Startup Positioning: A Simple Formula and Examples
Positioning defines who your product is for, what outcome it creates, what it replaces and why it is different. A simple formula is: "For [customer], [product] helps [outcome] without [old trade-off]." If you cannot fill it in clearly, your customer or problem is still too broad.
By Javier Alonso, Founder & CEO. Updated .
The positioning formula
Fill in each part:
- For a specific ideal customer
- who has a specific problem or trigger
- our product is a category the customer already understands
- that delivers a specific outcome
- unlike the main alternative they use today
- we have a specific difference, your USP
This long version is for your team. The public version is usually one or two lines on your homepage that keep the customer, outcome and difference.
Examples, before and after
- Before: "An all-in-one platform for modern teams."
After: "Shift scheduling for restaurants that fills open shifts from your own staff in minutes, not a group chat." - Before: "Smarter marketing for everyone."
After: "Weekly social posts for independent gyms, written from your class schedule, so you never post last-minute." - Before: "The future of freelance payments."
After: "Invoices for freelance designers that follow up automatically, so you stop chasing clients."
Each "after" names who it is for, what changes for them and what it replaces.
Choose a category customers recognise
Customers understand new products by comparing them to something they know. If you call your product a "growth operating system", nobody knows what to compare it to. If you call it "invoicing software", they do, and your difference stands out against that frame. Pick the category that makes your strengths obvious.
How to test positioning
Show your one-line positioning to people in your target segment and ask them to explain back what the product does and who it is for. If they cannot, it is not clear. Then test versions in the real world: landing page headlines, outreach messages and ad copy. The version that brings the most qualified responses, not the most clicks, wins.
A good message makes the right person ask a specific next question, such as "does it work with my booking system?". A weak one gets polite compliments.
For your role
- Founders
- Positioning comes before the landing page and the pitch deck. Both are just positioning written out at length.
- Service providers
- Clear positioning lets you charge for expertise instead of hours. Name the client type and outcome you specialise in.
Primary sources
- Positioning resources — April Dunford
- The Value Proposition Canvas — Strategyzer
Common questions
- What is startup positioning?
- The way you define who the product is for, what problem it solves, what outcome it creates and why it is meaningfully different from the alternatives.
- Why is my positioning unclear?
- Usually because the target customer, the use case or the alternative is too broad. Narrowing the customer often fixes the message.
- Should positioning come before the landing page?
- Yes. The landing page expresses your positioning. If the positioning is unclear, the page will feel generic however well it is designed.
Put it into practice
Positioning is only as sharp as the customer behind it. ICP Builder helps you define them. Included in the free plan.