Brand positioning: How can you make sure your brand stands out from the crowd?
When it comes to standing out from the crowd and creating a brand that genuinely resonates with people, brand positioning and strategy is the foundation for success. Creating a compelling narrative and position will help you find the white space amongst a busy marketplace. But how do you do it? Here are some ways you can build a brand position that gets you cut-through…
1. Know your audience
One of the first steps to effectively positioning your brand is understanding who your audience is and what they want/need from you. Beyond demographics, try digging deeper to look at the lifestyle and behaviours of your target audience. Understanding what they care about will empower you to start crafting an emotional brand story that connects with them.
2. Know the landscape
Carrying out a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis of your own brand, and also looking at your competition can give some valuable insights into how you can differentiate from what others are doing. Look at your competitors’ positioning - what are they saying? What are their key messages? For inspiration, take a look at some of our previous brand positioning work, which includes positioning a new-build development in Bournemouth and crafting a compelling position for a global women’s leadership event.
3. Define your value proposition
Once you have gained insights on both your audience and your competition, it’s time to look at your own brand. Who are you? What do you stand for? Why do you do what you do? And what’s the impact for your audience? A strong value proposition doesn’t just focus on the rational side of what you do, it pulls on the emotional side too. Here are some examples of big-name brands and how they’ve approached brand positioning:
Apple - Premium, beautifully designed technology that seamlessly integrates into your lifestyle.
Nike - Inspiring and empowering every athlete with high-performance footwear, apparel, and innovation.
Starbucks - A personalised, premium coffee experience in a warm, welcoming environment.
Tesla - High-performance, sustainable electric vehicles built with advanced technology and a superior driving experience.
Ikea - Well-designed, functional home furnishings at affordable prices.
4. Create your brand book
Once you have a compelling value proposition, it’s time to expand it out to your brand bible. This is a crucial step in the process to make sure you have something to refer back to for consistency, and to share with new employees helping to tell the brand story. Within your brand book, elaborate on your proposition with your brand story, key messages, tone of voice and personality. A strong tone of voice can really help you stand out - if all of your competitors are selling a similar product/service to you, why should your audience choose you? It comes down to more than price - often people will pick the brand that speaks to them in the most authentic way, the brand that aligns with their own values and beliefs. So don’t underestimate the power of brand personality. We help brands develop tone of voice and a unique identity so get in touch if you’d like to explore in more detail.
5. Tell your story
Once you have a compelling proposition and brand story, it’s time to put it out into the world! From your website to social media and beyond, make sure your message is consistent across all channels. And above all, always come back to your proposition to make sure you’re delivering on it. If you craft a brand proposition that you can’t live up to then it will be difficult to gain trust from your audience. And don’t be afraid to evolve your proposition over time as your brand, audience wants and needs and the market will inevitably change too, so don’t get left behind.
Why positioning matters
Brand is more than just a logo - it’s everything you stand for. From your value proposition and key messages to your photography, videography and content; it all tells a story. Ready to explore brand positioning and strategy in more detail? Contact us.