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Positioning Statement Basics
A posit ioning statement is the phrase that fo l lows your brand name. It expla ins your
unique sel l ing proposit ion and is such a natural outgrowth of the brand posit ioning that
the two are inextr icably l inked.
A wel l-crafted posit ioning statement def ines your company's direct ion. It answers some
or a l l of these essent ia l quest ions:
• Who you are
• What business you are in
• What people you serve
• What is needed by the market you serve
• Against whom you compete
• What is di f ferent about your business
• What unique benef it is derived from your product or services
• What emotions you want to evoke in your customers
A posit ioning statement is used in conjunct ion with a business ’ logo to provide the
target market with easi ly memorable and comprehensible informat ion. Ideal ly, a
business ’ posit ioning statement wi l l spr ing to mind whenever a person in the target
market thinks of the business.
For example, you wil l probably be fami l iar with the fol lowing posit ioning statements…
• Qantas: The Spir i t of Austral ia
• VirginBlue: Keeping the Air Fair
• KMart: Cutt ing the Cost of L iv ing
• Toyota: Oh What a Feel ing!
• BMW: Sheer Driv ing Pleasure
• Vani l la Coke: Reward Your Curiosity
• Austral ian Footbal l League: I ’d Like to See That
In research studies, the recal l of posit ioning statements, and even more important ly the
abi l i ty to match those statements to the correct brands, is notor iously low. This is one
reason why some people debate the importance of posit ioning statements.
The key to enhancing posit ioning statement recal l is quite s imple: to use i t , use i t , use i t
– on everything – and never change it .
There are several formulae for creat ing a successful posit ioning statement, as i l lustrated
in the table over the page. Many of the examples are internat ional so may not be
fami l iar.
© Aurora Marke t ing
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