How Top Brands are Crushing Their Positioning for 2025
“What makes you different?” isn’t just a marketing question; it’s the key to taking over your market.?
Most brands fight to be ‘the best,’ but the real wins come from creating a category where no one else can compete. ???
Let me show you how in this week's Tactical Takeaway.?
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TACTICAL TAKEAWAY
Your prospects have tried (and rejected) dozens of solutions before finding you. The key isn't to be just a little bit better than the things that failed them before — it's to be fundamentally different. And that starts with positioning.
Here's your framework to create positioning that actually stands out:
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1. Start with Pain Points:
Map out where your customers have tried and failed with competitors. Document why those solutions missed the mark. This isn’t about being ‘better’—it’s about identifying exactly what they need but haven’t gotten anywhere else.
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2. Define Your Distinctive Angle:
Find the one spot where your strengths meet their needs. Don’t play their game; rewrite the rules by delivering something your competitors simply can’t. This unique offer becomes your brand’s core identity.
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3. Make it Tangible:
Finally, you need to make your ideal customer see what you can offer them. That means you need to transform your positioning into a clear promise that addresses their specific pain points. The key here is to focus on outcomes over outputs. Don’t talk about what product or service you offer — talk about what transformation you’ll deliver.
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When you follow these simple steps, you won’t be stuck in race-to-the-bottom pricing wars or incrementally one-upping your competitors on one-off features.?
Instead, you can carve out a category of one. That’s why, at Lean Labs, we’ve ditched the "full-service agency" positioning to become a hybrid growth team. We're not just doing the work — instead, we're teaching our clients our proven processes so you can build your own powerhouse marketing team.?
Different game, different results.
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SPEED-ROUND SUMMARY
??Pro Tip: Test your positioning by asking, "Could our competitors claim this too?" If the answer is yes, dig deeper.
??Quick Win: Review your current homepage or pitch deck. Highlight every phrase that your competitors could also use. Those are your opportunities to switch things up and inject your own unique positioning.
??Bottom Line: Don't try to be the best player in the game — change the game entirely. That's how you make waves in a crowded market.
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CONTENT CATCH-UP
Looking for more? Check out some of our new content for more actionable tips, marketing tricks, and ways to level-up your business this quarter.
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Looking for a startup growth strategy that actually works? Discover our battle-tested three-step framework for sustainable startup growth – plus see real examples from companies like Airbnb, Dropbox, and Uber that used these same principles to become market leaders.
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Join us for our first-ever episode of Ten Minute Talks, where we skip the chatter and dive straight into the details! In this episode, we'll discuss five actionable tips for how to boost the quality of the leads you're sending to your sales team.?
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That’s all for this week! Keep an eye out for next week’s edition, where I’ll share my thoughts on the growth metrics you should be tracking — and how to make your numbers work for you.?
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Talk soon,
Kevin Barber
Head of Growth, Lean Labs
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P.S. Need help setting up a bulletproof growth system? Our Growth Mapping Sessions will give you the exact plan — reach out now, and we’ll walk you through it.