Your brand is positioned in the market whether or not it is intentional. Walk through four steps on how to strategically position your brand with ease.
When I think of the type of person who invests in an Apple computer, I immediately think about someone in the creative field. A graphic designer, UX designer or videographer.
Compare that to the type of person that comes to mind when I think of a PC investor: someone who uses spreadsheets and works on a team that utilizes Office 365, who sits in a cubicle and is climbing the corporate ladder.
The differences between these two brands is a result of their intentional and strategic brand positioning.
And today, we’re diving into the four steps that will help you position your brand for success.
What is brand positioning?
According to the Branding Journal, brand positioning describes how a brand is different from its competitors and where, or how, it sits in the customers’ minds.
In other words, it’s how you want your customer to think about your brand in relation to others in the same space.
Why does brand positioning matter?
Please know that whether you like it or not, your brand has positioned itself in the market. This is why brand strategy, and thus brand positioning, is so important.
Every time someone experiences your brand, they perceive it a certain way. They position it in their mind against similar businesses. It sounds overwhelming and slightly scary, amirght? But here’s the thing – when you’re strategic and thoughtful about your brand’s positioning in the market, you can have a say in how you want your brand to be perceived.
When you are able to understand what makes your brand unique and then create a plan for communicating that uniqueness in a clear and consistent manner, you’re better able to control the perception of your brand’s position.
How to position your brand
Creating an effective brand position doesn’t have to be complicated. At the most basic level, the goal is to understand your market, see where you stand out and consistently communicate that special sauce, over and over again.
First step, determine where your brand is currently positioned
Think about how your brand is currently communicating within the market. Are you showcasing a specific expertise? Are you focused on price? Do you share a lot of educational content or is your focus on entertainment and humor?
There is no right or wrong answer. The purpose is to understand where you are so that you can make an educated decision on the next right step for your brand and business.
Conduct market research and understand where your competitors are currently positioning their brand.
Ask yourself the same questions as you would to identify your own brand’s position, but look at it from the perspective of your competitors.
How are they showing up in the marketplace and differentiating themselves? Go to their website and see what stands out. Check out the content they’re sharing and where they’re showing up online. What types of clients do they work with – maybe they’re positioning their brand as an expert for a specific industry or group of people.
Find the gap in the market.
Now that you understand how you’re positioned and your competitors, do an analysis on where the gap is in the market. Is there something you’re doing well that others aren’t, and you can enhance that position even more? Or, is it time to reposition your brand based on the competitors in your marketplace and where the need is?
Evaluate Your Brand’s Position
When you clarify and craft a well-positioned brand (and brand positioning statement), you will be better set up to make business decisions that will help you win business, further differentiate your brand, attract your ideal customer and stay focused as your business grows.
Here are a few questions to ask yourself once you’ve clearly identified your brand’s positioning:
- How does it differentiate your brand?
- Does it enable growth in the marketplace?
- Does it identify what makes your brand unique?
- Is it easy to understand?
- Can your brand own it?
- Will it help you stay aligned in your branding and marketing?
- Can it be copied?
Four strong brand positioning examples + how they work
Oftentimes, we think that when a market is saturated, we can’t position our brand in a unique and innovative way. I wanted to squash that excuse because, spoiler alert: every brand is unique, including yours.
I’ve rounded up four amazing companies that are distinctly different, even though the tangible product provides the same outcome – a paper planner that helps you stay organized.
Passion Planner: Passion Planner is designed to be your 24/7 paper life coach™, helping you to get your life on track. We believe in a world where everyone has the courage, tools, and community to build their ideal life.
Their position in the planner market is focused on helping people follow their passions. Their messaging centers around how consumers can use their planner to identify dreams and work toward them every day.
Day Designer: >We believe everyone can live an intentional, productive and beautiful life. Day Designer products combine beautiful designs, original content and simple guided frameworks to inspire and empower users to find balance, focus and productivity.
They position their brand as the expert for creating a beautiful and organized planner. They focus on intentional living in a stylish and beautiful way. Their messaging showcases how the product can help women stay organized while maintaining style.
Simplified by Emily Ley: Simplified’s mission is to inspire and empower women with the tools they need to simplify their lives. Simplified is a team of eight women, each passionate about simplifying life to allow for more of what matters most.
They position themselves as an expert in helping moms feel empowered through organization. They showcase their founder as a mom-of-three and tell her story through the lens of staying organized while juggling all the to-dos a typical mom and wife has on a daily basis, so that she can have more time doing what matters most.
Panda Planner: My hope with Panda Planner is that it will give you the motivation, the inspiration, the system—or whatever it is that you need—to set aside your stress and challenges, start living a fulfilling life, and crush your goals!
They’ve positioned themselves as the planner with a scientific approach to planning so that you can live your life, vibrantly. They utilize their founder’s personal story to position themselves as the expert, with a scientific twist. Their messaging is around the new framework for planning, so that you can live a vibrant life.
A few final thoughts
Your brand’s position is how you differentiate your business in the market. It can be the difference between having a brand that resonates with your audience and becomes recognizable, or having a brand that gets lost in the crowd. And, as with all things branding, know that it’s okay to pivot, change and evolve.
Your brand should be flexible and constantly fine-tuning to ensure that you’re providing the best experience to each and every customer.
All my best,
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