What is positioning and why does it matter?

Product positioning is the competitive edge your product holds within its market category. It communicates the unique value you offer compared to existing alternatives. Effective positioning starts with a deep understanding of your target customers and the specific problems your product solves. It's reinforced by your product’s features and benefits—and is essential for gaining traction.

Here is an example: During a project I worked on involving EV charging station management cloud based software, we originally marketed the product as "user-centric and user-friendly." However, after identifying our competitive advantage—specifically, the advanced diagnostic and real-time monitoring features that address the pain points of our target customers, the EV charging point operators who struggle with effectively maintaining chargers and monitoring breakdowns—we refined our positioning. We shifted our positioning message to emphasise that our software "Cut maintenance costs, increase uptime and offer charging that simply works." Following this refinement, we observed a 3.8 percentage point increase in the lead sign-ups conversion rate.

Positioning in Product Market Fit

During the pre-launch phase, effective positioning can help you attract your ideal target audience and customers. By doing so, you are in the right direction to secure your first 100 target customers or product-qualified leads. This initial group allows you to conduct customer research and interviews that provide valuable insights for further product development. Ultimately, these insights enable you to adjust your product direction and work towards achieving product-market fit.

Positioning in Go-to-Market Fit

In the launch phase, you've observed signs of product-market fit and want to ensure a successful go-to-market strategy. Your positioning serves as the foundation for this strategy, including marketing and sales channels that align with your target customers' preferences. With these channels established, you can create marketing content and sales messaging based on your strategic positioning, whether it’s engaging educational material, branding messages, or persuasive direct product sales messages.

Strategic Positioning

Positioning is not static; it evolves as different customer profiles and market demands change. It's essential to explore different ways to define your positioning in relation to your target customer groups. By testing and refining your positioning approach, you can identify what works best and find the sweet spot between market demand and your product's competitive advantage. As your target customer groups and market demands change, your product positioning and development should evolve accordingly. Enhance your positioning with compelling messaging and engaging narratives that emphasise your product's value proposition, features, and benefits. Ultimately, the way you communicate these messages shapes how customers perceive your positioning in the market.

(For the most detailed guidance of testing, iterating, and nailing your positioning, check out the book on Amazon.)

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Sasha, the author of “The 14-Day Sprint to Test, Iterate, and Nail Market Positioning: Win Your First 100 Customers Fast” brings over a decade of experience in internet marketing and startup growth, offering practical, experiment-driven strategies for landing your first customers and nailing your market positioning.