Selling or licensing an invention to a company is straightforward, but it is not easy - it requires a lot of hard work and some money. I am going to say it again - file a patent application before disclosing the invention. If you have not filed a patent application, then you must be careful to keep the invention secret. As you can imagine, it can be not easy to promote the sale of an invention while trying to keep it secret. Requiring potential purchasers or inventors to sign confidentiality agreements before revealing details of the invention is quite awkward. Indeed, many companies refuse to sign confidentiality agreements from inventors. Also, many inventors find that companies are much more receptive if the inventor has already taken steps to protect the invention.

Finding a company that is willing to buy the invention is the most challenging aspect of the process. It begins by generating a list of companies that may be interested in the invention. Fortunately, compiling of list of prospective buyers can be done relatively easily. Firstly, identify the type of company that would be interested in the invention. For example, if your invention is a new toothbrush, then any company that manufactures toothbrushes would be an obvious prospect. Also, companies that manufacture products in the same general product line (combs, brushes, razors, toothpaste, dental floss) could be prospects. Now that you know what type of companies might be interested in your invention, how do you find them? You use a business directory. Business directories list companies by the products they manufacture (or services they provide) and include basic information about these companies such as their address, phone and fax number, the name of their president (CEO or owner), the number of employees they have and their estimated annual sales. Copies of these business directories may be found in the business section of the local reference library (just ask the librarian). Various business directories are also available on the Internet.