If there's a lot of noise in the marketplace where your company operates, it's important you establish a clear signal that your target customers can tune into.
It's easy to get wrapped up in what your competitors are doing, but if you are building a new product or category, your biggest challenge will be getting your buyers to change their existing behavior.
Your product doesn't need to be objectively the best, it needs to be subjectively the best. The "best" product doesn't always win. There are plenty of examples of technically inferior products being favored by the market. Here's why:
If you watched this year's GRAMMYs you may have noticed Hilton, Airbnb, and VRBO had all bought ad spots. Not just that, it turned out some of them went straight for the jugular of the competition. Find out how it all went down and who deserves the award for best positioning and messaging.
According to a Startup Genome study, the most common reason startups fail is due to poor product-market fit. This blog post will give you a framework that explains what product-market fit is, how to find it, and how to know if you have product-market fit.
I have spent the past 15 years focused on accelerating startups. I have founded two companies, advised multiple startups, evaluated 600 Techstars startup accelerator applicants, and been a founding marketer four times. Here are some common startup pitfalls I have noticed over the years.
As you kick off the positioning exercise, make sure you let the leadership team know what to expect in terms of focus, scope, timeline, and the people who need to be involved. Here is what to expect from a marketing positioning exercise.
A lot of startups start with the product and end up focusing too much on the cool technology that is underlying the product or service. It’s the build-it-and-they-will-come mentality, and it rarely works. The only way to know if you are telling the right story is by knowing your target customers deeply.
If you can’t tell potential customers why they should care about your company or product, you will have a hard time becoming the rocket ship you have been pitching to everyone. What you need is a compelling story that resonates with your audience.
