The Importance and Value of the Positioning Statement to Your Marketing Mix

The first step I take with a new client is often to develop or review a clear positioning statement. It is the most critical foundational piece of marketing communication for a business. I would align it to the executive summary of the business plan. The challenge is that the executive summary is often lengthy, filled with information not needed for specific purposes, and can be overly verbose.

The positioning statement should be viewed as an elevator pitch, but even shorter depending on the audience or deliverable it supports. For this reason, you need a menu of positioning statements by word count (approximate word count- the goal is to keep it tight).?

Positioning statements are invaluable for a range of communications, including sales pitches, websites, social media, event overviews, email signatures, tradeshows, and press releases. The value of these statements is the usefulness of them and the clarity it provides within and outside of your organization. It is not surprising that employees have many daily tasks that probably involve some aspect of marketing, but most often are challenged with coming up with something on their own to fulfill a need for a potential client, or existing client.?

Structure of Statements:

In my experience, it’s essential to have 25, 50, and 100-word versions, with each one building upon the last. For most businesses, the positioning statement likely is not new content, it’s new packaging of content already written. For example, the executive summary of a business plan would be a place it is born. It quickly communicates, who you are, what you do, who you do it for, and what is your unique value proposition that solves a problem your target customer needs to solve.?However, if you do not have a business plan the positioning statement is a great place to begin to establish your value, vision and purpose.

Positioning statements are recommended to be properly packaged and presented to employees either on a website, a communications package or an email communication. A very specific use would be a brand refresh, or a launch. This is an ideal time to educate and inspire a team, showcasing the value the business brand brings to the market with a refreshed logo package. Also, it’s a chance to communicate an opportunity for positive employee engagement on social media.?

Here’s a high-level structure of how to craft the positioning statement, remembering that everything builds off of your already existing executive summary.

25 Word Count Positioning Statement

• Who you are (company name, product, service)
• What you do
• Who you do it for (referring to your target clients)
• One or two of the most important reasons customers buy from you

50 Word Count Positioning Statement

• Who you are (company name, product, service)
• What you do
• Who you do it for (referring to your target clients)
• The one or two most important emotional benefits
• One or two of the most important functional benefits

100 Word Count Positioning Statement

• Who you are (company name, product, service)
• What you do
• Who you do it for (referring to your target clients)
• How long you've been in business
• Where you service (global, or just regional)?
• One or two of the most important emotional preference drivers
• Most important functional benefits
• Key features
• Additional emotional benefits, functional benefits and features as desired

150-200 Word Count Positioning Statement/Elevator Pitch 30 seconds to 2 minutes maximum

• The 100-word statement?
• What is the call to action or urgency for the problem to be solved now?
• Provide a value proposition example
• Differentiate why your company

When engaging with a marketing consultant, it’s important for a business leader to know what foundational building blocks available as the consultant reviews the content library. The positioning statements are well-worth their time investment, as they will become the basis for every piece of content, message and communication you deliver to the market about your company, products and services. The value of them is to drive consistency of the business brand throughout the organization and to the target market serviced.

Ready to strengthen your brand's positioning and drive impactful growth? Contact Rejuvenate Marketing for a free consultation, where we'll assess your current marketing strategy and explore how a well-crafted positioning statement can elevate your business. Visit www.rejuvenatemarketing.com or call us at 415.699.0040 to get started on a strategy tailored to your goals.