Sales Models, Metrics, and Motions Blog

The Dance Party That "Crossed the Chasm"

by Matt Bertuzzi on Thu, Jun 11, 2009


I have never seen a better way to illustrate the technology adoption lifecycle than the silly video of people dancing below.

It's just over 3 minutes, but worth the view. Feel free to jump around every 30 seconds or so to save time. Here's a short synopsis:

  • "Crazy Guy #1" awkwardly dances alone at a music festival
  • 19 seconds later, "Also-Crazy Guy #2" joins in
  • 60 seconds later, there are 16 dancers
  • After 2:30 there is a 100+ person dance party
     

The technology adoption lifecycle aka Rogers curve aka the Crossing the Chasm chart:

Here are some of my notes (best effort here folks) on how the people participating in the dance party match up to the adoption lifecycle.


 

Innovators

Guys 1 & 2

0:01-0:54

No fear of going it alone

Early Adopters

Dancers 3-18

0:55-1:25

See the potential and aren't afraid to step forward

Early Majority

Dancers 19-60

1:26-2:00

Feel that something is starting to happen & want to be part of it

Late Majority

Dancers 61-100

2:01-2:30

Notice that something is happening & don't want to miss out

Laggards

 

Dancers 101-120+

2:31-3:00

Literally arriving as the song is ending

 

Note: Seth Godin beat me to the post on this one. But he didn't use charts! Seth argues that:

...it's guy #3 who made it a movement.

But what do you think? Does "the Chasm" notion still hold up?

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