The Types of Customers and What You Need to Know About Them

There are five distinct categories of customers when launching a technology product:

Target-Customer Characterisation: Build detailed personas, including demographics, industry, job role, and pain points.
Market Development Strategy Checklist: Evaluate potential segments based on:
Show-stoppers:
Is there a clear economic buyer?
Is there a compelling reason to buy?
Can a whole product solution be delivered within 3–12 months?
Has another company already solved this problem?

Nice-to-haves:

Innovators (Technology Enthusiasts): The first to adopt new technology. They appreciate technology for its own sake, want access to the development team, and expect low prices.
Early Adopters (The Visionaries): Match new technology with strategic opportunities. They are looking for breakthroughs and are willing to deal with early-stage flaws if it means gaining a competitive edge.
Early Majority (The Pragmatists): The largest segment of the market. They are risk-averse and want reliable, high-quality products from reputable companies.
Late Majority: Similar to the Early Majority but even more cautious. They wait until technology becomes a standard and prefer purchasing from established companies.
Resistant to new technology. While they are not a primary focus, their influence within organisations can block sales.

The Traditional Approach and Why It Doesn't Work

Companies traditionally assume a smooth transition from one customer group to the next, using success stories from earlier groups to persuade later ones. However, this approach has two major pitfalls:

The Crack Between Innovators and Early Adopters: Innovators adopt technology based on functionality alone, whereas Early Adopters need clear benefits tied to a strategic opportunity.
The Chasm Between Early Adopters and the Early Majority: The largest obstacle. Early Adopters take risks and embrace change, whereas the Early Majority values stability and proven solutions. Marketing to the Early Majority like they are Early Adopters leads to failure.

The D-Day Analogy

Moore compares crossing the chasm to the Allied invasion of Normandy:

The long-term goal is mainstream market dominance.
The competition is an entrenched competitor.
The invasion force consists of new products and services.
The transition point is the chasm (gap between Early Adopters and Early Majority).
The first market segment is the beachhead.
After securing the beachhead, expansion occurs into adjacent markets.

To execute this strategy, companies must:

Target the attack.
Assemble an invasion force.
Define the battle.
Launch the invasion.

Target the Attack

To succeed early, companies must focus their efforts on a highly specific niche where they can dominate quickly. This decision should be guided by informed intuition and a strategic evaluation process.

1. Characterise the Target Customer
Develop detailed personas to define your ideal customer. This should include:

Demographics (age, location, etc.)
Industry or sector
Job role and responsibilities
Specific pain points and challenges

2. Use the Market Development Strategy Checklist
Evaluate potential market segments using the following criteria:

Show-Stoppers (essential for success):

Is there a clear economic buyer?
Is there a compelling reason to buy?
Can a whole product solution be delivered within 3–12 months?
Has another company already solved this problem effectively?

Nice-to-Haves (supporting factors):

Do partnerships exist to complete the solution?
Is a viable sales channel available?
Is the pricing aligned with customer expectations?
Is the company perceived as a credible provider in this niche?

3. Prioritise Execution Over Perfection
The most critical success factor is winning the chosen niche, not picking the perfect one. Speed of execution and early dominance are more valuable than exhaustive analysis.

Assemble an Invasion Force

To cross the chasm, companies must offer a whole product—a fully functional solution that meets all the needs of the Early Majority. This requires:

Generic Product: The core offering.
Expected Product: What the customer assumes they are buying.
Augmented Product: Additional features that enhance usability and satisfaction.
Potential Product: Future growth and expansion opportunities.

Early Majority buyers will not tolerate incomplete solutions. Companies may need alliances and partnerships to ensure their product meets market expectations.

Define The Battle

To appeal to the Early Majority, companies must shift from product-centric attributes (e.g., fastest, most powerful) to market-centric attributes (e.g., most widely adopted, industry standard).

A strong positioning statement should follow this format:

For (target customers)
Who are dissatisfied with (current market alternative)
Our product is a (new product category)
That provides (key problem-solving capability)
Unlike (product alternative)
We have assembled (key whole product features for the specific market)

Launch the Invasion

The final steps involve distribution and pricing:

Distribution: Choose a short-term channel that Early Majority customers trust (often direct sales in B2B markets).
Pricing: Set a price that signals market leadership, not early-stage experimentation.

Conclusion

To successfully cross the chasm, companies must abandon traditional marketing assumptions and tailor their approach to the Early Majority. This requires: