Brand Positioning: What It Is and Why It Matters

If you think about it, what makes humans, well, human, is that we are each unique individuals with trillions of combinations and permutations of traits between us. Great brands are like great humans; they strive to be totally and utterly unique. The process by which to create this uniqueness is called positioning, and it is arguably the single most important purpose of branding. Positioning essentially tells the world what your brand is all about and creates an impression in the minds and hearts of your customers that inspires them to choose your company over your competition. Simply put, a brand’s positioning is what tells consumers to choose this one over that one.

To give you a more concrete idea of brand positioning, let us talk a little bit about ourselves. Seekers’ positioning is: we’re a brand accelerator, a new kind of consultancy that combines branding strategy with business strategy to help midsize companies thrive in today’s fast-paced market. Whereas most branding agencies focus more on branding, design, and marketing, our positioning includes a deep analysis of our clients’ financials and a unique methodology focused on growing business. That’s what makes us unique.

But being unique is just the start. You also want your positioning to create an emotional attachment between your brand and your customers, which means it must clearly convey your brand’s essence, purpose, and values. To help communicate these characteristics, every aspect of your brand’s identity, both visual and verbal, must reinforce your positioning. The end goal here is to connect with your audience on a level deeper than sheer convenience or price, because an emotional connection will cultivate both loyalty and new customers, which then drives sales.

Positioning is what told us that Kix is kid-tested and mother-approved; the brand is positioned to be a healthier, less sugary cereal that still tastes great to kids. If Kix did not stress this angle, many parents might lump them together with other sugar-laden cereals. Positioning has also helped Starbucks go from coffee shop to global empire, by emphasizing that it’s not just a place to buy coffee, but a meeting place. It’s practically common knowledge that when you wear Ugg boots, your feet will be comfortable — that’s Ugg’s positioning. When consumers want to buy the most comfortable boots on the market, they don’t even have to consider any other brand, because the company’s positioning is so strong.

If you’re ready to define your brand positioning, here’s a handy checklist to use as a guide:

Get to know your market and what your consumers want and need
Determine how your company can meet those wants and needs
Assess how your competitors are positioning their brands
Define your positioning to set you apart from those competitors
Make sure it creates a clear and memorable picture of your brand
Make sure it communicates what your brand’s purpose and values are
Make sure it delivers a promise your company can meet
Create all touchpoints (visual and verbal identities, customer experience, etc.) to cohesively and consistently reinforce your positioning

If you want some more inspiration for defining your own positioning, take a look at these nine great midsize brands below and how they’ve positioned themselves (in our own words).

Blue Apron: Ingredient and recipe kits that not only make cooking easy, but also make you feel like a real chef.

TaskRabbit: A network of people ready and willing to run your errands and do your chores at your fingertips.

Allbirds: Shoes made of wool to decrease the carbon footprint and encourage sustainable practices.

Sweetgreen: Bringing farm-to-table to the masses through high-quality salads, events, and education programs.

Casper: High-quality mattresses delivered to your door in implausibly small boxes.

Dollar Shave Club: Get razors and other men’s grooming supplies and products delivered to your door every month.

Stitchfix: Personal styling and shopping from the comfort of your home.

Halo Top: A low-calorie, high-protein ice cream that tastes as decadent as the big names.

Thinx: Period-proof panties. Enough said.

Image: Flickr user Marco Verch