May 1, 2024
Updated May 10, 2025
19 minute read
Product positioning is the strategic process of defining how a product or service is perceived in the minds of consumers relative to competing offerings. It involves identifying a product's unique value and communicating that value to a specific target audience to establish a distinct and favorable place in the market. Think of it as crafting the narrative that helps customers understand not just what a product does, but why it matters to them and how it stands apart from the alternatives. This process is fundamental to marketing and sales, ensuring that all decisions and communications align to create a consistent and compelling customer experience.
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Reading list
We've selected 32 books
that we think will supplement your
learning. Use these to
develop background knowledge, enrich your coursework, and gain a
deeper understanding of the topics covered in
Product Positioning.
A highly practical and contemporary guide, this book provides a clear, step-by-step methodology for effective product positioning, particularly relevant for technology companies and B2B markets. April Dunford offers actionable frameworks and real-world examples to help you identify and articulate your product's unique value. This must-read for product managers and marketers seeking a modern approach to positioning that can be immediately applied.
This is the foundational and classic text that introduced the concept of product positioning to the marketing world. It explains how to create a unique and compelling place for your product or brand in the customer's mind. Essential reading for anyone seeking a broad understanding of the core principles of positioning that remain relevant today. It serves as a vital reference for both students and professionals.
Considered a definitive guide to brand management, this book dedicates substantial coverage to brand positioning as a central element in building strong and valuable brands. It explores the concepts, models, and strategies for establishing a powerful brand position and managing brand equity over time. Essential for students and professionals focused on the strategic aspects of brand building and positioning.
Provides a comprehensive framework for developing and implementing a successful product positioning strategy, with a focus on building strong brands.
Provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the principles and practices of product positioning, with a focus on the role of brand storytelling.
Building directly on the positioning concepts from 'Obviously Awesome,' this book provides a practical guide to creating compelling sales pitches that effectively communicate your product's value and differentiation. It offers a structured approach to translating your positioning into a narrative that resonates with potential customers. Essential reading for sales teams and product marketers involved in the sales enablement process.
Crucial for understanding how to position and market innovative and disruptive products, especially in technology markets. introduces the Technology Adoption Life Cycle and the critical 'chasm' between early adopters and the mainstream market. While broader than just positioning, it provides essential strategic context and frameworks for successfully positioning new products for wider adoption. It is considered a classic in tech marketing.
Offers a step-by-step guide to developing and implementing a successful product positioning strategy.
Offers a set of principles that guide effective marketing strategies, including a chapter on product positioning.
Provides a modern perspective on product positioning in the digital age, exploring the impact of social media and online marketing on positioning strategies.
Focusing on the unique aspects of managing products in the digital realm, this book includes coverage of strategic planning, market analysis, and product positioning for digital offerings. It addresses the specific considerations and approaches needed to effectively position products in the fast-changing digital landscape. Valuable for product managers and marketers working with digital products and services.
This contemporary book aims to clarify the often-misunderstood role of product marketing within an organization. It covers various key responsibilities of product marketers, including developing product positioning and messaging. Useful for gaining a clearer understanding of how product positioning fits into the broader context of product marketing and its importance for business success.
Presents a series of concise and memorable principles that govern success in marketing. Many of these laws directly relate to establishing and maintaining a strong position in the market relative to competitors. It offers timeless wisdom and strategic insights that complement the core concepts of product positioning. A classic that provides valuable context for marketing students and professionals.
Provides a clear framework based on storytelling principles to help businesses clarify their message and connect with customers. While focused on overall marketing messaging, its emphasis on identifying the customer's problem and positioning your product as the solution is directly applicable to developing a compelling product positioning narrative. Useful for ensuring your positioning is easily understood and resonates with your audience.
Offers a powerful strategic framework for creating new market spaces where competition is minimized or irrelevant, which form of strategic positioning. It encourages businesses to shift their focus from competing in existing markets to creating new demand. While not a tactical guide to product positioning statements, its insights into value innovation and market creation provide a valuable strategic lens for positioning decisions.
Provides a focused exploration of strategies specifically for positioning brands to gain a competitive edge in the market. It covers various approaches to developing and implementing brand positioning strategies. Useful for those who want to dive deeper into the strategic aspects and tactical execution of brand positioning.
A follow-up to The Brand Gap, this book focuses on the power of radical differentiation to create a unique and dominant brand in a crowded market. It provides a framework for identifying your 'one thing' and building a brand around it. Highly relevant to product positioning as it champions finding a distinct and defensible space in the customer's mind.
A companion to The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, this book focuses specifically on the principles of building and maintaining strong brands. It presents a series of laws related to brand identity, extension, and positioning. Useful for understanding the close and crucial relationship between establishing a strong brand and effective product positioning.
Compiles insights and frameworks from the renowned marketing faculty at the Kellogg School of Management. It covers a broad range of marketing topics, including key concepts related to market segmentation, targeting, and positioning. It serves as a valuable reference for gaining a comprehensive overview of academic perspectives and best practices in marketing, including positioning.
Explores the connection between a company's overall business strategy and how its brand is perceived, emphasizing the role of design in communicating brand identity and positioning. It introduces the concept of the 'brand gap' and offers principles for creating a cohesive brand that effectively communicates its intended position. Useful for understanding how visual and experiential elements support product positioning.
Seth Godin presents a modern philosophy of marketing that emphasizes understanding and serving a specific audience with empathy and authenticity. While broad in scope, its core message about identifying your minimum viable audience and focusing on solving their problems is fundamental to effective product positioning. It encourages a customer-centric approach that underpins successful positioning strategies.
Provides a practical guide to applying Lean Startup principles to product development. While its primary focus is on building successful products, it includes essential steps such as identifying your target customers and defining your value proposition, which are foundational inputs for effective product positioning. Useful for product teams involved in the early stages of bringing a product to market.
Delves into the science behind why certain products, ideas, and behaviors become popular and spread. Understanding the drivers of word-of-mouth and social transmission is beneficial for product positioning, as effective positioning can make your offering more likely to be talked about and shared. It provides insights into the psychological triggers that make things 'contagious' in the marketplace.
For more information about how these books relate to this course, visit:
OpenCourser.com/topic/zc25an/product
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