PRACTICE 05 · CATEGORY DESIGN
Category Design
In mature categories, the leader plays by the rules. In a category you create, you write the rules. We design and launch new categories for technology and B2B companies — the language, the press list, the analyst relations, and the launch sequence that lets you define the rules of the game.
ENGAGEMENT SHAPE
Six-month design + launch engagement
Typical first engagement: a six-month category design and launch, with a written category point of view, a category book, and the launch sequence executed.
WHAT WE DO
The work, in concrete terms.
Category point of view: a written document that articulates the new category, its buyers, and its jobs
Category book: a 40–60 page book that becomes the public artifact of the new category
Press list: a built and curated list of journalists, analysts, and influencers in the new category
Launch sequence: the 6-month rollout that introduces the category, with named deliverables per month
Analyst relations: the program that places the company in the right reports at the right firms
Category consortium: a peer group of companies in the new category, with shared PR and shared content
WHY IT MATTERS
The mechanism, not the artifact.
A category you create is a category you own.
In a category you create, the buyer’s comparison set is the set you define. The competitor that matters is the one you choose to compete with. The buying criteria are the ones you articulate first. The economics of a created category are the economics of pricing power for a decade.
The book is the artifact.
A category without a book is a slide deck. The book is what the press reads, what the analyst cites, what the buyer holds. We write a 40–60 page category book that becomes the public artifact of the new category.
Six months is a long time, and a short time.
A category launch is six months of work compressed into a news cycle. The press cycle, the analyst cycle, and the buyer cycle are aligned, and the timing is the only thing that matters. We plan the six months backwards from the launch date.
DELIVERABLES
What you receive.
- 01A category point of view, 25–40 pages, signed off by the leadership team
- 02A category book, 40–60 pages, the public artifact of the new category
- 03A press list, 50+ named contacts, with the introduction sequence
- 04A launch sequence, six months, with named deliverables per month
- 05An analyst relations program, with named reports at named firms
- 06A category consortium, with peer companies and shared content
OUTCOMES WE TRACK
How success is measured.
- A defensible category that the company owns for a decade
- A category book that the press reads, the analyst cites, and the buyer holds
- A share of voice in the new category of 50%+ within 12 months
- A category consortium with 5+ peer companies
- A pricing power premium in the new category, vs. adjacent categories
PRACTICE FAQ
On this practice specifically.
How do you decide whether to design a new category or compete in an existing one?
We do the diagnostic first. If the company has a real point of view that 5+ buyers in adjacent categories are already articulating as a need, category design is the right move. If the company has a strong point of view but the adjacent category is closed, the right move is to enter the category and compete on a sub-axis. We will tell you in the diagnostic.
Do you handle the press?
We do the press list, the pitch, and the relationships. We work with a partner PR firm for the actual placement; the partner is paid out of the engagement. We have a list of partners we work with and will introduce you to the right one for your category.
NEXT STEP
Bring us the brief.
Six-week diagnostic, NDA from day one, written point of view. We will tell you in the first call whether we are the right firm for the problem.