Let’s face it, there are many companies that offer similar products and promise similar results. They are all positioned in the same market.

Why would a customer choose to work with one company rather than another? If both options lead to the same type business selling the same product, why choose the first?

It is easy to answer: No one wants to buy a product/service because it does everything. But rather, because it does something.

This is what positioning in marketing means. Every marketing strategy must have a clear positioning statement. This is what drives the design, look, and words of your brand system.

Focus and commitment to a niche, idea or target audience are key elements of positioning. If you try to be everything to everyone, your brand and marketing strategy will not work.

This blog post will provide some facts, and help you understand positioning in marketing and how to create a successful positioning strategy.

Let’s get started!

What is positioning in marketing?

Simply stated, positioning in marketing refers to a strategic process of creating an image or brand identity for the product or brand within the minds of target customers.

This process identifies how your product/service is different from those of your competitors, and determines which market niche you should fill. The company’s marketing strategy will be affected by many variables, including customers’ needs and motivations as well as the actions of its competitors.

Let’s look at some examples of marketing positioning:

• Audi and Tesla are luxury status symbols
• Starbucks is a trusted source for high-quality coffee and beverages.
• McDonald’s is known for its quick and affordable meals.
• Microsoft and Apple are both tech companies that offer innovative and user-friendly solutions.

Marketing is more than adding a page for specialized topics or categories to your website. Positioning is about much more than that. Positioning requires you to live and breathe your expertise, from creating content to conducting research to branding your company to appeal specifically to your target buyer.

Different types of positioning in marketing

Researchers in the Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing discovered that positioning in marketing is predominantly determined by hard criteria (e.g., quality of product/ service) and relationship-building factors (e.g., personal contact).

Other factors, such as company structure (i.e. geographical coverage), degree integration and breadth (i.e. location in the distribution channel), play an important part. A study found that brand familiarity is an important factor in determining perceptions of marketing strategies.

These are the most common types of positioning used in marketing.

Pricing

Customers make their decisions based on pricing. In many product areas, companies that offer low-priced goods at a good quality often win.

Gillette vs. Dollar Shave Club, for example. There are now lower-priced alternatives than high-quality brands such as Gillette that have changed the market for razors and refill blades. The Washington Post reported that Gillette’s declining market share was due to Dollar Shave Club’s lower prices. Dollar Shave Club’s refill razor cartridge was the cheapest at 20 cents. Gillette, however, charges $2 to $6 per cartridge.

Qualitative

Pricing wars can be stopped by quality. Quality can help define the competition in certain markets like luxury cars or cosmetics.

For instance, Chipotle vs. Taco Bell. Chipotle was ranked 14th among the 50 best fast-food restaurants in America according to QSR Magazine. This is because they focus on quality and not price.

Differentiation

Differentiation refers to what makes your product or service stand out from the rest. Competitors may not be as dangerous if your product or services are significantly different.

Toyota vs. Tesla is one example. Tesla was the first to enter the electric vehicle market. It launched a luxury sports car model and quickly outpaced economy cars like the Toyota Prius. Tesla’s Model S was designed for the high-end market.

Convenience

Customers will have a simpler life when convenience is available. Convenience could include everything from location to usability to E-commerce and free returns.

Simple vs. Bank of America, for example. Traditional banks are slow to develop mobile apps. However, online-only banks such as Simple have made investments in this area to appeal to younger customers who are more tech-savvy. Simple doesn’t charge any fees, and offers convenient budgeting and saving tools.

Customer service

Customer service is about creating friendly and helpful interactions. This is especially important in certain industries like banking and restaurants.

State Farm vs. Allstate is an example. Both insurance companies understand the importance of customer service in this sector, where it is vital to maintain contact with customers. To emphasize this, they use customer service-based marketing messages to highlight their position.

User group

This positioning is targeted at a specific group of users. It explains why the company’s offerings are relevant and directly applicable to them.

Johnson’s baby shampoo vs. Axe, for instance. Johnson’s baby shampoo is gentle enough for children; Axe body spray is more suitable for men.

Marketing: 5 Advantages of Positioning

There are many reasons to consider positioning as part of your marketing strategy. The right positioning strategy can help you create better marketing messages, better shape your services, and plan pricing to remain competitive.

5 benefits of positioning in marketing:

A strong competitive position is essential

The way customers see your product or service in relation to others is affected by how well you position it. You’ll enjoy a market advantage if your customers have a positive perception of your product/service. This will allow you to claim your place in the market, which can help you stay ahead of the pack.

Improve sales

A business’s main goal is to increase sales and revenue. Your company can reach new markets by offering a better product and communicating it better. This could result in new clients and increased sales.

Define a more defined target market

Marketing positioning allows you to position your product/services in a way that makes you an expert in the service. Your value to prospects will rise significantly as a result.

Take more effective decisions

You’ll be able to make better decisions as you work through the marketing process once you have the core message. A clear positioning strategy in marketing can also help you communicate effectively and build stronger relationships with your customers.

Connect with consumers

Companies can position themselves in marketing to highlight the key benefits of their product/service. This not only helps to excite the product, but also connects it with the customer who needs it.

Five Examples of Positioning in Marketing

Tesla

Tesla doesn’t focus on price in its branding, but instead emphasizes the quality of their cars. Tesla is therefore a luxury brand that is much more expensive than its rivals. Tesla cars are also long-range, environmentally-friendly, and electrified.

Because of its superior quality, Tesla is different from other electric-powered luxury vehicles and gas-powered cars. It created a niche market and a brand that matched it. Elon Musk, the CEO, has been compared to Tony Stark. The company promotes its uniqueness with ads and quirky features like “Ludicrous Mode”.

Starbucks

Since the 1960’s, coffee consumption in the U.S. has been on the decline. Starbucks chose a target market with extreme caution. Starbucks targeted office workers with middle- to high incomes who wanted to buy premium products.

The company aims to be the “Third Place”, where customers can gather, relax and interact with one another. They were careful about quality control in order to meet high expectations.

In most of their advertising campaigns, they often highlight their identity by showing the following value proposition statements:

• The best coffee
• The best milk
• Rich & smooth flavors
• Clean, natural, and healthy
• Use 100% recycled paper

These statements give potential customers the impression that they will receive premium, high-quality, clean and delicious beverages. It’s not surprising that Starbucks has been America’s top coffee supplier for many years thanks to such a well-executed marketing strategy. People can’t get enough!

Dollar Shave Club

The name of Dollar Shave Club demonstrates the company’s main marketing strategy: low prices. This company’s positioning has been centered on convenience and affordability, making it a more relatable brand.

Gillette is their largest competitor and has a masculine tone in their branding and messaging. Dollar Shave Club, however, is more casual and fun. Gillette features men who look like actors and models, while Dollar Shave Club has average-looking people of all ages.

Nike

Nike was founded with the goal of innovation and performance in mind. Nike invented the waffle shoe, and their brand was designed to target serious athletes. They now offer apparel that promotes performance in addition to shoes.

The company is widely recognized as a market leader in sports equipment, owing to its “Just Do It” slogan and the namesake, the Greek Goddess Of Victory, which provides high-quality, innovative technology.

Apple

Apple is a classic example of a strong market position strategy. Apple creates innovative, beautifully designed equipment and markets it to appeal to their customers.

Apple’s brand message emphasizes the same qualities in its customers as they do in their products. If you are an Apple person, then you are imaginative, innovative and creative.

Apple, like Tesla, chooses to focus on the value of their products and build relationships with customers.

Six steps to develop a successful positioning strategy

Step 1. Find your current position

Are you currently marketing a product or a service similar to another on the market? Or are you marketing it differently?

The market’s current position gives you valuable insight into where you should go. To analyze your competitors better, you need to understand your current situation.

Use the following questions to determine your market position:   

• What is your brand’s identity?
• Who are your target customers?
• What is your vision and mission?
• What sets you apart from the rest?
• Which customer pain points can your brand solve?

Remember that brands that feel and sound authentic to you are what we love. Don’t try to create a complex language that is difficult for anyone to understand. Instead, be human. Start by researching your ideal audience and then use their language.

Step 2. Analyze your competitors

It’s important to understand yourself and then analyze your competitors by doing competitor analysis. Why?

You need to know who your competitors are to be able to conduct competitor research. This will allow you to determine what you can do better in order to gain an advantage.

There are many ways to determine your competition.

• Conduct market research. You can quickly search for relevant keywords to see which companies are included. You can also ask your sales team about similar sales tactics that they have seen during the sales process.
• Get customer feedback. Ask your customers which products or businesses they like before you make your decision.
• Social media channels are available. There are many free platforms that allow you to ask questions about products or services. These forums and communities can be used to find competitors in your niche.

After you’ve identified your competitors, it’s time to conduct in-depth competitor research. Your ultimate goal is to find out how your competitors are positioning their brands. Your research should include:

• Your competitors may offer products or services
• They have their strengths and their weaknesses
• They are successful in using marketing strategies
• They are in the market today

Step 3. Develop your unique position

It is all about creating a unique position and determining what distinguishes you and what will work best for your company.

You might find something after doing competitor research. It is possible to identify businesses with similar strengths and weaknesses. You might discover that one of their strengths is yours when you compare your product/service to theirs.

This is what makes you unique and can be used to position your brand in the marketplace. Be sure to take note of your unique offering as you compare and dig deep to discover what you are doing better than others.

Step 4. Create a positioning statement

Because this statement, which is one or two sentences long, identifies the uniqueness of your brand in comparison to its main competitors, a positioning statement is essential.

These questions are recommended by experts before you create your positioning statement.

• Who are your target audiences?
• Which product or service do you offer?
• What is your greatest benefit?
• Is there any proof that this benefit is real?

Let’s take, for example, Amazon’s positioning statement. “Our vision is to be the world’s most customer-centric business; to create a place where customers can find and discover everything they want online.”

Amazon offers a broad range of products that are accessible to everyone. This is Amazon’s greatest advantage. The proof is in the pudding. You can find it all online.

Step 5. Create your tagline

After crafting a strong positioning statement you can create a tagline or more commonly known as a slogan for external use for customer messaging. It is shorter than the positioning statement and contains a more concise version of what you want to communicate to your customers.

Here are some examples of well-known taglines to help you get started.

• L’Oreal: “Because it’s worth it.”
• Nike: “Just do what you have to.”
• Target: “Expect more. Pay less.”
• Home Depot: “You can do it. We can help.”
• Southwest Airlines: “The low-priced, short-haul, no frills airline.”

This will allow you to easily incorporate it into other marketing efforts that help your business stand out, far more effectively than a lengthy positioning statement.

Step 6. Test your marketing positioning

Your positioning statement should not be left to chance. After you have created it, spend some time testing and experimenting to see if your positioning is successful.

A mix of qualitative and quantitative research should be used in testing, including focus groups and interviews as well as surveys and polls. These tests will help you to establish your marketing position and make adjustments if needed.

Positioning map: The power and perception of perception

A brand positioning map is a great way to see how your business ranks in consumer perceptions.

A brand positioning map is composed of attributes that are important to your target audience. It is best to make multiple versions of the map that are based on different attributes in order to do good mapping. You can identify who is more competitive in an area by placing your brand and other competitors on the map.

The values that your customers are most interested in determine the attributes in the positioning map. These values directly influence the perception of your product/service. Take a look at this positioning map. What will you see?

It is easy to see why Domino Sugar is so much better than its competitors.

The bottom line

It is not easy to position yourself in marketing. It’s crucial, especially if you struggle to generate consistent revenue streams, attract new customers, or retain existing customers.

This is a way to recruit talent and influencers to your business, and it’s something you have plenty of time for. We hope you find our guide to creating a successful positioning strategy helpful.