Unleashing the Ideavirus

Unleashing the Ideavirus
186
 www.ideavirus.com
Bee Stings And The Measles
My friend Kate was on a canoe trip in Algonquin Park and was lucky enough to find an
outhouse on a deserted island. Relishing the chance to relieve herself without having to dig a
hole in the woods, she rushed in and sat down.
Bad news for Kate, there was a beehive inside. Forty stings later, she found herself sitting in
the lake, waiting for the pain to subside. After a long paddle back to base camp, she got
herself to a doctor. The good news is that after a little pain, she was back to normal.
Unfortunately, she’s now extremely sensitive to bee stings, and has to be ever vigilant, lest she
develop an allergic reaction.
Compare that to the childhood ritual of getting the measles. You get the measles, you sit
through a week of annoying itching, and then you’re done. You’re never going to get the
measles again. You’re immune.
In the first case, exposure to an invading poison led the body to become sensitized. In the
second, it led to immunity. Your ideavirus might behave in either way.
Yes, in general, the ideavirus adores a vacuum. It will spread faster and farther when no
similar virus has preceded it. The idea that you can follow a leader to great success might
work in the old economy (like Schick in razors or Burger King in fast food) but it clearly
isn’t a winning strategy in the new one.
But here’s the interesting special case: Sometimes, after being sensitized by one ideavirus, the
market is more susceptible to a new one. The failure of the Newton, for example, made early
adopters and sneezers more aware of the PDA concept, and it paved the way for the Palm to
succeed. The second Thai restaurant in a given town is more likely to turn a profit than the
first one. Michael Jordan wasn’t the first basketball hero by any means, but our desire to 
have
a hero, as sparked by earlier stars like Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird, made it easier for
Michael to walk in and fill a role that had to be filled by someone.

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