The importance of Brand positioning for you Business

Don’t let your customers get lost in the noise of endless consumer brand messaging. Strategic brand positioning makes the difference between your business surviving and thriving. Without it, your brand is just another “me too” player in an overcrowded marketplace, where it competes on price and features rather than value and meaning. Your goal is to isolate your brand’s own specific space in the consumer’s mind which your competitors can’t easily invade.

What is brand positioning 

Brand positioning merges art with science to carve out and stake a distinct place in your customer’s consumer habits. The brand positioning definition actually goes way beyond surface-level messaging: it’s all about claiming your brand’s ownership of specific attributes, their benefits or the values that make your brand the go-to brand to meet a customer’s particular need.

That’s why an effective positioning strategy in marketing creates mental shortcuts for consumers through brand value associations — often reinforced through color psychology, visual identity, and consistent brand cues. A good example is Volvo, which everyone already innately knows is shorthand for “safe motor vehicle”. We can help you master brand positioning strategies to consistently reinforce a powerful singular idea associated with your service or product.

 What is a brand positioning statement?

 A successful branding strategy needs its own strategic compass: that’s what your brand positioning statement does. It’s a concise internal document that lays out exactly what you guys are, what your brand stands for and what you’re offering the market. It’s why you’re different. 

The most effective brand positioning strategies are built on top of well-crafted positioning statements usually following a standard formula.

It’ goes a bit like this:

“for [add your target audience here] who [need/want], [your brand here] is the [product/service category] that [key benefit] because [why you believe in your own product]”.

That’s a pretty clear framework for your brand positioning strategy which will make it harder to lose track of your ,mission.

Why is brand positioning important?

Since all the online influencers tell us we’re living in “late stage capitalism” these days, one thing we don’t want your brand to turn into is just another commodity.  Strong brand positioning can transform your product or service into a category leader which enables you to command premium prices and control the value of your product towards loyal customers. Plus, an effective positioning strategy in marketing makes your internal organization that much more efficient by getting all parts of your business in line with the same mission and working together to achieve a common goal. So really, why would you *not* want to do this?

Types of Brand Positioning Strategies 

There is no one-size-fits-all brand positioning strategy. Each one has to be tailored to the brands they’re representing 

 Customer Service Positioning 

This one’s all about tapping into how your customers remember working with you... how you made them feel, which ultimately shapes the brand experience they associate with your business.Nailing customer service isn’t simply about solving problems, it’s about turning frustrated customers into your biggest advocates. A good way to do this is to build up a customer service arm that really shows customers that it cares about them. Customers are always willing to pay a premium for that peace of mind.

Convenience-Based Positioning

Convenience is the new luxury. Become a recognized name by giving customers back their precious time with simple online experiences without the headaches. This works because we all already know that we’d be willing to pay to make annoying tasks disappear.  

 Price-Based Positioning 

Wait, stop…hear us out. We know what you’re thinking: “affordable” is marketing-speak for “cheap”. But no, we’re not telling you to do that: smart price positioning isn’t just about racing to the bottom with prices, it’s about showing your customers how to make the smartest spends. So, say you’re a discount airline selling $29 flights: that’s not a cheap flight, that’s affordable freedom to visit grandma without taking a second mortgage on the house. 

 Quality-Based Positioning 

 Sometimes, it’s worth just betting everything on being the best. Not everything needs to be disposable. There’s still a market out there for timeless quality. But be warned, if your product expects to compete for the attention of the “Buy once, cry once” crowd, we better make damn-well sure that it meets expectations. 

 Functional Positioning 

Now, there are still companies out there whose mission remains to simply provide the most realistic solutions to customer problems. The brands behind these companies aren’t trying to meet lifestyle aspirations, or align with customer values: they do what it says on the tin, and their brand positioning strategies do that as well. The key here, though, is specificity: The key here, though, is specificity: the promise that your product does what it says it can — and that the product experience consistently delivers on that promise.

 Competitive (Differentiation) Positioning 

 Now that’s a tricky one, since it requires a lot of confidence in your brand’s ability…nay…mission to disrupt the market it's entering. The brand positioning strategy here doesn’t simply play by established industry rules…it rewrites them. The key here is to move beyond identifying the established dominant player in the market to ask “how could we do this better,” but to ask “why does it even have to be this way?”. Now that’s some Don Draper thinking right here! 

 Symbolic (emotional/lifestyle) positioning 

 We’ve alluded to this positioning strategy before, now let's tackle it head on. For some brands, it’s not about the product, the service, the value or function. It’s about the emotional appeal of belonging. You sell a vision of a lifestyle. This is aspirationalism at its peak.    

 Experiential Positioning 

 Now we’re talking about the kind of brand positioning strategies tailored to live rent-free in a target consumer base’s memory. These brands are fully aware that customers don’t always remember what product they bought, but they can’t forget how the experience made them feel.  

 How to create a brand positioning strategy

 The first step in creating an effective brand positioning strategy is knowing who to exclude from your target market. If you’ve set your brand up to target “everybody”...the bad news is, that’s actually nobody. Building this exclusivity requires a little bit of honest self-reflection, followed by some detective skills to uncover who is truly served by the service or product your brand provides.  Once you’re familiar with their needs, though, you can audit the competition as ruthlessly as you can to figure out what you can do better, or what segment is being left on the table. Finally, you need to ensure that the brand positioning is reflected in every single aspect of your brand’s identity: from the copy to the visuals and marketing and customer service style. That’s why we recommend testing your positioning on actual humans…not just internally on members of your team who already think like you

Brand positioning examples

Seeing how top brands position themselves can spark ideas and inspiration for your own strategy. These real-world examples show how different positioning approaches bring unique value and personality to the market — proving that there’s no one-size-fits-all formula. Let’s dive into some standout brands and discover what makes their positioning so effective.

Apple – Customer Service & Quality-Based Positioning

Apple’s blend of sleek design, reliable products, and top-tier customer support creates a loyal fanbase willing to pay a premium. Their customer service experience reinforces their quality promise, making them a gold standard in brand positioning. 

Tesla – Competitive (Differentiation) & Experiential Positioning

Tesla shook up the automotive world by delivering innovative electric cars with cutting-edge tech and an unmatched driving experience. Their positioning is all about revolutionizing transportation and delivering a futuristic vibe. Disruptive brands often rethink not just positioning, but the entire brand architecture of their category to remove friction and confusion.

IKEA – Convenience-Based & Price-Based Positioning

IKEA’s model is built around accessible, affordable furniture that customers can pick up and assemble themselves. Their focus on convenience and value has made them a global household name. 

Ben & Jerry’s – Symbolic (Lifestyle/Values) Positioning

 Ben & Jerry’s connects deeply through values, championing social justice and sustainability. Their brand stands for more than ice cream — it’s about ethics, community, and making a difference. 

HelloFresh – Functional & Convenience-Based Positioning

 HelloFresh makes meal prep easy with fresh, pre-portioned ingredients and simple recipes. Their brand promises to save time and reduce hassle, directly addressing busy lifestyles.