Invention ideas

General Discussion
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Dear Penny

I have several invention ideas that I know would do very well but I have no idea where to start. I’ve had some in the past and never did anything with them and the next thing I knew I see my ideas as products or services being sold to consumers. I don’t want this to happen again. I can’t draw or sketch but I have the ideas in my head. It’s difficult trying to explain to someone else what to capture on paper plus just getting someone to do it, even family. I also want to start my own business but I’m not sure if I should start selling online first or open an actual store. I have a great deal of merchandise to sell already. The Poshmark and other places as such would take forever to go through everything I have. Just looking for the best options.

Thank you

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Hi @keri.stringer.dunaway! We actually have a Dear Penny advice column that we can submit this question to if you’d like. It’s possible that your question will get answered. Would that be OK with you?

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I also want to note that you can remain anonymous if you’d like.

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Yes that would be great! Thank you

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I have had the exact experience with ideas I have had in the past. It definitely isn’t an easy task to bring an invention idea to fruition.

As far as selling stuff goes, online would probably be your best option. It may take a while but it could end up being well worth the effort. The retail world is struggling right now simply because so many have turned to the internet for purchasing things.

I personally prefer selling online because it gives me access to a much broader audience.

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Which online venues do you use or do you have an online store? I’m trying to decide if I’m going to use Facebook, Shopify, Amazon or something else for an online store. I don’t want to use EBay or Etsy. I have posted some items on Poshmark.

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I’ve actually had pretty good luck with Facebook Marketplace.

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@keri.stringer.dunaway I personally do a lot of selling on eBay.

I know Amazon can be a good place to sell but I just haven’t quite gotten the hang of it yet.

Facebook I have only had much luck selling bigger items like furniture.

I had a Shopify store at one point but found it is extremely difficult to get traffic to your site and prefer being on platforms with a built in buyer base. But this can be a good option if you are trying to build a brand name.

Another marketplace that I really enjoyed selling on was Mercari. It was simple to sell stuff on there.

Where you chose to sell depends a lot on what types of items you plan on selling and each platform has its pros and its cons.