Positioning and messaging begins with product strategy. My approach to positioning development starts with knowing the product. It helps to have a comparative perspective on our product relative to the competition to clearly define unique strengths to accentuate and weaknesses to avoid. The next step is to talk to as many customers as possible to define the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) with a rigorous understanding of their Jobs to Be Done (JTBD). We need to zero-in on the core pain they want to solve for by “hiring” the product. They have tangible jobs to be done, such as “integrating data to a downstream data warehouse”, but they also have emotional jobs to be done, like “feeling confident I can trust the data”. It’s important to appeal to the ICP on both types of jobs (tangible and emotional). With this foundational understanding of the product, ICP, and pain to be solved, I develop compelling positioning that serves as a north star for messaging by persona and segment.

Increasingly, businesses buy software through a self-serve Product Led Growth (PLG) motion, which can live alongside a sales-led motion driven by sales people who outbound. It’s more important than ever to shape your content and become a thought leader that can educate the customer. Most buyers will (hopefully) find your content and educate themselves online, from your website, to peer review sites like G2, industry trade mags, analyst sites, and, importantly, to your competitors’ sites. In fact, more than 60-70% of the buyer journey occurs without ever talking to a live sales person. Great product marketing begins with great strategy and positioning, which begins - as always - with deeply understanding your customer.