Most of what I write on this blog is me trying to break down the “Big things” in product marketing in a way that beginners can understand and remember.
Call me crazy, but if I’m called out of bed at 3 AM, I want to be able to explain how to approach positioning.
Wanting a framework that beginners can understand and remember led me to the Product Marketing Core course. This article is based on the course’s positioning module which I’ve condensed into the following steps. I also realised the course uses the steps included in this positioning waterfall, which is also a brief summary of the steps in April Dunford’s book, Obviously Awesome:
I’ve added the link to April’s templates at the bottom of this article.
These are the 5 things to nail for effective positioning:
1. Competitive Alternatives:
What are your competitive alternatives?
When you’re just starting out, make a list of your direct competitors- described here as what your customers would use if you didn’t exist.
It’s important to realise that value is only differentiated when it is contrasted with a competitor.
You can only understand and identify your uniqueness when you compare with other alternatives to your product.
2. Key Unique Attributes
What features or capabilities do you have that your competitors don’t? List these out. At this stage, don’t get hung up on value.
Here are a couple of prompts to help you point out these features:
3. Value
What value do you enable for your customers?
Your positioning needs to be centred on the value that you alone can deliver for your customers
Work your way through the list of features and then point out why your customers should care and how the features will benefit them.
4. Customers who really care
What customers really care about the value you provide?
Many kinds of prospects care about what you deliver but only some of them really care. Understanding how to find those prospects is the key to maximising revenue return on your sales/marketing efforts. This is because people who really care are easier and quicker to convert.
This is especially important when you’re just starting out and every marketing cent you spend needs to be worth it.
Ask yourself, “If the future of my business depended on me selling as much as I could this month, who are the people I’d go after first?”
5. Frame of Reference
What’s your frame of reference?
Ask yourself, “What context makes the value you provide very obvious to your customers?”
How is your product perceived by your target market?
Here are a couple of examples of popular products and their frames of reference:
Netflix - Streaming platform
Coca-cola - Soft drink
Airbnb - Accommodation rentals
You have to be cautious here because if you go too broad you won’t resonate with your target market and if you go too narrow, you’ll miss out on opportunities.
For breakthrough tech products that don’t really have a frame of reference yet, you may need to liken your product to an adjacent tag that already exists- one that your market is already familiar with e.g. augmented reality, artificial intelligence.
Questions to evaluate your positioning
When you’re done, use these questions to evaluate your positioning. The answer to every question on this list should be YES.
Links to materials referenced