{"id":2657,"date":"2025-02-06T13:13:23","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T18:13:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/?p=2657"},"modified":"2025-02-06T13:17:36","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T18:17:36","slug":"the-myth-of-brand-positioning-and-product-positioning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/the-myth-of-brand-positioning-and-product-positioning\/","title":{"rendered":"The Myth of “Brand Positioning” and “Product Positioning”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

And Why It’s Just Positioning<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Most people don\u2019t realize that \u201cbrand positioning\u201d and \u201cproduct positioning\u201d are misguided marketing myths that distort what positioning actually is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even Al Ries, the co-author of Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind<\/em>, has stated that positioning isn\u2019t about the product or the brand. It\u2019s about the space you own in the mind of the customer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Yet, over the years, these incorrect terms have crept into marketing language, leading to confusion, unnecessary complexity, and wasted resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s break this down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Did These Terms Come From?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Positioning (The Real One) \u2014 1969<\/strong>
Jack Trout introduced the term “positioning” in a 1969 paper, “Positioning is a game people play in today\u2019s me-too marketplace.” Al Ries later refined and expanded on it in their 1972 Advertising Age<\/strong> article, \u201cThe Positioning Era Cometh.\u201d They then solidified the concept in their 1981 book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key idea?<\/strong> <\/em>Positioning is not about what a product or brand is<\/em>. It\u2019s about the space it owns in the mind<\/em> of the customer. It\u2019s psychological. Perceptual. Strategic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Product Positioning \u2014 A Misguided Adaptation<\/em><\/strong>
Over time, marketers misinterpreted positioning as something that happens to a product rather than in the mind of the customer. They started talking about “product positioning,” focusing on product attributes, features, and benefits as if tweaking product specs could carve out a mental space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brand Positioning \u2014 A Later Distortion<\/em><\/strong>
As branding became a dominant force in marketing, the term “brand positioning” emerged. This suggested that positioning was just a branding exercise when, in reality, positioning dictates branding, not the other way around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These misguided terms (product positioning and brand positioning) took positioning from a strategic discipline to a surface-level marketing tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why \u201cProduct Positioning\u201d and \u201cBrand Positioning\u201d Are Incorrect<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Positioning isn\u2019t about the product<\/strong>
A product can change, evolve, or disappear. But positioning, when done right, remains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Positioning isn\u2019t about branding<\/strong>
Branding is a tactical expression of positioning. A logo, a tagline, or a visual identity can reinforce a position, but it doesn\u2019t create it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Positioning is about perception<\/strong>
It\u2019s the space you own in the customer\u2019s mind, relative to competitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Positioning is foundational, not cosmetic<\/strong>
It informs business strategy, product development, marketing, sales, culture, and operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Happens When Companies Get It Wrong?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Kodak<\/em><\/strong> focused on product innovation but failed to position itself for the digital era despite inventing the digital camera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nokia<\/em><\/strong> had great products but no strong positioning in the smartphone revolution. And guess what happened? Apple stole their lunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Volkswagen\u2019s <\/em><\/strong>‘Dieselgate Scandal’ destroyed decades of positioning around “German engineering” and “trust,” proving that positioning is more than just branding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, companies that got positioning right never relied on \u201cproduct positioning\u201d or \u201cbrand positioning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tesla<\/strong> = “The Future of Transportation” (Not “Electric Cars”)
Dove<\/strong> = “Real Beauty & Self-Esteem” (Not “Moisturizing Soap”)
Red Bull<\/strong> = “Extreme Human Potential” (Not “Energy Drinks”)
IDEO<\/strong> = “Design Thinking” (Not “Consulting”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These companies didn\u2019t waste time on \u201cbrand positioning\u201d or \u201cproduct positioning.\u201d They committed to owning a singular concept in the mind of the customer and reinforced it through every business decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Only Term You Need: POSITIONING.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re using \u201cbrand positioning\u201d or \u201cproduct positioning,\u201d<\/span> stop. Positioning is\u00a0the strategic act of owning distinct mental territory in your customer\u2019s mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, the real question isn\u2019t \u201cHow do we position our product or brand?\u201d It\u2019s: What concept do we own, and how do we reinforce it in every decision we make?<\/strong><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

And Why It’s Just Positioning Most people don\u2019t realize that \u201cbrand positioning\u201d and \u201cproduct positioning\u201d are misguided marketing myths that distort what positioning actually is. Even Al Ries, the co-author of Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, has stated that positioning isn\u2019t about the product or the brand. It\u2019s about the space you own in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2659,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2657"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2657\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2661,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2657\/revisions\/2661"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulsyng.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}