Product positioning strategies are not only a marketing tactic but a survival strategy.

So how do you ensure that your product not only lives but actually thrives?

In this article, we’ll go over product positioning definitions and their types, then go over our process for creating a product positioning strategy that gets positive user feedback.

TL;DR

• Product positioning is about defining your product’s place in the market to attract customers and enhance brand identity.
• There are different types of product positioning depending on your company’s strengths:

1. Characteristics-based positioning which focuses on unique product features.
2. Pricing-based positioning which emphasizes competitive pricing.
3. Use or application-based positioning which associates the product with specific use cases or JTBDs.
4. Quality or prestige-based positioning which targets a luxury or high-quality market segment to position the brand as exclusive.
5. Competitor-based positioning which focuses on pointing out the product’s advantages over its competitors.

• As for creating a brand positioning strategy, there are some steps you need to follow:

1. Identify your target market and create a detailed customer persona.
2. Conduct deep market research through surveys and interviews to understand customer preferences and market trends.
3. Define your product’s unique selling point (USP) that addresses target market needs.
4. Create a clear product positioning statement that focuses on your target audience, your product’s unique value, its differentiation, and the key benefits it delivers.
5. Test and refine the positioning based on customer feedback and key metrics.

• Now, let’s see some examples of effective product positioning from other SaaS companies:

1. Userpilot positions itself as a product for mid-market companies, and its pricing is designed with a no-discount policy that puts it as a premium solution
2. Monday.com leverages its product’s versatility to communicate its many use cases, positioning it as a top project management platform.
3. Coda employs competitor-based positioning by comparing itself against tools like Google Docs and Notion.

• Want to streamline and automate product management tasks to focus on important positioning strategies? Book a Userpilot demo to see how you can improve your product success.

What is product positioning?

Product positioning is a strategy that defines where and how your product stands in the market in order to bring more customers and improve your brand’s reputation. It shapes how customers perceive your product, focusing on its unique features and benefits to differentiate it from competitors.

Why are product positioning strategies important?

Product positioning strategies play a crucial role in not just attracting customers, but in building a loyal user base for your SaaS product. And for many reasons:

• They help set your product apart from competitors, promoting unique ideas or frameworks that differ from even bigger players in the market.
• Effective positioning ensures your product aligns with the needs and preferences of your target audience. This helps cultivate deeper engagement as they resonate more with the product.
• A well-positioned brand can help customers make informed purchasing choices. This is by clearly communicating the value of their product and reviewing its alternatives using its authority.

Types of product positioning strategies

Product positioning can take many forms, each with its unique approach to connecting with the target audience.

That said, each of these strategies offers a distinct way to position your product in a way that caters to your customer’s needs and preferences:

Characteristics-based positioning

This approach emphasizes the unique features of your product. It’s all about creating a strong association in the customers’ minds between your product and its ease of use, efficiency, unique features, or innovation. And the goal is to position your product as the go-to solution for customers seeking those specific features.

So if your product specializes in cloud-based development tools. You could use characteristics-based positioning by highlighting the platform’s unique feature of real-time collaborative coding, setting you apart from competitors who offer traditional, isolated coding environments.

Pricing-based positioning

Pricing-based positioning focuses on offering your product at a competitive price point. This strategy works well for attracting budget-conscious customers or entering markets with cost as a key decision factor. The idea is to provide a high-quality product at a price that undercuts competitors and still offers great value to your target customers.

For instance, you could adopt a pricing-based positioning strategy by offering a full suite of tools at a price significantly lower than the market average, appealing to cost-conscious small business owners.

Use or application-based positioning

Use or application-based positioning involves associating your product with specific use cases or jobs-to-be-done. It works by demonstrating how your product fits perfectly into your ideal customer’s work routine and makes their life easier.

For example, let’s say your product is a healthcare management platform. You could position it by focusing on managing patient records efficiently, thus targeting healthcare providers who need streamlined patient management solutions.

Quality or prestige-based positioning

Quality or prestige-based positioning targets a more exclusive customer base. It works by positioning your product as a symbol of high quality, exclusivity, or luxury.

To pull it off, you need to make your product exclusive and desirable to those who value premium experiences and are willing to pay more for superior quality. This can involve high-end branding, high-touch service, and an emphasis on the superior aspects of the product.

For instance, if your product offers high-end cybersecurity services for large corporations. A quality-based positioning strategy could emphasize exceptional security features and bespoke services, catering exclusively to top-tier clients.

Competitor-based positioning

With competitor-based positioning, you focus on how your product outperforms or offers more than the competition.

It can involve making comparisons that highlight your product’s advantages over others in the market—either in terms of functionality, additional features, proactive customer support, or overall value.

For example, if your product is a video streaming platform for businesses, you could use competitor-based positioning by emphasizing its superior streaming quality and uptime compared to your competitors.

How to create a product positioning strategy?

Now, let’s go over each step to create a well-thought product positioning strategy for your SaaS business:

Identify your target market

First, define who your target customer is.

Creating a detailed customer persona involves understanding their demographics, behaviors, preferences, and pain points. This persona will help you identify specific needs and challenges so you can tailor your product development and marketing strategy according to them.

Moreover, you can also analyze the competition for your target market. This will help you identify gaps in the market and position your product to capitalize on these opportunities.

Conduct market research

Now, dig deeper into the research.

To find positioning opportunities, leverage surveys and interviews to gather valuable data directly from your current customers—as these will give you a clearer understanding of their preferences and expectations.

The same applies to market trends and competitor analysis, as they will help you understand how competitors position their products and identify areas where your product can stand out—while making sure you’re into up-to-date information.

Define your product’s unique selling point (USP)

Your unique selling point (or unique value proposition) is central to your positioning.

Ask yourself:

• What’s your market position?
• What makes your product different and better than the competition?
• What are the unique features, benefits, or experiences your product offers that are not available elsewhere?
• How does your audience perceive your product?
• What are the aspects of your product that are more likely to influence purchase decisions?

Your USP should be compelling and directly address the needs and wants of your target market. It should combine your solution, your target audience, and the pain points/needs/JTBDs that you’re trying to address.

Create a clear product positioning statement

Next, craft a clear brand positioning statement that you can promote. This statement should include who your target audience is, the unique value your product offers, how it stands apart from competitors, and the key benefits it delivers.

For example, “Mailchimp empowers small businesses with an all-in-one marketing platform, offering innovative technology, award-winning support, and inspiring content.”

This statement will guide all your marketing efforts and ensure consistency across different channels. A well-crafted positioning statement should make anyone instantly grasp what your product is about and why it’s relevant to its users.

Test your product positioning and refine

So, testing your product positioning in the market is essential. It doesn’t matter how well-educated and elaborated your positioning strategy is if it doesn’t work.

For this, use customer feedback and key performance metrics, like customer satisfaction and market share to evaluate the effectiveness of your positioning. This data will provide insights into what’s working and what needs adjustment.

With feedback analysis, you can regularly refine your brand positioning to adapt to market trends, shifts in customer preferences, and new strategies from competitors.

This approach will provide enough agility to your company to ensure that your product remains relevant and continues to resonate with your target audience over time.

Examples of good product positioning

It can be complicated to put product positioning theory into practice.

For that reason, let’s see some real-world examples of SaaS companies that have excelled in positioning their products effectively:

Userpilot

Userpilot targets medium and enterprise companies, so we tailor all marketing materials to product teams rather than startups or SaaS founders (ensuring that our messaging resonates strongly with product managers or customer success reps).

As for our pricing positioning, Userpilot maintains a no-discounts policy and offers only annual pricing for Growth & Enterprise plans. This approach positions Userpilot as a premium solution, making the product less accessible to small businesses but perfectly suited for the mid-market sector.

Monday

Monday.com is a great example of use and application-based positioning. Their tagline, “Run any workflow with the product suite built for any business need you have in mind,” highlights the versatility and adaptability of their product.

By focusing on the various uses and applications of their platform, they effectively communicate the product’s value to a wide range of potential customers, from small businesses to large enterprises.

Coda

Coda is a good example of a competitor-based positioning strategy. They distinguish themselves by highlighting the benefits and competitive advantages they offer over other project management and document collaboration tools such as Google Docs or Airtable.

This approach not only showcases Coda’s unique features but also educates the audience about why they might be a better choice than their more established competitors.

Conclusion

Your SaaS can die or thrive depending on your product positioning strategy.

By identifying your target market, conducting thorough research, defining a unique selling point, and continuously refining your approach, you can give your business a higher chance to stand out in your market.

Want to streamline and automate product management tasks to focus on important positioning strategies? Book a Userpilot demo to see how you can improve your product success.

The post Product Positioning Strategies For SaaS: Types and Examples appeared first on ProdSens.live.

The product marketing role is continually evolving, with practitioners being tasked with a variety of roles and responsibilities.

While product launches, customer and market research, customer onboarding, and product storytelling are all amongst the remit of a modern-day PMM, product positioning, and messaging remain the areas that experts are devoting the most time to, with 90.1% of respondents in the State of Product Marketing Report 2023 earmarking product positioning and product messaging as their core responsibilities:

If product messaging doesn’t resonate with your customers, you’re prone to customer churn, while adoption rates could take a hit if you fail to position your product in an increasingly competitive marketplace. 

Such is the importance of these areas, this piece will address the following:

• What is product positioning?
• What is a product positioning statement?
• Why is product positioning important?
• The relationship between product messaging and product positioning
• How to create compelling product messaging
• How can I position my product?
• Examples of product positioning from top brands
• Two key approaches to product positioning
• What influences how a product is perceived?
• Product messaging and positioning resources

What is product positioning?

Product positioning refers to how a product or service is perceived by consumers in relation to competing offerings. It involves defining where a product fits in the market and creating an identity that resonates with target customers.

Effective product positioning is crucial for differentiating your offering and influencing purchase decisions. It establishes your product’s value and gives customers a reason to choose it over alternatives.

What is a product positioning statement?

A positioning statement is a concise description of your target customer, the problem you address, and your unique solution.

An effective statement serves as an internal compass for product development and an external guide for sales and marketing communication.

Here’s a simple formula:

For [target customer] who [need/desire/pain point], [product name] is [product category] that [key benefit], unlike [competitor], our product [differentiation/USP (unique selling point)].

Here’s an example from Coca-Cola:

“For quality beverage seekers, Coca-Cola offers a wide range of the most refreshing options. Each creates a great experience for customers when they enjoy a Coca-Cola brand drink. Unlike other beverage options, Coca-Cola products inspire happiness and make a positive difference in customers’ lives, and the brand is intensely focused on the needs of consumers and customers.”

This positioning statement framework helps you distill the essence of your product and who it serves into a concise, memorable message that resonates with customers.

Why is product positioning important?

There are several key reasons why product positioning should be a priority:

Increases brand awareness

Product positioning helps cement your brand identity in the minds of customers. It creates memorable associations that set you apart from competitors. The more distinct and consistent your positioning, the greater your brand awareness.

Attracts the right customers

Clear positioning that resonates with your target audience helps attract qualified leads. With the right positioning, customers will recognize how your product solves their needs and why you should be their only go-to.

Drives sales

When customers understand the unique value of your product, they’re more likely to purchase it. Accurate product positioning ensures your product is seen by the right audience, ensuring your product’s truly appealing, which drives people to take action.

Commands higher prices

Effective positioning can justify charging premium prices. Customers will perceive greater value in a product that solves their problems exceptionally well.

Builds loyalty

Satisfied customers tend to stick with brands that meet their needs – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Positioning helps align your product with customer wants, driving retention and loyalty.

Guides product innovation

Established positioning provides direction for product development and new feature prioritization, enabling you to focus your efforts on enhancing defined areas that you know provide consistent value.

The relationship between product messaging and product positioning

Product messaging and positioning work hand-in-hand to create a consistent, strategic brand narrative that resonates with target customers. While positioning defines where a product fits in the market, messaging is about conveying that positioning through expertly crafted marketing communications. 

For example, if your positioning centers on superior performance, messaging can showcase real customer stories, expert reviews, competitive comparisons, and more, to back up that premise.

Effective product positioning provides critical grounding for messaging. It crystallizes what makes your product one-of-a-kind and the specific customer needs it fulfills. This core essence should be infused throughout external-facing messaging to ensure consistency. 

Without clearly defined positioning, messaging risks becoming disjointed and diluted across campaigns. Of course, getting positioning and messaging aligned requires collaboration between product, marketing, and sales teams. But when done effectively, it ensures every customer touchpoint reinforces what makes your product special.

How to create compelling product messaging

During her appearance on Product Marketing Insider, Ashley Wood, Head Of Product Marketing at LANDR Audio Inc. gave her insights on how PMMs can refine their product messaging.

What does powerful messaging look like?

“I think it’s clear above all else, we have a tendency, especially for working on a product and just internally in general, to assume if people have heard about this function or this feature, that they understand the brand as a whole.

“And that’s why empathy is such an important quality to have in a product marketer. Powerful messaging addresses the who, the why, the what, and the how. The why really is about helping them solve a problem, identifying what is, what your differentiators are, and the how being your features and functionalities.

“I play this really annoying game with my PMMs where I’ll just ask, ‘So what?’ until we’ve gotten to the core of the problem that we’re solving. 

“Your products are evolving, your competitors are evolving, and more importantly, your users are evolving. It’s possible that you outgrow your messaging. I think it’s important that you’re always checking that it’s still resonating with your audience, whether that’s through A/B tests, user interviews, and performance metrics.”

How can product marketers develop existing messaging?

“The more time you spend with users understanding their goals and their jobs to be done, the easier it is to build the messaging that resonates.

“When it comes to evaluating it and making sure that you’re always combining the quantitative and qualitative data, typically quantitative findings will signal that there’s an issue and then you can dig in a bit further with qualitative findings, mostly through user interviews and focus groups.”

How do you highlight USPs in your messaging?

“Working on messaging without being crystal clear on the positioning is a mistake. I really like April Dunford’s framework for positioning. We use that document as a home base so we have a lot of clarity on who our competitors are in each space, how we’re unique for each of them, and who cares the most about the value that those unique attributes bring.

“Once that’s set in stone for the moment we use it to come back to, and when we create messaging, we say, “OK, does this line up with our positioning document? Does this line up with our user personas and our segments?”

What challenges have you faced when creating messaging?

“The biggest challenge probably comes to narrowing down exactly who cares the most about the value you’re providing. We have a tendency to want to communicate with as large an audience as possible.

“However, I think what usually ends up happening there is that your messaging talks to everyone without actually talking to anyone because you’ve watered it down so much that it’s generic and therefore, it doesn’t resonate with anyone.

“Establishing strong positioning that everyone internally is aligned on is the key to crafting successful messaging. In my opinion, when you know exactly who your product is serving, and why it’s the best position to solve that problem, messaging becomes a lot more instinctual.”

Which common messaging mistakes do you often see?

“One of the most common mistakes I see is when messages are so big that you don’t understand what they do and who they’re for.

“At Lander, there’s no shortage of people who could benefit from our products. But having to take a step back and communicate that to a product manager that’s spending all of their time trying to make this the most usable product for as many people, I’m letting them know, ‘I know, all of these people could care about it or should care about it, but this is the group of people we have the best shot of converting.’

“I think a common internal mistake is not clearly communicating your audience segment to internal stakeholders.”

How can I position my product?

Understand the market landscape

Research your industry, competitors, customer needs, and the strengths/weaknesses of existing offerings. This context will inform your positioning.

Identify your target customers

Determine who your product is for by analyzing the right data: Demographic, geographic, psychographic, and behavioral, and then use this data to create valuable buyer personas.

Determine your value proposition

Pinpoint the primary value you provide to target customers. How does your product uniquely satisfy their wants and needs better than alternatives?

Find your differentiation

Highlight the stand-out qualities and benefits only your product delivers. This distinction forms the crux of your positioning.

Craft your brand story

Shape a compelling brand narrative that weaves together your value proposition, differentiation, product attributes, and customer perspective into a positioning statement.

Test and refine

Validate your positioning with target customers through surveys and interviews. Adjust messaging based on feedback to find the right fit.

Integrate across touchpoints

Consistently convey your positioning through marketing materials, sales interactions, product packaging, website content, ads, and more.

What are some examples of product positioning?

Let’s take a look at some effective product positioning from leading brands:

HubSpot

Positioning statement:

“Since 2006, HubSpot has been on a mission to make the world more inbound. Today, over 100,000 customers in more than 120 countries use HubSpot’s award-winning software, services, and support to transform the way they attract, engage, and delight customers. Composed of HubSpot’s CRM, Marketing Hub, Sales Hub, Service Hub, CMS Hub, and Operations Hub, HubSpot gives companies the tools they need to grow better.”

HubSpot positions itself as a global business with a wealth of solutions – it’s been around for a good while, which emphasizes that it’s trustworthy. Not to mention that it’s used by a wealth of customers across the globe. The positioning statement focuses on customers, and their success, and showcases that its products are made to scale.

Amazon

Positioning statement:

“For consumers who want to purchase a wide range of products online with quick delivery, Amazon’s a one-stop online shopping site. Amazon sets itself apart from other online retailers with its customer obsession, passion for innovation, and commitment to operational excellence.”

Amazon dominates the digital retail market by clearly positioning itself around addressing customer pain points – quick delivery, an abundance of products, and innovation. It highlights its commitment to customer convenience and weaves its core values into its positioning statement.

McDonald’s

Positioning statement:

“McDonald’s is a leader in the fast-food industry, with quick, friendly service and consistency across thousands of convenient locations. McDonald’s’ dedication to improving operations and customer satisfaction sets it apart from other fast-food restaurants.”

McDonald’s doesn’t have a niche target audience – it caters to people globally, offering a diverse range of options depending on where you’re situated. Its positioning statement highlights the qualities people often look for when deciding on a brand they want to buy from – “do they have my best interests in mind?”, “are they offering value for money?”, “do they have something unique to offer me?”. This positioning statement highlights its customer-centricity, speed, and convenience – everything you typically want from a fast food restaurant. 

Nike

Positioning statement:

“For athletes in need of high-quality, fashionable athletic wear, Nike offers customers top-performing sports apparel and shoes made of the highest quality materials. Its products are the most advanced in the athletic apparel industry because of Nike’s commitment to innovation and investment in the latest technologies.”

Nike has staked its reputation on innovation and quality. Its messaging emphasizes committing to these key values and uses language that resonates and focuses on what buyers want – functional apparel that’s also fashionable. Nike also partners with celebs to increase its brand image and inspire trust from its target audience.

What are two common approaches to product positioning?

Attribute-based positioning

With attribute positioning, brands highlight a specific product feature, technology, or capability as the key differentiator. This focuses on functional or technical strength, e.g.:

• Longest battery life
• Healthiest ingredients
• Innovative materials

While sometimes effective, attribute-centric positioning has risks: Competitors can eventually emulate technical capabilities, nullifying the uniqueness, or customers may not care about a particular attribute.

Benefit-based positioning

Benefit positioning centers on the value, solution or experience your product provides customers. The emphasis is on meaningful customer outcomes versus technical specs.

Examples:

• Enhanced confidence
• Greater peace of mind
• An easier life

Benefit-based positioning connects far better emotionally. It focuses on satisfying customer needs and desires, not just product features, forming the basis for deeper relationships and loyalty.

What influences how a product is perceived?

Brand reputation: An established, reputable brand signifies quality, durability, and the ability to satisfy wants. New entrants often lack this implicit trust.

Fits with self-image: Customers are drawn to product brands that align with the values they hold or how they wish to be perceived by others.

Peers and influencers: Product perceptions are heavily swayed by recommendations from family, friends, experts, and influencers we follow. It’s no secret that word of mouth is one of the strongest marketing tools out there.

Aesthetic appeal: Visually pleasing and tactically satisfying products are perceived as superior – great design enhances sentiment.

Marketing messaging: Product messaging and positioning shape perceptions by highlighting benefits and capabilities. As we’ve touched on already, effective marketing elevates a product’s status.

Pricing cues: Higher prices imply quality manufacturing, exclusivity, and prestige. If customers are looking for a high-end product, they’ll look for a high-end price; if they’re seeking something cost-effective, they’ll want that to be highlighted. 

Emotional appeal: Products that make customers feel good and address emotional needs, beyond just functionality, garner affection and loyalty. Brands that provide emotional appeal in their messaging resonate with their target audience.

User experience: Hands-on interactions determine if a product meets expectations. And if you can provide superior, seamless experiences, you can boost the favorability of your product.

Let’s recap

Product positioning shouldn’t be an afterthought. It’s a fundamental driver of brand awareness, customer acquisition, and product adoption.

Defining an authentic, memorable brand story that taps into customer desires, speaks to their needs, and elevates your product above alternatives is worth the investment. Consistently reinforcing your differentiated value and purpose through aligned marketing and experiences will win over customers. 

Product positioning done right provides focus and direction to help your offering reach its full potential.

Product messaging and positioning resources

There’s a breadth of vetted and tested templates and frameworks available in the PMA membership designed to improve messaging and positioning within your organization:

We’ve also got specialist courses available covering the essentials you need to refine your practice.

Positioning Certified helps you find your place in the market, make yourself heard, and differentiate your product.

Understand why positioning is so important.
Know how to position for growth.
Appreciate the role of teamwork when positioning your product.
Understand the correlation between positioning and cross-functional areas.

And there’s more! Messaging Certified features everything you need to create messaging that compels action, articulates your product’s value, and captures your market’s attention.

By the time you finish, you’ll:

Know how to build foundations for solid messaging and customer engagement.
Be able to get maximum impact from your messaging frameworks.
Be a pro at drafting, layering, and reviewing your messaging.
Understand how to work more effectively with copywriters.
Know how to validate your messaging with prospects and customers.
Understand message synching and why it matters.

The post How to create effective product positioning + examples appeared first on ProdSens.live.

Product positioning is a strategic exercise we use as product marketers to find a product or service’s place in the market. And what’s the best tool to help you find your way? A map, of course! Or in our case, a positioning map.

What is product positioning?

Positioning defines what makes your product different from market alternatives, so you can focus on nailing your product messaging to effectively explain its value to potential customers.

In the words of April Dunford, positioning expert:

“Product positioning describes the specific market you intend to win and why you are uniquely qualified to win it.”

As part of the positioning process, PMMs often create a product marketing map – but what are they, and how can they improve your positioning strategy?

In this article, we’ll focus on:

• What a positioning map is
• What a perceptual product positioning map is
• Positioning map vs. perceptual product positioning map
• Why they’re useful
• How to create a perceptual product positioning map

As the saying goes “time waits for no man”, so without further ado…

What is a Positioning Map?

Forget fumbling in the dark, positioning maps shine a light when you need it most. Essentially, a positioning map is a visual tool used to analyze how your product or service compares to competitors in the minds of customers. 

These maps plot your brand and key competitors on a graph, with the axes representing important attributes like price, quality, and features. The goal is to identify white space opportunities and areas where you can differentiate.

An effective positioning map highlights the unique value proposition of your offering, which means you can gain actionable insights to craft killer messaging that speaks to your differentiating value. When creating a positioning map, it’s critical to focus on the key decision drivers for your target audience. 

Thoughtfully selecting attributes to plot will ensure your map provides meaningful competitive insights. When creating your map, laser focus on what your customers truly care about, selecting specific attributes to plot will ensure your map provides the meaningful competitive insights needed to win their hearts and minds. 

What is a perceptual product positioning map?

A perceptual product positioning map is a graphical representation of how your product compares with the competition. It’s a two-dimensional chart comprising a horizontal and vertical axis that represents key attributes such as price, features, and any relevant criteria that can be used for comparison purposes.

Positioning strategies vary from company to company. But irrespective of the approach you adopt, you need to step into the shoes of your customer, see the buying process through their perspective, and ask: “How does my product compare with market alternatives?”

Positioning maps vs. perceptual maps

What you intend and what customers believe may be worlds apart. A positioning map shows your intended position – where you want your product to be perceived. Perceptual maps reveal where customers actually perceive you against your competitors. 

Reality check – the two views often clash. But perceptual maps are there to reveal areas where consumer perceptions don’t align with your desired positioning. This is no bad thing – it’ll inform your messaging and can highlight opportunities to shift perceptions. 

Together, positioning maps and perceptual product positioning maps form a dynamic duo to guide strategy. Perceptual maps expose gaps between desired and actual position. This intelligence fuels messaging to shift opinions and correct course. While a positioning map takes a strategy angle, a perceptual map provides an unbiased consumer perspective. Comparing the two gives a complete competitive picture and powerful input for positioning success.

Why do you need a perceptual product positioning map?

A perceptual product positioning map can provide invaluable support for your positioning strategy and play a significant role in helping you achieve your primary target: To identify a niche in the market, exploit it, and create a kick-ass product your competitors can’t match.

When completed thoroughly and accurately, they can consolidate your current knowledge about your personas, or better still, provide you with new insights to help you understand consumer behavior, market trends, and gaps in the market.

So, now you know the what, and the why, let’s move on to the how.

How to create a perceptual product positioning map

There are four general steps that need to be applied when creating a perceptual product positioning map.

Action point #1: Define your target market

To define your target market, you need to understand your customer needs.

Customer needs are what a customer wants when they’re interacting with your business, and your competitors, or when they’re searching for a product or service you may be able to offer them.

You need to make sure you’re in a position where you can cater to the requirements of customers who fit your buyer personas. Let’s face it, if you can’t offer the solution to their problem, they won’t hang around and wait for you to steady the ship. They’ll waltz to your nearest competitor, who’ll be more than happy to benefit at your expense.

How to identify customer needs

Understanding the needs of your customer isn’t a case of throwing mud and seeing what sticks.

There is a range of methods you can use to ensure you’re not barking up the wrong tree and offering customers products that are way wide of the mark.

Focus groups

Focus groups are a market research method when you interview a group of people who are representative of your target audience.

Granted, a breadth of valuable information can be gained by using data, but addressing your prospective customers directly brings a whole new perspective on what they want in terms of features, price points, and so on.

You can even grill them on things they don’t like about products provided by competitors and use this feedback to either develop an existing product or design an offering that’ll blow their socks off.

Focus groups provide the perfect backdrop for a frank, honest discussion with your customers. While you may not necessarily like some of the feedback you receive, in many ways, that’s the point of conducting these sessions – it’ll help you iron out any imperfections and ensure you’re providing a solution your customers love.

Sometimes, it may be difficult to get a sample together to survey a physical location, particularly during the pandemic. Yet this needn’t stop you in your tracks; surveys can be sent via email, or post, and with the emergence of video platforms such as Zoom, you could even hold a virtual meeting – the possibilities are endless.

Working on a budget? No worries –Google Forms is an awesome tool you can use for free. So, slap on your thick skin and set the ball rolling.

Social listening

Social media listening allows companies to track and analyze what their prospective customers are saying about them on social media channels, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

In 2020, 3.96bn people were using social media platforms – pretty crazy, right? This creates an invaluable pool of feedback for companies whereby they can monitor their customers’ social media posts and see what’s being said about their company and the services they offer.

Let’s say you’re a fast-food chain and your brand-new burger prompts a hashtag to start trending on Twitter and the feedback isn’t great…

The widespread feedback amongst burger buffs is that the sauce on the burger is too spicy, but otherwise, they love the other elements of your new creation. You could go back to the drawing board, revise the recipe, and start the same burger, with a sauce that won’t give diners the sweats.

This is a perfect example of social listening: You’ve launched a product, listened to the response, and amended your offering to align with the expectations of your customers.

Keyword research

Not only is it important to think about what your customers want, but it’s also important to think about what they’re searching for.

Google receives over 3.5bn searches a day, all the more reason why you need to make sure your keywords are on point.

Keyword research not only sweetens your SEO ranking, but it can also provide an insight into your customer’s requirements, and what they want from your business and the product or service you’re offering.

Identifying your customer’s online searching habits and more to the point, how they’re searching for your company and industry, enables you to establish exactly what they’re looking for – i.e. their customer needs.

Using these nuggets of information, you can finetune your strategy to ensure you’re giving your customers what they’re looking for.

Customer needs analysis survey

A customer needs analysis is used to help companies figure out their position in their respective competitive markets and how they’re positioned in terms of meeting their target customers’ needs.

The survey should ask questions about your brand as well as competitors, what your customers know about your product, and brand awareness in general. You could ask:

• Are there any positive and negative word associations with your brand?
• Which brand(s) do you think is similar and/or competes with your brand?

Means-end analysis

Now that you’ve conducted the customer needs analysis survey, you can use the answers to get a better picture of why your customers are your customers, as well as what makes your product or service stand apart from your competitors.

A means-end analysis uses those answers to determine the reasons why a customer would buy your product. These reasons are then divided into three main groups:

1. Features: Your customer may purchase your product because of a specific feature, if you were buying a new phone, for example, the fact that it has a titanium, indestructible casing might be a draw.

2. Benefits: Your customer buys your product or service because of a benefit, they believe your product will offer them. E.g. the customer might buy your phone because it wirelessly syncs to their other devices easier than competing models.

3. Values: A customer buys a product or service to help them fulfill an individual value. They may feel that by buying this phone they’ll communicate more frequently with loved ones who have the same handset.

Reasons for buying a product can be personal to each customer and vary wildly, so it’s important to make note of the answers and group them into each category.

From there you can identify exactly which motivating factor your product falls under and which problem it solves.

This is a great way to find areas you need to improve in and discover new ways to one-up your competitors

What are the most common customer needs?Not every single one of the aforementioned customer needs will be particularly applicable to your circumstances. Here’s a bite-size list of the most common customer needs:PriceReliability and sustainabilityRisk reductionUsability and convenienceTransparencyControlEmpathyInformationThere are a number of ways you can proactively put necessary steps in place to help meet your customer needs. Here are some suggestions:Develop company-wide messaging,Provide in-depth instructions for easy adoption,Always ask for customer feedback,Nurture customer relationships, andCreate the right buyer personas, to solve problems the right way.You’ll also need to choose the region you want to focus on and use geographic segmentation to structure your marketing campaign.What is geographic segmentation?Geographic segmentation is when a company decides to change or focus its marketing campaign based on where its target consumer lives.If a retailer decides to only market their products in a certain area, or if they decide to change their offering based on region, then this is geographic segmentation at play.Action point #2: Select your characteristicsAfter defining your target market and identifying customer needs, it’s time to decide which characteristics you’re going to compare. These could include:PriceProduct qualityFunctionalityReliabilitySafety ratingsProduct performanceThough there are options aplenty, be sure to focus on characteristics that are most likely to appeal to your target market.For example, if you’ve established your personas are working on a shoestring budget, the price would be a clear feature offering clear value, as they’ll be able to use the product positioning map to see which products are in their price range.Action point #3: Identify existing products on the marketBased on the aforementioned characteristics, make a list of alternative products that are available on the market.To establish how each competitor compares, create a scoring system and get feedback by conducting a survey and/or interviews with your personas.Analyze the results, earmark the top competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, and provide each product with an overall score.Action point #4: Plot each company on the mapFinally, plot each product in accordance with your data, and hey presto! You’ll have a perceptual product positioning map depicting your product’s position in relation to your competitors.For example, here’s a product positioning map comparing different brands of chocolate and brands of cars:

A final note on positioning mapsFirstly, when developing products, maps pinpoint open whitespace so you can differentiate. Plot competition and spot potential to stand out. Then when executing your plan, revisit your map to keep messaging true to position. Share visual maps to educate stakeholders on your value proposition. Refer back continually to ensure you stay the course. Perceptual maps provide regular checkups on shifting customer views. Watch as perceptions change over time and fine-tune your approach. With maps as your constant guide, your positioning strategy will continue hitting the mark.Get Positioning CertifiedEnroll in our Positioning Masters Certified course, and uncover the essentials of product positioning, a strategic exercise used to find a product or service’s place in the market.Unpack how to define what makes your product different from the others on the market so you can focus on messaging and explain its value to potential customers.By the end of the course, you’ll: Understand why positioning is so important
Learn the ins and outs of strategic positioning
Know how to position for growth
Appreciate the role of teamwork when positioning your product
Understand the correlation between positioning and cross-functional areas

The post What is a perceptual product positioning map? appeared first on ProdSens.live.

December 8 (9am PST | 11am CT | 12pm ET | 5pm GMT), unite with Julien Sauvage, VP of Corporate and Product Marketing at Clari, and interact, engage, and position your products with precision, with our three-hour positioning workshop.

About the positioning workshop

The market is busier than ever and you’ve got the perfect product. The only issue is, your customers don’t know enough about it. Enter Julien Sauvage!

This comprehensive, interactive, three-hour workshop gives you everything you need for the perfect strategy. We’re talking customer feedback guides, storytelling templates, and the inside scoop on how to drive positioning internally.

The real-time dynamic of the workshop provides the perfect platform for you to digest a collection of outstanding frameworks from our expert in residence, and liaise with colleagues who’ve overcome obstacles when positioning a product, paving the way for you to position your product effectively.

“Positioning is a tricky topic to cover well, but this workshop pulls it off by balancing theory with how-to instructions and solid examples. I love the no-fluff topics, like how positioning statements can be dangerous, how internal teams using one wrong word can tank your positioning, and how Narrative Design works with positioning.”

Tim Hinds, Co-founder and Product Marketing Leader at Grokspark

Please welcome your instructor…

Julien Sauvage is the VP of Corporate and Product Marketing at Clari.

Previously, Julien has held leadership positions at Salesforce, Talend, SAP, and Gong. He’s a product marketing leader with 15+ years of hands-on and managerial experience leading product marketing, Go-to-Market strategy, and pre-sales within startups and enterprise companies, specializing in Artificial Intelligence, CRM, and data-related technologies.

A sneak peek into what you can expect.

Our workshop is packed with only the best strategies, insights, and experience to help you define what makes your product unique.

And of course, tons of opportunities for networking, group activities, questions, problem-solving, and more.

Session one

Welcome and introductions

• What to expect

Why positioning is so important

• What is positioning and why is it important?
• Positioning statements
• The difference between messaging and positioning

Session two

How to do positioning well

• Let go of the old, make way for the new
• What makes you unique?
• Find out who really cares
• Your positioning vs your competitors

Repositioning

• Signs your positioning isn’t working
• How to reposition
• How often should you review your positioning?
• Pivoting positioning in times of upheaval

Session three

Positioning <> storytelling

• The power of storytelling
• Using narrative design
• Your customer’s story

Driving positioning

• Driving positioning in your organization
• Securing leadership buy-in

Workshop round up

• Conclusions
• Q&A session

“I love this positioning workshop – it’s comprehensive and has great resources.”

Silvia Frucci, Senior Product Marketing Manager Castor

A taste of what’s waiting…

This workshop is not only jam-packed with unrivaled insights, tantalizing templates, and scintillating content, but we’ve included a breadth of bonus footage that’ll help you execute a flawless positioning strategy and send ripples through your market.

Carrie Smith, Director of Product Marketing at Salesforce

April Dunford, Positioning Expert & CEO, Ambient Strategy

Eve Brill, Director, Product Marketing at Farfetch

Dario Perez, Senior Global Product Marketing Manager at Expedia Group

Laura Conway, Global Head of Product Marketing at Depop

Wanna get your whole team involved?

If you’re looking for team rates, or to book multiple workshops, talk to Thomas at t.madden@pmmalliance.com.

What’s included

3+ hours of workshop content.

Expert tuition from a proven positioning expert

2+ hours of relevant and invaluable OnDemand content carefully selected from the PMA archives

A reflective journal and 4 templates and worksheets to go away and apply in your role

Interactive activities to consolidate your learning

Certificate of completion

Download the workshop content to use after the program

Discounted access to our competitive intelligence, GTM, and storytelling virtual workshops

Discounted access to PMM Summits

FAQs

Q: Who is this workshop for?

A: Whether you’re part of a 10-person startup or a 10,000-person enterprise, creating a cohesive, watertight positioning strategy is critical to the success of your product success. This workshop not only lifts the lid on the fundamentals of what needs to be included in your strategy but provides interactive guidance in helping you create a strategize with aplomb.

Q: How long is the workshop?

A: We’ve put together this 3-hour workshop so that it is equal parts comprehensive and comprehensible.

Q: Are there any exams to complete?

A: No this workshop has no tricky exams or tests at the end!

Q: How long will I have access to the workshop content?

A: Always and forever! One payment gives you permanent access to our positioning workshop content. You can download all recordings and frameworks at the end of the program to use the very next day.

Q: Can I sign up for other virtual workshops?

A: Absolutely. Once you get to the checkout pages, you’ll see the option to register for one or more workshops. The great news is that there is a discount for each additional workshop you book.

The post Master the art of positioning for a successful marketing strategy. appeared first on ProdSens.live.