Positioning: 6 lessons that have been central since 1970

The 1970s sound like a long time ago, don’t they? The internet, for example, hadn’t been invented yet, but in our field, it’s not as far back as we think. The first book that laid out positioning as a concept is called: Positioning, how to be seen and heard in the overcrowded marketplace. More than 40 years ago, Jack Trout and Al Ries shared the latest development in strategy with us: positioning. We were amazed while reading how current and relevant this book still is. Although we work daily as positioning experts, this old book still brought us very refreshing insights! We see these insights as valuable; below we list the 6 most important ones for you.

1. A unique positioning is literally the ‘gap in the market’ you are looking for!
We call something a gap in the market when a product or service is unique and recognized as such. The iPhone is such a product that jumped into a gap in the market, just like IBM’s Personal Computer or Sony’s Walkman. This also applies in B2B, think of the positioning of Xerox or GE.
A tool to find this gap in the market is our competition matrix. In it, you place the competition and yourself on two axes and visualize where there is space in the market. The gap in the market is then the positioning (and the behavior that goes with it) through which you claim that position!

2. The solution to your problem lies in the prospect’s mind
A remarkable positioning connects to the market image, the needs, and the perception of your prospect. So don’t invent something ‘new and different’ but look for existing ideas and connections in the prospect’s mind and create new combinations with them. The best combination aligns with the position you already hold in the prospect’s mind and fits into a gap in the market. You then shape this combination into your positioning.

3. Make sure you are the first
Few companies succeed in dethroning the market leader, simply because they attack the established position of the company that was first. Windows is still the OS on 92% of PCs, and McDonald’s is four times as big as number 2 Burger King. It is better to find a different positioning where you are the first and then build that position. Apple is the market leader in tablets, but Samsung has built a strong market position with the hybrid phablet (between phone and tablet).

4. You have to make sacrifices
A powerful positioning stands for only one achievement. IBM may have invented the PC, but when they decided to become the Enterprise IT specialist, they sacrificed their consumer branch by selling it to Lenovo (now the #1 PC manufacturer in the world).

5. Keep it simple
We are literally bombarded with advertising and other messages. This was already true in 1970 and has only increased. We like to make clear choices; if we don’t know, we simply go for the established number 1. Only the simplest and clearest positioning still conquers a place in the prospect’s mind.

6. Change your name
In practice, we often encounter companies whose name actually works against their success. They often hold on to it because ‘customers and our staff wouldn’t accept a new name anyway.’ The reality is that a bad or confusing name only harms you and makes your positioning unclear. Proof that it can be done? Do you remember the original names of Accenture or Nissan?

If it’s not sold in a box, the name becomes the box.

And only by translating your strategy into a unique positioning can you, as a B2B organization, climb higher on the ladder that the prospect has in their mind. To win, you don’t directly fight a company with a strong, established position but go around, under, or over them. In the words of the authors: “In our overcommunicated society, the name of the game today is positioning.
And only the better players are going to survive.” And if they already called it ‘overcommunicated’ in 1970… then we believe positioning has only become more important today!

Want to know more about positioning and how you can get started yourself? Read our page positioning and find, besides in-depth articles, dozens of examples and models for every possible positioning challenge.