26 Reading: Implementing your Positioning Strategy

Putting Positioning into Practice

The positioning strategy, embodied in a strong positioning statement, is a touchstone for marketing and brand-building activities as marketers work to align everything they do in support of this core idea. In simple terms this means aligning the positioning strategy with the marketing mix. 

Positioning statements provide a relatively easy way to check whether some aspect of the marketing mix is on target or off target: if a particular marketing message or activity reinforces the positioning statement, it’s probably consistent with your goals for reaching a target segment. If a marketing activity doesn’t reinforce the positioning statement, it will probably create some confusion among customers about what your product, service, or brand stands for.

What does this mean in practice?

As you consider what you’re doing in each area of the marketing mix, think about what your positioning statement is communicating to customers. Then ask yourself how each part of the marketing mix is helping you deliver on the expectations you are setting with those customers.

• Product: Is your product, service, or brand capable of delivering everything your positioning statement claims? Are any competitors doing it better than you? How should you adjust your offering to ensure that it lives up to the promises?
• Price: When it comes to pricing, how are you positioning your offering relative to competitors? If pricing is part of your positioning strategy, is your offering well aligned with the price you’re asking customers to pay? What pricing strategies should you consider in order to compete more effectively? (More on this in the Pricing module.)
• Place (Distribution): Are any distribution-related themes like convenience or availability part of your positioning strategy or competitive advantage? If so, what are you doing to ensure that you can live up to what you promise? How are you communicating your new positioning approach to distribution and channel partners, and how does it impact them? (More on this in the Place module)
• Promotion: How are you translating your positioning strategy into messaging and actual communications with your target audiences? What behavioral shift are you trying to create as you launch your new positioning? Where and how do you need to alter existing materials to make them consistent with the new positioning (e.g., Web site, print, ads, social media, marketing content, sponsorships, events, etc.)? What types of campaigns will you use to introduce the new positioning? Which communication tools will be most effective at reaching target audiences, and what are you doing to coordinate marketing messages and activities across different channels?