Many who know me well are aware that I have two guilty pleasures: long walks – to the extent that when I suggest a stroll, my friends and family often clarify, “Will this be a walk or a ‘Michelle Walk’?” and a daily Starbucks Trenta Black Iced Tea (sometimes 2). 

On my latest “Michelle Walk” through my neighborhood in St. Petersburg, Florida, en route to Starbucks, I came across one of those fun outdoor mini libraries. Picture a sizable birdhouse-like structure on a pole, complete with glass doors, typically situated in front of someone’s house. The idea is for people to exchange books, either leaving some for others or taking ones that catch their eye.

Until now, I had never participated in this type of book exchange. However, this time was different. A book with a striking teal and yellow cover and a bold black and white title, “The First 90 Days,” stood out among the rest.

Two things about this book immediately caught my attention: for one, the colors closely resembled my company GrowthMVP‘s brand palette, but, more than that, the title echoed a recent podcast invitation I received, “Fractional CMOs – The 90-Day Win.” My immediate thought was that maybe it could help me get prepared for it.

This serendipitous find, however, sparked deeper thoughts about the critical first 90 days of my engagement with early-stage growth startups. 

Move Fast and Break Things?

When I first work with a client or potential client as a Fractional CMO, their initial instinct is to jump to the marketing tactics. There is a dire sense of urgency. “We need a new website, we need email campaigns, we need content, we need more leads!” is often what I hear. 

I get it. A sense of urgency is what startups are built on. “Move fast and break things” has been the rallying cry for founders since Mark Zuckerberg coined (and later retracted) the phrase.

One thing has become crystal clear, however. If you don’t have a strong foundation, you’ll be wasting time and money on product development, marketing, and sales that simply don’t work. The mantra becomes something more like “Move fast, break things and start all over because it’s not working.” 

This is why the initial 60-90 days should not be taken for granted, as they represent a crucial period that sets the tone for future success.

Use Category Thinking Methodologies

In my world of working with innovators who are solving important problems and bringing completely new solutions to life, this is where the concept of category design fits perfectly.

Category design and thinking is not just about creating and marketing a new product or service; it’s about deeply understanding the problem you are solving for and figuring out how you can best position yourself as the category leader with a wholly different solution than what exists today. Then, it’s about executing on that strategy with the tactics.

In the context of early-stage startups, it starts with…

…synthesizing what has been learned so far about the problem, the customers and the solutions sold to date. 

…articulating a clear and concise problem-solution point of view (POV). 

…crafting a narrative through that POV that not only resonates with your target audience but also ultimately differentiates you as the leader in the category. 

…ensuring that every touchpoint, from business model to product development to brand and messaging, aligns with the overarching category narrative. 

…and sometimes, it’s about translating that into a compelling pitch for raising money. Although, my goal would be to help the startup be so clear on its audience and the value it brings to them that selling the product happens faster and raising more money too early can be avoided altogether.

In essence, the first 60-90 days are about laying the groundwork for this category creation. 

Walk the Walk

To illustrate the impact of this approach, let me share a personal experience. I recently worked with an AI startup in the financial data services sector that, despite a strong product and some initial traction, found themselves unable to convert customers. They had raised a good amount of seed money to get them to where they were with the technology, but were now facing a shortened financial runway. 

The urgency was palpable, but their efforts lacked direction. By working together to gain clarity around their problem-solution POV, we were able to prioritize additional product development effectively, identify their ideal customer profile, and develop a plan of attack with consistent, inspiring messaging for their marketing and sales efforts. 

This, of course, is only the beginning of this startup’s new path. Not only did this strategic shift re-energize the team and their business, it also offered them a steady foundation and direction for their go-to-market strategy and articulation of their value proposition for potential customers, partners and investors alike.

Do the Groundwork

Whether you are at the beginning of your startup journey or refocusing your efforts, doing the groundwork is key. Using category design methodologies in the first 60-90 days of that new journey is the best and fastest path to success. In fact, I’d like to rewrite that Zuckerberg phrase to something that may not sound as sexy, but will lead to a significantly better outcome: “Move fast with a robust foundation.”