Crossing the Chasm

Most technology products fail to cross the “chasm” – to move from early adopters to a mass audience.

To remain competitive, companies must market new technology properly to key audiences. While non-tech US companies often market their products successfully, why have so many high-tech products disappeared – presumably as a result of marketing failures?

The answer partially lies in finding the right market. Many technology products fail to make the transition from a few early adopters to a larger audience that has very different concerns. Marketers may assume this transition will be seamless, but it is a huge “chasm” and crossing it is so dangerous that it is the main reason tech companies falter.

To survive this transition from serving a fad to feeding a trend, high-tech marketing’s challenge is to manage the fad successfully and then turn it into a trend. This is how many successful high-tech products have been launched. Without the acceptance of a wide market beyond early adopters, the product will fail, so this transition from the esoteric to the mainstream is critical.

To reap the benefits of navigating this bridge successfully, a company must...