Customer development is kind of faddy at the moment, and you are right that you can't get too extreme with things, but frankly in this case I think you're just

Customer development is kind of faddy at the moment, and you are right that you can't get too extreme with things, but frankly in this case I think you're just doing it wrong. The customer development model is a tool to help you find a market (actual paying customers) for your idea. It is not a growth strategy. It helps with the early part of the TALC (Technology Adoption Life Cycle). It is a tool to help you find early adopters and early customer segments that allow you to Cross the Chasm. One of the hardest things about managing TALC is knowing where you are in it. I think maybe you managed to find an early market but didn't shift your operational strategy & tactics to reflect your progress. I would suggest you read Geoffrey Moore's Crossing the Chasm and Inside the Tornado. They are very, very good books. I read them over 10 years ago and haven't found them to be wrong yet.