Article · 10 min read

An Introduction to Positioning

April Dunford · aprildunford.com Free Beginner

The cleanest statement of the boundary you are asking about: positioning is the input, and messaging, taglines and branding are all things that happen after it. Read this before you let anyone book a messaging workshop.

  • Positioning has five components: competitive alternatives, differentiated capabilities, value, target segment, and market category.
  • Positioning is not messaging, a tagline, a brand story, or a mission statement.
  • The category sets the expectations: the same features are judged differently as email than as chat.
  • It works like an opening scene in a film, telling the buyer where they are before anything else lands.
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It answers 2 questions

  1. What is positioning in plain English, and why does everyone insist we have got it wrong?
  2. What is the actual difference between positioning, messaging and copy? I keep being asked for all three and they feel like the same job.

Read with it

  1. The clearest single hour on how positioning, segmentation and personas differ and how they connect to the sales call. Dunford... Lenny's Podcast Podcast · ~60 min April Dunford on product positioning, segmentation, and optimizing your sales process April Dunford
  2. The clearest short explanation of why market category is one of five interdependent positioning pieces, with a real... aprildunford.com Article · 12 min read A Quickstart Guide to Positioning April Dunford
  3. Three real startup homepages taken apart, showing the whole chain from positioning statement to messaging to the actual... MKT1 Newsletter Newsletter · 20 min read Positioning & messaging teardown, with Anthony Pierri Emily Kramer and Anthony Pierri
  4. Walks an Indian SaaS team from positioning through story, style guide and proof, with Keka and Chargebee as worked examples... Inc42 Article · 10 min read Indian SaaS Startups' Guide To Brand Marketing Komal Ahuja
  5. Podcast · 21 min Anthony Pierri on B2B Positioning and Value Propositions Anthony Pierri
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