Positioning is a first cousin to branding. It’s about finding that place in your clients’ psyche where your brand will set up housekeeping. You might also think of it as the frame of the branding house.

The concept of positioning was introduced by Al Reis and Jack Trout in 1981. Going to the source seems to make sense. Here’s their definition of positioning from their book, Positioning: The battle for your mind,
“Positioning is an organized system for finding a window in the mind. It is based on the concept that communication can only take place at the right time and under the right circumstances.”

The trick with positioning is being first to the customer’s mind. In most cases, unless you’ve really got something new, you’re not going to be in first place. Trying to unseat Numero Uno is a tough act, if not impossible, for several reasons. Not the least of those is that by trying to unseat them, you’re essentially telling your prospects that they’re wrong. Folks generally don’t like to be told that.

To help you find your position, consider conducting a Competitive Analysis to find your competitors’ weaknesses. Then, do a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) Analysis to find your strengths. How can you use this information to spin your positioning message and find your niche in the customer’s mind? Our e-book, “Marketing Tune-Up,” contains instructions and handy forms for both.

Think about rental car giants, Hertz and Avis. Hertz historically held the number one spot. Avis, as we all know, is number two, but hey, they try harder. That’s their position - “We try harder.” Or what about 7-Up®’s losing battle to unseat Coke® and Pepsi®? Enter the “Uncola.” The rest was history.

Finding your position takes some creativity. What spot isn’t owned by your competitors? Which of your strengths can you play up without directly attacking the competition or telling your prospects they’ve been wrong all along? But, don’t make it a bunch of hooey. Your position should be genuine and honest.

If you’re a designer that might mean developing a specialty in an area nobody else is covering. Or, it might mean focusing on an under-served industry segment and learning all you can about it. In conjunction with your marketing and public relations, over time, you can become the number one choice for those prospects.

Sometimes, it can be accomplished by changing your job title or the names of your products or services. Instead of a “graphic designer” maybe you’re a “visual communications consultant,” or a “brand essence developer.” This is akin to what ValuJet did after one of its aircraft went down in the Florida Everglades. When that jet went down, their positioning quickly changed to “The risky airline.” In an almost immediate re-branding and positioning juggling act, they changed their name to AirTran. The company is now thriving as one of the top low-fare airlines.

The big idea here is to find a way to zig when your competitors are zagging. If you don’t, you run the very real risk of “me-too” marketing. When that happens, you can only compete on price and that’s a lousy place to be.

By carefully selecting your positioning and reinforcing it with savvy branding you’ll find your marketing, over time, becomes a much easier task. It’s easier because you’ve laid a solid foundation. Each new activity builds on the ones done before. You’ll avoid the scattered, “try this and try that” approach. Let your competitors take that road to Feast Or Famineville.

Until the next
Marketing Minute
All the best,
nt