“If You Build a Better Mousetrap, The World Will Beat a Path To Your Door”
Building a Better Mousetrap That is Profitable
“If You Build a Better Mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door.” American philosopher, Ralph Waldo Emerson is credited with that famous line from the nineteenth century.
However, as legend has it, he never said those exact words. Ralph Waldo Emerson actually stated the following:
“If a man has good corn or wood, or boards, or pigs, to sell, or can make better chairs or knives, crucibles or church organs, than anybody else, you will find a broad hard-beaten road to his house, though it be in the woods.”
“Build a Better Mousetrap” just sounds catchier and flows easier.
Anyway, as the point remains, build a better product above the competition and customers will line up. Profits will pour in. If it were only that easy though.
Building a better mousetrap is a massive accomplishment. Creating a sustainable and profitable business model is a whole other story.
Side note: If you enjoy reading inspirational books and want to go “old school”, check out Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “We Are the Builders of Our Fortunes: Success through Self-Reliance.” Especially if you need a motivational boost with your new product. We strongly recommend it.
95% Fail or 5% Success
Creating and inventing a new product is tough. The process is certainly not for the weary. According to Harvard Business Professor Clayton Christensen, 30,000 new products are launched each year. Of those, 95% of new products fail! That is a crazy statistic.
You may actually face better odds of survival going over Niagara Falls than successfully establishing a new product.
With such a high fail rate, why do inventors and innovators even attempt to fall in the successful 5%?
Ego? Delusion? Determination? Fame and fortune?
Typically everyone thinks they have created the “better mousetrap”. Surely, no one goes into new product development expecting to join the 95% failure club.
To be successful, you need to put the odds in your favor by exhausting due diligence. Gathering every resource in your corner to achieve success.
Persistence and Determination
Over the years, we have worked closely with a wide variety of companies that have internally engineered new electrical products (better mousetraps).
Areas that our team focuses on include the following: Wire Harness Assemblies. Ground Straps. Commercial Power Strips. Printed Circuit Boards.
We have made lots and lots of prototypes for customers over the years. Throughout our experience, a common phrase heard from engineers, “Going back to the drawing board”.
Yet, this just means that the person or company continues striving for perfection. Making the PERFECT mousetrap.
From our experience, persistence and sheer determination are two ingredients required to launch a successful product.
We thought you might enjoy this quick video explaining the “Build a Better Mousetrap” concept:
Finally, as you strive to bring your “better mousetrap” to market, surround yourself with experts that contribute greatly to your cause. Seasoned veterans who have been there before. Trained guides familiar with the challenging terrain. Individuals committed to your success.
Thank you for reading our post on “Building a Better Mousetrap”. This blog kicks off our series on developing a new product in electronics. Please check back each week for more info.
Let’s Connect
To learn more about Ground Straps and the Wire Harness Assembly process, please click on the links below:
