Adjacent markets are often the best answer when a business is faced with the question of “what’s next?” In certain cases, adjacent markets may be the only answer if growth opportunities in existing markets are limited or there is a strong need to diversify the business. Before considering which adjacent markets are the best prospects, a business needs to know all of its options. However, identifying potential adjacent markets is often not as straightforward as it seems, and there are a limited number of tools available to aid in the process.

In this paper, we present a framework to simplify the process of identifying a business’ adjacent markets and ensure that all potential growth opportunities are uncovered. Specific questions are provided to help to uncover attractive adjacent market opportunities. With a rich set of options at its disposal, a business can confidently move forward to discover its next growth opportunity.