You know how pandemics spread? They all start with the infamous “Patient Zero” — the unfortunate person who contracted a disease first and then happen to infect the rest of the world. Patient Zero is often someone who travels and is connected to other people who themselves are connected and travel. Which makes a disease spread far, wide and fast.
In the movies Patient Zero is usually the unfortunate business traveler who jumps on a plane, infects every other business traveler on that plane who in turn infect the rest of the planet. And in the long run we are all dead.
There is an interesting lesson in here: In your startup/project you need to focus on getting your “Customer Zero”. The person who gets infected by your product, who loves it so much that she will tell everyone about it — and who’s a connector connected to other connectors. Customer Zero will very most likely not be your very first customer — but it will be an early one.
Find your Customer Zero. Do this very deliberately. What’s her profile? Is she a well-known person in your industry? How do you get her to use your product? Make her happy. Let her spread the word. And soon we all will be infected.