Editor's note: This article is based on a post on the author's blog.

A positioning health-check will tell you how effective your B2B positioning really is—and B2B marketers desperately need a realistic way to judge their positioning effectiveness.

Although 69% of 137 respondents to a survey I'm conducting think they are doing a good job of positioning, many are kidding themselves. I did health-checks on 24 websites of respondents who judged their positioning to be "effective" or "very effective," and found that only six are doing it effectively. The other 18 websites are doing a marginal or poor job of positioning.

Why the disconnect? One reason may be that there has been no objective, standardized way of evaluating positioning effectiveness.

But now you can conduct your own positioning health-check by answering the questions listed below. The health-check overcomes preconceived notions about positioning effectiveness and gives you a proven way to realistically perform an assessment.

First, though, let's dig a little to see what else might be at the root of the problem.

Why B2B Marketers Might Not Be Positioning Effectively

Another reason survey respondents might think they are doing a good job of positioning is that they don't realize it's not something done seat-of-the-pants. Only 44% of respondents have a formal process for positioning; 68% either learned positioning on the job or by trial and error. Very few learned it in college.

In short, B2B marketers are winging it, whereas doing positioning right requires process, structure, and discipline.

Here's why…

What positioning is: I define positioning as the mental space—specifically, in your target audience's mind—that you can "own" with an idea that has compelling meaning to your audience. And it's in that mental space where your solution to the target audience's most pressing problem meet—and form a meaningful relationship.

Research is vital: For that relationship to form, you need first to understand your customers and their problems as well as you know your own product. In turn, that means research is critical. Yet, 51% of respondents admit they don't do enough research; only 33% say they spend enough time on all aspects of positioning.

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A 12-Point B2B Positioning Health-Check

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

image of Lawson Abinanti

Lawson Abinanti is the founder of Messages That Matter. For 15+ years he has helped mid-market and enterprise software companies stand out with messages that matter to B2B buyers.

LinkedIn: Lawson Abinanti