Scale

The Indestructible Moat In 2016, Instagram launched “Stories.” It was a carbon copy of Snapchat. Snapchat had the innovation. They invented the format. But Instagram won. Why? Because Instagram had the Network. Your friends were already on Instagram. You didn’t want to open a second app just to post a disappearing photo. Features are cheap. Any developer can copy your code in a month. But nobody can copy your user base. This is why Network Effects are the ultimate defense. ...

The Technology Adoption Curve Most Product Managers know the standard Bell Curve of adoption: Innovators (2.5%): Tech enthusiasts who try code on GitHub just for fun. Early Adopters (13.5%): Visionaries looking for a competitive advantage. Early Majority (34%): Pragmatists looking for a solution to a problem. Late Majority (34%): Conservatives who buy only when forced. Laggards (16%): Skeptics (User who still buy CDs). We assume this is a smooth curve. You slide from one group to the next. Geoffrey Moore pointed out that it is not smooth. There is a massive crack—a Chasm—between the Early Adopters and the Early Majority. ...