This article was published in Colorado Business & Lifestyle magazine.

I still believe in positioning

By Phil Soreide, One Good Adguy

Marketing communications theories come and go. VALS, for example, stood for "values and lifestyles" and was supposed to be a method of pigeonholing consumers into little boxes based on their zip code and what kind of car they drove. VALS was very big in advertising circles in the 80s and 90s, but we haven't heard it seriously discussed in years.

One theory that has endured since it was put forward more than 30 years ago is called positioning.

The theory postulates that the real battle for sales and market share doesn't take place on retail shelves, in the offices of buyers, in magazines or on TV. It takes place in the mind of the prospect.

Positioning assumes that for every product category, there is a hierarchy of products in each prospect's brain. If the category is fast food, McDonalds might be "top of mind" with Burger King, Wendys and Taco Bell farther down the list. Obviously, the nearer top of mind a product is with a particular prospect, the more likely it is to be selected when the time for purchase arrives.

Here are three key points to remember: first, positioning is not something you do to the product, it's something you do to the minds of prospects to shape the way they perceive a product.

Second, share of mind always precedes share of market ? and there will be no share of market without share of mind.

Third, the position a product achieves in a prospect's mind will be a compilation of everything he knows — everything he's heard or read about your product in advertising, from publicity, from brochures or spec sheets and by word of mouth. That's why every bit of marketing communications you do must be consistent in theme, tone and content.

The object of positioning is to establish a strong product identity. But the ultimate goal is to link the product and product category so tightly as to make them virtually interchangeable.

So what are the specific actions you will need to take to successfully position your product in the minds of your customers and prospects?

A good place to start is to determine what position you — and each of your competitors — already hold. Although it's tempting to just rely on your own perceptions, the only way to do this properly is through the traditional research methods of surveys, focus groups and interviews. Granted, research is often time-consuming and expensive, but it's the only reliable way to determine what differences in products or services people want to buy. Once you know what people are willing to pay for, you can create something that meets those criteria.

Once you have created something marketable, name it carefully. The name you give your product is an excellent opportunity to communicate its basic positioning. Intensive Care Skin Lotion, Slender Diet Drink and Close-up Toothpaste are good examples.

Especially in business-to-business advertising, where we often deal with engineered products, there is a great temptation to go to market with an engineering name like "SU-900T." Resist this temptation. Look instead for a name that tells your prospects something about the product. Another tip: the obvious name will usually work better than the clever one.

When you've established what the market wants, created the product and named it appropriately, it's time to call up the press.

According to Al Ries, one of the "fathers" of positioning theory, "Favorable press can make or break a product, so the mind of the press has to be positioned first. If a positioning campaign fails to win over the press, there's little point in spending massive amounts of money on advertising to the consumer." The wise marketer will do what it takes to get the backing of the media from the very beginning.

Next is advertising, and a positioning campaign is no time to wimp out with dull, boring, "me-too" advertising. Your advertising has to break through the clutter and reach your prospects. Moreover, it has to stick with them — studies show 98% of the advertising to which an individual is exposed is forgotten by the end of the day. You need ads that will put you in that enviable last 2%.

Lastly, once you've launched a positioning campaign, be prepared to commit to it. It takes money to build share of mind; it takes money to establish a position and money to hold onto it. There's no sense in starting a positioning campaign if you don't have the courage and resources to stick it out.

In positioning, victory comes only to those willing to commit their energy and resources to the research, PR and advertising it takes to stake out a clear position, capture it and hold onto it. It's not easy. But it's worth the effort.