We're going through an exercise to help position a new company that's entering a very crowded market. In order to most effectively define who and what this company is, we need to also define how it's different than others in its market, and why businesses would want to engage with them.
The process of developing a positioning statement is pretty straightforward - it's the actual activity itself that becomes the challenge. Many different ideas and "keywords" come to the brainstorming page, and a lot of passion sits behind each of those. The challenge is ensuring that the language used to define who and what a company or brand is adheres to 3 primary principles; that it is:
Read "Time to Clean Your (Brand) House" for more information on defining a positioning statement.
One of the most fun exercise in the development of the positioning statement - and one that I find helps tremendously when "stuck", is to get everyone working on the obituary for that business or brand. Think ahead to the future and imagine the company is a person. Sadly, it just died (of natural causes, of course - the business was a thriving one!). Now. What would you like the obituary to say about the life and legacy of that company?
Once written, the initial positioning exercise and the struggles to identify which definitions would be most meaningful and durable are much easier to nail down. Test it yourself. What would your brand legacy be? Why wait until you "die" to act on the actions necessary to create that legacy?
The process of developing a positioning statement is pretty straightforward - it's the actual activity itself that becomes the challenge. Many different ideas and "keywords" come to the brainstorming page, and a lot of passion sits behind each of those. The challenge is ensuring that the language used to define who and what a company or brand is adheres to 3 primary principles; that it is:
- Ownable in its respective marketplace or industry
- Meaningful to the core audience being provided for
- Durable and lasting over time (not trend-based)
Read "Time to Clean Your (Brand) House" for more information on defining a positioning statement.
One of the most fun exercise in the development of the positioning statement - and one that I find helps tremendously when "stuck", is to get everyone working on the obituary for that business or brand. Think ahead to the future and imagine the company is a person. Sadly, it just died (of natural causes, of course - the business was a thriving one!). Now. What would you like the obituary to say about the life and legacy of that company?
Once written, the initial positioning exercise and the struggles to identify which definitions would be most meaningful and durable are much easier to nail down. Test it yourself. What would your brand legacy be? Why wait until you "die" to act on the actions necessary to create that legacy?
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