I remember it like it was yesterday. “If you can’t be first Finally, I started working on category design myself. 1 in a category, set up a new category you can be first in .” I first introduced the idea at an Australia-based SaaS I had just read those words from Al Ries and Jack Trout, company called Skyfii (I joined for a brief stint after and they forever changed the way I looked at marketing. they acquired a startup I co-founded). More recently, Prior to that day, I had only looked at marketing I’ve been working with our team at BombBomb on through the lens of “capturing marketing share”. And exploring and executing this strategy here in the U.S. Introduction why wouldn’t I? You could fill libraries with books about Along the way, I realized two things: strategies and tactics for capturing market share, and Category design is a “must-do” business strategy for a for good reason: many of world’s largest and most growing number of businesses that are bringing new profitable companies have wrested market share away solutions to life. That’s because it’s specifically designed from their competitors (or kept them from getting it to help the market understand the need for solutions in the first place). they aren’t even aware of yet. But I had just one challenge with that approach: the Working with your team to evaluate, understand, and glove didn’t fit. I had spent the bulk of my career adopt the process of category design is harder than it working on ideas that represented something novel: a sounds. It represents a fundamental change in how you new way of tackling a problem or solving a problem that approach business, and it has far-reaching effects and hadn’t even been addressed before. And I found that long-term ramifications for your team. the “capture market share” playbook I had so eagerly learned about in school simply wasn’t helping me much. That’s why I wrote this guide. That’s why those words about “setting up a new Despite its utility, category design is still not on the category” hit me so hard. I had never considered the radar of most marketing and business leaders. For the idea of stepping outside the bounds of existing markets few who have heard of it, more often than not, they’re to create an entirely new category. But when I looked not sure if it’s applicable or even how to get started. This back at the businesses I had worked on, that’s exactly guide will change that. what we should have done. First, it will help you understand why category There was just one problem: I had no idea how to design is worth considering, what pursuing it looks create a new category. So I set out on a quest to learn like in practice, and whether it makes sense for your everything I could about the topic. First, I dove into business to adopt it. Secondly, this guide will equip a book a friend recommended called Play Bigger. you with a process that you and your team can use to This groundbreaking book not only coined the term explore, discuss, and adopt category design within your “category design,” but also provided the first blueprint company. on how to build and lead a category. As you’ll soon see, category design isn’t an add-on, a Next, I set out to interview every accomplished and branding or marketing play, or something you can do on aspiring category designer I could find. I met with the side. It represents a fundamental change in the way founders and C-level execs from category kings like your business looks at growth. Pursuing it may be the Salesforce, HubSpot, and Drift, and with enterprising most important (and profitable) choice your company people at smaller companies you probably haven’t heard ever makes. of. Along the way, I documented what these category design thinkers had learned from their experiences. The Newcomer’s Guide to Category Design 4