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title: Taxonomy analysis & editorial samples for Gumroad - Amos Goh

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title: Taxonomy analysis & editorial samples for Gumroad - Amos Goh
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## Current taxonomy 

Before I begin analysing the current taxonomy, I think the objective of taxonomy is to organise information into sub-categories so users can zoom in on a category to find what they are looking for with minimal effort.

Hence, a good taxonomy should not be too **specific** (i.e. one search term that could be classified into several categories), or too **vague** (i.e. too many search terms that could be applicable for one category). Also, organising the different categories should be **somewhat natural** to how the taxonomy users already.

The current taxonomy is a one-level taxonomy, split into different categories based on interest groups. 

|     | Current                |
| --- | ---------------------- |
| 1   | Apps & Software        |
| 2   | Animation              |
| 3   | Books & Writing        |
| 4   | Comedy                 |
| 5   | Comics                 |
| 6   | Crafts & DIY           |
| 7   | Dance & Theater        |
| 8   | Design & Tech Products |
| 9   | Drawing & Painting     |
| 10  | Education              |
| 11  | Film & Video           |
| 12  | Food & Cooking         |
| 13  | Games                  |
| 14  | Merchandise            |
| 15  | Music & Sound Design   |
| 16  | Photography            |
| 17  | Podcasts & Audiobooks  |
| 18  | Sports                 |


## Suggestion 1: Split up ambiguous categories
While the above category is good at splitting up the various interests group on Gumroad, there are several categories that contain concepts that are different enough (in nature, target group, purpose of content) to be further split up. These categories should be further split up to avoid ambiguity


|     | Category               | Why?                                                                                                                                                                                                               | Outcome                                                           |
| --- | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 1   | Dance & Theatre        | Dancers & actors can **get potentially very different**, if we go into the sub-categories of dance (e.g. hip-hop, breakdancing, etc.)                                                                                  | Separate categories of "Dance" and "Theatre"                          |
| 2   | Books & Writing        | People looking to purchase books are normally readers, whereas people looking for 'writing' are normally writers. These are not mutually exclusive, but the **intents are entirely different** (consuming vs creating) | Separate categories of "Books" and "Writing"                          |
| 3   | Design & Tech Products | Designers and developers have very different tools and contents they are looking for.                                                                                                                              | Separate categories of "Tools for Devs" and "Tools for Designers" |
| 4    |  Education  |  This is too vague. What kind of education? By level? By domain? My guess is that we don't have enough data yet to meaningfully slice and dice         |  KIV, and further divide when we have more data   |
|  5   |  Merchandise  |    Similarly, this is too vague too. It's hard to know what this contains         |KIV, and further divide when we have more data
| 6    |  Sports    |    Similarly, this is too vague too. It's hard to know what this contains          | KIV, and further divide when we have more data           |

## Suggestion 2: Re-frame interest-based categories to persona-based categories

Diving deeper on the row 3 above, I think the current interest-based taxonomy system might be better replaced by a persona-based taxonomy system. 

Firstly, a persona-based taxonomy system sounds more **personal and relatable**. Instead of throwing up a big word such as "Painting", a "Painters" category makes the user feel like a painter or aspiring painter joining a community of other painters. **This makes Gumroad sound more sincere and embraces what Gumroad stands for - empowering creators. In the long run, I feel that this will create better brand association and NPS**, as compared to other competitors who go for safer interest-based categories.

Additionally, in some interest categories, **the creator and the consumer are very different profiles looking for different things**. For instance, a reader would be looking for new books, novels and newsletters to consume, whereas a writer could be looking for writing guides. Or a game designer would look for game design resources, whereas a gamer would perhaps look for indie games to play. **In these cases, while they may not be mutually exclusive, separating the creator from the consumer actually helps to make the taxonomy clearer in explaining what it contains**. 


As such, on top of the above splitting of categories, I would reframe the interest groups based on user persona. Here is an example of my final taxonomy, 

  | Current | Category           | Role     |
  | ------- | ------------------ | -------- |
  | 1       | Animators          | Creator  |
  | 2       | Comedians          | Creator  |
  | 3       | Comic Creators     | Creator  |
  | 4       | DIY-ers            | Creator  |
  | 5       | Dancers            | Creator  |
  | 6       | Actors             | Creator  |
  | 7       | Artists & Painters | Creator  |
  | 8       | Educators          | Creator  |
  | 9       | Filmmakers         | Creator  |
  | 10      | Chefs              | Creator  |
  | 11      | Games Makers       | Creator  |
  | 12      | Gamers             | Consumer |
  | 13      | Merchandise makers | Creator  |
  | 14      | Musicians          | Creator  |
  | 15      | Sound Designers    | Creator  |
  | 16      | Photographers      | Creator  |
  | 18      | Podcast Fans       | Consumer |
  | 17      | Podcasters         | Creator  |
  | 19      | Developers         | Creator  |
  | 20      | Designers          | Creator  |
  | 21      | Readers            | Consumer |
  | 22      | Writers            | Creator  |
  | 23      | Sportspeople       | Creator  |
  
  --- 
  ## 5 Up & Coming Creators  
  
  1. [Angrymikko](https://gumroad.com/angrymikko) 

Angrymikko (otherwise known as Mikko Eerola) is a digital artist from Helsinki who draws stunning fantasy landscapes on Procreate and creates educational videos regularly on Youtube. Watching Angrymikko draw is a magical experience that transports you into different fantasy landscapes. That's not all - he talks through his timelapses and frequently gives tips on how to best use Procreate, brushes, drawing techniques to achieve the painting you desire. If you're a beginner Procreate artist, this is definitely the best place to start for beginner Procreate artists. 

Inspired by Angrymikko's art style? You can support him and paint your landscapes in his style with his Procreate brushes at https://gumroad.com/angrymikko

  2. [Kunal Sarkar](https://gumroad.com/kunalbsarkar)

Previously known as CrazyPolymath and having over 50K Twitter followers, Kunal is indeed a crazy polymath who writes very deeply about a wide range of topics surrounding the philosophy of life. His deep thoughts, simple ideas and straightforward writing achieves a good balance of making you reflect deeply within, while finding your own way forward in life 

Sounds like an interesting rabbit hole? Subscribe to his free essays for a taste of it, or buy his book "Learn & Earn" at https://gumroad.com/kunalbsarkar


 3. [Mateusz Wierzbicki](https://gumroad.com/mateusz/posts)
Are you a current or aspiring product builder? Then you should definitely meet Mateusz Wierzbicki. 

He is a long-time design expert that has created many tools and resources for the design community, such as Ant Design for Figma - a Figma resource that was voted Product Hunt #3 Product of the Day. If you are familiar with the no-code movement led by Webflow, Mateusz has a tool for you too! He has recently created SystemFlow - a utilty framework that helps designer convert Figma designs to Webflow websites seamlessly. 

Follow Mateusz Wierzbicki at gumroad.com/mateusz

  4. [Ellie Talks Money](https://gumroad.com/ellietalksmoney)
Ellie's story from being homeless to building 7-digits in wealth is an inspirational tale for all of us. If you are looking to pursue your passion, start a business and escape the daily grind, Ellie has a lot to share with you. From financial literacy tips for youths to a Grants-101 guide, there is something for everyone, regardless whether you are a small-business ownder or an aspiring startup founder in-the-making. 


  5. [Segun Adebayo](https://gumroad.com/segunadebayo)
Segun is the lead contributor to Chakra UI - a simple, modular and accessible library for you to build React apps with speed. With only 7 core contributors, Chakra UI has been starred by over 18K developers on Github and downloaded over 250K times monthly. It is used by companies such as Lattice, Echobind and increasingly in the web3 space. Chances are you have used or interacted with Chakra UI before, and Segun is the man behind it. 

Beyond the speed and convenience Chakra UI brings, if you are looking for something to build your React components even faster, Segun has the Chakra UI Pro built for you. 