ability and we have the reserves to make additional investments if necessary. We expect to realize significant revenue 3-6 months from first investment in marketing.

10. (MOA) How many sales and marketing personnel are required, how difficult will it be to train them and how readily can they be deployed?

(1) In excess of 100 sales people will be required, substantial technical training will be required and they must be deployed quickly in order to meet our revenue plans.

(5) 50-100 sales people will be required, technical training should be possible in a manageable time and we believe the deployment can be accomplished in an orderly and acceptable manner to meet revenue targets.

(10) Fewer than 50 sales people will be required, technical training is not expected to present a problem and deployment is considered a low risk in impacting revenue targets.