What does it take to protect your brilliant business ideas?

Whether it’s a book you write to take the literary world by storm or an app to replace Instagram or Lyft, you know you have the perfect business idea, but you’re afraid someone may steal it. Your intellectual property is your most valuable asset, but sadly it doesn’t have protection, you safeguard it only by the way you express it.

Think twice before you share your ideas with someone because even pros have their ideas stolen. Steve Bank, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur with over 20-years experience in the industry, who founded and worked with eight startups during his career, had his ideas stolen twice. The first time, it wasn’t very bothering, but the second it could have damaged his career. He presented his idea to a VP from a marketing company in Silicon Valley, who stole it and presented it as his own.

The VP even started a new company based on the marketing automation solution Steve Bank created. 

Stress no more. Follow some simple guidelines to make sure you protect your business idea properly. And before you dive into the article, remember that it’s always best to get legal advice before sharing your idea with someone else. 

Don’t allow your fear control your actions

Before discovering other methods to protect your idea from theft, let’s make something clear. Fear is your worst enemy in the business world, even more significant than theft. Yes, the horror story from above, and all the other ones you may have heard are a cause for concern, but the crippling fear of sharing it with possible investors is even more dangerous. 

Inventors seem to be the most afraid experts out there because they’re always worried that someone will steal their million-dollar ideas. 

Assuming that there is someone who is eagerly waiting for you to share your idea to steal, it can rip you off. This presumption is not only overwhelming, but it can also prove counterproductive. This doesn’t mean you should openly share your concept to anyone. But instead of being afraid, people plan to steal it, take actions to protect it and give you the comfort to share it with possible investors and business partners. 

Crucial steps to protect your business idea

Most times theft comes from your closed ones

Most people imagine the horror story Blank shared is the classic scenario for people stealing your idea, but the truth is, the reality is different. In fact, business founders shouldn’t be afraid that investors steal their ideas, because most business people receive investment proposals from many inventors daily, and they don’t use their time to exploit each of them. Most times, an idea is worth nothing when you have no idea how to execute it. The execution is the one that attracts money. 

Presenting your idea to a VP would offer them only the high-level details of the business. For example, Blank didn’t have to search for legal support because the way he executed the idea put his company ahead of the one the VP created. 

But your partners, employees, and co-founders have access to all the details and are the real threat to your idea. They know the execution plan, so it’s vital to protect the essential details of the business. 

Talk to a legal expert and get your documents in order

Have an attorney go over your idea and identify the aspects that can be patented, trademarked or copyrighted. The first step is to get the people who work with you on the business idea, to sign non-disclosure and non-compete agreements to make sure they won’t steal the idea once they know how to execute it. The agreements prevent your co-founders from selling the proprietary knowledge or walking away with the concept and taking competitive advantage of their knowledge. 

You may not realise that under the law, by default, you own the copyright to anything you create. So if one of them creates a piece of your business idea, they own the copyrights. Surprisingly, even if they work for your company, you don’t own the copyright to the features they create. But a patent and trade mark attorney can help you get the right documents in place so your employees not to walk away with your vital assets and information. 

The paperwork also boosts trust between your co-founders and employees, and you. At first glance, the documents may seem a sign of mistrust, but at a professional level involving an attorney improves trust. Mistrust powers theft because the employees or other co-founders may think someone from the team can sell the idea. But the documentation assures them they’re protected from this scenario.  

Look for red flags when you pick collaborators

When you look for investors or even for new employees, pay attention to red flags. Are there complaints on the public record from other people who worked with them? Any disgruntled partners? Are other companies claiming the investors stole their ideas? Can you identify any warning signs in their employment history?

For each individual, you share your idea with, run background checks. Your attorney can ensure you’re protected from a legal standpoint, but it’s best to be careful. You don’t want to work with someone who makes a legal battle necessary, even if the chances for you to win it are good. 

Work on ideas difficult to copy

On a strategic level, all the above protection tips are useless if your idea is easy to copy. At this point, almost any concept can be reserve engineered on some level, but the details make the difference. So when you work on a new project, try to find an idea people find difficult to copy. Looking for a concept impossible to copy is counterproductive because there is not such a thing. 

You have the first-mover advantage because your competitors will need time to catch up with your advances. The business ideas that succeed are the ones who understand their strengths and weaknesses and are covered by legal protection. To be a winner, you must realize that documents protect your business model.