March 29, 2024

Making a Big Mistake in Product Positioning?

Recently, I was at an entrepreneurial networking meeting and I saw this written on a whiteboard.

Common Misconception in Product Positioning

Common Misconception in Product Positioning

I apologize for the low quality image, but it shows a process of where your start with your product, then you determine how to position in your product in the market, which then drives your promotions for your product.

When I see positioning presented like this, I want to cringe, as this is such a common misconception of positioning.   The common mistake is that positioning occurs after the product is defined.   My response to that is, “how do you know what product you should build if you don’t know what position you want to achieve and with what market segment”.   That determination of target market segment and desired position can result in completely different products based upon those two key decisions.

So allow me to share some additional background.   The early definition of positioning by Trout and Ries clearly stated that positioning occurs in the mind of the customer.   And I agree, that ultimately, the customer (the market) owns how they want to position your product in their mind.   But our goal as product managers and product marketers is to select our desired position and effectively use our Ps of marketing (Product, Price, Place, Promotion) to influence our product’s desired position in the mind of the customer.

The mistake that people make, including some very smart marketers, is that they look at positioning as being primarily driven by promotions.  While in some consumer markets with commodity type products, where you are focused “principally” on making an emotional connection to your brand, this might be true.  But in most markets, you must leverage all of your Ps of marketing to build and support that position in the market.  Thus before you completely define your product, pricing strategy, promotion strategy and channel strategy, you need to first decide upon your positioning strategy.

Many people will argue my above point by stating that they are lean and they are iterating themselves to Problem/Solution Fit or Product/Market Fit.   And I agree that in opportunities where they is uncertainty around the problem and the right solution, you have to iterate through various positions before you arrive at the right Fit.

Why do I say iterate through positions (Positioning)?  If you read the standard format for the positioning statement (as created by Geoffrey Moore), the components include both your value proposition and your competitive differentiation.   Those are key decisions that you can begin to iterate through before you even know what your solution is.  Theoretically, I can, and should, define and validate my product positioning before I even know what my product (solution) is.

My Message – Start by defining and validating your desired product positioning before you formalize your product solution!

Please see more about my thoughts on positioning and go-to-market strategies on my SlideShare presentation.

 

 

 

Webcast – Driving the Marketing and Sales Funnel to Close Deals: What Product Marketers Must Know and Do!

Date:  Dec 11, 1:00 PM CT

The Product Marketer is responsible for ensuring demand for a product in the market, and part of that responsibility is “guiding” marketing programs that will drive that demand.  Without a clear understanding of the Product Marketer’s role in demand generation, demand generation programs too often lack clarity and focus and deliver marginal results.  But what does this really mean for the Product Marketer?  What must the Product Marketer know and be able to do to effectively drive demand?

In this webinar, you’ll learn:

  • A clear definition of Product Marketing’s role in demand generation
  • How Product Marketing interfaces with the rest of the marketing organization
  • How to define program goals
  • How to determine the best methods of customer acquisition
  • How to define program metrics and monitor the marketing and sales funnel

Webcast: How to Create Effective Sales & Marketing Tools That Actually Get Used By Sales and Prospects! – Oct 15, 2015

According to the American Marketing Association (AMA), “Up to 90% of collateral created by marketing is never used by sales.”  That is an astounding statistic which should be a wakeup call to those of us in Product Marketing that we need to be doing something different.   Most of the time, sales doesn’t use our tools because the tools are ineffective, and the reasons for this include:

  • Too many companies create a standard checklist of marketing and sales tools based upon what someone used in a past company, without any consideration as to what is really needed in this company.
  • Too much content is about the company and their products with little discussion about the buyers and users and what they need.

In this webinar, you’ll learn:

  • A process for discovering and defining what sales & marketing tools are required for your target markets.
  • How to develop content that resonates with your target audiences.
  • How to use your marketing and sales tools to create alignment with the sales team.

Real Product Managers Don’t Twerk

Twerking was the Runner Up in “Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year” (after Selfie) and is a sexually provocative style of dancing.

So what does Twerking have to do with Product Management and Product Marketing?

I would suggest that the reason most people (especially celebrities) Twerk is to attract attention to themselves.  While this often does create immediate and significant buzz, does it create long term value and long-term fan loyalty for them?   And when Twerking no longer shocks, what is the next shocking thing they have to do to keep attracting attention.

From a Product Management & Product Marketing perspective, Twerking is when we take actions with our products or marketing that might create short-term attention, but don’t create long-term value.  We take tactical actions that don’t necessarily support a solid growth strategy.  We trade-off the long-term reward for a short-term gain.  When we do a product or marketing Twerk, we might gain some temporary attention, and attract some eyeballs , but have we really created long-term sustainable value and customer loyalty?

How do Product Managers/Marketers Twerk?  

We Twerk when we:

  • Add cool features or a new cool user interface to our products without considering the value for our customers;
  • Invest a lot of money in a one time marketing action (e.g., dotcom Super Bowl adds);
  • Do marketing that entertains, but doesn’t inform or persuade the prospect (e.g., dotcom Super Bowl adds);
  • Chase the shiny objects (market opportunities) in the market without regard to our overall strategy and the true viability of the opportunity (can I say dotcom boom again).

All of these might create a short-term win, but rarely do they lead to creating long-term value.

I know your asking, “But Tom, don’t we need to create buzz in the market?”   Yes, of course you need to create buzz in the market, but it should always be done as part of an overall strategy.   Sure, there are examples of companies creating long-term success from short-term buzzes, but those tend to be the exception and not the rule.   You best bet is focus on a clear strategy that delivers long-term value and find ways to create buzz that support that strategy.

The next time you make decisions around product enhancements, new market opportunities, market messages or a marketing campaign, take a moment to consider, are you creating true long-term value based upon a well defined strategy, or are you just Twerking?  Executing solid Product Management and Product Marketing practices is the foundation for successful strategies.

Hmm, now that I think about it, would I consider this blog post a Twerk?

 

BTW – Please share your favorite Product or Marketing Twerks in the comments below!!

Webcast: From Messaging Nightmare to Messaging Delight – How to Create a Powerful Messaging Platform – Sept 17th

If you were to do a survey of executives, sales people, marketing and other market facing personnel within a company and ask them how they would describe a specific product to a potential prospect, I bet in the majority of cases, you would hear almost as many explanations as there were people interviewed.  This really is a messaging nightmare that might be undermining the success of your product(s).  This results in significant marketplace confusion, impacts revenue generation and reflects poorly on your product.  We as Product Managers and Product Marketers like to blame the messenger for this problem, but the likely reality is that we are at fault.  As PMs & PMMS, we must own the message and then enable the organization to take this message to the market.   The starting point for doing this is a Powerful Messaging Platform.

Key Takeaways from participating in this webinar:

    • Understand the key business drivers for developing a messaging platform
    • Discover the most important, but yet often overlooked, starting point for your messaging
    • Learn the five key components of a successful Messaging Platform
    • Understand how the Messaging Platform contributes to more success in the market

Webcast: Profitable Products Sell Value: Why Value-Based Pricing Wins – August 13, 2015

Pricing is the fastest and most effective way for companies to increase profitability.   Studies show that a 1% increase in pricing has a greater positive impact on profitability than does a 1% increase in sales volume or a 1% decrease in costs.  Unfortunately, too many companies think tactically about pricing and do not effectively price for profitability.  In this webinar, we’ll discuss common mistakes that companies make in pricing and identify best pricing practices that will enable them to maximize company profitability.

Key Takeaways from participating in this webinar:

  • Understand key principles for defining pricing
  • Connect your pricing strategy to your Go-to-Market strategy
  • Discover ways to define your price based upon your value proposition

 

Webcast: Great Requirements Form the Foundation for Successful Products – July 16, 2015

Every once in a while, we start using a product that totally enchants us.  We feel like it fits us perfectly and we never want to put it down or quit using it.   It’s just that amazing.

What makes products like this so amazing?   What is the secret ingredient?   Is it the design and user experience (UX)?   Is it a new technology that was used?   Maybe it’s a new and innovative way for doing something?   All of these elements are essential to making products that we love, but rarely do these elements happen without a strong foundation of excellent requirements.

Excellent requirements start with a “deep and intimate understanding” of our buyers and users in our target markets.   Excellent requirements continue when we create a “shared understanding” of our buyers and users with those people who will design and develop the product.

In this webinar, Tom Evans will share ways to develop that deep and intimate understanding of buyers and users and then share techniques to communicate those requirements to enable the designers and developers to create amazing products.

Key Takeaways from participating in this webinar:

  • Understand how bad requirements can lead to bad products.
  • Learn multiple techniques for developing a deep understanding of your buyers and users.
  • Identify multiple techniques for communicating requirements to the solution development team to ensure that they understand the context of your target buyers and users.

 

Define a Powerful Go-to-Market Strategy That Sets Your Product Apart – June 25

Your Go-to-Market Strategy is the foundation that defines how you’re going to compete with your product and win in the market.  But all too often, companies jump right to defining their product or marketing tactics without a solid foundation of strategy.  And even when a Product Manager or Product Marketer makes an attempt to define a Go-to-Market Strategy, too often, it’s created without solid evidence or without the depth necessary to make it compelling.  And because different stakeholders have different ideas and definitions for a Go-to-Market Strategy, they are unlikely going to satisfy the expectations of all stakeholders.

In this webinar, we’ll help you to create a clear understanding of what a Go-to-Market Strategy is and what Product Management and Product Marketing need to do to create a powerful Go-to-Market Strategy that will set their product apart from the competition.

Key Takeaways from participating in this webinar:

    • Develop a common definition for a Go-to-Market Strategy that can be shared with your organization
    • Learn the seven elements that go into a complete Go-to-Market Strategy
    • Understand the essential steps to creating your Go-to-Market Strategy

 

What “Levers of Control” Do Product Managers & Product Marketers Have to Drive Revenue & Product Success