Crossing the Chasm, Part 5

The Market Segmentation Forum

OpenView Venture Partners held its Market Segmentation Forum in March to help its portfolio companies solve issues and concerns relating to market segmentation. Market segmentation is afflicts a number of business departments. When you have a technology product, it’s going to sell no matter what (to a reasonable extent), according to popular theory. But eventually sales will drop and begin to approach miniscule numbers. It’s inevitable. This is the sales chasm.

Crossing the sales chasm requires showing that the first sales figures you had – when you were actually selling products – are indicative of a sales trend, instead of anomalies that preceded the inevitable chasm.

Familiarizing yourself with the differences between temporary boosts in sales and long-term, sustainable sales is key to crossing the chasm. Without this knowledge, you’re certain to be misled by the data and fall into the chasm.

Photo by: Jean-Marie Hullot