Chapter 2 Building a Multibillion-Dollar Category By Mark Organ Mark is one of the original enterprise software as a service (SaaS) pioneers as founder of Eloqua, one of the first marketing automation solutions to usher in the shift to the cloud for marketers. Eloqua was the crucible for testing his theory of category creation. Mark had anything but an easy time finding his niche with Eloqua, but when he did, he found the unsung heroes of digital marketing — the demand-gen marketer. He studied their needs, delivered a solution for them, and helped elevate their stature in marketing departments to that of a professional position and role. This was classic category creation in the making. In this chapter, Mark lays out his theory and explains how to build a multi - billion-dollar category. Billion-dollar startup valuations are rare. As of November 2016, only 149 of the tens of thousands of funded companies have achieved that legendary (and contentious) unicorn status. Many of these companies created their own multibillion-dollar categories: transformative empires that permanently alter the ecosystem and establish themselves as kings of those categories . The benefits of being the category king are enormous — these companies seem to have no trouble in achieving rapid growth, raising capital, or hiring the best talent out there. Working with a transformative empire is also just about the most fun one can ever have in business. Steve Jobs called it “making a dent in the universe.” In other words, it’s the opportu nity to make a real and last - ing positive impact on people’s lives. But if it were easy, then everyone would be doing it. 2525