By Stephen Wunker
New ideas are intoxicating. We think the world should be as enchanted by the concept as we are. If you ever feel this way, think about indoor plumbing. It took over 4,000 years from the invention of indoor plumbing until it caught on during the 19th century. Really, is your new idea better than indoor plumbing?
Indoor plumbing faced some big challenges. It required infrastructure such as sewage systems, and when new systems failed the consequences could get ugly. But the overall idea was pretty stellar. When evaluating the market for an idea, think carefully about factors like dependencies on others, whether decision-makers can act quickly, and the risks of the idea failing. It frequently pays to pick a small market where you can establish a foothold fast, rather than work through major issues in a big market. Patience pays off. if you win in the foothold, you’ll have momentum going into the next target market and will be able to tackle it more speedily.