Broader than the sprint
A position a buyer can repeat — and the category it belongs in.
For companies with several products or audiences, or a decision about which category to compete in. We define the competitive frame, the category choice and the message architecture, and the evidence each claim requires.
The problem
Sameness is the default outcome, and nobody chooses it.
Excellent technical teams describe their work in the same language: AI-powered, end-to-end, enterprise-grade. Not from laziness — from proximity. Everyone inside the company knows what makes it different, which is exactly why nobody writes it down.
Buyers comparing three companies whose descriptions read alike fall back on price, familiarity and whoever they heard of first. Summaries written by AI assistants tend to flatten those differences further.
Positioning is therefore a decision: which category you compete in, who you are for, and which advantage — or combination of capabilities — matters to that buyer and can be supported. It does not need to be untrue of every competitor. It needs to be relevant and evidenced.
Deliverables
What you receive.
- The position
- Tested three ways: is it true, does it matter to the buyer, and is it supported by evidence an outsider could check — with the alternative it beats stated plainly.
- Category decision
- A recognised category with clear differentiation, or a new one — argued both ways. A recognised category is often the more useful choice, because buyers already know how to budget for it.
- Message architecture
- The hierarchy from the position down to proof points, so a founder, a sales lead and a website say compatible things.
- Claim-to-evidence register
- Every claim you make, with its status and where it is supported. The gaps become the plan.
- Competitive frame
- Who you are genuinely compared with — often not who you think — including manual work and the status quo.
- Investor narrative
- The same position in the register the funding market uses, so it does not change between audiences.
- Homepage messaging
- Written and implemented, because a position handed over as a slide tends to stay one.
For one product and one buying group, the four-week sprint is usually the better place to start; this engagement is for when the question is broader. About the sprint
Why it matters now
Clear differentiation makes every later conversation cheaper.
A company that can be described clearly is easier to evaluate, easier to recommend and harder to confuse with the vendor next to it — in a sales meeting, in a procurement review, and in the AI-generated summaries that can shape a buyer’s first impression.
Get the position right and the content, the sales motion and the raise all get easier. Get it wrong and every dollar spent on reach amplifies a description that was never quite yours.
Questions
On positioning and category strategy.
Related answers
Questions buyers ask before they ask a firm.
Decide the position.
Twenty minutes on your products, your buyers and the decision in front of you. If this engagement fits better than the sprint, we will say so.
If we can help, you leave with one specific observation about your positioning. If we cannot, we say so.
Other engagements