# Obviously Awesome  ## About - Author: [[April Dunford]] - Full Title: Obviously Awesome - Published: ## Highlights > [!NOTE] ([Location 147](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=147)) > Positioning is the act of deliberately defining how you are the best at something that a defined market cares a lot about. > [!NOTE] ([Location 165](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=165)) > I like to describe positioning as “context setting” for products. > [!NOTE] ([Location 178](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=178)) > In order to break through the noise, companies would need to take into account their own strengths and weaknesses, then contrast them with their competitors to create a unique leadership position in the minds of customers. > [!NOTE] ([Location 211](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=211)) > “Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it’s about deliberately choosing to be different.” MICHAEL PORTER > [!NOTE] ([Location 234](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=234)) > Pairing weak positioning with strong marketing and sales efforts leads to customers abandoning your product soon after they have purchased it—particularly bad news for subscription-based businesses that depend on renewals. > [!NOTE] ([Location 239](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=239)) > Positioning is worth it. And it’s not that hard. > [!NOTE] ([Location 247](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=247)) > Context enables people to figure out what’s important. Positioning products is a lot like context setting in the opening of a movie. > [!NOTE] ([Location 261](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=261)) > Taken together, the messaging, pricing, features, branding, partners and customers create context and set the scene for the product. > [!NOTE] ([Location 294](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=294)) > “If you’re a baker, making bread, you’re a baker. If you make the best bread in the world, you’re not an artist, but if you bake the bread in the gallery, you’re an artist. So the context makes the difference.” MARINA ABRAMOVIĆ > [!NOTE] ([Location 304](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=304)) > Product creators often fall into the trap of thinking there is only one way to position an offering, and that we have no ability to shift that contextual frame of reference, especially after we have released it to market. > [!NOTE] ([Location 309](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=309)) > Without meaning to, we trap ourselves within our own context. We don’t know how to shift the framework to best communicate what our product actually is or what it does. > [!NOTE] ([Location 311](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=311)) > Trap 1: You are stuck on the idea of what you intended to build, and you don’t realize that your product has become something else. > [!NOTE] ([Location 334](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=334)) > So, if you were the baker, you might not see too much difference between muffins and cake—the product is essentially the same, right? However, choosing to make muffins or cake results in two fundamentally different business models, with different ways of making revenue. > [!NOTE] ([Location 339](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=339)) > However, the road from an idea to a market-ready product is rarely a straight line. > [!NOTE] ([Location 348](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=348)) > Trap 2: You carefully designed your product for a market, but that market has changed. > [!NOTE] ([Location 371](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=371)) > We have never been taught that positioning is a deliberate business choice that requires time, attention and, importantly, a systematic process. > [!NOTE] ([Location 422](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=422)) > The repositioning didn’t stop with marketing and sales — it changed the way we viewed ourselves. > [!NOTE] ([Location 426](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=426)) > “Find out who you are and do it on purpose.” DOLLY PARTON > [!NOTE] ([Location 479](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=479)) > this is where I also first encountered the expression “malicious compliance,” meaning you have completed something that was requested of you, simply to illustrate the stupidity of the request.) > [!NOTE] ([Location 481](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=481)) > The worst part of a positioning statement exercise is that it assumes you know the answers. > [!NOTE] ([Location 504](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=504)) > These are the Five (Plus One) Components of Effective Positioning: > [!NOTE] ([Location 513](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=513)) > “You cannot be everything to everyone. If you decide to go north, you cannot go south at the same time.” JEROEN DE FLANDER > [!NOTE] ([Location 518](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=518)) > The competitive alternative is what your target customers would “use” or “do” if your product didn’t exist. > [!NOTE] ([Location 552](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=552)) > Your target market is the customers who buy quickly, rarely ask for discounts and tell their friends about your offerings. > [!NOTE] ([Location 589](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=589)) > Market categories help customers use what they know to figure out what they don’t. > [!NOTE] ([Location 602](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=602)) > “Sit, walk or run, but don’t wobble.” Zen proverb > [!NOTE] ([Location 690](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=690)) > Until we have more experience with real customers, it’s better to keep our minds open and our positioning loose, and see what happens. > [!NOTE] ([Location 698](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=698)) > If we start by laying out our unique features, we are unconsciously comparing ourselves to a set of competitors. > [!NOTE] ([Location 702](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=702)) > Customer-facing positioning must be centered on a customer frame of reference. > [!NOTE] ([Location 703](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=703)) > Shouldn’t we position our product for customers the same way we position it for investors? Absolutely not! Investors are investing in what your company will be in the future; customers are buying a solution to a problem they have right now. > [!NOTE] ([Location 776](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=776)) > Consider these outputs that all flow from positioning: > [!NOTE] ([Location 788](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=788)) > You want engagement from every group because you need buy-in from every group. > [!NOTE] ([Location 798](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=798)) > STEP 3. Align Your Positioning Vocabulary and Let Go of Your Positioning Baggage > [!NOTE] ([Location 813](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=813)) > The reality is that most products can be many things to many types of buyers. > [!NOTE] ([Location 829](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=829)) > Market confusion starts with our disconnect between understanding the product as product creators, and understanding the product as customers first perceive it. > [!NOTE] ([Location 830](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=830)) > The positioning team needs to understand the concept of “positioning baggage” before they can attempt to let go of it. > [!NOTE] ([Location 860](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=860)) > STEP 4. List Your True Competitive Alternatives > [!NOTE] ([Location 865](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=865)) > The features of our product and the value they provide are only unique, interesting and valuable when a customer perceives them in relation to alternatives. > [!NOTE] ([Location 898](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=898)) > STEP 5. Isolate Your Unique Attributes or Features > [!NOTE] ([Location 913](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=913)) > Your opinion of your own strengths is irrelevant without proof. > [!NOTE] ([Location 929](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=929)) > Concentrate on “consideration” rather than “retention” attributes. > [!NOTE] ([Location 930](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=930)) > Consideration attributes are things that customers care about when they are evaluating whether or not to make a purchase. > [!NOTE] ([Location 931](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=931)) > Retention attributes are features that aren’t as important when a customer is making an initial purchase decision, but are very important when it comes time to renew. > [!NOTE] ([Location 939](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=939)) > STEP 6. Map the Attributes to Value “Themes” > [!NOTE] ([Location 973](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=973)) > Clustering the Value into “Themes” > [!NOTE] ([Location 981](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=981)) > “The stone age didn’t end because they ran out of stones.” Unknown > [!NOTE] ([Location 985](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=985)) > STEP 7. Determine Who Cares a Lot > [!NOTE] ([Location 993](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=993)) > In my experience, if there’s a marketing concept more widely misunderstood than positioning, it’s segmentation. > [!NOTE] ([Location 999](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=999)) > For consumers, a segmentation could include combinations of things such as other brands they own or like, stores they buy from, the job they hold or their music or entertainment preferences. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1038](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1038)) > In general, the segment needs to meet at least two criteria to be worthy of focus: (1) it needs to be big enough that it’s possible to meet the goals of your business, and (2) it needs to have important, specific, unmet needs that are common to the segment. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1042](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1042)) > STEP 8. Find a Market Frame of Reference That Puts Your Strengths at the Center and Determine How to Position in It > [!NOTE] ([Location 1112](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1112)) > Head to Head: Positioning to win an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1115](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1115)) > Big Fish, Small Pond: Positioning to win a subsegment of an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1119](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1119)) > Create a New Game: Positioning to win a market you create > [!NOTE] ([Location 1122](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1122)) > 1. Head to Head: Positioning to win an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1204](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1204)) > In marketing, the process of splitting up an existing market is called subsegmenting. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1356](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1356)) > Category creation is about selling the market on the problem first, rather than on your solution. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1451](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1451)) > In this case, “sharing economy” is not a market, it’s a trend. Uber is also not a market, it’s a company (and one that not everyone has consistent assumptions about). > [!NOTE] ([Location 1526](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1526)) > so I will give you just one tip that I think is important: write a messaging document. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1538](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1538)) > While most people think of positioning as a marketing concept, a shift in positioning feels more like a shift in business strategy. Every department inside the company is likely to be impacted over time. ### INTRODUCTION ### POSITIONING AS CONTEXT ### THE FIVE (PLUS ONE) COMPONENTS OF EFFECTIVE POSITIONING ### STEP 1. Understand the Customers Who Love Your Product > [!NOTE] ([Location 680](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=680)) > The first step in the positioning exercise is to make a short list of your best customers. ### STEP 2. Form a Positioning Team > [!NOTE] ([Location 776](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=776)) > Consider these outputs that all flow from positioning: Marketing: messaging, audience targeting and campaign development Sales and business development: target customer segmentation and account strategy Customer success: onboarding and account expansion strategy Product and development: roadmaps and prioritization > [!NOTE] ([Location 804](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=804)) > In the workshops I run, I set aside the first hour to go over positioning concepts and definitions with the team. At a minimum, the team needs to be on the same page regarding: What positioning means and why it is important Which components make up a position and how we define each of those How market maturity and competitive landscape impact the style of positioning you choose for a product > [!NOTE] ([Location 899](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=899)) > Strong positioning is centered on what a product does best. Once you have a list of competitive alternatives, the next step is to isolate what makes you different and better than those alternatives. > [!NOTE] ([Location 903](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=903)) > In this step, list all of the capabilities you have that the alternatives do not. List every attribute you can think of, even if it seems like it could be a negative to certain customers and even if you’re uncertain what its value might be. > [!NOTE] ([Location 940](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=940)) > Attributes or features are a starting point, but what customers care about is what those features can do for them. Attributes like “15-megapixel camera” or “all-metal construction” enable benefits for customers such as “sharper images” or “a stronger frame.” Articulating value takes the benefits one step further: putting benefits into the context of a goal the customer is trying to achieve. Value could be “photos that are sharp even when printed or zoomed in,” “a frame that saves you money on replacements,” “every level of the organization knows the status of key metrics” or “help is immediately available across every time zone.” > [!NOTE] ([Location 986](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=986)) > Once you have a good understanding of the value that your product delivers versus other alternatives, you can look at which customers really care a lot about that value. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1044](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1044)) > You now have a good handle on your ideal prospects, your product’s unique attributes and the value those attributes can deliver. The next step is to pick a market frame of reference that makes your value obvious to the segments who care the most about that value. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1107](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1107)) > There are different approaches for isolating, targeting and winning a market—and certain styles work better for some than others. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1112](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1112)) > Head to Head: Positioning to win an existing market You are aiming to be the leader in a market category that already exists in the minds of customers. If there is an established leader, your goal is to beat them at their own game by convincing customers that you are the best at delivering the solution. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1115](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1115)) > Big Fish, Small Pond: Positioning to win a subsegment of an existing market You are aiming to dominate a piece of an existing market category. Your goal is not to take on the overall market leaders directly, but to win in a well-defined segment of the market. You do this by targeting buyers in a subsegment of the broader market who have different requirements that are not being met by the current overall market leader. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1119](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1119)) > Create a New Game: Positioning to win a market you create You are aiming to create a new market category. Your goals are first to prove to customers that a new market category deserves to exist, then to define the parameters of that market in the minds of customers, and lastly, to position yourself as the leader within it. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1138](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1138)) > If you are launching a new product, particularly if you are a small business just starting out, the Head to Head style is rarely a good choice. Trying to beat an established market leader at their own game is a bit like trying to out-cola Coke. It would be foolish for a small company to ever try. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1144](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1144)) > The only case where a company might want to position a new product in a known category is when the category itself is defined and understood by buyers, but a strong leader has not yet been established. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1150](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1150)) > The advantage of positioning in an existing market category is that you don’t have to convince people the category needs to exist. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1163](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1163)) > If you are looking to bootstrap your business, this may not be the way you want to enter the market. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1172](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1172)) > The good news: if you position yourself in an existing market, you don’t have to teach buyers too much about the category itself and you can rely on what they already know. The bad news: if you rely on what buyers already know, you need to fit within their existing definition if you want to win. Software can identify people for security reasons or count people coming in and out of a venue; many would-be buyers of this software know about these solutions. There’s an assumption that you could count people fast enough to handle a normal flow of traffic into a retail store or an office building. If your software doesn’t do that but is amazing at other things (e.g., at identifying a person against a watch list), then your offering might be a good solution for a subset of the market (the Bigger Fish, Smaller Pond style that we will talk about next) but not a potential winner across the entire market for facial-recognition solutions. #### 2. Big Fish, Small Pond: Positioning to win a subsegment of an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1206](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1206)) > The goal of the Big Fish, Small Pond style of positioning is to carve off a piece of the market where the rules are a little bit different—just enough to give your product an edge over the category leader. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1216](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1216)) > Dominating a small piece of the market is generally much easier than attempting to directly take on a larger leader. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1238](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1238)) > When to use the Big Fish, Small Pond style First, this style requires that the category is well defined and there’s a clear market leader—and you’re not it. People must understand what you mean when you talk about the category. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1262](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1262)) > The work of this style is first to educate the targeted subsegment about how a general-purpose solution is not meeting their needs. You need proof points that show there is a clear gap in value between the general-purpose solution offered by the market leader and your more-purpose-built solution. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1265](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1265)) > You also have to show that you meet or exceed the existing category criteria (at least the ones that matter most to your subsegment). #### 3. Create a New Game: Positioning to win a market you create > [!NOTE] ([Location 1326](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1326)) > Because this style of positioning is so difficult, it should only be used when you have evaluated every possible existing market category and concluded that you cannot position your offering there, because doing so would fail to put the focus on your true differentiators and value. This style can also work if your company is large and powerful enough to capture the attention of customers, media and analysts to make a case for why the new market category deserves to exist. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1341](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1341)) > Creating a new category is the most difficult style of positioning, even when the pre-existing conditions are aligned to support it, mainly because it involves the greatest amount of “teaching” the customer. In the other positioning styles, you’re leveraging what folks already know about a category and building on that to create a position in the mind of customers. In this style, you are starting with a blank canvas. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1369](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1369)) > If you choose to use the Create a New Game style... Follow a long-term plan. At every step, you need to defend yourself as the category leader, or risk having a competitor with more resources and name-brand recognition reap the rewards of your hard work in creating the category. The most common way startups fail at this style is by working to build the market and then losing out on establishing themselves as its leader. At the exact moment when prospects start to show signs of understanding the category, a larger competitor or a well-funded fast follower swoops in to take advantage of their category-creation work and steal leadership from them. ### STEP 9. Layer On a Trend (but Be Careful) > [!NOTE] ([Location 1408](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1408)) > Once you have determined your market context, you can start to think about how you can layer a trend on top of your positioning to help potential customers understand why your offering is important to them right now. This step is optional but potentially really powerful—if you go about it carefully. ### STEP 10. Capture Your Positioning so It Can Be Shared > [!NOTE] ([Location 1470](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1470)) > Positioning on its own isn’t useful to a company. Once you have worked through your positioning, you need to share it across the organization. Positioning needs to have company buy-in so it can be used to inform branding, marketing campaigns, sales strategy, product decisions and customer-success strategy. ### AFTER POSITIONING: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? > [!NOTE] ([Location 1493](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1493)) > entire team to agree on what the differentiated value is for the offering and what customer segments the sales and marketing teams should be targeting. The next stage is to make the positioning real across the company. How do you implement a position? The most obvious immediate next thing after a change in positioning is to create new messaging that reflects the positioning. Interestingly, however, having worked with dozens of companies on their positioning, I’ve found that before we tackle messaging, it is more effective to craft what I call a “sales story.” ### CONCLUSION > [!NOTE] ([Location 1592](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1592)) > Any product can be positioned in multiple markets. Your product is not doomed to languish in a market where nobody understands how awesome it is. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1594](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1594)) > Great positioning rarely comes by default. If you want to succeed, you have to determine the best way to position your product. Deliberate, try, fail, test and try again. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1596](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1596)) > Understanding what your best customers see as true alternatives to your solution will lead you to your differentiators. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1597](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1597)) > Position yourself in a market that makes your strengths obvious to the folks you want to sell to. > [!NOTE] ([Location 1599](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1599)) > Use trends to make your product more interesting to customers right now, but be very cautious. Don’t layer on a trend just for the sake of being trendy—it’s better to be successful and boring, rather than fashionable and bewildering. > [!NOTE] ([Location 776](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=776)) > Consider these outputs that all flow from positioning: > [!NOTE] ([Location 1112](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1112)) > Head to Head: Positioning to win an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1115](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1115)) > Big Fish, Small Pond: Positioning to win a subsegment of an existing market > [!NOTE] ([Location 1119](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B07PPW5V9C&location=1119)) > Create a New Game: Positioning to win a market you create