Alignment between the product itself and its brand identity will help drive the growth of its uptake. Completing the following brand positioning exercise can help both alignment and ideation, as you determine whether there really is a credible opportunity here from a customer perspective.
Begin with the Frame of Reference (FoR). This tells a customer what category of problem, solution, and competitor we are dealing with. You can think of it as pre-populating a customer’s mind with certain information. If you are releasing a new rehydrating energy-providing mineral-replenishing non-prescription liquid product with gyms, simply stating the product is a “sports drink” will tell them that.
The benefit to pre-populating a customer’s mind with an FoR is that you can save on customer education and advertising space, and they will immediately understand what the problem you solve is. Lucozade. These are the Points of Parity (PoP) you have with the general understanding of your category (FoR) and competition. They do not need to be highlighted.
The downside is that potential customers will immediately think of the competition and may become locked into attitudes they already have, which may not always be helpful for you. Lucozade is fizzy and sugary. So you then need to clearly communicate your Points of Difference (PoD). This is what sets you apart and is what, according to your ideation and business plan, customers want- it is the unserved opportunity you have identified.
Finally, you must acknowledge that you are new and therefore lack credibility. So you must offer your customers a Reason to Believe (RtB) in your ability to deliver what say you can do differently. This is a question about your resources and capabilities.
Checklist:
- Have you provided something desirable to a customer, differentiated from a competitor, and deliverable by your company?
- What is the Frame of Reference?
- What are your Points of Parity?
- What are your Points of Difference?
- What is a customer’s Reason to Believe?
Answer these questions with a simple positioning statement and a tagline that summarises that story:
For ______________ (target customer), ______________ (the new brand) is ______________ (main PoD) among ______________ (FoR) because ______________ (RtB).
An example, using DHL:
“For business managers and professionals engaged in making time sensitive decisions about international business, DHL is the most punctual service among professional courier companies because its pickup, transportation, and delivery system is wholly owned and managed by DHL personnel.”
Tagline: “We keep your promises”.
Things to consider when determining PoDs and PoPs are listed below. You don’t have to have differences in all of these, just the ones that customers want you to and believe you can deliver.
- Product attributes
- Benefits
- Price
- User
- Use/application/occasion
- Experience
- Image