What is meant by positioning?

Two well known examples are:

1. 'The best a man can get' for Gillette.

2. 'The real thing' positioning helped Coca Cola to differentiate the brand from own label competitors.

See this academic guide to strategy and positioning: concepts and practice.

Develop a positioning for your company/brand:

Dibb et al recommend the following steps for determining and implementing the positioning of a product.

Although they focus on new product development, these steps are applicable to a relaunch with new features or for a repositioning of an existing product.

1. Define your market segments and decide which segments to target.
   
   
2. Decide which brands are your primary competition in this market.
   
   
3. Evaluate the perceived positioning of your competitors' products, services or brands.
   
   
4. Understand what the target consumers expect and believe to be the most important considerations when deciding on the purchase.
   
   
   • Identify which are the most relevant determinant or differentiation variables.
   • Understand your targeted customers' needs, expectations and priorities.
   • Research your consumers’ perceptions and analyse your target audience's awareness of your brand’s current position.
   • Determine your customers’ most preferred combination of product attributes (a product that caters specifically for these needs and expectations).

   See B2C and B2B buying behaviour.
   
   

5. Develop (or modify) product/service to address these needs.
   
   
6. Select and implement the chosen brand positioning.

   Do this by communicating the selected positioning, image, or proposition to your targeted customer.

   Produce a marketing communications plan to promote the brand positioning to your target audience/market and specified stakeholders.

Back to your segmentation strategy or your targeting strategy.

The definition of positioning.

Compare this to repositioning.

See also competitive positioning.

Alternative positioning strategies.

Review your options - different positioning method examples.