Displacement

Displacement is a lot tougher and has never worked well. Take history - conquerers always like to displace the conquered. But within a generation you see them mixed up with the local culture.
Why?



There's few of you and many of them. And status quo is hard to change. That's the issue. Nature's forces favor homogenization and hybridization.

It is no different in business. Take-overs, acquisitions, winning over competition at customer's place - in all these cases, displacing status quo is challenging - and its better not to keep it as your goal. Co-existance is more effective and smarter. And it will always get you a foothold.

Why then do we always think of displacement first?

"I think if you junk your current system and go for our brand new one, you will see productivity doubling in 6 months"

"We can do a better job than your current vendor. So, you should get rid of them and go with us"


Do you see the problem in this attitude?. Not only did you challenge your customer, you have made it impossible for them to agree with you because it makes their earlier decision look stupid.

Instead, think of blending.

"Your current system has worked quite well for you. However you might want to consider introducting your advanced users to our new system. While our system is good for everyone, its interactive decision support feature is particularly liked by frequent & heavy users. The best part is that it will work with your existing system so you don't have to worry about a radical shift."

Status quo that you don't control can only be changed gradually. Temper the mix and make it less risky and threatening and you will see the colors changing.