Write an evidence-checked positioning statement
Create one internal positioning statement with traceable support, explicit gaps, and approved boundaries for later campaign briefs.
- Preparation
- One focused workshop and a separate evidence review.
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Task
- Establish your positioning
Before you start
Get what you need before you start
- Gather current audience, problem, product, competitor, and previous campaign evidence that the team may use.
- Identify the decision owner and the people who must review product facts and public claims.
- Create a restricted Google Sheet with one evidence key per source item.
- Record that no Tool in this Practice can judge the correct position or verify a claim for you.
Steps
Work through the method
Use the listed inputs and tools. Check the evidence when you need to verify a step.
Inventory the evidence and gaps
List the intended customer, documented need, current alternatives, product facts, competitor facts, source key, date, owner, and confidence. Mark disputed or missing items plainly.
Why it matters: The statement needs a visible basis. A polished sentence can otherwise hide uncertain audience or product assumptions.
- Input
- Approved research, product documentation, competitor evidence, customer-language records, and previous campaign learning.
- Output
- A restricted evidence table with source keys, facts, dates, owners, gaps, and review status.
Tools in this stepGoogle SheetsEvidence for this step
One practitioner positioning framework names the customer, need, category, benefit, alternative, and product difference.
First Round Review: How to Position Your Business, page lines 24–37 and 54–67
Draft the six parts separately
Write the customer, need, category, benefit, alternative, and supported difference in separate rows. Link each row to evidence and keep Unknown where support is missing.
Why it matters: Separate rows expose disagreement and unsupported differences before concise wording conceals them.
- Input
- The evidence table and the practitioner framework.
- Output
- Six reviewed statement components with evidence keys, open questions, and rejected wording.
Tools in this stepGoogle SheetsEvidence for this step
One practitioner positioning framework names the customer, need, category, benefit, alternative, and product difference.
First Round Review: How to Position Your Business, page lines 24–37 and 54–67
Challenge the statement
Ask product, customer-facing, and campaign reviewers to test each part against current evidence. Record disagreement and decide whether to revise, qualify, or leave a gap.
Why it matters: No positioning Tool can decide which audience or difference is true. Named reviewers must own the judgement.
- Input
- The six components, source evidence, known alternatives, and product limitations.
- Output
- A review record with decisions, dissent, evidence gaps, owner, and next research action.
Tools in this stepGoogle SheetsEvidence for this step
One practitioner positioning framework names the customer, need, category, benefit, alternative, and product difference.
First Round Review: How to Position Your Business, page lines 24–37 and 54–67
Approve the internal statement and claim limits
Combine the reviewed parts into one internal statement. Mark which phrases are internal hypotheses and which product facts may enter public copy after the required claim review.
Why it matters: An internal market hypothesis and a public objective claim require different evidence and approvals.
- Input
- The reviewed components, product substantiation, target markets, and organisation review policy.
- Output
- A dated internal statement, public-use boundaries, evidence links, review owner, and expiry date.
Tools in this stepGoogle SheetsEvidence for this step
One practitioner positioning framework names the customer, need, category, benefit, alternative, and product difference.
First Round Review: How to Position Your Business, page lines 24–37 and 54–67Under US FTC guidance, advertisers need a reasonable basis for objective express and implied claims before an advert runs.
Federal Trade Commission: What truth-in-advertising rules apply; How the FTC determines deception; What evidence a company must have
Success checks
Check the result before you finish
- Every component links to current evidence or states what is missing.
- The statement distinguishes product facts from audience and market hypotheses.
- Named reviewers recorded agreement, dissent, and public-use boundaries.
- The record states that clearer positioning does not prove increased demand.
Failure modes
Watch for these problems
- The difference is a slogan without competitor or product evidence. Return it to the evidence table.
- The team uses the exercise to invent an audience. Pause and complete customer research first.
- A Tool-generated sentence settles a disputed claim. Restore the dispute and assign a human owner.
- The internal statement moves into public copy without claim review. Keep the asset in draft until approval is recorded.
Tools
Choose the tools you need
Tool
Google Sheets
A shared spreadsheet for source-linked research, decisions, and operating records that people can inspect and correct.
Check fit, limits and pricingSources
Read the sources behind this practice
Check what each source supports and where the advice has limits.
- Hacker News: Need tips for marketing for 2 technical founder for startupFirst-hand public account · Published 14 April 2024
- First Round Review: Positioning Your Startup is Vital — Here's How to Nail ItEdited practitioner interview · Publication date unavailable
- Federal Trade Commission: Advertising FAQ's: A Guide for Small BusinessUS government business guidance · Published 1 April 2001
- Google Workspace: Collaborative, AI-powered spreadsheetsOfficial product page · Publication date unavailable