Table of contents
Crossing the Chasm is a 1991 book by Geoffrey Moore about why high-tech products often sell well to enthusiasts and then stall. Moore’s argument is that the gap between early adopters and the mainstream is the most dangerous point in a product’s life, and that you cross it by picking one narrow beachhead segment, building the complete product for it, and expanding from there. This page summarises the framework, applies it to B2B marketing, and sets out where it is contested.
Correct as of 27 October 2026.
The adoption life cycle
Moore builds on the five adopter categories from Everett Rogers’s diffusion curve. The shares and motivations below follow Warren Schirtzinger’s summary:
| Segment | Share of market | Why they buy |
|---|---|---|
| Innovators | 2.5% | Validate what the technology can do |
| Early adopters | 13.5% | Gain a dramatic advantage by testing new solutions |
| Early majority | 34% | Solve a known problem with solutions proven by look-alike buyers |
| Late majority | 34% | Avoid the penalties of not adopting |
| Laggards | 16% | Avoid any change or new cost |
The chasm sits between the early adopters and the early majority. Moore’s best-known passage puts the problem this way.
“The point of greatest peril in the development of a high-tech market lies in making the transition from an early market dominated by a few visionary customers to a mainstream market dominated by a large block of customers who are predominantly pragmatists. The gap between these two markets is so significant that it deserves to be called a chasm.”
Geoffrey Moore, Crossing the Chasm, as quoted by Scalabl
The core ideas
- Pick a beachhead. Moore uses a D-Day analogy: concentrate the invasion force on one point of attack, secure the beachhead, then move out to additional segments, as SuperSummary describes it.
- Use the bowling pin strategy. Win the first segment, then move to adjacent ones. Each win gives you references and credibility for the next.
- Build the whole product. Pragmatists want more than the core product: support, integrations, partners and services that reduce the risk of buying.
- Collect references from the mainstream. Pragmatists want references from their own industry, according to SuperSummary.
- Position for the segment. The book also covers target market, positioning, marketing strategy, distribution channel and pricing, according to Wikiwand’s synopsis.
What it means for B2B marketing teams
Most B2B teams face a version of the chasm: a few enthusiastic customers, then slow growth. A few practical translations:
- Segment before you scale channels. One segment with a message that fits it will outperform five segments with a generic message. Our guide to the wedge covers how to find the entry point.
- Treat case studies as the sales engine. Mainstream buyers trust peers. Documented wins in your beachhead segment matter more than feature lists.
- Show the whole product. Integrations, onboarding and support belong in your marketing, not just your product.
- Say no to adjacent segments for now. Resources are finite, as Schirtzinger puts it:
“Your product innovation and go-to-market resources are limited. That’s a fact.”
Warren Schirtzinger, founder, High Tech Strategies
Pair this with our notes on positioning, marketing focus and product-market fit.
Where the framework is contested
- The origin is disputed. Schirtzinger says he and Lee James documented the marketing chasm in 1989 at Regis McKenna, two years before Moore’s book. He is a party to the dispute, so read his account as one side.
- Rogers disagrees. Everett Rogers, who created the adopter categories, rejected the idea of a gap between them:
“Past research shows no support for this claim of a chasm between certain adopter categories.”
Everett Rogers, author of Diffusion of Innovations, as quoted by Warren Schirtzinger
- It does not apply to every product. Schirtzinger argues the chasm applies to discontinuous innovations that need new learning, not to refinements or low-cost consumer items, and to specific applications rather than whole technologies.
- It is a practitioner model. Our read: the book argues from case studies and consulting experience, not a controlled dataset. Use it to form hypotheses about your segments, then test them.
- The examples are dated. Graham Mann’s book notes say the examples belong to the enterprise software era, while the core segmentation logic holds up well.
How to apply it
- Check you are really at the chasm. Your customers are enthusiasts, the mainstream hesitates, and growth has slowed.
- List three to five candidate segments, then score each on size, ability to lead and fit.
- Write one positioning statement for the winning segment.
- List whole-product gaps in integrations, onboarding, support and proof.
- Run a segment campaign. Build a landing page and outreach for that segment only, set a baseline, launch, and compare conversion against your generic version.
- Expand only after you have references. Move to the adjacent segment once the first one is producing wins.
The bottom line
The durable lesson of Crossing the Chasm is focus: pick one segment, serve it completely, and let references carry you to the next. The framework is contested at the edges, so treat it as a hypothesis about your market and test it. For more reading, see the best growth marketing books and our guide to traction channels.
About Growth Method
Choosing a beachhead segment is a bet you test, not a decision you make once. Growth Method gives B2B marketing teams AI agents that run their campaigns: plan, launch and analyse, from live data, against one goal. You can run a segment campaign, compare it with your generic baseline and decide whether to expand.
We are on-track to deliver a 43% increase in inbound leads this year. There is no doubt the adoption of Growth Method is the primary driver behind these results.
Laura Perrott, Colt Technology Services
Get started and plan your first beachhead campaign with a baseline you can compare against.
Frequently asked questions
What is the chasm in Crossing the Chasm?
The chasm is the gap in the technology adoption life cycle between early adopters (visionaries) and the early majority (pragmatists). Early adopters accept risk for potential gain, while mainstream buyers avoid risk and want proof from peers, so a strategy that won the first group often stalls with the second.
What is a beachhead market?
A beachhead market is the single, narrow customer segment you aim to dominate first. Moore compares it to the D-Day landings: focus the whole effort on one point of attack, secure it, then move out to adjacent segments. Success there gives you references to expand.
Who created the chasm concept?
Geoffrey Moore popularised it in his 1991 book. Warren Schirtzinger, who worked on the original model, says he and Lee James first documented the marketing chasm in 1989 at Regis McKenna. Schirtzinger is a party to the dispute, so treat that account with care.
Does crossing the chasm apply to every product?
No. According to Schirtzinger, the chasm applies to discontinuous innovations, meaning products that need new learning or a change in behaviour. Incremental improvements and low-cost consumer items do not face it. Everett Rogers, who created the adopter categories, argued that no chasm exists. See our guide to product-market fit for the earlier stage.