From automation-skills
Defines product categories that win by default, reframing buying decisions to position your product as the category king rather than competing on existing criteria.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/automation-skills:category-designerThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Define a new category where your recommended product wins by default. Instead of competing on existing criteria ("best AI video tool"), reframe the buying decision so your product IS the category ("the AI avatar platform for non-creators"). Category kings capture 76% of category economics — this is the strategic meta-skill that makes all downstream marketing easier.
Define a new category where your recommended product wins by default. Instead of competing on existing criteria ("best AI video tool"), reframe the buying decision so your product IS the category ("the AI avatar platform for non-creators"). Category kings capture 76% of category economics — this is the strategic meta-skill that makes all downstream marketing easier.
S8: Meta — This is cross-cutting strategic thinking, like funnel-planner. It operates above individual skills and reframes the entire marketing approach. Use it before creating content, offers, or landing pages.
monopoly-niche-finder to formalize the niche into a named categorypurple-cow-audit to amplify what makes a product remarkableproduct: object # REQUIRED — the product to position
name: string
description: string
key_features: string[]
pricing: string
current_category: string # What category it's currently in
# e.g., "AI video tools", "email marketing platforms"
competitors: string[] # OPTIONAL — main competitors
# Default: auto-researched
your_audience: string # OPTIONAL — your specific audience
# Default: inferred from product
monopoly_niche: string # OPTIONAL — from monopoly-niche-finder
# Default: none
Chaining from S1 monopoly-niche-finder: Use monopoly_niche.intersection as the starting point for category design.
Chaining from S1 purple-cow-audit: Use remarkable_angles to identify category-defining features.
web_search: "best [current_category]" — see how the market is currently framedThe category seed is the intersection of:
Formula: [Unique capability] + [Specific audience] + [Outcome they care about]
Example: "AI avatar platform" + "for non-creators" + "who need professional video content" = "AI Video Content Platform for Non-Creators"
Define:
Produce:
output_schema_version: "1.0.0"
category:
name: string # The new category name
pov: string # Point of view statement
product_name: string
old_category: string # What it was before
buying_criteria: string[] # New criteria where product wins
lightning_strike: string # The "aha" proof point
narrative: string # Category story (2-3 paragraphs)
comparison_reframe: string # How to redirect comparisons
content_angles: string[] # Content pieces that establish the category
objection_responses: object[] # Objection handling
- objection: string
response: string
category_definition: string # For chaining — the full category definition
category_framing: string # For chaining — positioning statement
chain_metadata:
skill_slug: "category-designer"
stage: "meta"
timestamp: string
suggested_next:
- "grand-slam-offer"
- "monopoly-niche-finder"
- "affiliate-blog-builder"
- "landing-page-creator"
## Category Design: [Category Name]
### The Shift
**Old category:** [what it was]
**New category:** [what it is now]
**Why now:** [why this category exists today]
### Category Definition
**[Category Name]:** [1 sentence definition]
### Point of View
"[The old way] was [X]. [The new way] is [Y]. [Product] is the [category name] that [outcome]."
### New Buying Criteria
When evaluating a [category name], look for:
1. [Criteria where your product wins]
2. [Criteria where your product wins]
3. [Criteria where your product wins]
(Note: [old criteria like "most features"] no longer matters because [reason])
### Lightning Strike
[The stat, story, or demo that makes the category undeniable]
### Category Narrative
[2-3 paragraphs telling the story of this category]
### Comparison Reframe
When someone asks "[Product] vs [Competitor]":
→ Reframe: "That's like comparing [new thing] to [old thing]. The question isn't [old criteria] — it's [new criteria]."
### Content Roadmap
1. "[Title]" — establishes the category problem
2. "[Title]" — introduces the new buying criteria
3. "[Title]" — showcases the product as category king
4. "[Title]" — data/proof that the new way works
5. "[Title]" — community/social proof
### Objection Handling
**"Isn't this just [old category]?"**
→ [Response]
**"Why should I care about a new category?"**
→ [Response]
monopoly-niche-finder for a tighter intersection.Example 1: "Design a category for HeyGen" → Old: "AI video tool." New: "AI Video Content Platform for Non-Creators." Buying criteria: no camera needed, no editing skills, no studio. Lightning strike: "84% of marketers say video is important, but only 15% make it regularly."
Example 2: "Position Semrush differently from Ahrefs" → Old: "SEO tool." New: "Revenue Intelligence Platform." Buying criteria: revenue attribution, not just rankings. Reframe: "Stop tracking keywords. Start tracking revenue."
Example 3: "Create a category for my niche" (after monopoly-niche-finder) → Take intersection niche, formalize into a named category with full narrative, buying criteria, and content roadmap.
After 90 days: are people using your category name in conversations, searches, or social posts? After 6 months: has your affiliate conversion rate increased vs before category positioning? Category design is a long game — it compounds over months, not days.
Next step — copy-paste this prompt: "Build an irresistible offer for [product] using this category positioning: [category POV]" → runs
grand-slam-offer
grand-slam-offer (S4) — category framing becomes the offer's core positioningmonopoly-niche-finder (S1) — category definition sharpens niche targetinglanding-page-creator (S4) — category narrative for landing page heroaffiliate-blog-builder (S3) — content angles for category-establishing articlesviral-post-writer (S2) — category POV for shareable social contentmonopoly-niche-finder (S1) — niche to formalize into a categorypurple-cow-audit (S1) — remarkable features that define the categorycompetitor-spy (S1) — competitive landscape to differentiate fromperformance-report (S6) tracks which category messaging resonates → refine category name and POV based on engagement datashared/references/affiliate-glossary.md — Terminologyshared/references/case-studies.md — Real positioning examplesshared/references/flywheel-connections.md — Master connection mapnpx claudepluginhub affitor/affiliate-skills --plugin research-skillsApplies April Dunford's framework for product positioning: competitive alternatives, unique value, target markets, category design. Use for launches, repositioning, strategy, messaging.
Generates a market-creation strategy — name the problem category, position your solution as the category king, and create reference customers.
Use this skill when the user asks to "apply April Dunford's framework", "five component positioning", "obviously awesome positioning", "dunford positioning", "help me with positioning", "full positioning exercise", "positioning workshop", or wants to go through the complete April Dunford positioning process from scratch. For a shorter competitive positioning analysis, use strategy/competitive-positioning instead.