Boundary research can be risky, but it can also move academic disciplines into wider areas of influence. To help reduce the risk and increase the reward, this article describes new tools that boundary researchers can use to get started, published, and promoted. These include writing for surprising impact, positioning their research against a larger theme, developing a research impact matrix for promotion, and estimating a 10‐year citation record. These tools can help move a boundary research area from fringe to focus. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Consumer Behaviour published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.