Categories in the Wild
Episode 6

What the WWE and Sports Entertainment Can Teach Us About Category Design w/ Raj "Rajnation" Nathan

July 25, 2023

Listen on...

Category Thinking is everywhere, and your ability to identify it in the wild will sharpen your skillset as a category designer.

And in this episode of #CategoriesInTheWild, we'll examine WWE's development of the "sports entertainment" category. It's a perfect case study that every category designer should learn from.

Join John Rougeux and Pablo Gonzalez in their conversation with Rajiv "Rajnation" Nathan as they explore why the WWE is one of the best modern examples of category design. They'll discuss:

  • How new language was used to differentiate WWE from other forms of wrestling and even other sports.
  • Why Wrestlemania was such an effective lightning strike and helped establish WWE as a staple of American culture.
  • How changes in the technology allowed WWE to develop an entirely new different distribution channel and reach people at scale.


About our special guest:

Rajiv "Rajnation" Nathan is the founder and  Chief Pitch Artist of Startup Hypeman, a Category Thinkers Community Ambassador, MMA ringside announcer, and pro wrestling aficionado.

When we saw Raj's LinkedIn post about how the WWE used category thinking to develop a multi-billion dollar organization, we knew he'd be the perfect addition to this conversation.

Featured in this episode

Hosts

Pablo Gonzalez
Co-founder / CEO
Be the Stage
John Rougeux
Founder
Flag & Frontier
Rajiv 'RajNATION' Nathan
Chief Pitch Artist
Startup Hypeman

Guests

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