Positioning Yourself for Success

Positioning in business relates to where you compete and how you compete. The where is the target market you will aim for. The how relates to pricing, marketing, product range, benefits, distribution etc..

Positioning is about offering something that is differentiated in some way to a specific target market. A business that positions itself well will find it easier to gain market share and become the leader in the minds of consumers.
Successful positioning relies on the 4 C’s; Clarity, Consistency, Credibility, Competitiveness

Clarity – It should be obvious to the consumer whether this product or service is aimed at them. Marketing messages should be simple and memorable. ‘Every Little Helps’, I bet I don’t need to tell you the company, you already know – it’s simple and memorable.

Consistency – Be clear on your where and how and stick to it! It takes time to build up a presence in the mind of your target market, differing marketing messages will cause confusion. Tesco have spent years consistently pushing their ‘Every Little Helps’ message.

Credibility – However you decide to differentiate yourself it needs to be credible in the minds of the consumer. If I describe my £3000 car as ‘luxury’, this will be doubted by the consumer. Tesco have successfully targeted a very wide audience by offering different product ranges which include ‘value’ and ‘finest’ ranges. This allows them to be credible to different types of consumer, it’s allowed them to gain huge market share.

Competitiveness – When choosing how you will be different to the competition you need to ensure that you can be a leader on that particular benefit whether that be price, distribution, product features etc.. The key to Tesco’s success has been sheer volume of market share, this has given them the revenue to invest in other markets such as white goods, insurance and banking. They’ve achieved market share by being desirable to a very wide section of the population. Is there anyone that hasn’t, at some point, shopped at Tesco?

Think about your own business, have you positioned yourself for success?