Lesson plan
Lead user
Lead user is a term developed by American economist Eric von Hippel. His definition for lead user is: #Lead users face needs that will be general in a marketplace – but face them months or years before the bulk of that marketplace encounters them, and #Lead users are positioned to benefit significantly by obtaining a solution to their needs and so may innovate. Lead users are a very important source of innovative progress because they are often pioneers – acting earlier than producers to develop important new types of products and applications. Spearheading innovation benefits lead users because they innovate to serve their own needs. For this reason, they need not concern themselves with whether others will also want what they are developing for themselves. In contrast, producers tend to wait for evidence that there is a broad, profitable market to be served before they can justify investing in a new type of innovation. For example, mountain bikes were developed by individuals who simply wanted to bike down mountains for fun, and so invented the sport of mountain biking for themselves. Bike producers stood by, simply watching and waiting for years until the extent of the market became clear.…
Article summary
Lead user is a term developed by American economist Eric von Hippel. His definition for lead user is: #Lead users face needs that will be general in a marketplace – but face them months or years before the bulk of that marketplace encounters them, and #Lead users are positioned to benefit significantly by obtaining a solution to their needs and so may innovate. Lead users are a very important source of innovative progress because they are often pioneers – acting earlier than producers to develop important new types of products and applications. Spearheading innovation benefits lead users because they innovate to serve their own needs. For this reason, they need not concern themselves with whether others will also want what they are developing for themselves. In contrast, producers tend to wait for evidence that there is a broad, profitable market to be served before they can justify investing in a new type of innovation. For example, mountain bikes were developed by individuals who simply wanted to bike down mountains for fun, and so invented the sport of mountain biking for themselves. Bike producers stood by, simply watching and waiting for years until the extent of the market became clear.…
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.