Inventors: Strike Back
By Jeffrey Dobkin
Invention marketing companies rip off inventors on quite a regular basis.
Here’s the problem: Inventors are a scattered bunch. You can be an inventor in any industry, any field, at any level – or no industry at all. You can be a stay-at-home “mom” inventor, or work at a bank, in a butcher shop, or a library. You can be an astronaut, a chemical engineer, or a school secretary. Inventors are having great ideas everywhere you can imagine – and more…!
When you get scammed by a phony invention marketer who do you complain to? There’s no one.
The government listens to complaints of inventors and doesn’t do much. But they do have this form you can fill out (after all, it is the government) and if they get enough forms they eventually go after the firm that was ripping off huge numbers of inventors.
They also post complaints online, and the letters they send to the phony firms.
The prudent inventor will guard himself or herself against these kinds of firm, but frankly it can be tough. Some firms have very smooth talking sales people, and principals who can talk the eyes off a potato – so when a new inventor shows up they can be easy pray. The firms have done it thousands of times, while each inventor is new to the game.
Here’s my advice:
If you get stung by a sleazy firm, the rule is “He who makes the loudest noise wins.” Write a lot of letters to different government offices and government officials. Write to radio stations and newspapers. Post regularly online in review groups and complaint sites. Keep doing it until the group realizes you’re not going away quietly and it won’t be worth it to keep your money.
Their path of least aggravation is not keeping your money, they’ll talk. It can be done, and it’s hard – but stay with it until you get a full refund.
Here’s one of the complaint forms you can fill out and send to the USPTO. Click HERE to download this PDF form.