Your positioning is probably broken.

And I bet I know why: you think positioning is one thing. It's actually five.

Here's what happens in most companies: Marketing says positioning is X. Product says it's Y. Sales has their own version. The CEO wants something completely different. The result? Documents that sit in folders. Messaging that changes every quarter. Sales decks that contradict your website. Customers who don't get why they should pick you.

It's a mess.

Here’s a framework that fixes it. Miss one piece? Your positioning falls apart. Teams don't align on all five? It'll never stick.

Today, I'm breaking down all five pieces:

1. Competitive alternatives (why status quo beats you 40% of the time)

2. Differentiated capabilities (what you have that others don't)

3. Differentiated value (the "so what?" that makes customers care)

4. Target market (who cares A LOT about your value)

5. Market category (the context that makes your value obvious)

Let's dig in.

What Positioning Actually Is

Positioning = how your product is the best in the world at delivering some value that a well-defined set of companies care a lot about.

Not the best product. The best at something specific for a specific group who care deeply about it.

Got it? Good. Now let's build it piece by piece.

Piece #1: Competitive Alternatives

Start here: what do you have to beat to win a deal?

In B2B, you've got two sets of competitors. Most people only think about one.

The status quo: Whatever the company is doing right now to solve the problem. Even if it's terrible. Spreadsheets. Pen and paper. Interns doing manual work. The short list: If they decide to buy something, who else lands on their shortlist?

Here's the thing—most companies ignore status quo. They shouldn't.

You lose about 40% of B2B deals to "no decision." Translation: you lost to the spreadsheet. You lost to pen and paper. You lost to the intern.

Status quo has inertia. It's free. It's already in place. It's often "good enough" until something forces change. Before you can position against competitors, you have to position against what they're doing now.

That's it.

Piece #2: Differentiated Capabilities

Once you know what you're up against, list what you have that alternatives don't.

Product features. Company capabilities (pricing, services, support). Technical advantages. Business model differences.

The key word here? "Differentiated." Not just capabilities. Capabilities that your alternatives don't have.

If every competitor has the same feature, it's table stakes. Table stakes don't help you win deals. Make a list: what can you do that status quo can't? What can you do that your competitors can't?

That list becomes the foundation for everything else.

That's it.

Piece #3: Differentiated Value

Here's where most companies screw up.

They list features and capabilities. Then they forget to answer the most important question: "so what?"

Differentiated value is the answer to "so what?"

You have advanced AI. So what? Why does the customer care? You have real-time sync. So what? What value does that create?

Go down your list of differentiated capabilities. Ask "so what?" for each one. The answer is your value.

When you do this mapping, values start to theme out. You'll end up with two or three value buckets. These themes are your differentiated value. Not just valuable. Differentiated. Your alternatives can't deliver them—or at least not as well.

If any alternative could deliver the same value, why are you even talking about it?

That's it.

Piece #4: Target Market

Now ask: who cares A LOT about this value?

You could sell to any company with this problem. But not everyone cares about your value the same way.

What are the characteristics of a target account that make them really, really care about your differentiated value? Maybe it's company size. Industry. Business model. Or a problem they're facing right now that makes your value urgent.

The characteristics that make them care a lot? That's your target market definition.

If you position broadly ("we help any company with this problem"), you attract companies that kind of care. They'll evaluate you. Compare features. Negotiate hard on price. If you position specifically ("we help companies with these characteristics get this specific value"), you attract companies that care a lot. They'll see the value immediately. Pay premium prices. Implement quickly.

Your positioning should attract the people who are actively looking for exactly what you do.

That's it.

Piece #5: Market Category

Last piece: what's the context that makes your value obvious?

Your market category is the frame. The lens people use to understand what you do.

The job of a market category? Help answer: "What is this thing all about?" You could position yourself in one category and your value is invisible. Position yourself in a different category, and your value becomes obvious.

The best market category is the context where your differentiated value is obvious to your target market. The category should make your unique value make sense. Not generic sense. Specific sense.

That's it.

Why All 5 Pieces Matter

Here's the problem with weak positioning: teams don't align on these five pieces.

Marketing defines competitive alternatives one way. Sales sees different alternatives in the field. Product thinks the differentiated capabilities are different features. Everyone has a different idea of the target market.

The result? Positioning that doesn't stick. Messaging that changes. Sales decks that don't match the website.

Positioning is a team sport.

To do it well, you need marketing, product, sales, customer success, and executives (especially the CEO) in the same room. Building it together. When everyone agrees on all five pieces, you get alignment. Everyone sings the same song. The positioning actually gets used.

One more thing: positioning isn't messaging.

Positioning is the strategic foundation. Messaging is the text on your homepage. You can't write good messaging until you understand your positioning. Once you know your competitive alternatives, differentiated capabilities, differentiated value, target market, and market category—then you can write messaging that actually works.

What You Learned Today

• Competitive alternatives include both status quo (you lose 40% of deals here) and the shortlist

• Differentiated capabilities are what you have that alternatives don't—not just any capabilities

• Differentiated value answers "so what?" and must be something only you can deliver well

• Target market characteristics define who cares A LOT about your value, not just who has the problem

• Market category is the context that makes your differentiated value obvious to your target market

Most positioning fails because teams skip pieces or don't agree on them. Get all five pieces right. Get everyone aligned. Then you can execute positioning that actually sticks.

Start with one piece. Map your competitive alternatives (don't forget status quo). Or define your differentiated value by asking "so what?" Or narrow your target market to people who care a lot.

What'd you think of today's email?

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Best,

Adi

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