HOW TO MAKE YOUR POSITIONING WORK HARDER FOR YOU!

For a long time and particularly for non-consumer marketers, "positioning" was an obscure word which did not clearly and instantly convey its meaning, i.e. to identify the benefits of what your product or company offers viz a viz its competition. Today, the word is simply part of the marketing lexicon and is generally understood, either as defined above or similarly. However, how many businesses really capitalize on it? How can one mine all its value?

One answer is to "tangibilize" it and to market the tangible. For example, when I was running an independent advertising agency in Boston, we struggled with differentiating ourselves from our competition which included the local branches of big NY agencies: BBDO, McCann Erickson and others. Almost all of the agencies were proclaiming their outstanding creative product, or their full service capabilities or some other largely generic benefit of any agency. We finally decided to market our attitude, which we captured in the phrase: WHY NOT. This set of words emanated from my frequently responding to seemingly offbeat suggestions by saying, "Why Not? Let's explore it and see if we can make it work."

Once we had this way of positioning ourselves, we tangibilized it by painting the words on bricks in the form of a statement instead of a question: WHY NOT. using a period, not a question mark. Then we put a brick on each staffer's desk, held an agency meeting to explain its meaning and our plans to market it and to get general buy in. It resonated and took hold in a very positive way. Then we took it to each of our clients and discussed the positive attitude it reflected and the challenge we gave ourselves on their behalf to come up with new solutions to their issues. They loved the idea and responded enthusiastically; it helped cement relationships in a meaningful way. Finally, I had my picture taken for the papers giving a brick to Boston's Mayor. This helped spread the word to the area's business leaders, especially when followed up by agency mailings. All in all it was a home run which worked at several levels for each of our audiences.

The key to the success of this positioning in the marketplace was our communications of it to each of our audiences. The use of a brick was unique: a strong building block to carry our message. And, using an attitude to distinguish us was also different. But a consistent communications program to all concerned was what made it ours.

I hope this example will encourage you to seek a unique positioning and make it work harder for you!

IT'S THE MESSAGE, STUPID!

How many of you remember this phrase? It was a frequently repeated yell in the advertising business "back in the day"and is even more critical to understand and pay attention to now.

The marketing world has truly been transformed in the past decade by the growth of internet marketing and its e-commerce business model. These days, the hot topic is social media and when, where and how it can be used to build a business. Such considerations as how direct to be with a selling message on Face Book versus using a soft, friendly communication to strike up a relationship first, occupy much of the business internet conversation. And, appropriately so, as one must learn how to use the new media effectively.

But selecting the right medium to use is a message issue not just a media one. It needs to reflect one's understanding of the audience being appealed to and their view and feelings about the product or service being offered. In many businesses, a clear, direct selling message is totally appropriate and the potential buyers are open about wanting to know more about the products available to them and their relative benefits. In a new category or one where the prospective user has no experience, a less direct appeal may woo the prospect to your site and be a more effective way for you to communicate successfully. So, the message is that, when considering alternative media to use, one needs to assess the audience being targeted before selecting the medium and to make sure the right type of message will be designed for the medium selected.

In other words, it is still the message first!