Early adopters, eager experimenters who embrace innovative products and services promptly, will go to no end of trouble to introduce a worthwhile product or service into the marketplace. This gesture says plenty about taking the entrepreneur within the vicinity of success.
Entrepreneurs can only reflect credit on their efforts if they talk to the right customers for their innovative products. Customers range from those who are ecstatic for any innovation to those who are very conservative and reluctant to try new things. The chances of successfully marketing an innovative product become brighter on account of identifying the early adopters, those who like trying new things with the hope of discovering something that performs a task better. These early adopters are often opinion leaders, industry luminaries, business experts, company groundbreakers, trade journal writers, and media and wall street analysts. In the same run of things, they are eager to get on for the new thing that will enhance performance. Likewise, they are capable of accelerating the introduction of a new product in the marketplace by influencing others to buy.
To get new products over to customers with speed, entrepreneurs should aim at identifying and working with early adopters in their market. To fit themselves for success, entrepreneurs should endeavour to find early adopters by inquiring within their industry about companies and individuals who like to try new things. Additionally, making a list of luminaries, trade journal writers, consultants and media people who are interested in developments in your industry or business area is also of benefit. Furthermore, monitoring who attends trade shows and asking those who are knowledgeable about your industry for information concerning companies and individuals who have an appetite for trying new things serves a similar purpose.
After identifying the early adopters, the next step is to bring your product to their attention. In this regard, it is helpful to highlight product advantages and benefits. Effective entrepreneurs do this by allowing to burst upon the sight of the early adopters the details of how the product will improve performance for them. As well, the entrepreneur should open to the view of early adopters how a given product will enhance lifestyle or workstyle. With such details, the early adopters can appreciate how the new product might make things easier, faster or more effective. By offering warranties, guarantees and money-back assurances, innovative entrepreneurs encourage the early adopters to become more venturesome in trying the new products. Along with the others, it is also effective to mention the consequences of not using the product, the foregone benefits.
Allowing for personal expression, the innovative entrepreneur not only integrates a broad spectrum of skills and personalities but also makes plans for contacting and engaging with early adopters in the industry. The entrepreneur wends his or her way to coordinate teams of original thinkers. Thus, the effective entrepreneur places a lot of premium on excellence, passion for learning and the ability to work with others when recruiting. When the entrepreneurial or innovative spirit runs high across the rank and file of a company, then the entrepreneur is truly orchestrating talent. This entrepreneurial state of mind is akin to the excitement of locating and engaging with early adopters in an industry. To ensure that the company feels entrepreneurial for his or her talented staff, the entrepreneur intentionally holds back his or her ego in order to allow a gifted subordinate to shine.
In assembling diverse teams of people, working with and through others, adding value without being totally in charge, coaching and developing others without hijacking the work and demonstrating a willingness to share the credit, innovative entrepreneurs make room for learning. They welcome learning from customers, suppliers, competitors, employees and associates. As they embrace the wisdom of learning, they jettison the fallacy of knowing. With that attitude, they create a learning organisation by setting explicit learning objectives for their staff and organisation. Leaning on the information and ideas gained from learning, they effectively respond to and anticipate customers through innovative goods and services. Amazon’s personalised services is an adaptation from learning about customer nature, preferences and needs. Their creativity and innovation are what sparks the excitement of early adopters. A willingness to admit wrongdoing, engage with a regular feedback process, appraise strengths and weaknesses, take responsibility for one’s actions, learn from one’s mistakes and those of others hallmarks entrepreneurs of learning and gets the eyes of early adopters.
