Positioning - an important part of brand strategy

Successful positioning differentiates you from your competitors, allows you to charge more for your products or services, and makes your customers feel an extraordinary loyalty to your brand. It's not necessarily about being the best or the market leader, but about loading your brand with values and characteristics that make it feel different from your competitors. A relevant (and unique!) position simply helps you grow and gain market share.

What is the current position of your company?

In other contexts, a position refers to a physical location, while in marketing the term implies a mental experience, a place in the customer's mind. Position is the sum of all the associations we make with the brand. And these associations are a consequence of everything the brand does - from the design and function of the product, to the customer experience and marketing communications. To find out what your brand's position is today, you can't just ask yourself or your colleagues. You have to ask the market!

How to position your company

The market survey provides a good basis for the strategy. The next step is to look inwards and evaluate both current operations and future plans. What position would you like to be in? Is it possible to take it? Find the answer by asking two more questions:

What positions do competitors have?
They are busy! It's hard to try to take the same position as a market-leading brand. It is likely that they have both considerable financial muscle and a large base of loyal customers defending the brand. The idea of positioning is to find a unique position that no one else has, otherwise your brand will be indistinguishable from another.

Is the desired position relevant?
To be successful, the position must add some kind of value. Does it provide emotional or rational benefit to the customer? Here are three common ways to create customer value that will help build your position:

• Your products have a lower price than your competitors
• Your products have more benefits than competitors, but are sold at the same price
• Your products have something that competitors can't offer

Why do many fail to position themselves?

The most common reason for the failure of positioning work is lack of perseverance. Positioning takes a long time and requires will, persistence and hard work. After all, it is about creating or changing the attitudes of a great many people. To succeed, all other strategies need to be directed in the same direction - towards the intended position. This means that both product development and marketing communication must drive change and create credibility.

Lidl is the rebel and upstart challenging the industry

Unfortunately, it is also common for brands to try to compete with the biggest brand in the industry, instead of trying to stand out and challenge. One brand that has been more than successful in its positioning efforts is Lidl. The German upstart opened its first Swedish store in 2003 and was initially associated with groceries whose quality matched their low prices. Since then, a lot has happened. Lidl has managed to convince the Swedish people that good food can be bought cheaply, including through the brilliant PR activity "DILL". A fine dining restaurant opened in Stockholm in 2013, attracting celebrities and foodies alike. The restaurant's Michelin-starred chefs served up a nine-course tasting menu without telling you that every single ingredient came from, that's right, Lidl. Lidl continues to take market share from its competitors and was last year named Grocery Chain of the Year, a good result of brilliant positioning work.

Want to know more about positioning?

Read our blog post with five things to consider when it comes to positioning.