A good product or service is not enough. Your brand must have a unique, memorable, and important place in the minds of your target market in order for people to care about it. In this situation, brand positioning matters.
So, what is brand positioning, and how can you tell that your brand is positioned appropriately? Let’s start from the top.
What Is Brand Positioning?
Brand positioning is the strategy behind how you present your brand to your audience. Brand positioning explains how your brand is different from other brands and how you want people to see your brand.
It answers the ultimate question:
“Why should I choose your brand over all the others?”
Strong brand positioning gives clarity, establishes trust, and drives loyalty. On the opposite side, weak or insufficient positioning creates confusion, and unhappy customers don’t buy.
Why Brand Positioning is Important
Think about walking down a store aisle that has many similar products on the shelf. You are most likely to pick the product that resonates with your needs, fits your values, or simply has a point of differentiation. That’s the power of positioning.
Here are some benefits of strong brand positioning for your business, which includes:
– Clarifying your value for potential customers.
– Attracting the right customers.
– Distancing yourself from your competition.
– Enabling premium pricing.
– Guiding your marketing and messaging.
In summary, brand positioning influences how consumers think about your brand and ultimately whether they choose it.
Warning Indicators of Off-Brand Positioning
If your marketing is falling short, or your audience is unsure of what it is that you offer, you could have off-brand positioning. Check for these common warning signs:
– Your message is unclear or inconsistent across platforms.
– Customers mix up your brand with a competitor’s.
– You attract leads that aren’t converting or leads that aren’t your ideal customer.
– You can’t explain what makes your brand special.
– Your sales have weakened or declined, even when doing promotional work.
If this sounds familiar, it may be time to rethink your positioning.
Evaluating Your Brand Position
To start to evaluate whether your brand is positioned well, you can simply ask yourself these five questions:
- Who is Your Target Audience?
You can’t be all things to all people. With positioning, you must know exactly who you are targeting. Do you know their needs, desires, and pain points?
- What Problem do You Solve?
It’s important for your brand to offer a solution or benefit. If customers can’t quickly figure out how you help them, they’re going to move on.
- What makes You Different?
Differentiation is key. What do you offer that your competitors can’t or don’t offer? Why should someone chperception oose you?
- What are people’s current opinions about your brand?
Ask your customers, look at their reviews, or conduct a brand audit. Does your brand’s current reflect your intended positioning?
- Are you owning a Clear Niche?
Brands that try to be everything ultimately among lost amidst the clutter. Do you have clarity in the market and a competition that is uniquely yours?
How to Get Closer to Your Brand Positioning
If you found your responses to the questions above weren’t that clear or were inconsistent or confusing, that’s OK. That’s your opportunity to start fresh.
Here’s how to enhance your brand positioning:
Develop Your Brand Messaging
Create a simple but powerful messaging statement. Something that clearly states WHO you are, WHAT you do, and WHY it matters. No extra words. Clarity Wins.
Deeply Understand Your Audience
Talk to customers, analyse data, and create a deep understanding of buyer personas. The better you understand your audience, the better you’re going to be able to talk to them.
Define (or redefine) Your Unique Value
Take time to sit down and think about what you own. It could be your process, unique product features, customer service, personal values, or your unique origin story.
Audit Your Competitors
Look at other brands in your sector and determine how they are positioning themselves in the market. Identify the opportunity or weakness to own.
Coordinate Your Visuals and Voice
Your tone, design, and content should all represent your brand’s positioning. This means from your logo to your website copy, everything should be aligned.
Brand positioning is not one-time work. It is ongoing work. Your brand positioning needs to be flexible too as your business grows, markets change, and customer needs change.
If you are not sure if you have properly positioned your brand, take the time, step back, and check in with yourself. What you spend time on improving your positioning will help lead to growth, clarity, and engagement for which you are looking for later.
So, ask yourself an honest question:
Are you just right, or are you just a blending together?
The time is now to find your voice, own your position, and create your brand truly recognisable.
