The key to moving beyond one’s initial target niche is to select strategic target market segments to begin with. That is, target a segment that, by virtue of its other connections, creates an entry point into one or more adjacent segments.

For all these reasons—for whole product leverage, for word-of-mouth effectiveness, and for perceived market leadership—it is critical that, when crossing the chasm, you focus exclusively on achieving a dominant position in one or two narrowly bounded market segments. If you do not commit fully to this goal, the odds are overwhelmingly against your

It is extremely difficult to cross the chasm in a consumer market. Almost all successful crossings happen in business markets, where the economic and technical resources can absorb the challenges of an immature product and service offering.

The critical attitude to maintain in all four of these challenges is that chasm crossing represents a unique time in your enterprise’s history. It is a far cry both from your past, where selling to visionaries was the key to success, and your future, which will be focused on either niche or mass-market expansion programs. Between these two stages i