Braibanti Strategy Blog

Category Design: helping a Connected Car Data company shift to become a govtech saas leader

Mark Braibanti — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 04:57:00 GMT

The Challenge

When I joined INRIX, the company was widely known for its connected vehicle data and deep automotive OEM relationships.

But that positioning created a ceiling.

The market saw INRIX as:

A data supplier
A traffic analytics provider
A supporting tool — not a strategic platform

At the same time, cities, DOTs, and transportation stakeholders were facing massive, systemic challenges:

Rising traffic fatalities
Increasing congestion and lost productivity
Growing environmental impact
Fragmented, siloed systems and outdated workflows

The bigger opportunity wasn’t to sell better data.

It was to redefine how transportation itself is managed.

The Insight

Transportation management wasn’t just inefficient.

It was fundamentally broken.

As outlined in the category design work, the real problem was clear:

Transportation management is trapped in the past — reliant on outdated tools, manual processes, and reactive decision-making.

Stakeholders were:

Relying on manual traffic studies and field surveys
Using equipment-based data with limited coverage
Making slow, reactive decisions
Operating in silos across departments and systems

Meanwhile, something massive had changed:

The world had become data-rich

Connected vehicles, mobile devices, and sensors were generating an entirely new layer of intelligence.

INRIX had already spent nearly 20 years building one of the largest transportation data lakes in the world.

The problem wasn’t data.

The problem was:

No one had defined what to do with it.

The Strategy: Category Design

Instead of competing in an existing market…

We decided to create a new one.

This followed a clear category design framework:

Define the Problem
Identify the Category Opportunity
Build the Category Blueprint
Establish a Category Point of View

Step 1: Define the Problem

We reframed the narrative away from products and features…

…and toward a societal-level problem:

Transportation systems were reactive, not proactive
Decision-making was slow, expensive, and incomplete
The result: crashes, congestion, pollution, and wasted time

This became the foundation of everything:

Messaging
Sales
Thought leadership
Product positioning

Step 2: Create the Category

We introduced a new category:

Transportation Intelligence

Not analytics.
Not data.
Not ITS.

A fundamentally new way to think about transportation.

Transportation Intelligence integrates data, analytics, and AI to deliver real-time, actionable insights that enable smarter, safer, and more efficient transportation systems.

This repositioned INRIX as:

Not a data provider
Not a tool

But the platform powering modern transportation decision-making

Step 3: Built the Category Narrative

We built a problem-first story that every stakeholder could immediately recognize:

Cities overwhelmed by complexity
DOTs stuck in outdated processes
Billions lost in congestion
Lives lost due to preventable crashes

Then we introduced a clear shift:

FROM → TO

From: Manual, slow, reactive systems
To: Real-time, predictive, system-wide intelligence
From: Siloed data sources
To: Unified transportation intelligence platform
From: Consultant-driven analysis
To: In-house, on-demand insights

This transformation framework became a core storytelling device across:

Sales decks
Website
Campaigns
Analyst conversations

Step 4: UseD Data to Evangelize the Problem

This is where INRIX had a unique advantage.

We didn’t just talk about the problem.

We proved it with data.

We leveraged:

Proprietary connected vehicle data
Traffic, safety, and mobility insights
Industry-leading research reports

To:

Quantify congestion and its economic impact
Highlight dangerous intersections and safety risks
Show systemic inefficiencies across cities

This turned thought leadership into:
A category evangelism engine

Not content.

Not marketing.

But evidence of a broken system — and a better way forward.

Step 5: introduced the Solution to guide our customers to success

Only after fully establishing the problem…

We introduced the solution:

INRIX as the Transportation Intelligence Platform

A massive, multi-source data lake (50PB+ of data)
A unified intelligence engine
A suite of SaaS applications (INRIX IQ)
GenAI-powered insights (INRIX Compass)

This reframed INRIX from:
“data provider” → mission-critical platform

Execution: Turning Strategy into Reality

This wasn’t just a messaging exercise.

We operationalized the category across the entire company:

Brand & Narrative

Rewrote the entire corporate narrative
Built a problem-first storytelling framework
Aligned messaging across all audiences

Website Overhaul

Shifted from product-centric to category-led
Reframed the company around Transportation Intelligence
Built clear problem → solution flows

Content & Thought Leadership

Developed 10+ flagship research reports
Created industry-defining narratives
Positioned INRIX as the authority on mobility data

Sales & GTM

Built persona-based messaging across 10+ segments
Equipped sales with category-driven narratives
Shifted from reactive selling to insight-led conversations

Marketing Engine

Transitioned from event-driven to demand generation
Built full-funnel campaigns aligned to category story
Created scalable content systems

Brand System

Updated visual identity and messaging consistency
Developed corporate video, brochures, and sales assets
Ensured every touchpoint reinforced the category

The Outcome

Positioned INRIX as a GovTech SaaS leader
Defined and owned the Transportation Intelligence category
Enabled stronger engagement with cities, DOTs, and enterprise customers
Built the foundation for scalable, modern demand generation

The Bigger Takeaway

This wasn’t just a rebrand.

It was a reframe of reality.

The most important shift was this:

We stopped selling what we had…
and started defining what the market needed.

That’s what category design does.

It doesn’t just improve positioning.

It changes how people understand the problem — and who they trust to solve it.

Launching an Industry-First Traffic Signal Analytics Solution with Story-Led ABM

Mark Braibanti — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 04:54:03 GMT

The Challenge

INRIX Signal Analytics was a breakthrough product.

It enabled cities and DOTs to:

Measure traffic signal performance across entire networks
Identify inefficiencies at scale
Optimize signals without installing hardware

But there was a problem:

👉 The market didn’t believe it.

Transportation agencies were used to:

Physical infrastructure (loops, cameras, sensors)
Manual traffic studies
Expensive, time-consuming data collection

So when we introduced a solution powered by connected vehicle data…

The reaction was skepticism:

“How do we know this is accurate?”
“Can this really replace what we’ve always done?”

This wasn’t a demand generation problem.

👉 It was a belief problem

The Insight

We realized something critical:

You don’t overcome skepticism with messaging.
You overcome it with proof.

And not generic proof.

👉 Localized, undeniable proof

Something that would:

Show cities their own problems
Benchmark them against peers
Quantify the scale of inefficiency

That insight led to the creation of the campaign’s centerpiece.

The Strategy: Build a Category-Evangelizing “Hero Asset”

The INRIX U.S. Signals Scorecard

An annual, data-driven report designed to do one thing:

👉 Make the invisible problem visible

What the Signals Scorecard Actually Was

The INRIX U.S. Signals Scorecard was:

The most comprehensive baseline of traffic signal demand and performance ever published
A nationwide benchmark of signal system performance
A post-COVID “new normal” baseline for transportation systems

It analyzed:

Every movement through signalized intersections
Across cities, counties, metros, states, and nationally

Using:

👉 GPS data from millions of vehicles

Every time a vehicle passed through an intersection, we captured:

Heading
Speed
Travel time

This allowed us to:

👉 Measure demand and performance at scale—without infrastructure

Why It Was So Powerful

The Scorecard did three critical things:

1. It Quantified the Problem

Instead of saying:

“Traffic signals are inefficient”

We showed:

Where delays were happening
How severe they were
How performance varied across regions

2. It Made It Personal

Cities could:

See performance in their own backyard
Identify specific inefficiencies in their network

This changed the conversation from:

❌ “Is this relevant to us?”
→
✅ “Wait… this is happening in our city?”

3. It Created Competitive Context

We allowed cities to compare themselves against:

Peer cities
Similar population profiles
Regional benchmarks

This introduced:

👉 Social pressure + urgency

No city wants to be underperforming compared to its peers.

The Shift: From Product → Proof → Story

Instead of leading with product features…

We flipped the model:

Data → Insight → Story → Solution

The Scorecard became:

👉 The story engine for the entire campaign

Turning the Scorecard Into a Full-Funnel Growth Engine

Once we had the hero asset…

We built everything around it.

Phase 1: Awareness — “Expose the Problem”

We launched the Scorecard as a flagship piece of thought leadership:

Press outreach and media coverage
Industry publications
Trade associations (ITE, IMSA, AASHTO)
Paid promotion

The goal:

👉 Make the industry aware that:
Traffic signal management is fundamentally broken

Phase 2: Content Engine — “Multiply the Insight”

We didn’t stop at one report.

We turned the Scorecard into:

Blog series (multiple angles by persona)
Webinars breaking down findings
E-books and derivative content
Sales decks and collateral

Each piece reinforced:

👉 The same core narrative
👉 The same underlying problem

Phase 3: ABM — “Make It Hyper-Relevant”

This is where things got powerful.

We used the Scorecard as a personalized ABM weapon

We:

Targeted ~350 priority accounts
Identified 4,000+ relevant stakeholders
Built segmented outreach by city, role, and use case

And most importantly:

👉 We showed each city their own data

Not generic messaging.

Not broad claims.

But:

“Here’s what’s happening in your signal network.”

Phase 4: Remove Friction with a Value-First CTA

Instead of pushing demos…

We introduced a different call to action:

Free Traffic Signal Network Analysis

This was critical.

Because it:

Led with value, not sales
Positioned INRIX as a partner, not a vendor
Gave prospects immediate, tangible insight

This shifted the dynamic:

❌ “Book a demo”
→ feels like a sales pitch

✅ “Get a free analysis of your network”
→ feels like a smart next step

Phase 5: Convert with Proof

Once prospects engaged:

They saw:

Their own intersections
Their own delays
Their own inefficiencies

At that point:

👉 The product didn’t need to be sold
👉 It became the logical solution

The Outcome

Translated a highly technical product into a clear market story
Built a full-funnel demand engine anchored in one hero asset
Engaged ~40% of 350 priority accounts
Generated 40+ deals in pipeline

And most importantly:

👉 Reframed how cities think about traffic signal management

Why This Worked

This campaign worked because it aligned three powerful forces:

1. Problem-Led Storytelling

We didn’t sell analytics.

We sold:

Reduced congestion
Better mobility
More efficient cities

2. Data as Proof (Not Just Insight)

The Scorecard wasn’t content.

It was:

👉 Evidence

It proved:

The problem existed
It was measurable
It was solvable

3. ABM Powered by Real Insight

Most ABM campaigns personalize messaging.

This one personalized:

👉 Reality

We didn’t just say:

“This matters to you”

We showed:

“This is happening in your city right now”

The Bigger Takeaway

The biggest lesson from this campaign:

The most powerful marketing asset isn’t content.
It’s insight your customer can’t ignore.

When you:

Turn data into a story
Make it personally relevant
Lead with value instead of a pitch

You don’t just generate leads.

👉 You create conviction.

Trying to turn a complex product into real pipeline?

If your product is powerful but hard to explain—or your market doesn’t fully “get it”—I can help you build the story, content engine, and ABM strategy that drives real results.

Building the Brand and Growth Engine That Took ParkMe from Zero to acquired

Mark Braibanti — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 04:47:41 GMT

The Challenge

When we started ParkMe, there was no "smart parking" category.

No brand.
No demand engine.
No playbook.

Just a massive, underutilized opportunity:

👉 Parking was broken.

Drivers:

Wasted time circling blocks
Had no visibility into pricing or availability
Experienced parking as the most frustrating part of the journey

Cities and Parking Operators:

Had fragmented data
Lacked visibility into utilization and demand
Had no modern way to connect with drivers

And yet…

Parking was the last mile of navigation—completely disconnected from the rest of the mobility ecosystem.

The Insight

We realized something simple—but powerful:

If you could organize the world’s parking data, you could fundamentally change how people move through cities.

The opportunity wasn’t just to build an app.

It was to:

Create the largest database of parking information
Connect drivers, cities, and operators
Become the missing layer between navigation and destination

Phase 1: Establish Credibility in a Legacy Industry

Before scaling growth, we had to solve a different problem:

👉 No one in the parking industry knew who we were.

So we started where the industry lived:

IPMI (International Parking & Mobility Institute)
NPA (National Parking Association)
PIE (Parking Industry Exhibition)

We:

Exhibited at trade shows
Built relationships with operators and municipalities
Learned firsthand how the industry actually worked

This wasn’t growth yet.

This was foundation building.

Understanding:

Pricing models
Inventory fragmentation
Operational pain points
Data limitations

That insight shaped everything that followed.

Phase 2: Build the Product Around a Real Problem

We focused on one core idea:

👉 Give drivers access to parking information before they arrive.

We built:

A consumer mobile app and website
The most comprehensive database of parking (on-street + off-street)
Real-time and static parking data

This immediately created value for:

Drivers (find parking faster)
Cities (reduce congestion)
Operators (increase utilization)

And something unexpected happened:

Automakers and mapping platforms took notice

They realized:

This solved the final, unsolved piece of navigation-- finding the closest, cheapest parking spot to your final destination.

Parking became:
👉 The missing layer between “getting there” and “arriving.”

Phase 3: Create the Brand and Story

At this stage, we weren’t just building a product.

We were building a movement around solving urban mobility friction.

We developed:

Clear messaging around “A smarter way to park.”
A brand that felt simple, helpful, and urban
A narrative that connected drivers, cities, and infrastructure

This made ParkMe:

Easy to understand
Easy to adopt
Easy to talk about

Phase 4: Build the Growth Engine

With product-market fit emerging, we shifted to scale.

We built a multi-channel growth engine from scratch:

SEO

Captured high-intent searches like “parking near me”
Built landing pages at massive scale across cities and venues
Turned search into a primary acquisition channel

Affiliate & Distribution Partnerships

Integrated with platforms and partners
Partnered with events organizers to offer Pre-Paid Parking Reservations to make parking easier for attendees.
Expanded reach beyond owned channels

Thought Leadership & PR

Positioned ParkMe as a leader in mobility and smart cities
Secured coverage in top-tier outlets like TechCrunch and others
Built credibility with both investors and industry stakeholders

Experiential & Guerrilla Marketing

This is where everything changed.

⚡ The SXSW “Booted” Campaign (Lightning Strike Moment)

We needed a breakout moment.

Something that would:

Get attention
Tell the story instantly
Make the pain real

So we created one of the most talked-about stunts at SXSW.

We:

“Booted” cars across Austin with fake cardboard parking boots labeled PARKME.COM
Forced people to confront the pain of parking
Turned frustration into awareness

It was:

Controversial
Highly visible
Impossible to ignore

And it worked.

👉 Massive press coverage
👉 Viral attention
👉 Instant brand recognition

This was the category ignition moment.

Phase 5: Expand Into B2B + Platform

As adoption grew, we expanded beyond consumer.

We built:

Analytics dashboards for cities and operators
Web maps for parking insights
White-labeled applications for municipalities
Tools to help operators understand demand and pricing

Now ParkMe wasn’t just:
👉 A consumer app

It was:
👉 A platform connecting drivers, cities, and infrastructure

The Outcome

Built the brand, messaging, and GTM engine from scratch
Scaled growth through SEO, partnerships, PR, and experiential marketing
Established ParkMe as a market leader in parking data and mobility
Supported Series A and Series B growth
Positioned the company for acquisition

👉 Acquired by INRIX

The Bigger Takeaway

ParkMe wasn’t just a product success.

It was a story + distribution + timing success.

The key lessons:

Start with a real, painful problem
Build credibility before scale
Create a simple, clear story
Use one breakout moment to accelerate everything
Turn product into platform

Most importantly:

Growth doesn’t come from channels.
It comes from clarity + momentum.

Need to build a brand and growth engine from scratch?

If you're launching something new and need a clear story, scalable demand strategy, and a path to traction — let’s talk.