Captain’s log, stardate 20230330
first • previous • random • next • last
Reader question from Constantin re “Can you evaluate my positioning statement?”
Fellow list member Constantin wrote in to ask for feedback on his positioning statement (shared with permission):
Hi Jonathan,
Soggy or not soggy? :)
I help decision-makers in small and medium-sized enterprises to achieve clarity on success-critical questions.
Kind regards
Constantin
This is a good start, but I’d call it “medium soggy” ;-)
Let’s start here:
This positioning statement is in the form of what I call an XY Positioning Statement (aka XYPS).
And XYPS looks like this:
“I help X with Y.”
In an XY Positioning Statement, the X is your ideal buyer (i.e., your WHO), and the Y is your ideal buyer’s desired outcome (i.e., WHAT you help them with).
The more specific your X is, the more likely the reader is going to have a Rolodex Moment.
In other words, “decision-makers in small and medium-sized enterprises” doesn’t make me think of anyone I know who fits that description because it’s too abstract.
For example...
Compare “decision-makers in small and medium-sized enterprises” to:
- “Overworked CPA firm owners with $500K+ in annual revenue”
- “B2B SaaS founders who manage a small sales team”
- “Lawyers who offer services on a fixed-price basis”
Does anything on this list trigger a Rolodex Moment for you? I’d guess yes.
Heck, one time, I asked my list if anybody knew someone who owned thoroughbred horses, and I got back more than forty affirmative replies!
Once you know who your X is, you can start to solve for Y (i.e., what you help them with) using the specific words that they would use to describe their problem.
Yours,
—J