What is brand positioning?

Brand positioning is a key part of creating a successful business. Research shows that brands that present themselves consistently across all platforms see a 10-20% average increase in revenue. Successful brand positioning leads to increased customer loyalty, a better image, and an identity that sets you apart from the competition. 

This guide will answer the following questions:

• What is brand positioning?
• What are the benefits of strong brand positioning?
• How do I create a position for my brand?
• How can Countingup help with brand positioning?

Brand positioning refers to your efforts to position your brand in your customers’ minds. Beyond your logo and tagline, brand positioning encompasses every aspect of your to set your business apart from your competitors.

If you’re successful, your brand positioning strategy will lead to people seeing you as favourable, authentic, valuable, and trustworthy. As a result, your brand will secure a permanent place in peoples’ minds. 

Since brand positioning allows you to differentiate yourself from similar brands, it’ll help you increase brand awareness, prove your value, and justify pricing. 

Demonstrating how your product or service is different from (and better than!) other ones in your industry creates a major advantage. In addition, using your brand positioning to celebrate how your idea solves a particular problem differently than your competitors helps catch peoples’ attention. 

In addition, clearly explaining how your idea can benefit your customer or client means you take the guesswork out of the purchase process. Giving customers the answers they seek helps them trust you and, in turn, convinces them to buy from you.

Strong brands with great positioning inspire customers to buy from them no matter what. Apple is an excellent example of a strong brand positioning. People who love MacBooks or iPhones generally don’t want to buy similar products from any other brand. They’re loyal to the company and will happily spend the extra money on an Apple product.

In short, a strong brand position is what makes customers or clients recognise your business and choose to buy from you. 

Follow the steps below to create help position your brand in the market:

You have several options to choose from when it comes to brand positioning strategies. The goal is to pick one that highlights your strengths and why you’re better than your competitors. Here are some examples:

• Customer service: Businesses with this strategy are known for highlighting their friendly customer service to set themselves apart.
• Convenience-based: A convenience-based positioning strategy focuses on how your product or service is more convenient than other solutions.
• Price-based: Since no one likes to spend more money than they have to, you can generate more revenue by positioning your solution as the cheapest on the market.
• Quality-based: Companies tend to use this strategy to emphasise their product’s superior quality, which often comes at a premium cost.
• Differentiation: Use this strategy to highlight how your product is unique and demonstrates innovative value compared to traditional alternatives.
• Social media-based: This type of positioning focuses on a set of channels rather than a stand-alone tactic. The key when using this strategy is to choose channels where your target audience is most active.

Take a look at how you present yourself in your marketing, on your website, and on social media. Do you blend in or stand out? What sets you apart from others?

Your current brand positioning tells you where to go next to improve your position in the market. Start by defining who your target customers are, including what engages them, inspires them, and drives them to make a purchase. Next, think about your mission and values and how they make you different. 

A key step to improving your brand positioning is to be aware of what others like you bring to the market so you can make sure you bring something different.

Research your competition, determine their brand position and how effective it is, and think about ways you can outdo them. Keeping track of where you stand in relation to your competitors will empower you to position yourself in a way that catches customers’ attention.

Conducting competitor research will likely uncover some patterns, meaning you’ll begin noticing that some businesses have the same strengths and weaknesses. When comparing your solution to theirs, you might find that some of their weaknesses are your strengths.

This is your unique selling point, which is what you need to communicate clearly to establish a strong brand position. Take note of your unique offerings and dive deep into your business to identify what you do better than anyone else.

Positioning your brand can feel overwhelming, and you might struggle to prioritise a key message. That’s why creating a brand positioning framework can help you stay focused and consistent.

You can start by writing down some big ideas concerning your brand and goals. Then, you can add smaller ideas and touchpoints that you can use in tactical activities like social media captions, headlines for blog articles, advertising copy, email marketing, and so on. 
Building a successful brand also requires a brand strategy. To get started with yours, read our guides called what is a brand strategy?, and how to build a brand for a small business.