Category: Positioning
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Why Companies Buy Software They Can’t Use
The $1.2 Billion Question Nobody’s Asking Microsoft says 70% of Fortune 500 companies bought Copilot. Salesforce announced $1.2 billion in AI revenue. By any measure, these companies are crushing it. But here’s what doesn’t make sense: Salesforce’s CEO admitted in October that “the speed of innovation is far exceeding the speed of customer adoption.” Translation:…
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Why the best positions are never stated
Explicitly Implicit, Implicitly Explicit. The Burj Khalifa doesn’t say “we own eminence.” You feel it when you stand next to it. You feel it on the skyline. You feel it when someone mentions they went there. The position is implicit. Eminence is experienced, not claimed. And that’s precisely why it works. The positioning paradox Here’s…
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Why Your Tribal Signals Need Something to Signal
You can’t build a tribe around nothing. Black Flag tattoos work because Black Flag owns rebellion. Fair trade coffee signals because Fair Trade owns ethics. Supreme drops create frenzy because Supreme owns authentic streetwear culture. The moment you try to create tribal belonging without semantic content (the real concept or meaning behind something) underneath, the signal fails. Everyone wants…
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When 95% Self-Awareness Meets 53% Stock Decline: The Chip Wilson Identity Crisis (Autopsy)
The Delusion Everyone Shares Tasha Eurich’s research team discovered something unsettling: 95% of people believe they’re self-aware. Only 10-15% actually are. This isn’t about people being stupid. It’s about the gap between what we think we know about ourselves and what’s actually true. Most of us walk around convinced we understand who we are, what…
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How Wynter Owns Clearance (And Why They Don’t Know It)
A Note Before We Begin: I’ve been watching Peep Laja’s work for a while now. The rigour he brings to marketing, the anti-BS stance, and the way Wynter has grown are impressive. His LinkedIn content consistently challenges lazy thinking, and I respect that deeply. This piece isn’t a critique. It’s an attempt to read Wynter’s…
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How Exit Five Accidentally Built the Institution B2B Marketing Never Had
A note before we dive in: I’ve been following Dave Gerhardt’s work for a while now. His LinkedIn content is excellent, and what he’s built with Exit Five is impressive. This analysis stems from genuine curiosity about why certain businesses connect to identity in ways that transcend their stated purpose. I’ve done my best to…
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WTF is Market Sentiment?
Market sentiment is the story your numbers are forced to play in. It’s not just your revenue, profit margin, or operational efficiency. It’s the collective emotion investors attach to what you represent. That emotion becomes the lens through which every metric gets interpreted. Here’s the proof. The 30:1 Paradox As of October 2025, two companies…
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Hampton: How Owning Kinship Built an $8M Business That Members Would Take Loans to Keep
A note before we begin: I’ve been following Sam Parr’s work for years and genuinely admire what he has built. His podcast conversations are among the most candid in the startup world. This piece stems from fascination, not criticism. I love exploring what drives businesses to connect with identity rather than solve problems. I’ve tried to…
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Positioning a Pricing Tool: From Description to Ownership
Let’s say you built a pricing optimization tool for B2B SaaS companies. Here’s where everyone gets stuck: “We help SaaS companies optimize their pricing through AI-powered analysis and willingness-to-pay research.” Clear. Functional. Completely forgettable. You’re competing with a dozen other tools saying essentially the same thing. So you try to differentiate on features: “But we…
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When Jesus Tried to Explain ‘Salvation’ to His Disciples
Jesus sat on the mount, exhausted. Not from the sermon. From the meeting afterward. “Master,” Peter said, pulling out a scroll. “We’ve been working on the messaging framework for your teachings. Want to see the value proposition?” Jesus closed his eyes. “Peter. We’ve talked about this.” “Right, right. I know. But look, we’ve got the…
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Autopsy: Kyle Poyar’s Fyxer Growth Analysis
Why This Analysis Exists Kyle Poyar is doing great work. His newsletter, Growth Unhinged, consistently delivers sharp insights on go-to-market strategy, pricing, and growth mechanics. His decision to go all-in on the newsletter is admirable. It takes conviction to bet on your own platform and point of view. This analysis isn’t a critique of Kyle.…
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What Kal-El and Simba Know About Identity That Most Businesses Don’t
Both have power. Kal-El can fly, bend steel, and see through walls. Simba is a lion. Born to rule Pride Rock. But power means nothing when you don’t know who you are. Their stories tap into something universal: the human battle for identity. Psychologist Erik Erikson referred to this as “Identity vs. Role Confusion,” a…