How To Know If Your Product Is Creating A New Category

In today’s digital product landscape, the possibilities seem endless. We’re watching new products emerge to serve completely new categories—many of which, like web3 and the decentralized internet, have yet to be totally defined. Finding the answers and taking charge of a new product category, Christian and Meghan share in this episode, is up to you as the product leader. And any good journey in category creation starts with thinking about how the product you’re building can set the standard. When done well, your product becomes “the proof” new categories need to survive and thrive. 

Want to add your own take? Write a note or record a voice memo, and send it to erica.irish@innovatemap.com to join the conversation. 

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Takeaways: 

• Creating categories is all about timing & awareness. Use tools like Gartner, ProductHunt, and expert newsletters to figure out where to start. 
• Product is “the proof behind the category you’re trying to create.”

Things To Listen For: 

[0:00] Exciting news - the Better Product Community is on Slack! 

[1:30] A primer on why we’re talking about category creation

[2:00] What category creation is, what it isn’t, and categories vs. industries

[4:30] How & why to use tools like Gartner to validate your product’s category 

[5:00] What to do if you’re an early-stage company in an emerging category 

[7:00] Overview: How should you start thinking about category creation? 

• Understand your business in the context of the wider market
• Think about your current growth stage and your growth trajectory
• Consider the resources available to you 

[7:30] Understand positioning to uncover your category creation potential 

[10:00] How to think about your growth trajectory, with lessons from “Play Bigger”

[11:00] The advantages of building your product in an emerging category

[12:00] Even if you’re creating a new category, use familiar interaction patterns

[14:30] Product is “the proof behind the category you’re trying to create.”

[16:00] You need resources to support the content you need to build a category

[18:00] You have to tell people “over and over again” what your category means