Methodology for Perfecting your Positioning
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Contents |
Who Do You Help?
Specifically, who are your constituents, users or customers?
Your primary constituents (users/customers) will generally be the people who will give you money. Define the number/size of the market: be precise and refine. You should have a very clear image of your primary constituents. Secondary constituents (users/customers) are not necessarily needed Difficulties:
- Differentiating between primary and secondary constituents
- Differentiating between customers and consumers: For example, if you are selling cat food, your customers are the pet owners, the consumers are the cats.
- Definition from the viewpoint of where you want your business to go; for early stage businesses this might be unnatural and constituents might have to be approached in an unnatural way (e.g. by offering products/services for free)
- Exercise:
- Team practice
- Everyone writes down the primary and secondary constituents without discussion and in ten seconds
- Compare and discus
- Key: Start broadly, then narrow down until you have a clear and sharp market focus
Burning Problem
What is the "Burning Problem" of your constituents?
Talk to your (future) customers to find out! Listen to what they have to say, and don't talk your customers into having a problem for the solution you're offering. Look for secondary problems: they are symptoms of the "Burning Problem". It's actually usually easier to start with these to find the "Burning Problem"
- Exercise: write these down very quickly without much refinement
Big Pain
What "Big Pain" is caused by the "Burning Problem"?
Don't worry about solving problems that don't have a pain. The pain of your constituents is making the burning problem actual; there needs to be a pain for a painkiller (your idea) to work - and it's painkillers which get funded! Again, look for secondary Problems (or symptoms of the "Burning Problem") as these will help you define the "Big Pain" more clearly Difficulties:
- Finding out the right pain and problem: do the asset test – describe the pain to your constituents
- Third party business models (e.g. Facebook): rather than providing a painkiller, you provide gain pleasure to primary constituents
- Key: your constituent MUST be able to INSTANTLY identify with the "Burning Problem" and the "Big Pain"
Evoked Emotions
What emotion does the "Big Pain" evoke in your constituents?
- Note: people make buying decisions for illogical and ridiculous reasons – you have to tap into their emotions to sell. Show healthy curiosity: ask them what they want and then ask further!
- Key: find the predominant emotion associated with the "Big Pain"
Our Company's Tag Line
Establish your space and presence in it
- Fill out: "(Your Company) is:______________________"
Be careful: keep in mind that this is not a mission or vision statement. Rather, it should lead to a market definition statement (market definition statement: who, pain, emotion. Value proposition: painkiller and benefits. Vision: what are you going to do for the customer)
- Key: the tag line must "hook 'em"
Market Definition
Keep it focused and crisp!
- "...for" (define a specific and identifiable market: you did this in "Who do you help?")
- "...who" (define the primary compelling pain and related emotion: combine definitions from the "Burning Problem" and the "Big Pain")
Putting the Market Definition Together
Pull together the emotions evoked by the "Big Pain" and your company's tag line. For example: "BitPass is becoming the leading payment platform for digital content tier one premier content sellers who fear stagnant revenue growth due to subscription-only pricing."
Note: the market definition won't go into your business plan as it's far too complex; it's rather a foundation for yourself, together with the value proposition. Still, the market definition has to be in sync with your other communication vehicles (Elevator Pitch, Executive Summary, Website, Mission Statement, Business Plan etc.)
What do you really do?
- List everything, refine later
- Think: features and benefits
- This is the main driver for higher evaluation
- Exercise: brainstorm with your team about everything you provide for your constituents, then sum up to one thing
- Key: determine the composite essence of what you do
Your Value Proposition
What is your offering?
- "Our unique offering (category)" - take from "What you really do"
- "...that" (position parameters) - from "Who do you help? and the "Burning Problem"
- "..which" (overall "so what" benefits) - from "Who do you help" and the "Burning Problem"
Putting the Value Proposition Together
Combine painkiller and benefits from "Your value proposition"
- Example: "BitPass offers an elegant digital content payment platform that provides an efficient technical and economic solution which allows our customers to grow revenues by adding new products."
Putting it ALL together
- Combine the Market Definition from "Putting the market definition together" with the Value Proposition from "Putting the value proposition together"
- Competition - Who would knowledgeable outsides feel are your competition?
- Who is a major competitor? - Make a page for each one
- How do you differ?
- Key: Be comprehensive and complete
- Competition - Acknowledge, categorise, and then differentiate
Note: This will improve your credibility!
- "Unlike" (acknowledge) ___ "who/which" (categorise) _____ "we"/ company name (differentiate) _____
Difficulties:
- "Good enough" (the status quo) is very hard to outcome/displace
- Changing markets: yesterday's leaders can't lead today – you have to stay ahead of your competition
Key: Never just mention a competitor, but always differentiate yourself, always!
