Inventors Have a New Opportunity to Showcase Their Product on National TV今天非常流行显示为n段ew products but getting selected is about as challenging as creating that gadget you're selling.

ByKedma Ough

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Steve Green

For a majority of hopeful inventors the pursuit of national platforms to showcase their products is often challenged by the high barrier to entry. The exorbitant cost of television advertising can cost companies hundreds-0of-thousands of dollars, making it prohibitively expensive to place your product in front of millions of viewers.

One product scout is changing the game for independent inventors seeking a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase their products on a national network. Steve Greenberg, author ofGadget Nation, is bringing national exposure to cool gadgets that he scouts through leads from trade shows, Twitter, and Facebook. Greenberg showcases the latest gadgets and gizmos, from a clever closet organizer to a high tech intercom, each month on the NBC's Today Show withKathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb

Related:Landing Media Placement for Your Product

The fourth hour ofTodayhosted byKathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb, has been hailed as "appointment television" byEntertainment Weekly, "uproarious and irresistible" byPeople magazine, and "Today's happy hour" byUSA Today。The show has currently posted the most year-to-year growth of any morning or daytime program, up 8 percent in total viewers and 14 percent in the key demographic of adults 25 to 54.

Here are the three tips to getting your product onNBC's Today Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda:

The product must be available for purchase

Any product that is chosen for a television segment of the show must be available for viewers to purchase, either on a website or in a national store chain. There is no minimum required but inventory should be sufficient to meet demand created from the show. Pay careful attention to the need to file any necessarypatents, since the product will be showcased on national television.

Related:How to Succeed at Product Placement Without Celebrities

Relevant to the monthly theme

Steve posts the next month's segment theme onFacebook,Twitterand hiswebsite。万圣节的主题可能是“产品在50美元" or "Gadgets to Help You Cope with the Holidays" or maybe "Gadgets to Help You Keep Your New Years Resolutions." If your product fits the theme then reach out to Steve as he wants to hear from inventors. He makes the point, "please make sure your product is a strong fit for the current theme as if it's a stretch to fit then don't contact me that month." This month Steve is looking for fun, easy-to-demo gadgets that will help viewers keep their New Years Resolutions including losing weight, getting fit, saving money, drinking less, eating out less, reading more, etc.

Do your homework before you pitch Steve

Since there is no advertising charge for products that are chosen for theToday Show with Kathie Lee and Hodasegments it is important to do your homework so you have a chance to have your product selected. When you reach out to Steve send him a few lines about your product, the price, how it fits the segment's theme, a link to the product's website or where it's being sold, and that you found out about this opportunity through this cool article.

Check out some of thepast gadgetsthat have already aired on the show so you can get a sense of the type of products that have already been chosen. Keep in mind Steve gets many submissions monthly and submits the ones he likes to the show's producers whom ultimately pick the final list of which products will appear in Steve's segments. There are no guarantees but by reaching out to Steve there is the potential to get your product on national television where it could be seen by millions of viewers. Make sure you watch Steve inactionpromoting products and if you win a spot, then pay it forward by sharing this opportunity with your fellow inventors. Good Luck!

Related:How to Get Your Product into a Hollywood Movie

Wavy Line
Kedma Ough

Entrepreneur, Inventor, Speaker; SBDC Director

Kedma Ough is a proven champion for small businesses. She is an inventor, author, speaker and a fifth-generation entrepreneur. Ough provides honest, straightforward education to innovators on feasibility, funding and free resources.

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

Money & Finance

Want to Become a Millionaire? Follow Warren Buffett's 4 Rules.

Too many entrepreneurs are counting too heavily on a company exit for their eventual 'win.' Do this instead.

Living

How to Start a 'Million Dollar' Morning Routine

Restructure your morning with a few simple steps that may help to amplify your energy.

Business Solutions

Learn to Program an AI Chatbot for Your Business in This $30 Course

Get back-to-school savings on this AI coding course.

Business News

'Truly Unprecedented': If You Are Hoping to Score a Lionel Messi Soccer Jersey, You Are Going to Wait a Very Long Time

The soccer superstar's authentic Inter Miami jersey is sold out through October.

Business Ideas

55 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2023

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2023.

Thought Leaders

Mark Cuban Says These are the Dumbest Things Entrepreneurs Do

Whatever you do, don't do the first thing on this list. Or the second. Definitely not the third.