Positioning Strategy: The Guide to Not Being Ignored
Many businesses are utterly forgettable.
They exist in a sea of beige, shouting the same tired phrases as their competitors. They work hard, build decent products, offer good services, and remain completely invisible to those who matter.
The reason? They have no positioning strategy. Or worse, they have one weak, confused, or built on fear. They're trying to be a little bit of everything to everyone and end up being nothing to no one.
This isn't about marketing buzzwords. This is about survival. If you don't choose how you want to be seen, the market will choose for you. And you probably won't like its choice.
- Businesses must establish a clear positioning strategy to avoid being forgettable and irrelevant in a competitive market.
- Positioning is defined by the unique mental space you occupy in your customer's mind, not just your brand elements.
- Effective positioning requires deliberate sacrifice, meaning you must clearly identify what your brand is not for.
- Crafting a strong position involves knowing your target audience, defending your unique selling proposition, and providing evidence to support your claims.
What is a Positioning Strategy
Forget what the marketing textbooks told you. Let’s cut through the noise.
It’s Not Your Logo. It’s Not a Snazzy Slogan.
Your brand identity—logo, colours, font choices—is critical. But it’s not your position. It’s the expression of your position. A well-designed logo for a company with no clear position is like a beautiful sign on an empty building. It looks nice, but it's pointing to nothing.
A slogan is the same. “Just Do It” is powerful because it perfectly summarises Nike's position of empowerment and athletic achievement. The slogan didn't create the position; the position gave the slogan its power.
It’s the Patch of Real Estate You Own in Your Customer’s Brain
That’s it. That’s the simplest, most honest definition.
Positioning is the deliberate, strategic act of claiming a specific, distinct, and valuable piece of mental real estate in the mind of your ideal customer.
When they think “safety,” you want them to think Volvo. When they think of “cheap flights,” you want them to think of Ryanair. When they think “disruptive tech wrapped in beautiful design,” you want them to think Apple.
These companies don't own these concepts by accident. They claimed them. They defended them. And they built their entire business around them. Your position is the single idea you want to be known for.
The Golden Rule: Positioning is an Act of Brutal Sacrifice
Here's the part that makes most entrepreneurs sweat.
Effective positioning is defined more by what you reject than accept. Its power comes from sacrifice.
You must be willing to say:
- “We are not for these people.”
- “We do not offer these features.”
- “We will not compete on this attribute.”
- “We are happy for these customers to go to our competitors.”
This feels terrifying. It feels like you're leaving money on the table. In reality, you're focusing your energy. You're building a powerful magnet for the right people, instead of a weak, flickering light for everyone. The attempt to be universal is a guarantee of mediocrity.
Why Most Businesses Get This Wrong (and Stay Invisible)
I see the same mistakes over and over. It's a pattern born from fear, laziness, and misunderstanding.
The Deadly Sin of “We’re For Everyone”
This is my number one pet peeve. I'll ask a founder who their target customer is, and they'll beam with pride and say, “Small businesses!”
That's not an answer. That's a description of millions of wildly different entities. A freelance graphic designer in Shoreditch has nothing in common with a plumbing contractor in Scunthorpe. A VC-backed tech start-up has different needs than a family-owned bakery.
Saying you're for “small businesses” is lazy. It shows you haven't done the hard work of thinking about who you truly serve best. This means your messaging will be generic, your product features will be bloated, and your brand will be forgettable. You're shouting into a hurricane.
Confusing a Feature List for a Position
“Our software has AI integration, 24/7 support, a custom dashboard, and exports to PDF.”
So what?
That’s a spec sheet. A list of features is not a position. Your competitors probably have a similar list. Features are easy to copy. A deeply entrenched position is not.
Instead of listing what it does, tell me what it is. Are you the “easiest accounting software for freelancers”? Are you the “most secure project management tool for enterprise teams”? That's a position. The features are just the proof.
The Cowardice of Copying the Market Leader
Another classic. A new company enters a market, looks at the number one player, and says, “Us too, but maybe a bit cheaper!”
This is a strategy for being a second-rate, low-margin alternative. Forever.
When a leader has established a strong position (like Volvo and safety), you cannot beat them by attacking that position head-on. Al Ries and Jack Trout said it best in their seminal book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind. You have to find a different angle, an unoccupied slot in the customer's mind. You must be the anti-leader, the specialist alternative, or the new-generation option.
- Al Ries (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 224 Pages – 12/13/2000 (Publication Date) – McGraw Hill (Publisher)
Trying to be a slightly worse version of the leader is a death wish.
The Core Components: Your Positioning Blueprint
Right, enough complaining. Let's get practical. A strong position is built on four pillars. Get these right, and you're 90% of the way there.
1. Your Target Audience (Be Painfully Specific)
We've touched on this, but it bears repeating. You need to define your ideal customer with obsessive detail. Not just demographics. Psychographics.
- What keeps them up at night?
- What are their biggest frustrations with the current solutions on the market?
- What do they secretly desire?
- What language do they use? What blogs do they read?
- What are they afraid of? What are they ambitious for?
The more specific you are, the more powerfully your message will resonate. You want your ideal customer to read your website and think, “Finally. Someone who gets me.”
2. Your Frame of Reference (What Game Are You Playing?)
This is the market category in which you compete. It gives the customer a mental box to put you in. It’s the context for your uniqueness.
Are you a car? Or are you an electric car? Are you a coffee shop? Or are you a third-wave, single-origin speciality coffee shop? Are you a project management tool? Or are you a project management tool specifically for creative agencies?
Defining your frame of reference sets the customer's expectations and defines your direct competitors. Sometimes, the most powerful move is to change the frame entirely.
3. Your Point of Difference (The One Thing You Can Defend to the Death)
This is your Unique Selling Proposition (USP). You can offer a singular, compelling, believable benefit to the target audience within your frame of reference.
It has to be one thing. Not five. One.
The most common mistake here is claiming something you can't own. Don't claim “high quality” if you can't prove it tangibly. Don't claim “great customer service” unless you are prepared to invest absurd amounts of money to make it legendary.
Your point of difference must be:
- Simple: Easy to understand in a single sentence.
- Relevant: Solves a key problem for your target audience.
- Unique: Genuinely different from your competitors.
- Defensible: Something you can deliver on consistently.
4. Your Reason to Believe (The Proof in the Pudding)
This is the evidence that backs up your claim. It’s the “why” behind your point of difference. Without proof, your position is just an empty promise.
- If your position is “The Safest Car,” your reasons to believe are reinforced steel cages, side-impact protection systems, and decades of crash test data. (Volvo)
- If your position is “The Easiest-to-Use Website Builder,” your reasons to believe are a drag-and-drop interface, pre-made templates, and customer testimonials praising its simplicity. (Squarespace)
- If your position is “The Most Ethical Outdoor Gear,” your reasons to believe are your B-Corp certification, recycled materials, and Ironclad Guarantee. (Patagonia)
Your proof points make your position credible.
Real-World Examples: Positioning That Doesn't Suck
Theory is nice. Reality is better. Let’s look at some masters of the craft.
The Tyranny of Price: Ryanair
Ryanair’s position is brutally simple: We are the cheapest way to fly around Europe. Full stop.
They don't pretend to be comfortable. They don't claim to have excellent service. Everything they do—from charging for carry-on luggage to their garish yellow and blue interiors—screams “cheap.” They sacrificed luxury, comfort, and customer service to own the price. You know precisely what you're getting. You may not like it, but you understand it.
The Cult of Simplicity: Apple
When Apple launched the iPod, the market was full of MP3 players that boasted about gigabytes and features. Apple's position wasn't about specs. It was: 1,000 songs in your pocket.
Simple. Desirable. Different. Their position has always been about making powerful technology feel simple, elegant, and human. The design, the user interface, the packaging, the advertising—it all serves this single position. They sacrifice customisation and cross-platform compatibility for their own simplicity and seamless integration.
The Indestructible Promise: Volvo
For decades, Volvo has owned one word: Safety.
They pioneered the three-point seatbelt and then gave the patent away for free because it supported their position. Every engineering decision, every ad campaign, every press release reinforces this core idea. They happily let BMW own “driving performance” and Mercedes own “luxury” because they knew the power of owning one critical concept completely.
The Heavy Metal Water: Liquid Death
This one is brilliant. How do you position… water? It's the ultimate commodity.
Liquid Death’s answer: position it as the antithesis of everything boring and healthy. They put it in a tallboy beer can, gave it a heavy metal aesthetic, and adopted a rebellious, irreverent tone.
Their position isn't about hydration. It's about identity. It's “canned water for people who hate corporate marketing.” Their target audience isn't health nuts; it's punks, skaters, and people at a concert who don't want to drink alcohol but also don't want to look like they're sipping a boring bottle of water. They sacrificed the mass market of grocery shoppers to own the counter-culture niche. Genius.
How to Build Your Positioning Strategy, Step-by-Step
Right. Your turn. No more excuses. Grab a whiteboard or a notebook.
Step 1: Analyse the Playing Field (But Don’t You Dare Copy)
Make a list of your top 3-5 competitors. For each one, answer these questions:
- What appears to be their positioning? (e.g., the cheapest, the fastest, the most premium).
- Who is their target audience?
- What is their primary message?
Look for the gaps. What aren't they saying? Who are they ignoring? The empty spaces on the board are where your opportunities live. A 2023 Nielsen study showed that 57% of global consumers will buy from a new brand if it offers a new or innovative proposition [source], which often starts with finding an empty positioning slot.
Step 2: Define Your Ideal Customer (The One You Actually Want)
Get that notebook out again. Write a detailed profile of one person. Give them a name. A job. A list of frustrations. Be embarrassingly specific. If you can't describe the single person you're trying to help, you'll never reach them.
Step 3: Find the Magic Overlap
Draw three overlapping circles.
- Circle 1: What your customer desperately wants/needs.
- Circle 2: What you (and your business) do better than anyone else.
- Circle 3: What are your competitors bad at (or ignore altogether)?
Your strongest position lies in the sweet spot, the small sliver where all three circles overlap. It intersects customer desire, your unique strength, and your competitive weakness.
Step 4: Write the Positioning Statement (A No-Nonsense Template)
This isn't a public-facing slogan. It's your internal guide. It's a simple formula to ensure you've covered the bases.
For [Your Target Audience], Who [Have a specific problem or desire], Our Product/Service is a [Your Frame of Reference], That provides [Your Point of Difference/Benefit], Unlike [Your main competitor/alternative], We [Your Reason to Believe/Proof].
Example for a fictional company: For UK-based freelance creatives Who struggle with lumpy cash flow and chasing invoices, Our Product is an accounting software That provides instant payouts on approved invoices, Unlike traditional software that just tracks payments, We use our capital to advance you the funds so you get paid within 24 hours.
See? It forces clarity. It makes you choose. This is the foundation upon which your entire brand identity should be built.
Your Strategy is Useless If It Lives in a Document
Having a great positioning statement is a start. But if it just sits in a Google Doc, it’s worthless. You have to bring it to life.
From Position to Message: Stop Sounding Like Everyone Else
Look at your website copy, social media posts, and sales emails. Does it all sound like it came from the same brain? Does it all reinforce your position?
If your position concerns being the “easiest” solution, your copy should be simple, straightforward, and jargon-free. If your position concerns being “rebellious,” your tone should be edgy and provocative. Your message is your position, verbalised.
Making Sure Your Brand Looks the Part
This is where design comes in. Your visual identity is the sensory layer of your position.
- A brand positioned on value and affordability (like Aldi) will use a simple, clean, no-frills design.
- A brand positioned on luxury and prestige (like Rolex) will use elegant fonts, rich materials, and spacious layouts.
- A brand positioned on being eco-friendly and natural (like Lush Cosmetics) will use earthy colours, handcrafted textures, and imperfect typography.
Your visual brand isn't just decoration. It’s a powerful, non-verbal signal telling customers what you stand for before they read a word.
The Litmus Test: Does Every Single Touchpoint Scream Your Position?
From your 404 error page to your invoice template. From how you answer the phone to the packaging your product arrives in. Every single interaction a customer has with your brand should be a confirmation of your position.
This is the hardest part. It requires consistency and discipline. But it's what separates good brands from iconic ones. When every touchpoint is aligned, your position becomes an undeniable truth in the customer's mind.
A Final, Uncomfortable Truth
Your competition is lazy.
They're vague. They're trying to please everyone. They're afraid to be different. They're clinging to a list of features and hoping someone notices.
That's your most significant advantage.
Having the courage to choose a sharp, specific, and sacrificial positioning strategy is the most powerful thing you can do for your business. It's not easy. It requires guts. But it's the only reliable way to stop being invisible. It’s the only way to build a brand that matters.
What's Next?
If this brutally honest approach to building a brand resonates with you, you'll find more to chew on across the Inkbot Design blog. We focus on clarity, not clichés.
If you've read this and realised your brand's position is fuzzy, weak, or non-existent, we're here for that. Building a powerful brand identity starts with a rock-solid positioning strategy.
When you're ready to discuss your specific business, request a quote. We'll help you find your focus.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a positioning strategy in simple terms?
It's the process of deciding how you want your business to be perceived in the mind of your ideal customer, especially in comparison to your competitors. It's about owning one specific idea or benefit.
What's the difference between branding and positioning?
Positioning is the strategy; branding is the execution. Your positioning is the core idea (e.g., “we are the safest car”). Your branding is how you express that idea through your name, logo, design, and tone of voice.
Why is positioning so crucial for a small business?
Because small companies can't afford to be vague. With limited resources, you can't outspend big competitors. Your only chance is to out-think them by owning a specific niche or attribute that they ignore. Strong positioning makes your marketing far more efficient.
Can you give me a simple positioning statement example?
For Dollar Shave Club (at launch): “For men who are tired of overpaying for razor technology they don't need, our subscription service is a convenient way to get quality razors that provide a great shave for a few quid a month, unlike expensive brands in the chemist.”
How often should I review my positioning strategy?
Review it annually to ensure it's still relevant. However, you should only consider a major change (repositioning) if there's a significant market shift, your current position is no longer viable, or you consistently fail to gain traction. Don't change it on a whim.
What are the main types of positioning strategies?
Price: The cheapest or the best value (Ryanair, Aldi).
Quality/Prestige: The highest quality or most luxurious (Rolex, Mercedes).
Convenience: Being the easiest or fastest to use (Amazon Prime, Starbucks).
Customer Service: Offering an unparalleled service experience (Zappos).
Differentiation: Focusing on a unique attribute or niche (Liquid Death, Tesla).
How do I know if my positioning is working?
Your ideal customers will find you more easily. Your marketing messages will resonate more strongly. You'll be able to charge a premium (or justify your price) more easily. And most importantly, when you ask customers why they chose you, their answers will sound a lot like your positioning statement.
Is it possible to have more than one point of difference?
It's dangerous. The strongest brands own one idea. You might have secondary benefits, but your positioning and messaging should address one primary point of difference. Trying to stand for “quality, speed, and low price” simultaneously is confusing and unbelievable.
My product has a lot of features. How do I choose just one for my positioning?
Don't focus on the features themselves, but on the most significant outcome or benefit they create for your target customer. All your features should work in the service of that single promise.
What if a competitor copies my position?
A copycat will look like a cheap imitation if you've established your position and built your brand around it first. The best defence is to live your position so completely—through your product, service, and culture—that it's impossible to copy authentically.
Last update on 2025-07-24 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
