Brand positioning – why it’s fundamental and how to get it right
Advice for third sector and founder-led, service-based organisations
When you’re looking to have work done on your brand – whether it’s a full rebrand or a brand refresh – you want to be bold and decisive, all the better to stake your position in the marketplace and gain that all-important brand advantage.
A brand agency or individual expert can help you make sense of everything that goes into making your organisation what it is and determine a strategic course to support your brand.
But, and this is where it can get confusing…why is it that no matter who you go to, be it consultant or agency, each and every one puts forward a different approach? And it always comes complete with its own terminology and (buzz)words or, worse still, uses the same words in different ways.
Start with positioning
Getting clear on your positioning is fundamental to the success of any branding work that you undertake. If you’re thinking of turning to books for advice on positioning you may well find that a lot of it won’t feel relevant – that’s because this is a subject that’s often written about from an advertising and FMCG angle.
So, to redress the balance, this post outlines my approach – a very specific take on what clients coming to me can expect to receive from my brand strategy process.
It’s a process that, as you go through it, informs not only the creative expression and marketing activity of your brand, but also its operations and human resources. In fact, I believe that brand strategy should be as intertwined with the overall strategic plan of a business as it is with the creative expression of the brand identity, with each informing the other.
While most people think of positioning as a marketing concept, a shift in positioning feels more like a shift in business strategy. Every department inside the company is likely to be impacted over time.
April Dunford, Startup Executive
Focused direction for your organisation
My focus here is squarely on service-based organisations (primarily third sector, and the tech and creative sectors). These organisations look to build the awareness and reputation of their brands. They rarely have massive advertising or marketing budgets and, as such, look for brand-building advice that will serve them in the long-term. Any decisions they make need to be strongly evidence-based with actions being easily implementable.
The approach I detail will help you develop a strategy that is far more than just words on a deck. You’ll have direction, advice and recommendations that you can take forward and use across your teams as well as in your creative.
What is positioning and why is it useful to service-based organisations?
Brand positioning is essentially a compelling promise that organisations need to convey to win their audiences’ minds and hearts. You’ll sometimes hear ‘positioning’ described as a singular tagline like Apple’s ‘Think Different’. Just two words, but behind them is a well-researched and thoroughly documented strategy – you can’t just land on words without putting in the research and collaborative thinking.
In this post, when I refer to brand positioning, I’m referring to a brand positioning strategy, one that considers, ‘where you play’, ‘what your audience cares about’ and ‘what you care about’.
Foundational to this are what I call, positioning pillars – a single point or more commonly two to three points you want your audience to know and remember about you. These position points can be soft/emotional (heart) and hard/factual (head) but when combined they resonate and provoke action (hands), prompting people to reach for the phone, click a fundraising link, submit a job application or more likely, just take notice, building brand awareness so that when the time comes for a decision to be made, your brand is the one that’s front of mind for your audience.
For example, when I think of the Samaritans I think of someone always being available at the end of the phone 24/7, 365 days of the year, ready to help in a crisis – the last line of defence: that’s the ‘head’ positioning. I also think of non-judgemental listening – the ‘heart’. Those two flags have been planted in my mind, probably a very long time ago. That is the power of clear positioning. I don’t recall their brand positioning line or the strategy behind it but I believe most people will recall the same promises as I do; promises of access and empathy.
How will you know where to plant your flag?
Brand positioning is like staking a claim and planting a flag on a hill – it marks a clear spot in your audience’s mind (and heart), conveying why they should care about you and highlighting your unique value. Put simply, brand positioning helps your audience navigate choice.
There is genuine commercial danger in getting positioning wrong. Any consultants or agencies that you work with have to recognise that there’s an ethical dimension to any advice they give. In setting out my position on positioning and illustrating what I believe to be the best approach and in doing so am also demonstrating that there’s a right way and a lite way.
There are numerous elements involved in arriving at your brand positioning – planting that flag on a hill. I like to think of them as jigsaw pieces and, just like with a jigsaw puzzle, if you miss a piece, you end up with an incomplete picture – frustrating and underwhelming in equal measure.
Getting the full brand positioning picture
Of course it might be tempting to take some shortcuts but, particularly for service-based third sector and purpose-led organisations, I believe you need to be using all the pieces in the positioning jigsaw puzzle, interrogating each and every one of the areas and elements listed below.
No one answer, however rigorous the response might be, will get you to where you need to be – there are no shortcuts if you want to have the full brand positioning picture!
The brand positioning puzzle pieces’
Can the founder or chief exec define your brand’s positioning?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? A senior leader defining your brand positioning throws up the issue of selective attention. All humans benefit, as well as suffer, from this. Selective attention may give the organisational leader the benefit of laser-sharp focus but it also comes with blind spots – they may not be able to see the wood for the trees. The other danger is that without team engagement, you get no team buy-in.
Of course, taking the senior leader’s viewpoint (their insights and hypotheses) into consideration is vital, in fact the whole brand positioning process may derail without it:
Positioning is a business strategy exercise – the person who owns the business strategy needs to fully support the positioning, or it’s unlikely to be adopted.
April Dunford, Startup Executive
However, it’s something that should be the first step, not your only step.
Can you define your brand’s positioning from audience research?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? The problem of only using audience research to define your brand positioning is that brands don’t exist in a vacuum. True understanding of positioning comes from knowing the market, alternative providers, i.e. the competition, and the business objectives of your organisation.
You have to listen to your stakeholders, both internal and external, and wherever possible introduce research into the process as early as possible, but their insights should sit in the round with all the other pieces of the puzzle. And it’s also essential to remember that not everything they tell you will be relevant.
Can you define your brand’s positioning from data?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? Data alone won’t engage your audience. Brand positioning only becomes effective when audience heads and hearts are engaged. Take data into consideration but recognise that it can only ever be one piece of the puzzle.
Can you define your brand’s positioning from a team workshop?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? The problem of defining your brand positioning from a team workshop/series of workshops (even if you bring in an outside consultant) is that it will only give you the insiders’ perspective. Informative and essential, you’ll undoubtedly uncover some gems but you need to be doing more than just looking inward.
Can you define your brand’s positioning by bringing in creative talent?
Surely, a creative is all you need – a brand writer or intuitive designer to look at what you’re currently saying and how you’re presenting yourself, do a little desk research and then come up with the brand positioning answer?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? A creative, working in isolation can only offer a very one-sided view. They’ll come up with something based on what they know. In the absence of their having an understanding of your world, its challenges and how you’re perceived, their biases, assumptions and preferences will inform their choices. You may get something clever and snappy but it won’t be a true reflection of your organisation.
Creative talent is important and will bring your positioning to life, but this part of the puzzle only comes into play once your brand strategy has been defined.
Can you define your brand’s positioning from a brainstorm?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? The problem with defining brand positioning from a brainstorming session is that the loudest, most confident people in the room end up asserting themselves which leads to an outcome that reflects only their views – a group-think mentality sets in.
You can incorporate brainstorms by all means, but these do need to be managed carefully. You need to make sure that the environment is a safe one, that everyone gets heard and that those who maybe aren’t able to respond as fast in this sort of session can input ideas at their own pace.
Can you define your brand’s positioning from a moodboard?
The short answer is ‘no’.
Why? As it only presents what you and your team likes and dislikes, a moodboard is never going to be an adequate tool for a fully defined positioning. Moodboards can’t tell you what your audience cares about or what else is happening in your market or in the wider world.
A moodboard represents a jumping ahead in the process. You can incorporate moodboards and co-creation but they’re never a good place to start.
Can you position your brand by looking and sounding different?
The short answer is ‘no’ – the longer answer is, ‘in part, yes’.
Why? Merely looking and sounding different is an ‘easy’ fix that, without the other pieces of the puzzle in play, can only ever offer a superficial positioning answer, creating a position that will be difficult to ‘defend’.
Researching your market category, considering whether you want to go for parity or difference (sometimes parity is stronger than difference) means that this piece is then able to add weight to the overall picture you’re putting together.
Can you express your positioning in a tagline – a single positioning line?
The short answer is ‘yes’. But the long answer is heavily caveated.
Why? The problem with defining your brand positioning with a tagline is that it won’t be useful to those working in the organisation: operations, human resources, front desk… It may be tempting to jump to a concise, clear brand message but your team/s need to understand the thinking behind the words. This is where a strategy document comes into its own as it includes not only brand statements like mission, vision and values but also provides your team with evidence, guidance and direction.
So what should a brand positioning process look like?
A brand positioning exercise is something that’s grounded in current reality but ambitious enough to explore and define future aspirations.
A well-rounded approach gives the people in your service-centred business, (people who work hard to serve their clients and customers) the space to be heard and to think, and adequate time to be creative.
In the words of Alina Wheeler – from her seminal book, Designing Brand Identity, “The best positioning builds on a deep understanding of customer needs and aspirations, the competition, the strengths and weaknesses of a brand, changes in demographics, technology, and trends.”
A process of scoping, gathering and defining will ensure that all bases are covered and no stone is left unturned. Effective brands are effective precisely because they listen to different perspectives and are able to look outwards as well as inwards and all around.
Putting your positioning into play
Once you’ve defined your points of difference and your brand promise, the work of establishing a belief about your brand in people’s minds begins – it’s time to bring it to life. Start to create your visual and verbal brand identity and your marketing strategy. And build your operations and talent around it.
Don’t take shortcuts, use every piece of the puzzle to present a whole-picture position for your brand, ensuring it is:
Relevant to your audience – focusing on something they care about
Specific – highlighting what you bring to the table and not falling back on lazy superlatives or vague generalisations
Impactful – solving the need or desire of your target audience
Credible – making a promise and proving you can keep it
Distinct and defendable – putting you in control of your niche with clear water between you and your competition
Spirited – sparking chemistry and connection
There are organizations that love the fun part of coming up with a beautiful, bold promise, but shy away from the dirty, difficult task of working out how exactly that’s going to be delivered, to whom, and how. There are also organizations that create intricate brand onions, wheels, bridges, or platforms, but are utterly bereft of a creative expression that people can actually care about and believe in.
Nick Liddell, Brand Strategist
Stay true to your brand positioning
Getting clear on your positioning is a superpower but only if, once you’ve settled on it, you stick to it. Don’t chop and change. Your audience won’t remember your brand if you say it or they see it only once. Consistency of approach is key as it builds memory and mental availability when the time comes for action.
And if you need further proof of how clear, easily-defendable positioning has the potential to break through in a noisy world where we’re all constantly being overwhelmed with choice – check out this post which runs through the very real business rewards of doubling down on your positioning.
And, in the words of and following the example of the great Dolly Parton…
Find out who you are and do it on purpose.
