Positioning Basics

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to strategy and positioning. Anyone who says there's a one-size-fits-all approach simply doesn't get it. Strategic positioning is more art than science. And each and every client is a new canvas.

Great positioning is as unique as every situation. You have to be flexible, nimble. My ‘methodology' is more a way of thinking about things. I don't really have a checklist or set of step-by-step instructions. 

Positioning is best thought of as a matrix of elements that can be combined in various way to create a relevant and compelling story for the situation at hand. The key is to be concise with compelling core positioning statements (3-5 maximum) and then support those statements with wide and varied evidence that can be applied based on their specific relevancy. The core statements serve to keep your story consistent, while the diverse evidence let's you demonstrate your value in diverse ways. 

Once you develop the right matrix, you can weave a story that is compelling at every level - and support it with the right threads of evidence to make your point. Just be sure your evidence threads are primarily around customer stories and anecdotes - which in my experience are the best way to bring the stories to life. 

In my own practice, I weave the fabric of your story around 3 key story lines or layers of messages. All other story threads (e.g., evidence) must enhance these three fundamental positioning statements. I give different story lines and/or evidence threads priority depending on the client situation (e.g. turnaround, start around, start up) and the project purpose (e.g., product or company launch, M&A strategy, fund raising, go to market strategy). Then there's my own gut feel, which in the end is usually the deciding factor. Thirty years of experience gives one's intuition a lot of fodder (along with the grey hair). 

So what are my 3 story lines, or layers I mention above? 

Your Solutions: As you're thinking through solution positioning, focus on the ‘So What?' value your solutions bring to customers. Solution messaging should make a clean concise statement of your solutions' business value. Then prove that value with evidence, preferably in the form of customer stories. Solutions include products and services, as well as expertise. 

Your Market: As part of positioning your company and its solutions, you also have to tell the story of the market. Be thoughtful as you build the case for why your company and its solution are needed, and the value they bring. Demonstrating an understanding of the current market, as well as a vision for the future, is critical in positioning your company as an expert that customers can trust.

For each area - create a single strong statement of your leadership (OK, sometimes you can have two). Then collect every morsel of evidence you can to support those statements. From there, create a top level story with the 3 messages - and then evidence that story with the anecdotes and numbers and facts you have (customer-centric) that are most relevant depending on the situation. 

In all areas I rely on the qualitative information (the art) as much or more than I do the quantitative information (the science). 

Above all, you have to learn to follow your gut, your instincts - and those instincts need to be founded in a customer-centric perspective.