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Innovatie en economie - Diffusion of innovations

4 important questions on Innovatie en economie - Diffusion of innovations

In which factors does the way an innovation spreads through the population depend?

The characteristics of the innovation itself
The personal characteristics of the adopters or customers
The communication channels through which they learn about and evaluate the innovation
Change Agents = people such as teachers, consultants, public health workers and sales people, who help adopters to get the grips with the innovation

Which 5 characteristics of innovation have a powerful effect on how quickly and readily the innovation is adopted?

Relative advantage - the extent to which the innovation is perceived ad being better than what preceded it
Compatibility - how well the innovation fits with existing habits or expectations
Complexity - innovation that are perceived as complicated or difficult to use are adopted slowly
Trialability - new products are more readily adopted if there is an easy way for customers to try them out before purchasing
Observability - the degree to which the results of an innovation are observable to others

How does the adoption life cycle influence marketing theory and practice?

Companies will adapt their marketing and sales strategy according to their estimate of the state of the cycle. Moreover, Geoffrey Moore recognized that the transition from one adopter category to another can be problematic, particularly in technology-based markets.

What is "Moore's Chasm"?

This is the difficulty of the transition between the Early Adopters and the Early Majority. Early Adopters are interested in innovations that will give them serious competitive advantage. The Early Majority, on the other hand, will be seeking to make an improvement in their business, not a revolution and being practical they will demand hard proof that an innovation can deliver it. Companies have to make special efforts to cross the chasm into the mainstream markets.