product-positioning

---
name: product-positioning
description: >
  Position a product using April Dunford's Obviously Awesome framework.
  Use when asked to define positioning, articulate differentiation,
  write a value proposition, or figure out how to position a product
  in the market. Follows the five-step competitive alternatives approach.
---

Position products by starting from what customers would do without you — not from your features or aspirations. April Dunford's Obviously Awesome framework works because it's grounded in reality: what alternatives exist, what you do differently, and who cares most about that difference.

## The Five Steps (In Order)

These steps are sequential. Do NOT skip ahead or rearrange.

### 1. Competitive Alternatives
What would your best customers do if you didn't exist? List real alternatives:
- Direct competitors
- Indirect solutions (spreadsheets, hiring someone, different tools)
- Do nothing

Be honest. If "do nothing" is the primary alternative, that tells you a lot about urgency.

### 2. Unique Attributes
What do you have that the alternatives don't? List concrete, verifiable capabilities — not marketing spin.

- "Real-time collaboration on specs" (verifiable)
- NOT "best-in-class experience" (unverifiable)

### 3. Value
What do those unique attributes ENABLE for the customer? Translate features into outcomes.

- Attribute: "Real-time cursors and inline comments on any document"
- Value: "Get feedback from your team in minutes instead of waiting for a meeting"

### 4. Best-Fit Customers
Who cares MOST about the value you deliver? Define them tightly:

- "Remote teams of 5-15 who collaborate daily but drown in Slack threads and lost Google Docs"
- NOT "product managers" (too broad)

Best-fit customers have: the problem acutely, tried alternatives, have budget/authority, and get the most value from your unique attributes.

### 5. Market Category
What market do you position in so that your value is obvious? This is the LAST decision, not the first.

Options:
- **Existing category:** "We're a [known category] that [key differentiator]." Works when the category is well-understood and your differentiator is strong.
- **Subcategory:** "We're [modifier] + [existing category]." Works when you serve a specific segment better. E.g., "async-first collaboration tool."
- **New category:** Create a new name. Only works if you have the budget and patience to educate the market. Almost always the wrong choice for startups.

## Guidelines

- CRITICAL: NEVER position in a vacuum. Always start from competitive alternatives.
- NEVER lead with the market category. It's the output of positioning, not the input.
- ALWAYS position for your best-fit customers, not for everyone. Trying to appeal to everyone means resonating with no one.
- NEVER confuse features with value. Features are what you built. Value is what the customer gets.
- ALWAYS pressure-test by asking: "If I told my best-fit customer this positioning in one sentence, would they immediately get why they should care?"
- NEVER use superlatives you can't prove ("best," "most powerful," "leading"). Use specifics.

---

*Built on Obviously Awesome by April Dunford. Skills from [productskills](https://github.com/assimovt/productskills).*