Brand positioning is one of the most important parts of marketing. It’s a way to communicate what your brand stands for and why it matters to customers. Brand positioning helps you define the goals, messaging, and tone for your company as well as its corporate image. The process works best when it’s done in conjunction with a strategic marketing plan that also includes elements like mission statements and values.
Research your competition
Researching your competition is one of the most important steps in developing a brand positioning strategy. By researching your competition, you’ll be able to see what they’re doing well and what they need improvement on. That way, you can make sure to avoid their mistakes and stand out from the crowd by setting yourself apart in the best possible ways.
You should research your competitor by:
- Looking at their website or social media pages (or both)
- Reading through their content marketing strategies and copywriting style
- Visiting their products page(s) and looking at prices, shipping & handling costs, etc.
- Checking out customer service reviews/complaints that might give insight into how they handle customer complaints or product issues.
Use your research to distinguish your brand from that of your competitors
To create a unique and compelling brand positioning, use your research to distinguish your brand from that of your competitors. While all brands should be different, it’s important to understand what makes yours distinct from the others in the market. For example, if you’re marketing a new hotel chain and want to be seen as “luxury for all,” then you need to decide how this differs from other luxury hotels. Is it a lower price point? Smaller rooms? A more casual environment or innovative technology? By being clear on what makes you different from other similar brands, you can develop a succinct and powerful message that will resonate with customers in an industry saturated with options.
You’ll also want to make sure that whatever makes your business stand out is something they actually care about; otherwise, there won’t be much value in having such an advantage over competitors (and if there isn’t much value here then maybe another characteristic would better serve).
Hone in on what sets you apart from competitors
Once you’ve identified the opportunities and challenges, it’s time to identify how your brand will stand out. This is where we hone in on what makes your brand unique. Remember, a strong positioning statement is all about highlighting the particular qualities and attributes that set your brand apart from its competitors. So go back to those insights you uncovered at the beginning of this process and consider what makes your organization different from other brands or businesses in the same category as yours.
If you’re unable to find any distinguishing characteristics that separate you from other brands in your industry, try conducting some research and analysis of top companies within similar markets. You may discover something about their service philosophy or business model that feels like it fits with who you are as an organization—and could potentially be leveraged into a powerful positioning statement for yourself!
Differentiate your brand with a compelling message
The first step to developing a clear and concise brand position is by establishing your core message. You can accomplish this in one of several ways:
- Brand Positioning Statement – This is the most formal way to communicate your brand’s value proposition. It should be short, memorable, and have a clear focus on who you’re selling to and what they will get out of working with you. A good example would be “We help businesses get more sales by providing them with exceptional customer service.”
- Brand Promise – The brand promise takes the same approach as a positioning statement but goes further into how the company lives up to its promise in every aspect of its business operations. For example, if you were making chocolate chip cookies that taste better than cookies from another company, then how are they better? What makes them taste so much better? And what do people who try these cookies think about them? These answers can then be used as part of your brand promise statement: “Our customers love our chocolate chip cookies because we use only the freshest ingredients and bake them fresh daily.”
- Tagline – A tagline is similar to branding statements or promises but shorter—designed for advertising campaigns or other touchpoints where there isn’t enough space for everything else. For example: “With us at your side; every day will feel like Saturday morning!”
Create a clear call-to-action for customers
A call-to-action (CTA) is a phrase used in marketing to describe the action that you want your audience to take. For example, if you’re advertising a new product, your CTA could be “Order now!” If you’re selling an e-book on how to use social media for business, your CTA might be “Download now!” The key here is that it should always be clear what it is that you want people to do once they get there: click through or make a purchase or pick up the phone and give us a call.
The best CTAs are short and direct, such as “Get started today!” They also include some urgency so that customers know there’s no time like the present for them to act on their desires (e.g., “Today only: Free shipping!”).
Keep in mind however that some marketers prefer longer CTAs because they believe this makes them stand out more from other sites with short ones—but keep in mind too that long CTAs are harder for users who don’t read all of them carefully which means they might not even bother reading yours anyway.
Brand positioning is more than just a tagline or a slogan. It’s about creating an image in your audience’s mind that sets you apart from your competitors and makes them want to buy from you. Brand positioning can help businesses create loyal customers, but it takes time and a lot of effort to perfect. So if you have not yet created an effective brand positioning strategy for your company, contact us for a free 30-minute strategy call!
