“He, too, must cross in the twilight dim; / Good friend, I am building this bridge for him!” – from “The Bridge Builder,” by Will Allen Dromgoole
This week I am continuing to share insights from the recent Economic 2019 event, which included discussion about moving early adopters to a larger audience by focusing on “what’s in it for me?” (or WIFM?) from the customers’ perspective.
This discussion relates to Geoff Moore’s Crossing the Chasm, which identifies a gap in the acceptance curve between early adopters and the early majority. Seth Godin sums up the chasm well in a recent blog post (available HERE):
Early adopters are thrilled by the new. They seek innovation.
Everyone else is wary of failure. They seek trust.
Godin underscores the importance of innovation that is new and trustworthy for widespread acceptance… of innovation that solves problems and provides a reliable story to share in our social circles.
As we wrap-up a year focused on convening business and community leaders to identify problems to solve and opportunities to realize, we are building partnerships, results, and trust among our clients and stakeholders. We are mindful of examining “what’s in it” for those we serve.
You can help us create and share a reliable story about how we work together in Kosciusko County to support our agribusiness and orthopedic sectors, and promote entrepreneurs and placemaking projects, for example. In the end, we are also crossing the chasm to be known for the problems we solve together.
– Alan Tio
