Traversing the Traction Gap

More than 80 percent of early-stage startups fail. While most can build a product, the majority struggle when bringing those products to market due to weak market engineering skills. Traversing the Traction Gap identifies the reasons behind this high failure rate and offers a practical guide for startups to succeed. The go-to-market phase—called the Traction Gap—is the critical period when a startup introduces a new product to the marketplace and must scale it within a rapidly closing window of opportunity. During this phase, many startups face an insurmountable hurdle as time and capital run short. Based on real-life examples, this guidebook from Bruce Cleveland and the Wildcat Venture Partners team provides a roadmap and metrics focused on market engineering techniques. It offers practical advice for navigating the early challenges of a startup and succeeding where others have failed.