Category Design With a Book: Founder Playbook

Why Category Design Belongs in Your 2025 Growth Plan

Most founders fight for demand capture—optimizing ads, keywords, and funnels in crowded spaces. Category design is a different game: you name the problem, define the solution space, and set the criteria by which buyers evaluate every vendor. A book is one of the few assets that can credibly do all three.

From HubSpot’s Inbound Marketing to Tien Tzuo’s Subscribed, books have anchored new market categories, attracted aligned buyers, and given sales teams a conversation that starts above the product. If you plan to lead in 2025, consider designing the category you want to win—and use a book to make it real.

What Is Category Design—and Why a Book Works

Category design is the deliberate act of defining a new problem space, coining its language, and setting expectations for how the problem is solved. It isn’t rebranding. It’s a strategic narrative that moves the conversation from Why our product? to Why this new way of thinking?

• Long-form authority: A book gives you the space to articulate the problem shift, show the world as-is versus as-it-should-be, and back it with case studies.
• Language creation: Categories live or die by language. Chapters help standardize terms, definitions, and diagnostic questions.
• Sales enablement: Books offer non-promotional leave-behinds that open doors and change evaluation criteria.
• PR and events anchor: A book powers keynotes, podcasts, and “idea tours” better than a product pitch ever will.
• Community building: Shared vocabulary accelerates meetups, cohorts, and customer advocacy.

The Category Narrative Framework (and How It Maps to a Book)

Use this five-part framework to structure both your narrative and your book.

1) The Enemy Problem

Name the outdated default your buyer is stuck in. Make it vivid and costly, but avoid strawman attacks on competitors. You’re fighting an entrenched approach, not a company.

Example: “Lead-based marketing” as the enemy of “true demand creation,” or “project-based design” as the enemy of “continuous product discovery.”

2) The Promised Land

Describe the better state in business terms—faster sales cycles, lower CAC, more predictable demand. This is the world your category unlocks.

3) The POV and Principles

Offer 5–7 principles that govern the new game. Principles give your sales and customer success teams consistent talking points.

4) The Playbook

Turn principles into repeatable actions (scorecards, cadences, roles). Readers should close the book knowing what to do next quarter.

5) The Proof

Share case studies, pilots, or field reports. Include measurements and concrete before/after changes when possible.

Research: Find and Validate Your Category Territory

Before drafting, pressure-test that your category is big enough to matter and distinct enough to own.

1) Language Mining

• Customer interviews: Ask, “How do you describe the problem to your CFO?” Capture exact phrasing.
• Call transcripts: Mine Zoom/Gong calls for sticky phrases and objections.
• Competitive content: List repeated words competitors use; your category needs new language, not synonyms.

2) Problem Costing

• Quantify the status quo: Time lost, conversion missed, risk exposure. Tie each to budget owners.
• Map urgency: Is this a “hair on fire” problem or a “nice to fix” one? Categories move faster when the pain is near-term and measurable.

3) Ecosystem Readiness

• Allies: Analysts, consultants, agencies, and communities that can benefit by adopting your language.
• Moments: Regulatory changes, technological shifts, or platform moves that create tailwinds.

Title, Subtitle, and Category Name: Crafting the Spine

The book’s title should spark curiosity; the subtitle should promise a business outcome; the category name should be clear over clever.

• Title: An evocative phrase or question that tees up the enemy problem.
• Subtitle: Outcome-oriented and specific to a buyer (e.g., “A CFO’s Guide to…”).
• Category name: Two to three words that are pronounceable and searchable. Test it aloud with customers.

Category Naming Do’s

• Make it directional: “Inbound Marketing,” “Conversational Marketing,” “Product-Led Growth.”
• Prefer verbs or motion: Names that imply action spread faster.
• Check discoverability: Is the term distinctive enough to rank and track?

A 12-Chapter Outline That Builds a Category

Use this outline to turn your narrative into a book that educates, equips, and evangelizes.

1. The Default That Fails: Paint the enemy problem with stories and data.
2. Why Now: External shifts that make the old playbook untenable.
3. Defining [Your Category]: Clear definition, scope, and what it is not.
4. The Economic Case: Costs of status quo and the upside of change.
5. Principles of the New Game: Five to seven non-negotiables.
6. Org Design: Roles, incentives, and operating cadence.
7. The Toolchain: Capabilities required (avoid vendor lists; describe functions).
8. Metrics That Matter: Leading and lagging indicators (see below).
9. Implementation Roadmap: 90-day plan, then 12-month plan.
10. Field Notes: Early pilots or adjacent proof from your customers.
11. Objections & Traps: Common failure modes and how to avoid them.
12. The Movement: Community, education, and how readers can join.

Real-World Signals That Books Can Lead Categories

These books didn’t win on prose alone—they won by giving markets new words and a practical playbook.

Launch the Category Like a Product: A Four-Phase Plan

Phase 1: Define (Weeks 1–4)

• Finalize the narrative: Enemy, promised land, principles.
• Secure allies: Identify five partners (analysts, creators, agencies) who benefit if your language spreads.
• Commit the calendar: Plan keynotes, webinars, and five podcast targets aligned to book themes.

Phase 2: Seed (Weeks 5–8)

• Serializations: Publish 3–5 cornerstone essays that preframe the book.
• Field pilots: Run an executive roundtable or cohort to test the playbook.
• Enablement: Arm sales with a one-page narrative and objection responses.

Phase 3: Launch (Weeks 9–12)

• Book drop: Publish print and digital simultaneously; bundle with a cohort or workshop.
• Lightning strikes: Concentrated activities over 10–14 days—keynotes, PR, partner webinars, and customer spotlights.
• Category page: Create a neutral, educational hub with definitions, frameworks, and a glossary.

Phase 4: Institutionalize (Weeks 13+)

• Certification or training: Teach the playbook; certify partners.
• Analyst relations: Provide definitions and customer stories that fit their research agendas.
• Community flywheel: Quarterly salons, local meetups, and updated field guides.

Metrics: Proving the Category Is Taking Hold

Track leading indicators to know your language is spreading, and lagging indicators to prove revenue impact.

Leading Indicators

• Search volume for your term: Baseline the category phrase; monitor monthly growth.
• Share of voice: Mentions across media, podcasts, newsletters, and events.
• Organic adoption: Partners and customers using the term without being prompted.
• Community signals: Meetup formations, Slack/Discord activity, and UGC artifacts (templates, checklists).

Lagging Indicators

• Branded search: Increases in queries that combine your brand with the category term.
• Self-reported attribution: “How did you hear about us?” including book, term, or event mentions.
• Pipeline influenced: Opportunities citing the book or category in call notes.
• Pricing power: Discount compression as buyers adopt your evaluation criteria.

Common Pitfalls (and How to Avoid Them)

• Too product-centric: Keep 80% on problem, principles, and playbook. Your product is an example, not the star.
• Overly clever name: Clear beats cute. If a prospect can’t recall it in a week, it won’t spread.
• Underfunding evangelism: Budget for champions: editorial, events, partner enablement, and community ops.
• One-and-done launch: Categories form over quarters, not days. Plan recurring “strikes” tied to timely news or product updates.
• Ignoring the CFO lens: Tie every principle to line items a CFO cares about—CAC, gross margin, cash conversion.

Where AI Assists (Without Owning the Narrative)

AI can accelerate the work but not replace founder judgment. Use AI to:

• Synthesize interviews: Extract recurring phrases and objections to shape language.
• Draft structure: Turn the five-part narrative into a chapter outline and table of contents.
• Variant testing: Generate multiple category name options and subtitles; test with customers.
• Repurposing: Turn chapters into articles, keynotes, and sales assets.

Tools like LibroFlow can help founders move from idea to organized manuscript faster by offering structure suggestions, plan generation, draft chapters, and export to PDF/TXT. LibroFlow also includes a free tier to test the workflow, with paid credits for full book drafts (€29 for 1 book, €79 for 3 books). Use it alongside your research stack and editorial reviews.

A 90-Day Execution Plan

Here’s a pragmatic schedule you can adopt now.

Weeks 1–2: Narrative Lock

• Customer calls to validate enemy problem and promised land.
• Draft the five-part narrative; pressure-test with sales and two customers.
• Decide the category name; run a discoverability check and basic legal review.

Weeks 3–4: Outline and Proof

• Finalize the 12-chapter outline and assign internal SMEs to each chapter.
• Collect 3–5 field notes or case studies you can legally publish.
• Write the introduction and Chapter 1 to lock tone and POV.

Weeks 5–6: Drafting Sprint

• Two chapters per week; parallel-edit with an outside editor for clarity.
• Design charts and frameworks early to keep language consistent.

Weeks 7–8: Serialization + Enablement

• Publish two cornerstone essays that preview core ideas.
• Ship a category one-pager and talk track to sales; collect feedback.
• Book three podcasts and one webinar with ecosystem allies.

Weeks 9–10: Production

• Copyedit, index, and finalize interior layout; design an action-oriented cover.
• Set up distribution (print + digital) and your neutral category page.

Weeks 11–12: Launch and Strike

• Concentrated activities: keynote, partner webinar, customer panel, and media outreach.
• Gift copies to 50–100 ideal champions (analysts, educators, creators, customers).
• Publish an action guide or worksheet pack as a companion asset.

FAQ: Pragmatic Decisions Founders Ask

Should we self-publish or go traditional?

If speed and control matter, self-publish. Traditional can add distribution and credibility in some markets but increases lead times. For category design, speed to narrative often wins.

Do we need a co-author?

A co-author (e.g., your CMO or an external editor) can help translate founder vision into crisp language. Keep the voice consistent and founder-led.

How long should the book be?

Shorter is better for adoption. Aim for 35,000–55,000 words if you’re teaching a playbook with cases and frameworks.

Should we coin a totally new term?

Only if the concept truly differs from existing language. Slightly reframing a known idea can travel faster than inventing a completely foreign term.

How product-specific can we get?

Include product as an example in later chapters or appendices. Keep the core narrative vendor-neutral so the ecosystem adopts it.

The Founder’s Advantage

Analysts can observe a market; founders can change it. A well-structured book equips your team, your partners, and your prospects with a new way to see—and buy. If you’re ready to ship the story that reshapes your category, put the narrative first, structure it into a teachable playbook, and commit to a year of evangelism. Tools like LibroFlow and a disciplined launch plan will help you get there faster—but the conviction must be yours.