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positioning-craft skill

/positioning-craft

This skill helps you craft precise product positioning using April Dunford's framework to define target customers, categories, differentiators, and proof.

npx playbooks add skill menkesu/awesome-pm-skills --skill positioning-craft

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SKILL.md
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---
name: positioning-craft
description: Crafts product positioning using April Dunford's positioning framework. Use when defining target customers, choosing categories, identifying alternatives, or articulating differentiated value. Based on Obviously Awesome methodology.
---

# Positioning Mastery

## When This Skill Activates

Claude uses this skill when:
- Defining product positioning
- Writing value propositions
- Choosing market category
- Differentiating from competitors

## Core Frameworks

### 1. April Dunford's Positioning Framework

**The Five Components:**

**1. WHO is this best for?**
- Specific segment, not "everyone"
- Define ideal customer profile

**2. WHAT category does this fit in?**
- Existing category or new?
- Sets expectations

**3. WHAT alternatives exist?**
- What do customers use now?
- Don't say "no competitors"

**4. UNIQUE value you provide**
- What's different?
- Why does that matter?

**5. PROOF it's real**
- Evidence/metrics
- Customer stories

---

## Action Templates

### Template: Positioning Canvas

```markdown
# Positioning: [Product]

## 1. Best For (Target Customer)
**Ideal customer:**
- Industry: [specific]
- Role: [specific]
- Problem: [specific pain]
- **NOT for:** [who should avoid]

## 2. Category
**It's a:** [category name]
**Context:** [how customers understand it]

## 3. Alternatives
**Customers currently use:**
- [Alternative 1]
- [Alternative 2]
- [Alternative 3]

**Why they're insufficient:**
- [Reason]

## 4. Unique Value
**We're different because:**
- [Differentiator 1]
- [Differentiator 2]

**Why that matters to customers:**
- [Customer benefit 1]
- [Customer benefit 2]

## 5. Proof Points
- [Metric/case study]
- [Metric/case study]
- [Metric/case study]

## One-Sentence Positioning
"For [target customer] who [need/problem], [product] is a [category] that [unique value]. Unlike [alternatives], we [key differentiator]."
```

---

## Quick Reference

### 🎯 Positioning Checklist

**Clarity:**
- [ ] Who it's for (specific)
- [ ] What category (clear)
- [ ] What alternatives (honest)
- [ ] Unique value (different)
- [ ] Proof (credible)

**Testing:**
- [ ] Customer understands it
- [ ] Sales team can pitch it
- [ ] Differentiation is clear

---

## Key Quotes

**April Dunford:**
> "Positioning is the first thing you need to get right. Everything else flows from it."

**On Competitors:**
> "When you say 'we have no competitors,' customers hear 'there's no demand for what you do.'"

Overview

This skill crafts clear, practical product positioning using April Dunford's positioning framework and the Obviously Awesome methodology. It guides you to define target customers, pick the right category, identify real alternatives, articulate differentiated value, and gather proof. Use it to create positioning canvases, one-sentence positioning statements, and testable messaging for go-to-market work.

How this skill works

The skill walks through five core components: best-for (target customer), category, alternatives, unique value, and proof. It fills a Positioning Canvas template with concrete answers, then synthesizes a one-sentence positioning statement. It also generates a checklist and test prompts so you can validate comprehension with customers and sales teams.

When to use it

  • Defining target customer and ideal customer profile for a new or updated product
  • Deciding which market category to claim or create
  • Explaining how your product differs from existing alternatives
  • Crafting a concise one-sentence positioning for marketing or sales
  • Preparing messaging to validate with customers or internal teams

Best practices

  • Be specific about the target customer—industry, role, and the exact pain they face
  • Treat the category as a promise of expected value and set customer expectations
  • List realistic alternatives customers currently use; never claim there are no competitors
  • Tie each differentiator to a clear customer benefit and include measurable proof
  • Test positioning with real customers and ensure sales can explain it simply

Example use cases

  • Create a positioning canvas for a B2B analytics feature aimed at head of product in mid-market SaaS
  • Decide whether to position a tool as an 'automation platform' or a 'collaboration layer'
  • Replace vague marketing copy with a one-sentence positioning to improve homepage conversion
  • Prepare a pitch and proof points for investor or partner conversations
  • Run a quick internal check to see if the sales team can state the unique value in one line

FAQ

What if my product serves many customer types?

Pick the single best initial segment where your unique value is strongest. You can create additional positionings later for other segments.

How do I choose an existing category versus inventing one?

Choose an existing category when it helps customers quickly understand value; invent a new category only if existing categories misalign with your unique value and you can explain why that matters.