{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Shift & Thrive: CEO Insights on Driving Change","title":"The Category Creation Playbook - Kat Wendelstadt - Shift & Thrive - Go-To-Market deep dive - Episode # 094","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2159,"description":"What does it actually take to build a market category that doesn't yet exist, and how do today's go-to-market leaders use AI to accelerate that process without losing the human edge? In this Go-To-Market Deep Dive episode of Shift & Thrive, host Natalie Nathanson sits down with Kat Wendelstadt, CMO at Electric Twin and a three-time CMO with a track record of scaling venture-backed startups to billion-dollar valuations. Kat unpacks the discipline behind category creation, from naming and seeding language through PR to reading the market signals that tell you it's working. She shares how she approaches ICP discovery in brand-new markets, why she pushes back on the AI-replaces-everything narrative, and how she has structured lean but effective marketing teams in a world where AI handles more of the execution. The conversation also covers her own AI tool stack, a freelancer-first hiring philosophy, and the career pivot from large corporates to high-growth startups that shaped how she thinks about building.Takeaways:Commit to category language. Constantly changing how you describe your product creates confusion; pick your language, and give it at least 18 months to take hold.Start ICP discovery with a pain hypothesis, then find the fastest feedback loop. Combine tools like Reddit and landing page tests with your existing network to validate whether your solution matches real buyer pain before scaling spend.AI accelerates execution but does not replace human judgment in enterprise GTM. Getting a person on the phone still closes at a meaningfully higher rate than automated outreach.Scale marketing headcount with freelancers first. Specialists who require minimal onboarding let you move fast and test fit before committing to a permanent hire.Adopt AI tools by pruning. Try several, drop what creates friction early, and build an integrated stack so you retain the mental space needed for creative thinking.Tailor AI adoption programs to individual strengths. Not everyone on...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/_i5EPuGYYFp2bHR4XcuJ7-ysReSDO2duiik1rL79vjk/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8xY2Mz/MDFkOTMwNGU0ZTQ5/NDU4NjQwMTMxOTQx/NzcxOC5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}