The Art of Brand Positioning

The look and feel that gives a style and tone to your business is just one aspect that helps you establish your brand identity and remain recognizable to your target market.

The process of positioning your brand is defined as the creation of a unique impression in the mind of your customers. Other names for it are positioning strategy, brand strategy, and brand positioning statement.

The main objective behind an effective brand positioning strategy is to identify the differentiating factors of your brand, product or service through pricing, distribution, promotion, packaging, and competition. Your goal should be for your customers to differentiate you from the rest of the markets, by associating your brand with something concrete and attractive.

Here are four essential components to help you refine the art of brand positioning.

1. Understand your current positioning in the market

First, take inventory of your current position in the market, this can help you understand the essential aspects of your brand such as your mission statement, value proposition, and core values.

Second, you need to define your target market and analyze how it differs from a wider one. You can get this information through interviews, surveys and questionnaires. A holistic website audit can also provide you with valuable feedback about your internet marketing effectiveness, including actionable advice to improve your site’s business objectives.

Third, based on your brand’s attributes and the benefits it delivers, divide your market by demographics, lifestyle, purchase behavior and geographic location; this allows you to see the whole picture of your target market and find out what benefits are most important to your ideal customer, while helping you create a brand positioning strategy.

2. Conduct a competitor analysis

After you completed the previous assessment of your brand and target market, it’s time to analyze your top competitors.

Compare and contrast your brand with theirs and find out how they are positioning themselves in the market.

It’s fundamental to take notice of their strengths and weaknesses and research on what they do better and what they do different from your brand. This information will help you to determine your brand’s unique benefits so you can focus your brand strategy around them.

3. Create your brand’s positioning statement

When placing your product or service, you must communicate your brand’s uniqueness in comparison to your main competitors.

There are six essential elements of a strong positioning statement:

An exact demographic description of your target customer
A statement of your customer’s needs
An accurate market definition, including the category your brand is competing in
A statement of the primary difference between your brand and the competitive alternative
Your brand’s promise or the unique benefit that it offers to your target customer
Convincing evidence that your brand delivers on its promise

All the elements above give clarity to your brand’s mission on who you are, what you offer and who you are helping.

4. Apply your brand’s positioning statement

After crafting your brand positioning statement, you’re ready to implement it. Set specific, measurable and attainable goals. At the same time, align your positioning statement with your marketing strategy. Moreover, show evidence that your brand delivers on its promise better than its competitors, you can prove it with case studies, reviews and testimonials.

Just remember a positioning statement captures your brand’s essence. Ultimately, brand positioning is the result of your customer’s experience and perception of what you are and what you do.

Are you looking to increase sales, brand awareness, grow/establish your brand? Let our team of experts at DG Studio help you with your brand positioning.

Schedule a free branding consultation with one of our experts today!