I wonder how many entrepreneurs really think about all the possible markets for their products and services and devise a roadmap for rolling them out over a period of years.  I suspect very few.  Why? because,  to use a quaint phrase, too many entrepreneurs start businesses that are one-trick ponies.  They have nowhere to go from where they started.  Rob Ryan, the very successful founder of Ascend Communications, grew his company from several million dollars to several billion and was acquired by Lucent Technologies in 1999,  using what he called "the sunflower model."   According to Rob, "...successful companies don't just roll out new products; they crack whole new markets...create one new market/application and associated product each year."

Let's see how this works.  Start by grabbing a huge piece of paper--those mega post-its work great.  Then draw a giant sunflower.  The center of the sunflower represents the core competencies of your business.  What do you do better than anyone?  That should be your core technology or your core product.  Then, working your way around the petals, come up with as many different markets and applications of your core competency as you can.  How many different products and services can you derive from your core product?  Who are the industry leaders in those applications?  Can you partner?  Each of the petals will have to be prioritized and tested.

Now, here's the critical part--the stem.  The stem represents the underlying assumptions; in other words, what is the basis for the product/service decisions you made with the petals?  If your assumptions are wrong, then the business could fail.  Once you've identified all the components--core, petals, stem--you need to prioritize the petals, deciding the order in which you might roll out these products and services, which markets you're attacking, what technology or skill is required to do it, and how long it will take to accomplish. 

This sunflower model is the beginning of a technology or product roadmap that will insure that your business can change and grow with the times.  It will also help you keep that one-trick pony in the barn.