Obviously Awesome
by April Dunford · read the original
A distillation of April Dunford's book on positioning: why great products die from being misunderstood, the five (plus one) components of deliberate positioning, her 10-step process condensed, and the three styles for picking a market you can win. This is a teaching aid; the book itself is worth the read.
- 1
Positioning Is Context-Setting
Positioning is not a tagline. It's deliberately choosing the frame of reference that makes your strengths obvious, because customers will assume a frame either way.
- 2
Why 'We're the X for Y' Fails
Borrowed positioning ('the X for Y') imports another company's expectations and makes you the copy. Choose your own frame on purpose, and re-choose it as the product evolves.
- 3
The Components, Part 1: Alternatives, Attributes, Value
Start from what customers would really use instead of you, isolate what you alone have, then translate those attributes into outcomes. Value only exists relative to real alternatives.
- 4
The Components, Part 2: Segment, Category, Trend
Pick the segment that cares most, declare the category where your value is self-evident, and use trends only as seasoning on top of a clear category, never as the category.
- 5
The 10-Step Process, Condensed
The process runs: drop your baggage, work outward from your happiest customers' alternatives to your value themes, find who cares most, then commit the whole company to one frame.
- 6
Three Styles: Head-On, Big Fish, New Game
Head-on when you can beat the leader at their own criteria, big fish small pond when a sub-segment is underserved (the usual startup answer), new category only when nothing fits and you can afford to teach the market.
- 7
Signs You Need to Reposition
Stalled deals, wrong-competitor comparisons, and 'too expensive' objections usually mean a positioning problem, not a product problem. Follow where you already win and reframe around it.