Positioning Made Simple

In today's newsletter:

• Latest Podcasts

  • Positioning Made Simple: Own a word in their mind

  • The Simple Positioning Framework

  • Today's 10-Minute Action Plan

• Premium: Positioning Workbook: Stop Being for Ever …

Positioning Made Simple: Own a word in their mind

Someone asks: "What does your company do?"

You launch into a 3-minute explanation. You mention features, industries, use cases, and value propositions.

Their eyes glaze over.

They nod politely. "Cool, sounds interesting."

And they forget about you 10 minutes later.

This is the positioning problem. Not because your product is bad. But because you haven't answered the most important question:

"Who is this for, and what problem does it solve?"

Positioning isn't complicated. But most founders overcomplicate it.

Today, let's fix that.

The "We Help Everyone" Trap

Let me tell you about Rachel, founder of a 5-person productivity software company.

When people asked what her product did, Rachel said:

"We're a productivity platform that helps teams collaborate, manage projects, and track time. It's great for agencies, consultants, freelancers, remote teams, startups—really anyone who wants to get more done."

Sounds comprehensive, right?

Wrong.

When you're for everyone, you're for no one.

Rachel's marketing was scattered:

• She targeted 6 different industries

• Her website had 4 different value propositions

• Her messaging tried to appeal to everyone

Result:

• Low conversion rates (no one felt like the product was "for them")

• High churn (customers didn't know what they were signing up for)

• Weak referrals (users couldn't explain who else should use it)

Then Rachel read "Obviously Awesome" by April Dunford. The core lesson:

"Positioning is the act of deliberately defining how you are the best at something that a defined market cares about."

Rachel narrowed her positioning:

Before: "Productivity platform for everyone."
After: "Project management for design agencies billing $500K-3M/year."

She went from serving everyone to serving one specific customer.

What changed:

Month 1:

• Website conversion rate doubled (because the messaging resonated)

• Onboarding was clearer (customers knew exactly what they were getting)

• Sales demos became easier (she knew her customer's pain points inside-out)

Month 6:

• Word-of-mouth referrals increased 3x (design agencies referred other design agencies)

• Churn dropped by 40% (the right customers stuck around)

• Average deal size increased 25% (she could charge more for niche expertise)

"I was afraid that narrowing would shrink my market. Instead, it made my market notice me."

What Positioning Actually Is

Positioning = Who it's for + What problem it solves + Why you're the best choice

It's not about features. It's not about benefits. It's about context.

Think of positioning like a GPS pin.

If you drop a pin in the middle of the ocean, no one knows what they're looking at.

But if you drop a pin on "Italian restaurant in Brooklyn," people instantly understand: where it is, what it offers, and who it's for.

Bad positioning: "We're a cloud-based solution that leverages AI to optimize workflows."

Good positioning: "Automated invoice processing for construction companies with 10-100 employees."

The first is vague. The second is a GPS pin.

Why Leverage-First Teams Need Sharp Positioning

Big companies can afford to be everything to everyone. They have massive marketing budgets, sales teams, and brand recognition.

You don't.

Here's why sharp positioning is critical for teams looking to scale with leverage, not labor:

• You can't outspend competitors. But you can out-position them.

• Word-of-mouth is your growth engine. People only refer you if they know who you're for.

• Niche = pricing power. Specialists charge more than generalists.

• Marketing gets easier. You know exactly who to target and what to say.

The best microteams don't try to serve everyone. They own a specific niche.

The Simple Positioning Framework

Here's how to position your product in a way that cuts through the noise.

Step 1: Pick a Specific Customer Segment

Don't say: "Small businesses."
Say: "SaaS companies with 5-20 employees doing $1M-5M ARR."

The narrower, the better.

How to narrow:

Ask:

• What industry?

• What size (revenue, employees)?

• What stage (startup, scaling, established)?

• What role (founder, marketer, engineer)?

Example:

If you can picture 100 specific people who fit your description, you're narrow enough.

Step 2: Identify Their Top Problem

What's the one problem your customer is desperate to solve?

Not the problem you think they have. The problem they actually lose sleep over.

How to find it:

Option 1: Talk to 10 customers. Ask: "What was the problem you were trying to solve before you found us?"

Option 2: Read reviews of competitors. What do people complain about?

Option 3: Join communities where your customers hang out (Slack, Reddit, LinkedIn groups). What do they ask for help with?

Example:

Your positioning should solve one specific, urgent problem.

Step 3: Articulate Why You're the Best Choice

Why should they choose you over competitors (or doing nothing)?

Three ways to differentiate:

1. Niche specialization

• "The only CRM built specifically for real estate investors"

2. Unique approach

• "The first no-code automation tool that doesn't require zapier"

3. Better outcome

• "Close 30% more deals in 90 days or your money back"

Avoid generic claims:

• "Best-in-class"

• "Industry-leading"

• "Cutting-edge"

Be specific:

• "50% faster onboarding than Salesforce"

• "Built by former CFOs for CFOs"

• "Integrated with QuickBooks out-of-the-box (competitors require custom setup)"

Step 4: Write Your One-Sentence Positioning Statement

Combine steps 1-3 into one sentence.

Template:

"We help [specific customer] solve [specific problem] with [unique approach/outcome]."

Examples:

Good:

• "We help DTC supplement brands reduce CAC by 40% using AI-powered creative testing."

• "We help design agencies track project profitability in real-time so they can stop losing money on fixed-fee projects."

• "We help B2B SaaS founders close enterprise deals faster with done-for-you sales playbooks."

Bad:

• "We help businesses grow." (Too vague)

• "We provide innovative solutions for modern enterprises." (Meaningless)

• "We're a platform for productivity." (No clear customer or problem)

If a stranger can repeat your positioning after hearing it once, it's good.

Step 5: Test Your Positioning with the "Cocktail Party" Test

Imagine you're at a networking event. Someone asks: "What does your company do?"

You say your positioning statement.

Good positioning:

• They immediately understand who it's for

• They can think of someone who needs it

• They ask a follow-up question ("Oh, how does that work?")

Bad positioning:

• They look confused

• They say "Oh, cool" and change the subject

• They can't explain it to someone else

If it passes the cocktail party test, your positioning works.

Step 6: Align Everything with Your Positioning

Once you've nailed positioning, update:

Website homepage:

• Headline = positioning statement

• Subheadline = the problem you solve

• CTA = next step

LinkedIn/Twitter bio:

• One-sentence positioning

Sales deck:

• Slide 1 = who you help + problem you solve

Email signature:

• One-line positioning

Consistency builds clarity. Clarity builds trust.

Step 7: Narrow Further If It's Not Working

If you're still not seeing results after 90 days, you're probably not narrow enough.

Go narrower:

Before: "Marketing consultants"
After: "LinkedIn ghostwriters for B2B SaaS founders"

Before: "E-commerce fulfillment"
After: "Same-day fulfillment for Shopify stores selling perishable goods"

The riches are in the niches.

Common Positioning Mistakes

Mistake 1: Confusing features with positioning

• Bad: "We have AI, automation, and analytics"

• Good: "We help agencies automate client reporting so they spend 10 hours/month instead of 40"

Mistake 2: Being too clever

• Bad: "We're the Uber of dog walking"

• Good: "On-demand dog walking for busy professionals in NYC"

Mistake 3: Targeting too broad

• Bad: "For anyone who wants to be productive"

• Good: "For solo consultants billing $200K+/year who want to eliminate admin work"

Mistake 4: No clear problem

• Bad: "We help you work smarter"

• Good: "We help you recover 15 hours/week by automating repetitive tasks"

Mistake 5: Following competitors

• Don't copy what others say. Find the gap they're missing.

When to Reposition

Reposition if:

• Your ideal customers don't recognize themselves in your messaging

• Prospects say "I'm not sure if this is for me"

• Sales cycles are long because you're educating the market

• Churn is high because customers expected something different

Don't reposition if:

• You just launched (give it 6-12 months)

• Customers love you but you're impatient with growth

• You're bored (your customers don't care—they care about results)

Today's 10-Minute Action Plan

You don't need to overhaul your entire brand today. Just clarify your positioning.

Here's what to do in the next 10 minutes:

1. Write your current positioning (how you describe your company today)

2. Answer: Who is my ideal customer? (Be specific: industry, size, role)

3. Answer: What problem keeps them up at night?

4. Answer: Why are we the best solution?

5. Rewrite your positioning using the one-sentence template

That's it. One sentence, 10 minutes.

Next week, update your homepage headline. In a month, you'll see if it resonates. If not, narrow further.