Mastering Market Definition and Key Benefits for Competitive Positioning

Where do you play, and what is your market situation? (focusing on M1 and M2)

Understanding your market is a critical first step in defining your business strategy. It involves answering two key questions:

1. What is your market? (Market Definition - M1)

2. What benefits matter most in your market? (Key Expected Benefits - M2)

This article explores these questions in detail and provides actionable insights to help you identify and leverage competitive positioning options.

What is your market? (market definition - M1)

Defining your market means understanding the boundaries of where you operate, who your customers are, and the nature of the competition. This is not just about naming an industry—it’s about identifying a specific space where your product or service plays a role.

Key Considerations:

• Who are your target customers? Define their demographics, behaviors, and preferences.

• What needs do you fulfill? Clearly articulate the problem your product or service solves.

• What is the scope of your market? Determine the geographical and category boundaries that frame your competition.

Example: Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products If you’re in the eco-friendly cleaning products market, your target customers might be environmentally conscious homeowners. The need you fulfill is effective, sustainable home cleaning. Your market scope might include regional markets with high environmental awareness and disposable income.

Example: Tesla Model S Consider the Tesla Model S. It belongs to the broad market of cars, but we can further narrow this down into sub-markets. A common mistake is to categorize the Tesla Model S under the market of electric cars. However, being electric is a feature, not a market. Although both a Toyota Prius and a Tesla Model S are electric cars (one being a hybrid), they do not belong to the same market. The Tesla Model S fits into the Luxury E automobile or Executive/Mid-size luxury market, which also includes vehicles like the Porsche Taycan or the BMW 5 series.

Watch More: Tesla Market Positioning

E-Segment Wikipedia Reference

As we delve deeper, we'll discover that once we have identified the market where our value proposition will compete, it's crucial to understand and follow a set of rules to shape our commercial strategy. After identifying your company's competitive market, we need to delve into the specifics. Just like a painter cannot create art without understanding their canvas, a marketer cannot formulate a strategy without understanding their market.

What benefits matter most in your market? (key expected benefits - M2)

Every market revolves around a set of benefits that customers prioritize. These benefits can be divided into two categories:

1. Functional Benefits: Practical and measurable advantages your product or service provides.

2. Emotional Benefits: Intangible, psychological rewards customers experience.

These benefits form the basis for competitive positioning, as each player in the market may emphasize different combinations of these elements.

Example: Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products Market

1. Effectiveness (Functional): Products that clean thoroughly without compromising on eco-friendliness.

2. Health and Safety (Functional): Non-toxic ingredients that are safe for families and pets.

3. Convenience (Functional): Easy-to-use packaging and availability in local stores or online.

4. Environmental Impact (Emotional): Customers feel good about reducing their carbon footprint and supporting sustainability.

5. Brand Trust (Emotional): A sense of confidence in the brand’s authenticity and values.

Example: Tesla Model S

1. Performance (Functional): Exceptional acceleration and range compared to competitors.

2. Innovation (Functional): Cutting-edge technology, including autonomous driving capabilities.

3. Sustainability (Emotional): Pride in contributing to reducing carbon emissions.

4. Prestige (Emotional): Association with a high-status, forward-thinking brand.

5. Ownership Experience (Emotional): Access to a seamless, premium experience from purchase to service.

Each of these benefits represents an opportunity for differentiation. For example, Tesla emphasizes performance and innovation as key functional benefits while simultaneously building strong emotional connections through sustainability and prestige.

Final thoughts

Defining your market (M1) and understanding its key benefits (M2) are foundational steps in building a competitive strategy. These insights not only clarify your market position but also inform how you can differentiate your offering in a way that resonates with your audience.

Take the time to explore these two critical dimensions of your market. Doing so will set the stage for deeper strategic decisions and ultimately, greater success in your chosen space.

Marketing Canvas - Step 1 - Market Assessment

Last update: 12/05/2023

Introduction

Understanding the concept of a 'market' is fundamental to crafting a successful marketing plan. But what does 'market' truly mean in a marketing context?

When you introduce products or services to fulfill specific needs, there's a high probability that alternatives already exist. These alternatives set a frame of reference for customers, leading them to compare your offerings against what they know:

• Is it more expensive or cheaper?

• Does it offer more or less perceived benefits?

• Why should they switch to your product?

Three Crucial Questions for Your Market

Question 1: What is your playing field, and how would you describe your market dynamics?

In marketing, we often segment territories into groups exhibiting similar characteristics, referred to as 'market segments' or 'markets'. This segmentation streamlines sales efforts, as your primary goal becomes convincing customers within your targeted market to choose and retain your value proposition.

I rely on Bill Aulet's definition (Excerpt From: Bill Aulet. "Disciplined Entrepreneurship") to clarify what constitutes a market:

• Customers within the market purchase similar products.

• Customers within the market exhibit similar buying behaviors and anticipate similar value from the products.

• There's "word of mouth" among customers in the market, meaning they serve as high-value references for each other in making purchases.

To illustrate, consider these examples:

• Buying a car or a computer places you in the Car market and Computer market respectively. These markets align with Aulet's definition.

• If you're a strategic consulting firm or a law firm, there likely exists a market for strategic consulting services and a market for legal services, respectively. Again, these markets align with Aulet's definition.

This concept of a market applies to both consumer and business services. Moreover, markets can be subdivided into sub-markets, providing a finer granularity to develop a marketing strategy. For instance, the Car market can be split into SUV and Sedan sub-markets, and the Computer market into Laptop and Desktop markets.

This subdivision forms a crucial step in devising a marketing strategy as it allows for an improved understanding of the context. The silver lining is that this work is often already accomplished, and markets are defined by the existing players. A wealth of data and statistics on different markets can be found on the internet, available free or for purchase.

Remark: you can compete in different markets, however the marketing canvas method has been designed for one market as competitors and conditions might change between markets. In case you would like to analyse multiple markets, you should do it one by one and then consolidate all the assessments in one strategy.

Case Study: Green Clean

Consider the eco-friendly cleaning products market. Companies like Method, Ecover, Seventh Generation, Mrs. Meyer's, and Green Clean offer alternatives to traditional cleaning products. They all compete within the eco-friendly cleaning products market, defined by customers' preference for environmentally conscious choices, similar buying behaviors, and the potential for word-of-mouth recommendations. These companies have different pricing strategies and perceived benefits, which customers will compare before making a decision.

CASE STUDY: Tesla Model S

Consider the Tesla Model S. It belongs to the broad market of cars, but we can further narrow this down into sub-markets. A common mistake is to categorize the Tesla Model S under the market of electric cars. However, being electric is a feature, not a market. Although both a Toyota Prius and a Tesla Model S are electric cars (one being a hybrid), they do not belong to the same market. The Tesla Model S fits into the Luxury E automobile or Executive/Mid-size luxury market, which also includes vehicles like the Porsche Taycan or the BMW 5 series.

https://youtu.be/2QrUkjKcIAg

E-segment Wikipedia

As we delve deeper, we'll discover that once we have identified the market where our value proposition will compete, it's crucial to understand and follow a set of rules to shape our commercial strategy.

After identifying your company's competitive market, we need to delve into the specifics. Just like a painter cannot create art without understanding their canvas, a marketer cannot formulate a strategy without understanding their market.

1.1 Market Definition (M1)

To define your market, you must understand what product or service you are selling and who will likely buy it. For example, if you're selling eco-friendly cleaning products, your market might be environmentally conscious homeowners.

1.2 Key Expected Benefits (M2)

This involves identifying what the players in the market hope to gain. This includes both functional benefits (e.g., eco-friendly cleaning products that effectively clean the house) and emotional benefits (e.g., feeling good about contributing to environmental conservation).

1.3 Market's Position on Growth Curve (M3)

Every market undergoes stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. Understanding where your market is on this curve helps you strategize accordingly. For instance, an emerging market might require more education and awareness efforts.

1.4 Experience Economy Curve of the Market (M4)

This refers to how the market evolves from selling simple commodities to providing sophisticated experiences. For instance, coffee can be sold as a commodity (beans), a product (packaged coffee), a service (brewed coffee in a cafe), or an experience (gourmet coffee tasting).

1.5 Total Available Market (TAM) and Serviceable Available Market (SAM) (M5)

TAM is the total market demand for a product or service, while SAM is the segment of TAM targeted by your company's products and services within your geographical reach. These metrics help assess the market size and opportunity.

Question 2: who is your main important competitors?

Identifying and analyzing your competitors is just as crucial as understanding your market.

2.1 Competitors' Identification (M6-M10)

Identify up to five main competitors in your market. For each, identify the product price per unit (M7), perceived price (M8), perceived benefits (M9), and any additional remarks (M10).

2.2 Perceived Price (M8)

Perceived price is a metric that reflects how customers perceive your price relative to the competition. It is not always about the actual cost but rather the perceived value for money. The perceived price is calculated using a formula: M8 = 24/(E-C) * (M7-C) - 12.

Here, E is the maximum price per unit in the market, C is the lowest price per unit, and M7 is your product's price per unit. The calculation generates a score on a scale of -12 to +12, helping you understand your product's perceived price positioning in comparison to competitors.

Let's consider an example in the eco-friendly cleaning products market. We'll analyze five companies: GreenClean (our company), EcoPure, NatureFresh, Clean&Green, and BioWash.

Here's the calculation for GreenClean's perceived price:

M8 = 24/($15-$6) * ($10-$6) - 12 = 24/9 * 4 - 12 = 10.67 - 12 = -1.33

The same calculation is applied to find the perceived prices for the rest of the companies. This table helps you understand how your product's price is perceived relative to the competitors in the market.  

In this case, GreenClean's price is perceived to be lower than most of its competitors, which can be an advantage if customers are price sensitive. However, you also need to ensure that the lower price doesn't lead customers to perceive it as lower quality.

2.3 Perceived Benefits (M9)

This is a measure of the benefits a customer perceives when interacting with a company. The perceived benefit score is calculated by summing up the scores of four questions related to the Brand, Value Proposition, Customer Journey, and Conversations offered by the company in the chosen market.

Here's how to handle each question:

1. Brand Perception: Ask yourself, "Is the company's brand the highest perceived amongst all the alternatives in the market?" This isn't just about brand recognition; it's about the positive associations customers make with your brand. It could be related to quality, trust, innovation, or social responsibility.

2. Value Proposition: Consider, "Is the company's value proposition the highest perceived amongst all the alternatives in the market?" The value proposition is the unique mix of product, price, placement, and promotion that the company offers. It answers why a customer should buy from you rather than your competitors.

3. Customer Journey: Query, "Is the company's customer journey the highest perceived amongst all the alternatives in the market?" The customer journey comprises all interactions between the customer and the company. It can include the ease of navigating your website, the clarity of product information, the efficiency of the checkout process, after-sales service, and more.

4. Conversation: Reflect on, "Is the company's conversation the highest perceived amongst all the alternatives in the market?" Conversations refer to the communication between the company and its customers. This could include advertising messages, social media interactions, customer service interactions, and more.

For each of the four questions, rate your agreement on a scale of -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree). Sum up these ratings to derive the Perceived Benefits score (M9).

This score gives you an understanding of your company's strengths and areas of improvement from the customer's perspective. It provides insights into how you can enhance your customers' experience, strengthen your value proposition, and ultimately, increase your market share.

These perceived benefits scores indicate how each company's offerings are viewed in the market. GreenClean, for instance, scores fairly well, suggesting its customers appreciate its brand, value proposition, customer journey, and conversations. However, there's room for improvement, especially when compared to competitors like EcoPure and BioWash. This analysis can help guide strategic decisions to improve these areas and enhance customer perception.

question 3: what are the trends influencing your market?

This stage involves compiling all the information gathered above and creating a comprehensive view of your market.

1. Describe your chosen market, ensuring it aligns with the market definition of Bill Aulet.

2. Fill in a template (template #2) with information on your company and a maximum of 4 other companies.

3. Identify the average unit price for the company value proposition in the market (M7).

4. Map this average price for all companies using the formula: M8= 24/(E-C)*(M7-C)-12.

5. Calculate for each company the Perceived Benefits M9 by summing up the results of the 4 questions.

6. Map these results on a graph with perceived benefits (M9) on the horizontal axis (scale -12 to + 12) and perceived prices (M8) on the vertical axis (scale -12 to +12). This visualization (template #4) gives a clear picture of where each competitor stands in terms of value for money in the eyes of customers.

In conclusion, the market you're operating in, or planning to penetrate, defines the rules of the game. Understanding these rules, and how to play within them, will significantly influence your chances of success.

Whether it's the luxury electric car market or the eco-friendly cleaning products market, your marketing strategy should be rooted in a deep understanding of the market dynamics. This includes not only identifying your competitors but also comprehending the perceived price and benefits that your product or service brings to the table.

Marketing Canvas Method - Market Assesment Process

Tips for non-marketers and entrepreneurs

1.     Stay Curious: Regularly research and keep up with trends in your market. It's not a one-time activity but a continuous process.

2.     Talk to Customers: They can provide valuable insights that even the most sophisticated analysis might miss. Regular feedback from customers is a goldmine of information.

3.     Keep an Eye on Competitors: Competitors can provide valuable lessons. Their successes and failures can provide insights for your own strategy.

4.     Iterate: A marketing strategy is not set in stone. It evolves with your business, market trends, and customer preferences. Regularly revisit and update your strategy based on new data and insights.

Remember, understanding the context is just the first step in the marketing canvas method. It sets the foundation for the other steps in the process, guiding the direction of your marketing strategy.

Marketing Canvas - Define your financial hypothesis

In a nutshell

When working with the Marketing Canvas, It is important to formulate your financial goal(s) as an hypothesis (Step 2). The assessment that will be done afterwards (Step 3) is measuring your ability to reach this goal without changing your current strategy. It is therefore highly important that you clarify your hypotheses

Financial hypotheses statement

FOR ACHIEVING NEXT YEAR REVENUE (……………) WHICH IS A …………… OF …………… COMPARE TO LAST YEAR, WE WILL:

• ACQUIRE …………… NEW CUSTOMERS

• LOSE ONLY …………… EXISTING CUSTOMERS

• HAVE AN AVERAGE MONTHLY TRANSACTION PER CUSTOMER OF ……………

• HAVE AN AVERAGE PRICE PER TRANSACTION OF ……………

Be clear

It is an hypotheses thus if it is not working you can revisit it. What is important is to understand how you will generate your revenues and more specifically what is different versus last year. Remember the magic revenue equation is YOUR REVENUE = THE CUSTOMERS YOU HAVE (NEW-LOST+EXISTING) x NUMBER OF TRANSACTION THEY DO PER MONTH x 12 x AVERAGE PRICE THEY PAY PER TRANSACTION.

• Will you acquire more new customers compare to last year? How much?

• Will you lose less customers than last year or more? How much?

• Will you stimulate your customers to buy more frequently? How much?

• Will you increase your average price they pay per transaction? How much?

View fullsize

Each of these elements contribute positively or negatively to your revenue goal. How prepare are you to achieve this? Do you have the right elements in place? Do you have some brakes (elements against you)?

Let me give you an example: If you want to increase by 10% your average price, it probably means that you need to justify a premium versus the competition or correct a wrong pricing (too much discount or promotions). In both case, your brand might be a brake because it is perceived cheap by your customers.

PRICE INCREASE -> ASSESSMENT: BRAND IS A BRAKE BECAUSE PERCEIVED AS CHEAP -> IDEATION: HOW CAN I CHANGE THE VALUE PERCEPTION OF MY BRAND?

Infographic

Financial hypothesis for your Marketing Canvas

Attention Economy

While working on your Marketing Strategy, you should be aware of the attention economy concept. Why? Let’s first have a look at the definition proposed by Wikipedia [1] before answering this question:

Attention economics is an approach to the management of information that treats human attention as a scarce commodity, and applies economic theory to solve various information management problems. Put simply by Matthew Crawford, "Attention is a resource—a person has only so much of it.

Why should you care about this? because we are currently living in a society where buyers (B2B) or consumers (B2C) are overwhelmed by content and information about products, services, or experiences. What I call the snake dance (for capturing the attention) is applied by all brands but these days (unfortunately for brands), there are so many noises from all these songs that people are becoming deaf (don’t we say that people living close by train station are not hearing them anymore).

As attention economy becomes a very important concept for you when you are designing your marketing strategy, you should take care of it. Obviously, you could apply the good old concept of hitting them as much as needed until they understand it (Push Model). Or a more elegant approach would be to differentiate yourself (using the right Segmenting-Targeting-Positioning) and apply a pull approach (based on empathy and customer needs).

As rightly said by Nielsen Norman Group [2] “designers have a choice in this economy of attention: they can balance business needs — such as the need for new subscribers, advertising revenue, and profit — with respect for the best interests of their users.”

So! Do you integrate the attention economy in your strategy? Are you pushing or pulling?

Video

Source

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_economy#In_advertising

2. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/attention-economy/

Marketing Canvas and Customers

In a nutshell

When working on the Customers part of the Marketing Canvas, you are trying to identify relevant and actionable triggers (you can also call it insights) that you will try to leverage through the other dimensions of the canvas. We have 4 dimensions you can play with for identifying these triggers (JTBD, ASPIRATIONS, PAINS & GAINS, ENGAGEMENT). What matters at the end of this exercise is that you avoid fluffy (triggers), you have built a list of triggers, you have qualified them (functional or emotional), you have identified supporting evidence and you have rated the strength of each trigger.

In the Marketing Canvas

In the Marketing Canvas, we have identified 6 main categories for building your Marketing Strategy: Customers, Brand, Value Proposition, Journey, Conversation and Metrics. Each of these categories have 4 dimensions which means that a total of 24 dimensions (6 by 4) are defining your Marketing Strategy.

Customers is one of the 4 dimensions of the Metrics category. That category is composed of 4 dimensions.

How to use it?

What I have noticed during workshops is that people have difficulties to identify strong insights that could be used for building value propositions that rocks. They usually list insights that are very broad (even fluffy) like customers want quality (who doesn’t?) but could not describe what sort of quality customers are looking for. One example that could help you understand my point is the following:

When designing mobile phones, we know that these phones should be robust but what does it really mean. Glass manufacturer designed glass that could resist a drop from 10 meters but customers were looking for a phone that could resist multiple drops from 1 meter because it is what they are experiencing in real life. You see robustness could be very different!

When working on the 4 dimensions of CUSTOMERS, you can identify a list of triggers that could be functional (What the customer is expecting to get?) and emotional (What the customer is expecting to feel?). An interesting read on benefits/triggers is the article from the beloved brand web site (here).

I have not found a global list with all potential triggers (functional and emotional) that you could choose when working on a specific case. The most elaborated list I have found so far is the one developed by Bain Consulting for B2C and B2B. They have identified elements of value (30 for B2C and 40 for B2B) classified as functional, emotional, life-changing, and social impact.

In the Marketing Canvas, I have only considered 2 categories (functional and emotional), therefore if you are using Bain B2C triggers, you should consider emotional, life-changing and social impact as Emotional triggers.

What I also like in the Bain proposal is their B2B mapping which is something you don’t easily find. In the case of the B2B mapping, you should consider Table Stakes and Functional Values as Functional and Ease of doing business value, Individual value and inspirational value as Emotional for the Marketing Canvas method.

More on Bain can be found here: B2C elements of value and B2B elements of value.

Some Videos

Potential ideas

How to add intangible values to product?

1. Immediacy - priority access, immediate delivery

2. Personalization - tailored just for you

3. Interpretation - support and guidance

4. Authenticity - how can you be sure it is the real thing?

5. Accessibility - wherever, whenever

6. Embodiment - books, live music

7. Patronage - "paying simply because it feels good",

8. Findability - "When there are millions of books, millions of songs, millions of films, millions of applications, millions of everything requesting our attention — and most of it free — being found is valuable."

source: Wikipedia Attention Economy

Method

What you should do is the following:

• Take each dimension and identify triggers that are either functional or emotional;

• List evidence supporting each trigger;

• Rate each trigger from weak to strong in the function of the importance of the customer (the more the customer is demonstrating that s.he is effectively in needs of this trigger through past behavior (doing more than saying), the stronger the trigger).

• Take the top 10 triggers at the end of this exercise and complete the template below.

Template

Marketing Canvas Method - Customer Triggers Template

4 dimensions of Customers

• Marketing Canvas and Job To Be Done

• Marketing Canvas and Aspirations

• Marketing Canvas and Pains/Gains

• Marketing Canvas and Engagement

Marketing Canvas - Step 2 - Set Your Goals

The Marketing Canvas, developed by Laurent Bouty, is a powerful tool that provides a structured approach to crafting a robust marketing strategy. It's a co-creation method that intersects your environment (where you will play), your goals (what you would like to achieve), and your actions (what you will do). This article focuses on the second step of the Marketing Canvas Process - setting your goals. This step is vital as it serves as the reference point for the assessment phase.

Three Strategies for Growing Your Revenue:

In the Marketing Canvas Process, three strategies are highlighted for growing your revenue: GET, KEEP, and STIMULATE/MORE. These strategies focus on different aspects of customer interaction and are designed to help businesses increase their revenue.

1. GET: This strategy is all about customer acquisition. The primary idea is that your business can grow by attracting new customers. Tactics that can be employed include acquisition campaigns (welcome offers), channel incentives for new customers, "bring a friend" campaigns, and freemium models. For instance, a new restaurant might offer a "buy one get one free" deal to attract new customers.

2. KEEP: The second strategy emphasizes customer retention. The main idea here is that your business can grow by retaining existing customers. This strategy might seem defensive, but it is the cornerstone of customer experience and is essential for all businesses, including startups. Tactics include churn management, loyalty programs, brand and customer experience reinforcement, Net Promoter Score (NPS) programs for detractors, and below-the-line retention campaigns. For example, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) company might implement a loyalty program that offers exclusive features or discounts to long-term subscribers.

3. STIMULATE/MORE: The third strategy focuses on customer stimulation. The primary idea is that your business can grow by encouraging your customers to spend more and/or more often. Tactics include cross-selling, upselling, promotion campaigns for usage stimulation, bundling, upgrade programs, and premium features. For instance, a telecom company might offer a bundle that includes internet, cable, and phone services at a discounted rate, encouraging customers to spend more.

Green Clean Use Case:

To illustrate these strategies, let's consider a hypothetical company, Green Clean, a startup offering eco-friendly cleaning services.

For the GET strategy, Green Clean could offer a discounted first cleaning service to attract new customers. They could also implement a referral program where existing customers get a discount for each new customer they bring in.

For the KEEP strategy, Green Clean could develop a loyalty program where customers get a free cleaning service for every ten services purchased. They could also focus on providing excellent customer service to ensure customer satisfaction and reduce churn.

For the STIMULATE/MORE strategy, Green Clean could offer additional services like deep carpet cleaning or window cleaning, encouraging existing customers to spend more. They could also offer a premium subscription service that includes regular cleaning and maintenance services.

Conclusion

Setting your goals is a crucial step in the Marketing Canvas Process. It provides a clear direction for your marketing efforts and serves as a reference point for assessing your progress. The three strategies - GET, KEEP, and STIMULATE/MORE - offer different approaches to growing your revenue. By understanding these strategies and how to apply them, businesses can create a robust marketing strategy that drives growth and success.

Remember, the Marketing Canvas is a dynamic tool. As your business environment changes, you should revisit your goals and strategies to ensure they remain relevant and effective. Regular review and adaptation are key to maintaining a successful marketing strategy.

Whether you're a non-marketer, an entrepreneur, or a marketer looking to learn something new, the Marketing Canvas offersa structured yet flexible approach to developing a marketing strategy. It breaks down complex marketing concepts into manageable steps, making the process more accessible and less intimidating.

The Marketing Canvas is not just a tool, but a journey. It's a process of discovery, assessment, and reinforcement. It's about understanding your market, setting clear goals, and determining the actions you need to take to achieve those goals.

So, are you ready to embark on this journey? Are you ready to set your goals and grow your business? Remember, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. In the case of the Marketing Canvas, that step is setting your goals.

Marketing Canvas - Influencers

Last update: 1 January 2021

In a nutshell

In today's digital landscape, influencers play a significant role in shaping consumer perceptions and buying decisions. This comprehensive guide dives into the world of influencer marketing, discussing different types of influencers and their potential impact on your marketing strategy. It examines how influencers fit into the Marketing Canvas, a framework for conceptualizing and structuring your marketing strategy. Practical examples are provided to illustrate the potential of effective influencer collaborations. Furthermore, the guide highlights essential tools for influencer management and ways to translate influencer activities into tangible actions. The guide concludes with an emphasis on the need for continuous evaluation and improvement of your influencer strategy, providing a robust assessment framework and practical tips for scoring and improvement. The information in this guide is indispensable for marketers seeking to harness the power of influencers in their marketing strategy.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is INFLUENCERS, which falls under the CONVERSATION meta-category

Defining Influencers

In the vast and evolving landscape of digital marketing, the role of influencers has grown exponentially. These influencers span various types, each with unique attributes and reach. According to Hubspot[1], there are five different types of influencers:

1. Micro-influencer: With a modest following ranging from thousands to tens of thousands, micro-influencers can have a profound impact within their specific niche. They have developed trust and rapport with their followers, making them highly effective in influencing their followers' decisions.

2. Celebrity influencer: With enormous followings usually in the millions, celebrity influencers are famous individuals known across many industries. They have the power to influence people through their fame and high public visibility.

3. Blog influencer: Blog influencers have a loyal readership that subscribes to their content. They are skilled in crafting narratives that can engage, inform, and influence their readership.

4. Social media influencer: These influencers have significant recognition across social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter. They interact with their followers directly and shape opinions and trends.

5. Key opinion leader: KOLs are high-level experts on specialized topics within a particular field. They have in-depth knowledge and expertise, making their opinions highly respected and influential. 

Hubspot[1] is defining influencers (also brand influencers) as:

A brand influencer refers to someone who has a following within a specific niche that they engage with regularly. Because of this, they have the power to impact their purchase decisions. The major types of brand influencers include micro-influencer, celebrity influencer, blog influencer, social media influencer, and key opinion leader (each of which we’ll define momentarily).

Introducing the Influencers dimension to the Marketing Canvas was a deliberative decision. While it's easy to group influencers under the Media umbrella, such an approach could underestimate their unique roles and significance in shaping public opinion and influencing consumer behaviors.

A brand influencer is a person who commands a following within a particular niche and engages with them frequently. This relationship allows them to exert considerable influence on their followers' purchase decisions.

In an era where people's trust in brands is increasingly mediated through personal relationships, influencers play a crucial role. They create user-generated content (UGC), a key form of communication thanks to social media and digital publishing tools.

Influencer marketing, therefore, becomes a critical dimension of a business's marketing strategy. It's not just about establishing a specific influencer strategy, but recognizing the important role influencers play within your overall marketing strategy.

To realize the potential benefits of influencer marketing, businesses need to evaluate if and how an Influencer Strategy aligns with their brand purpose, customer profiles, and value proposition.

Examples of successful influencer strategies include Gleam's Electric Adventures campaign for EDF Energy, which reached over 1 million people in the UK through 59 pieces of unique content, and Dell Technologies' influencer-hosted podcast, which fostered strong relationships with industry influencers.

Tools for Influencers

Identifying and engaging with the right influencers necessitates the use of specialized tools. These tools help you discover influencers, manage relationships, track metrics, and more. Examples of such tools include:

1. BuzzSumo: This tool helps businesses find influencers related to specific topics or industries. It also tracks your brand's mentions and engagement across various social media platforms.

2. Hootsuite: Beyond its well-known scheduling capabilities, Hootsuite can assist in identifying influencers by monitoring mentions and hashtags related to your brand or industry.

3. Traackr: This is an influencer relationship management tool that helps you manage and track your engagement with influencers.

Translating Influencers into Action

Influencer marketing is more than just gaining visibility—it's about translating that visibility into actionable results. To do this, consider the following steps:

1. Set Clear Goals: Establish what you want to achieve through the influencer partnership. This could be increased brand awareness, lead generation, or direct sales.

2. Collaborate on Content: Work with the influencer to develop content that aligns with your brand values and message, but also resonates with the influencer's audience.

3. Track Metrics: Monitor the performance of your influencer marketing campaigns, tracking metrics like engagement rate, click-through rate, conversions, etc.

4. Adjust Strategy: Based on the metrics and feedback, adjust your influencer strategy as needed.

Examples

Gleam created Electric Adventures – a standout consumer-focused social media video series that enabled personal stories to be brought to life whilst busting the common myths around electric vehicles and maintaining EDF Energy’s reputation. The campaign created far more in-depth brand engagement than a 30-second TV advert could achieve, reaching more than 1 million people in the UK via 59 pieces of content (source: 2020, https://influencermarketingawards.com/winners/).

Dell Technologies launched a podcast hosted by influencers featuring conversations with technology visionaries. The interesting thing about this program is that Dell is able to develop strong relationships with industry influencers. (source: https://artplusmarketing.com/5-b2b-influencer-marketing-strategies-you-should-try-149e369fd4ae).

Statements for self-assessment

Are your INFLUENCERS helping you achieve your goals?

Evaluating your influencer strategy helps you understand its effectiveness in achieving your marketing goals. Consider the following statements, rating your agreement on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You are working with influencers that match your brand purpose and are your brand ambassadors.

2. You have defined clear and actionable goals for your influencer strategy aligned with your marketing strategy goals.

3. You let your influencers develop content that tells a story for their audience in their voice while highlighting your brand.

4. You have set long term metrics for your influencers, preferably annual ROI target in brand image and community engagement.

5. You are working with influencers showcasing a sustainable behavior and you are optimizing the sustainability impact of your influencer strategy

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Conversations - Influencers by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Indicate misalignment or ineffectiveness in your influencer strategy. Influencers may not represent your brand purpose, and your goals, content, or sustainability efforts may be unclear or poorly executed.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects partial effectiveness. While some aspects of your influencer strategy are functional, others require improvement to maximize impact and alignment with your brand purpose.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Suggest a well-rounded and effective influencer strategy. Your partnerships align with your brand’s purpose, deliver meaningful content, and prioritize sustainability, driving long-term engagement and ROI.

Case study: Green Clean’s Influencer strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean collaborates with influencers who lack alignment with its sustainability mission. Campaigns are disjointed, with no clear goals or metrics, resulting in low engagement and limited brand impact.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean partners with influencers who share its values but fails to set clear objectives or provide creative freedom. As a result, campaigns generate moderate traction but lack authenticity and measurable outcomes.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean partners with eco-conscious influencers who embody its mission. Campaigns include compelling stories about sustainable living, measurable goals for engagement and brand awareness, and a strong focus on reducing environmental impact.

Conclusion

The Influencers sub-dimension underscores the importance of thoughtful collaboration with individuals who align with your brand’s purpose and sustainability goals. By setting clear objectives, empowering authentic storytelling, and measuring long-term impact, your influencer strategy can drive meaningful engagement and reinforce your brand’s values.

Sources

1. Hubspot, 2019, Ultimate Guide to Influencer Marketing, https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/how-to-work-with-influencers

2. Adweek, 2018, http://www.adnews.com.au/news/people-trust-people-but-they-don-t-necessarily-trust-brands

3. SproutSocial, Influencer Marketing, https://sproutsocial.com/insights/influencer-marketing/

4. Harvard Business Review, 2019, https://hbr.org/2019/04/how-brands-can-build-successful-relationships-with-influencers

More on the Marketing Canvas

• Marketing Canvas and Job To Be Done

• Marketing Canvas and Aspirations

• Marketing Canvas and Pains/Gains

• Marketing Canvas and Engagement

• Marketing Canvas and Purpose

• Marketing Canvas and Positioning

• Marketing Canvas and Values

• Marketing Canvas and Visual Identity

• Marketing Canvas and Features

• Marketing Canvas and Emotions

• Marketing Canvas and Pricing

• Marketing Canvas and Proofs

• Marketing Canvas and Moments

• Marketing Canvas and Experience

• Marketing Canvas and Channels

• Marketing Canvas and Magic

• Marketing Canvas and Listening to

• Marketing Canvas and Content & Stories

• Marketing Canvas and Media

• Marketing Canvas and Influencers

• Marketing Canvas and Acquisition

• Marketing Canvas and ARPU

• Marketing Canvas and Lifetime

• Marketing Canvas and Budget

Marketing Canvas - Pricing

Last update: 24/11/2024

In a nutshell

The Pricing sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas examines how your pricing strategy supports your value proposition, aligns with customer expectations, and reflects your brand positioning. Pricing is not merely a financial decision but a strategic tool that communicates value, differentiates your offering, and influences customer behavior toward sustainable choices.

For instance, a brand like Green Clean might emphasize pricing transparency and offer incentives for sustainable behaviors, such as discounts on refillable products, to align with its eco-friendly mission and customer expectations.

Introduction

The Pricing sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas is critical to ensuring your value proposition is both competitive and aligned with your brand’s goals. A well-designed pricing strategy balances customer Willingness To Pay (WTP), perceived value, and cost structure while promoting sustainability. It ensures your offering creates more value than its cost and encourages customers to engage with your brand’s most impactful and sustainable options.

Pricing also reinforces brand positioning by reflecting the quality, exclusivity, or accessibility of your product or service.

What is pricing?

Pricing is the monetary expression of your value proposition, reflecting the worth of your product or service to customers. A strong pricing strategy:

• Communicates Value: Ensures that customers perceive the benefits of your offering as exceeding its cost.

• Reflects Willingness To Pay: Aligns with what customers are willing to pay for solving their problems.

• Covers Costs: Accounts for the full costs associated with delivering your value proposition.

• Supports Positioning: Aligns with your brand’s image and goals in the category.

• Promotes Sustainability: Incentivizes customers to choose sustainable options.

For example, Green Clean might set a premium price for its eco-friendly cleaning solutions to reflect their unique value while offering subscription discounts for refills to encourage long-term sustainable behaviors.

Pricing: an in-depth perspective

PRICING is a pivotal element of your marketing strategy that requires meticulous analysis due to its complexity and profound impact on value creation. In the Marketing Canvas Method, PRICING goes beyond simply competing with market rates for similar offerings. Instead, it focuses on leveraging pricing as a strategic tool to create or preserve value, propelling your brand upward on the economic value curve.

Perceived Price and the Value Curve

At the core of effective PRICING is the concept of the Perceived Price—how customers interpret the value of your offering relative to its cost. Understanding the standard pricing unit in your market is critical to analyzing your position.

For instance:

• In a supermarket, shampoos or soaps are typically priced per milliliter in Europe, while coffee is sold by weight.

• In the service industry, consulting services are often charged per hour or day.

Once the reference pricing unit is established, you can calculate the perceived price of your offering compared to competitors using the formula:

24 / (E - C) * (M7 - C) - 12

Where:

• E is the highest unit price in the market,

• C is the lowest unit price,

• M7 is your unit price.

This calculation helps determine your position on the value curve, indicating whether your PRICING strategy accelerates or impedes your business growth.

Example: Artisanal Coffee

Suppose your artisanal coffee beans are priced at $15 per pound (M7). In your market, the highest-priced coffee is $20 per pound (E) and the lowest is $10 per pound (C). Applying the formula provides insight into where your pricing strategy positions you on the value curve.

A strong position on the curve suggests your pricing reflects perceived value, while a weak position may signal the need for adjustment to better align with market conditions and customer expectations.

PRICING and Perceived Value

PRICING is intrinsically tied to how customers perceive the value of your product or service:

• If your offering is seen as a commodity, customers will gravitate toward the lowest price.

• Conversely, if your unique value proposition is clear, customers may accept higher prices that reflect this differentiation.

For example:

• Starbucks customers willingly pay premium prices because they perceive value beyond the coffee itself—a unique experience.

• A luxury fashion brand can command high prices because it offers a transformational experience, making cost secondary for its target audience.

Key Principles of an effective PRICING strategy

An effective PRICING strategy should adhere to the following principles:

1. Be Value-Based: Align your price with your position on the economic value curve.

2. Consider Market Conditions: Analyze competitor pricing and customer price sensitivity to ensure relevance.

3. Enhance Your Brand’s Purpose and Positioning: Reflect your brand identity. For instance, a disruptive brand might challenge market norms with innovative pricing.

4. Strengthen Your Value Proposition: Reinforce the unique aspects of your offering to justify the price.

Ignoring these principles can lead to a PRICING strategy that acts as a brake on your progress, rather than an accelerator.

Assessing your pricing strategy

To evaluate your pricing, consider a scoring scale from -12 to +12:

• 12 represents a low price that may correspond to a low perceived value.

• +12 indicates a high price with a high perceived value.

For example:

• If your artisanal coffee is priced above average market rates but customers appreciate its unique quality and sourcing, resulting in a high perceived value, your pricing might score a +8 or higher on this scale.

• On the other hand, a low-priced coffee with limited differentiation might score closer to -8 or -12, reflecting a misaligned pricing strategy.

Value Map that helps you understand your current pricing situation

Translating pricing into action

A strong pricing strategy should consistently reflect your value proposition and support customer decision-making. Pricing decisions should be based on insights into customer behavior, cost structures, and competitive analysis, while integrating sustainability as a core principle.

Questions to consider:

• Does your pricing strategy create more value than the cost for your customers compared to alternatives?

• How well does your pricing align with your customers’ Willingness To Pay for solving their problems?

• Does your pricing account for all costs associated with delivering your value proposition?

• Is your pricing consistent with your brand positioning and category goals?

• How does your pricing strategy encourage sustainable choices?

Method for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Pricing concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your value proposition is creating more value than the cost of the next best alternative for your customers.

2. Your pricing strategy is based on customer Willingness To Pay (WTP) for solving their problem.

3. Your pricing strategy takes into account all costs associated with your value proposition.

4. Your pricing strategy is aligned with your brand positioning and your goals for the category.

5. Your pricing strategy encourages customers towards the most sustainable option available.

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Value Proposition - Pricing by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores suggest that your pricing strategy is misaligned with customer expectations, cost structures, or brand positioning. This can result in undervaluing your product, losing competitive advantage, or failing to support sustainability goals. Immediate action is required to reassess your pricing approach.

A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or incomplete alignment in your pricing strategy. While some elements may be in place, such as cost coverage or WTP analysis, they lack cohesion or fail to drive sustainable behaviors effectively. Further refinement is needed to strengthen your strategy.

Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate that your pricing strategy effectively communicates value, aligns with customer WTP, covers costs, and supports brand positioning. Additionally, your pricing encourages sustainable choices, reinforcing your commitment to long-term impact and differentiation.

Case study: Green clean’s pricing

Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s pricing fails to reflect the value of its eco-friendly products, either undervaluing them compared to competitors or setting prices that exceed customer WTP. The lack of cost alignment and sustainability incentives weakens the brand’s positioning and reduces customer appeal.

Surface understanding (0): Green Clean’s pricing covers basic costs and aligns with industry averages but lacks differentiation or focus on sustainability. Customers may perceive value but are not incentivized to choose more sustainable options, limiting the brand’s impact and competitive edge.

Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean’s pricing highlights the value of its unique features, such as non-toxic ingredients and zero-waste packaging, while aligning with customer WTP. By offering subscription discounts and promoting refillable packaging, the brand encourages sustainable behavior. This strategy reinforces its eco-friendly positioning, builds customer loyalty, and ensures profitability.

Conclusion

The Pricing sub-dimension is a strategic tool for aligning your value proposition with customer expectations, brand positioning, and sustainability goals. By creating value beyond cost, basing pricing on WTP, and incentivizing sustainable choices, businesses can enhance their competitive edge, foster customer loyalty, and achieve long-term success.

---

Sources

1. Market and Economic Value, Laurent Bouty, https://laurentbouty.com/blog/2019/marketing-canvas-market-and-economic-value

2. Neil Patel - 5 Psychological Studies on Pricing That You Absolutely MUST Read, https://neilpatel.com/blog/5-psychological-studies/

3. The Ultimate Guide to Pricing Strategies, https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/pricing-strategy

4. Replyco, 23 Pricing Strategies Any eCommerce Seller Can Use to Increase Sales, https://replyco.com/brainery/23-pricing-strategies-for-ecommerce-sellers/

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas - Visual Identity

Last update: 03/06/2023

In a nutshell

Your visual identity is how you translate your purpose into visible elements. It can be defined as the collection of all brand elements that you create to portray the right image of your brand. While the Values will help your employees taking the right decisions and having the right behaviors, the Visual Identity will ensure your customers/clients to recognize (without any doubt) who you are and why you exist.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is VISUAL IDENTITY, which falls under the BRAND meta-dimension

Enhancing and Understanding Visual Identity

Visual Identity is more than just a logo or a specific color palette; it's an amalgamation of all tangible elements that help consumers distinguish one brand from another. More importantly, it serves as a visual representation of a brand's core values, mission, and personality.

Consider a company operating in the clean, green, and sustainable business sector. Its visual identity may embody elements of nature, using earthy colors, and organic shapes, alluding to its environmental stewardship.

Brand is your logo and visuals, too. A great brand deserves a great logo and great graphic design and visuals. It can make the difference when the customer is choosing between two great brands. But these alone cannot make your brand great. [2]

Tools for Visual Identity

Crafting a resonant visual identity requires a deep understanding of a brand's core philosophy and aspirations. Subsequently, these insights are transformed into a coherent visual language. The tools for achieving this comprise of:

1. Logo: A well-crafted logo should be instantly recognizable, conveying the brand's ethos in a visually appealing manner.

2. Color Palette: Colors elicit emotional responses and help create brand associations. A well-chosen color scheme can enhance a brand's message and connection with its target audience.

3. Typography: Fonts often subtly communicate a brand's personality. For instance, a modern, clean typeface may suggest a forward-thinking, innovative brand.

4. Imagery: Consistency in the style of imagery used, whether it’s the use of photographs, illustrations, or graphics, adds another layer of depth to the brand identity.

5. Brand Guidelines: To ensure consistent application across all mediums, a comprehensive brand guideline document is necessary. It serves as a rulebook, detailing everything from logo usage to color codes and fonts.

Visual Identity and its Relationship with other Marketing Canvas Sub-dimensions

The real power of visual identity becomes apparent when viewed in context with the other sub-dimensions of the Marketing Canvas. All dimensions are interconnected, and each can impact the other.

• Purpose and Values: These drive the creation of the visual identity. A brand with a purpose centered around sustainability will have a visual identity that reflects this commitment, possibly with green color schemes or nature-inspired logos.

• Positioning: Your positioning in the marketplace should be echoed in your visual identity. If you're positioning yourself as a luxury brand, your visual identity should exude sophistication and elegance.

• Experience: Visual identity plays a significant role in shaping customer experience. It helps in setting the right expectations and evoking desired emotions from customers, thereby influencing their overall experience with the brand.

• Pricing : Your product and its pricing strategy can influence your visual identity. If you sell premium products at a higher price point, your visual identity should align with this to convey a sense of exclusivity.

Translating Visual Identity into Action

Translating visual identity into action requires consistency and strategic integration across all brand touchpoints:

1. Brand Consistency: All visual elements, from the website to packaging, should represent the brand accurately, fostering trust and recognition.

2. Strategic Partnerships and Collaborations: By aligning with like-minded brands, events, or influencers, you can further reinforce your brand's visual identity and expand your reach.

3. Product and Service Design: The design of the products or services should also resonate with the visual identity. For a green business, this could translate to sustainable materials in their product design or eco-friendly packaging.

4. Brand Evolution: As brands grow, their visual identity should also evolve to stay relevant and appealing, while still maintaining a connection to the original brand ethos.

Statements for self-assessment

The visual identity of your brand plays a crucial role in shaping how consumers perceive and connect with your brand. It extends beyond just a logo – it includes color schemes, typography, imagery, packaging, and even the layout of your physical or online presence. It should be consistent and aligned with your brand values, resonating with your target audience while differentiating you from competitors.

To evaluate the effectiveness of your visual identity, measure your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

• Your brand identity is consistent throughout the customer touch points.

• Your brand identity is in line with brand purpose, positioning and values.

• Your brand identity characteristics are different from other competitive brands and are easily attributed to your brand.

• Your brand identity has high like-ability rating with your target audiences.

• Your brand identity accurately reflects the sustainable nature of your products or

  services.

If you find yourself disagreeing with these statements, it's time for a reassessment. This might involve refining your logo, re-evaluating your color palette, redesigning your website or packaging, or even embarking on a complete rebranding journey.

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Brand - Visual Identity

Example: Suncharge

To elucidate this further, let's consider a practical example in the context of a clean, green, or sustainable business. Suppose we have a start-up that aims to revolutionize the renewable energy sector by introducing portable, solar-powered chargers for electric vehicles, named "SunCharge". The purpose of the start-up is clear: to promote sustainable energy usage and reduce reliance on non-renewable sources.

The creation of the visual identity for SunCharge, like any brand, starts with understanding its core values, target audience, and unique selling proposition. The brand aims to convey innovation, environmental responsibility, and reliability. With this in mind, the creation of visual assets, such as logos, color palettes, and typography, should all be aligned with these principles.

1. Logo: The logo is the most crucial aspect of visual identity. A logo should be unique and must encapsulate the brand's essence. For SunCharge, the logo could be a sleek, modern design combining a stylized sun and a charging symbol, hinting at the renewable energy source and its application.

2. Color Palette: The choice of colors significantly affects how a brand is perceived. Greens and blues are typically associated with environmental friendliness and trust, making them a good choice for SunCharge. Additionally, warm yellows or oranges could symbolize the sun, bringing a positive and energetic vibe to the brand.

3. Typography: This should reflect the brand's character. For a modern, innovative brand like SunCharge, clean and straightforward sans-serif fonts might be the best choice.

4. Images and Graphics: These should consistently follow the chosen aesthetic. This might include images of clean energy sources, modern technology, and graphics with a simple, modern design.

5. Brand Guidelines: This document ensures consistency across all visual aspects of the brand. It should define the logo usage rules, primary and secondary color palettes, typeface choices, and more. This will serve as a reference for anyone creating materials for the brand, ensuring a unified and coherent brand image.

Conclusion

In conclusion, a strong visual identity does more than making your brand look good. It communicates your brand's values and personality, creates a memorable impression, and fosters a deeper connection with your stakeholders. It's a demanding process, but when done right, the result is a brand that is not only visually appealing but also communicates its essence at a glance.

Sources

1. Woven Agency, https://woven.agency/blog/what-is-the-brand-identity-prism/

2. Harvard Business Review, A logo is not a Brand, https://hbr.org/2011/06/a-logo-is-not-a-brand

3. HowBrandsAreBuilt, https://howbrandsarebuilt.com/blog/2018/12/21/the-brand-identity-prism-and-how-it-works/

4. Inkbotdesign, https://inkbotdesign.com/kapferers-brand-identity-prism/

5. Marty Neumeier's Brand Gap

---

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas - Positioning

Last update: 29/05/2023

In a nutshell

The Positioning sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas helps define how a brand is perceived by its target audience. Effective positioning differentiates the brand from competitors, conveys unique value, and aligns with the needs and aspirations of its customers. A strong positioning strategy shapes the brand’s identity, supporting its place in the market and creating a meaningful emotional connection with its audience.

For example, a company like Green Clean might position itself as “the eco-friendly cleaning solution prioritizing family health and environmental impact,” highlighting its unique benefits and commitment to sustainability.

Introduction

The Positioning sub-dimension is an essential element of the Brand category in the Marketing Canvas. It establishes how a brand is perceived compared to competitors, how it fulfills customer expectations, and the unique values it communicates. Positioning is more than a slogan or tagline; it’s an overall strategy that guides a brand’s communications, customer experience, and market identity.

A well-defined positioning strategy helps a brand build loyalty, stay relevant, and stand out in a crowded marketplace.

What is positioning?

Positioning represents the perception a brand creates in the minds of its target audience. It reflects what makes the brand unique and why customers should choose it over competitors. Successful positioning resonates with customers by emphasizing specific benefits and values that align with their needs and aspirations.

For instance, Green Clean’s positioning might emphasize its commitment to “safe and sustainable cleaning solutions,” appealing to customers who prioritize health and environmental responsibility. By clearly conveying its unique benefits, Green Clean establishes a distinct identity within the cleaning products market.

Positioning: an in-depth perspective

Positioning goes beyond words; it shapes a brand’s identity and influences how customers experience and remember it. A strong positioning strategy aligns with the brand’s core mission, resonates with its target audience, and clearly differentiates it from competitors.

For example:

• Differentiation: Green Clean’s positioning emphasizes its eco-friendly values, setting it apart from traditional cleaning brands.

• Relevance: By aligning with customer priorities like health and sustainability, Green Clean’s positioning appeals directly to its target audience, strengthening loyalty and trust.

When positioning is effectively implemented, customers can easily understand and identify with the brand’s unique purpose and value.

Positioning Types: Leader, Challenger, Disruptor

The 'Positioning' in the Marketing Canvas proposes three potential roles: Leader, Challenger or Follower, and Game Changer or Disruptor.

1. Leader Brand: This is the choice of mass consumers, often at the risk of losing early brand enthusiasts. These brands enjoy substantial mindshare and market share. They represent the category and dominate the space. For example, in the clean energy sector, a leader might be a company like NextEra Energy, known for its extensive wind and solar power production.

2. Challenger or Follower Brand: These brands turn leaders' strengths into their weaknesses. Recognized as viable alternatives to Leader brands, Challengers often leverage differentiation or provide cost-effective solutions. In the context of green energy, a challenger brand could be a new renewable energy startup offering innovative, localized energy solutions that large-scale leaders cannot provide.

3. Game Changer or Disruptor Brand: Disruptor brands find a 'Blue Ocean' market space for themselves, using a unique product, distribution channel, target market, or price point. For example, a clean energy disruptor might be a brand that creates a new technology for harnessing renewable energy, redefining the industry norms.

Translating positioning into action

Positioning is only effective when consistently applied across all aspects of a brand, from marketing and customer service to product development. Ensuring that all brand elements reflect its positioning strengthens its identity and reinforces customer expectations.

Questions to consider:

• How does your brand’s positioning clearly differentiate it from competitors?

• What unique value does your positioning highlight for customers?

• Does your positioning align with customer values and long-term expectations?

• Are you consistently reinforcing your positioning across all brand touchpoints?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Purpose concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have a well defined and clearly formulated brand positioning.

2. Your brand positioning is very relevant in the company's current and future context, addressing all the influencing trends.

3. Your brand positioning is attainable taking into account resources and limitations.

4. Your brand positioning is aligned with your company culture and capabilities.

5. Every aspect of your positioning is in line with the concept of sustainability

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Brand - Positioning

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores suggest that you disagree or strongly disagree with the statements, indicating a lack of clarity, relevance, or alignment in your brand’s positioning. This can result in a weak brand identity, limited customer loyalty, and minimal differentiation from competitors.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or incomplete understanding of your brand’s positioning. While some positioning elements may be present, they lack cohesiveness or fail to fully resonate with the target audience. Further refinement and alignment are necessary to strengthen the positioning.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate that you agree or strongly agree with the statements, suggesting a clear, well-defined positioning that aligns with customer expectations, differentiates the brand, and consistently communicates its unique value. This strengthens customer loyalty and brand perception.

Case Study: Green Clean’s positioning

• Misaligned Understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks a clear, distinct positioning strategy, failing to differentiate itself from other cleaning brands. Without focused positioning, customers see Green Clean as generic and have little reason to choose it over competitors, leading to a diluted brand identity.

• Surface Understanding (0): Green Clean has a general positioning related to eco-friendliness but does not fully leverage it to create a distinct identity. Although it acknowledges the importance of sustainability, the positioning is vague or inconsistently communicated, which limits customer engagement and weakens brand perception.

• Deep Understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean has a strong, clearly defined positioning centered on safe and sustainable cleaning solutions. This positioning is consistently reflected across all marketing, customer interactions, and product offerings. By emphasizing health and environmental responsibility, Green Clean builds a unique identity that resonates with eco-conscious customers, distinguishing it from conventional brands.

Conclusion

Positioning is essential for defining a brand’s unique place in the market and ensuring it resonates with the target audience. A well-defined and consistently communicated positioning strategy enables brands to stand out, build loyalty, and create emotional connections. By defining and reinforcing its unique value, a brand can establish a strong, memorable identity in the minds of its customers.

Sources

1. DKY, 2016, https://dkyinc.com/2016/06/brand-strategy-leader-vs-challenger

2. Beloved Brands, https://beloved-brands.com/2018/04/11/disruptor-challenger/

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas - Purpose

Last update: 11/11/2024

Purpose drives firms to find and create new forms of value (Jim Steingel)

In a nutshell

The Purpose sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas delves into the core reason for a brand’s existence, beyond profit-making. A clear, meaningful purpose resonates with customers on a deeper level, guiding all aspects of the brand’s identity and actions. Purpose defines the why behind the brand, aligning its actions with values and goals that inspire both internal teams and customers.

For example, Green Clean's purpose might be “to promote healthier living through sustainable cleaning practices,” emphasizing not only clean homes but also environmental stewardship and well-being. This purpose aligns with customer values, driving trust and loyalty.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Purpose sub-dimension is foundational within the Brand category of the Marketing Canvas. It helps define the brand's core mission and guiding values, which shape everything from product offerings to customer engagement. A clear purpose enables a brand to stand out, offering not just products or services, but also a vision that inspires loyalty and advocacy.

Unlike functional goals, which focus on meeting specific customer needs, Purpose focuses on the brand’s larger role in the world and its impact on society and the environment.

What is purpose?

Purpose represents the core mission and values that drive a brand's existence. It goes beyond selling products and seeks to make a positive difference, whether through societal, environmental, or personal impact. A well-defined purpose strengthens the brand’s identity, uniting its internal team and resonating with customers who share the same values.

For example, Green Clean’s purpose might focus on environmental preservation, educating customers on sustainable practices, and providing safe, eco-friendly products. This purpose provides a shared goal that connects the brand with its customers and the broader community.

Purpose: an in-depth perspective

In today’s world, consumers are drawn to brands with a clear and compelling purpose beyond just making a profit. PURPOSE is about defining your brand’s reason for being and its contribution to the world—it goes beyond profit, which is simply a result. A clear PURPOSE allows you to articulate why you are in business.

Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle [1] illustrates that great leaders and brands always start with the WHY. Similarly, having a clear PURPOSE enables you to build a purpose-driven brand that inspires loyalty and connects with customers on a deeper level.

For example, Patagonia’s purpose is to help save the planet by offering high-quality outdoor clothing that is environmentally sustainable.

Patagonia Purpose

http://www.ted.com Simon Sinek presents a simple but powerful model for how leaders inspire action, starting with a golden circle and the question "Why?" His examples include Apple, Martin Luther King, and the Wright brothers -- and as a counterpoint Tivo, which (until a recent court victory that tripled its stock price) appeared to be struggling.

Jim Stengel [2], a businessman, author, and professor, proposes that having a purpose means that you have clearly identified and formulated a brand ideal for your activity that is the higher benefit your brand gives to the people. This can include eliciting joy, enabling connection, inspiring exploration, evoking pride, and impacting society broadly. Stengel argues that personal inspiration can come from the most trying times, as he shares the story of his brother Bob, a beloved physician known for his compassion and dedication towards his patients.

• Eliciting Joy: Activating experiences of happiness, wonder, and limitless possibility

• Enabling Connection: Enhancing the ability of people to connect with each other and the world in meaningful ways

• Inspiring Exploration: Helping people explore new horizons and new experiences

• Evoking Pride: Giving people increased confidence, strength, security, and vitality

• Impacting Society: Affecting society broadly, from challenging the status quo to redefining categories

Businessman, author and professor Jim Stengel believes personal inspiration can come in the most trying times. In this striking talk, he shares the story of his brother Bob, a beloved physician known for his compassion and dedication towards his patients.

Your brand’s reason for being and contribution to the world. It goes beyond profit because that is a result.

In today's crowded marketplace, having a clear purpose can help your brand stand out from the competition. By identifying a purpose that resonates with your target audience, you can differentiate your brand and build a strong, loyal following. This can help you to outperform your competitors, as customers are increasingly looking for brands that align with their values and beliefs.

According to a survey conducted by Deloitte in 2014 [3], organizations having a strong sense of purpose are much more optimistic about their ability to stay ahead of industry disruptions and to outperform their competition. These organizations understand that a clear PURPOSE is a key driver of business success.

Best practices of purpose-driven companies

1. Sustainability: Consumers are increasingly demanding that companies take responsibility for their environmental impact. Purpose-driven brands can incorporate sustainable practices into their operations and communicate their efforts to their audience.

2. Social responsibility: Purpose-driven brands can also make a positive impact on society by supporting social causes, such as poverty alleviation, education, and healthcare. Consumers are more likely to support brands that demonstrate a commitment to social responsibility.

3. Ethical branding: Purpose-driven brands should ensure that their messaging and practices align with ethical values. This can include using fair labor practices, avoiding exploitative marketing tactics, and being transparent about their operations.

4. Authenticity: Consumers can easily detect when brands are engaging in purpose-driven marketing for the sake of profit. Purpose-driven marketing must be authentic and align with the brand's values and practices.

5. Employee engagement: Purpose-driven marketing can also be used to engage employees and build a positive company culture. Companies that prioritize their employees' well-being and work to make a positive impact on society can improve employee satisfaction and retention.

6. Storytelling: Purpose-driven marketing can be more effective when brands use storytelling to communicate their values and mission. Stories can create an emotional connection with the audience and help to communicate the brand's purpose in a compelling way.

Some examples

• TOMS Shoes: TOMS Shoes is a great example of a purpose-driven brand. Their purpose is to improve lives by providing shoes, sight, water, and other basic needs to people in need. For every pair of shoes purchased, TOMS donates a pair to a child in need. This purpose has driven their marketing strategy, as they have built a loyal customer base who are inspired by their mission and values.

• Ben & Jerry's: Another great example of a purpose-driven brand is Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Their purpose is to make the world a better place, through their commitment to social justice, environmental sustainability, and economic equality. This purpose has driven their marketing strategy, as they have built a loyal customer base who are passionate about their values and mission.

Translating purpose into action

Defining purpose is only the first step; the next is integrating it into every aspect of the brand. From marketing strategies to product design, purpose should guide decisions to create a brand experience that consistently reflects its mission.

Questions to consider:

• How is your purpose clearly formulated and communicated?

• Is your purpose aligned with current and future trends?

• How does your purpose differentiate you from competitors?

• Does your purpose inspire stakeholders and instill belief?

• Is sustainability a core element of your purpose?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Purpose concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have a well defined and clearly formulated purpose.

2. Your purpose is very relevant in the company's current and future context, addressing all the influencing trends..

3. Your purpose stands out from direct and indirect competitors.

4. Your main stakeholders are inspired by your purpose, they believe it.

5. Your company’s purpose is explicitly centered around sustainability.

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Brand - Purpose

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate that you disagree or strongly disagree with the statements, suggesting that your purpose lacks clarity, relevance, or inspiration. This may result in weak brand identity, lack of stakeholder buy-in, and limited differentiation from competitors.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or a basic understanding of the brand’s purpose. While purpose may exist, it lacks the depth and alignment needed to inspire stakeholders or differentiate the brand. Further clarity and relevance are needed to make purpose a central part of the brand’s identity.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate that you agree or strongly agree with the statements, meaning your brand’s purpose is well-defined, relevant to market trends, and able to inspire stakeholders. A strong purpose differentiates the brand and creates deeper customer and stakeholder connections, supporting long-term brand growth.

Case study: Green Clean’s purpose

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks a clear purpose, focusing solely on the functional benefits of cleaning products without a broader mission. This lack of purpose results in minimal differentiation and fails to inspire customers or stakeholders who seek brands with clear environmental or societal commitments.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean has a general purpose related to eco-friendly cleaning but lacks the clarity or differentiation to set it apart. Although it recognizes the importance of sustainability, the purpose is not fully integrated or consistently communicated, limiting its impact on customer loyalty and brand identity.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean has a well-defined, relevant purpose centered on sustainable and healthy living. This purpose is clearly communicated across all customer and stakeholder interactions, and the brand’s commitment to environmental responsibility differentiates it from competitors. Green Clean’s purpose inspires trust, loyalty, and advocacy among customers and stakeholders who share similar values.

Conclusion

A strong, clearly defined brand purpose serves as the foundation for building lasting relationships with customers and inspiring internal alignment. By understanding and communicating a meaningful purpose, brands can go beyond transactional relationships, creating a community of loyal customers and committed team members. Integrating purpose into every aspect of the brand ensures that it resonates deeply with both employees and customers, fostering long-term engagement and advocacy.

Sources

1. Simon Sinek, Start with WHY, https://simonsinek.com

2. Jim Steingel, Purpose, https://www.jimstengel.com/purpose/

3. Deloitte, 2014, Culture of Purpose (pdf), https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/about-deloitte/us-leadership-2014-core-beliefs-culture-survey-040414.pdf

4. Deloitte, 2022, Unleashing Purpose Across Industries (pdf) https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/consulting/us-final-unleashing-purpose-across-industries.pdf

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas - Engagement

Last update: 30/10/2024

In a nutshell

Engagement sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on how effectively a business can capture and sustain the interest of its customers. Engagement goes beyond simply attracting attention; it requires creating lasting connections that drive active participation, loyalty, and advocacy. By understanding the factors that influence engagement, companies can design marketing strategies that foster meaningful interactions with their audience.

For example, an eco-friendly cleaning brand like Green Clean might engage customers by sharing content on sustainable living, offering loyalty rewards, or creating a community around environmental responsibility. This level of engagement helps deepen customer relationships and build a strong brand community.

Introduction

Engagement sub-dimension, within the Customer category of the Marketing Canvas, focuses on building and maintaining a connection with customers that drives ongoing interest and involvement. This connection is based on a combination of communication, value delivery, and emotional resonance, which are key to keeping customers engaged over the long term.

While Pains and Gains look at addressing customer frustrations and needs, Engagement emphasizes the importance of continuous, active interaction, aiming to build loyalty and foster a community around the brand.

In the marketing canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is “Engagement”, which falls under the CUSTOMER category.

What is engagement?

Engagement represents the emotional and behavioral commitment a customer has with a brand. This commitment might manifest as repeat purchases, sharing positive feedback, participating in brand events, or advocating for the brand. Engaging customers requires understanding their interests, delivering consistent value, and encouraging them to participate in a shared experience with the brand.

For example, Green Clean might engage its eco-conscious customers by:

• Providing resources on reducing household waste.

• Offering loyalty rewards for repeat purchases of eco-friendly products.

• Organizing community events focused on environmental sustainability.

Engagement is essential for building a brand community and transforming customers into advocates.

Engagement: an in-depth perspective

Engagement is about maintaining a two-way interaction between a brand and its customers. It requires businesses to understand what motivates their customers to stay connected and to respond proactively to their interests and feedback.

For example:

• Active Engagement: A customer who frequently interacts with Green Clean’s social media content or attends brand-hosted events feels a personal connection with the company’s mission.

• Passive Engagement: A customer may use Green Clean’s products without actively engaging with the brand’s content or events. Converting passive engagement into active participation can enhance loyalty and increase brand advocacy.

Understanding the depth and type of customer engagement helps businesses tailor their approaches to meet the specific preferences of their audience.

Tools for engagement: the NPS methodology

The NPS methodology segments customers into three groups based on their level of engagement: Promoters, Passives, and Detractors. Promoters are champions of your brand who will actively recommend your products or services. Detractors, on the other hand, may express dissatisfaction and may discourage others from interacting with your company. Passives fall in-between; they are neither actively promoting nor detracting from your brand.

The usefulness of NPS doesn't stop at categorizing customers. When you compare your NPS score with your competitors', you can gain valuable insights into your brand's standing in the market. This comparison can be achieved through an NPS study of your competitor's customer base or the broader market.

Translating engagement into action

To foster deep and lasting engagement, businesses should prioritize consistent, value-driven interactions that resonate with customer interests. Encouraging feedback, providing valuable resources, and fostering a sense of community can transform passive customers into loyal, actively engaged brand advocates.

Questions to consider:

• How do your customers prefer to engage with your brand?

• What types of content or interactions resonate most with your audience?

• How can you create opportunities for customers to share their experiences and become advocates?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Engagement concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have the right tools & systems at your disposal for measuring the engagement of your customer? e.g. NPS alike tools

2. The level of detractors amongst your customers is helping you achieve your goals.

3. The level of promoters amongst your customers is helping you achieve your goals.

4. You understand the role of sustainability in customer engagement and have aligned your strategies accordingly.

Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Engagement by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Engagement & Sustainability by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Suggest significant gaps in measuring and managing engagement. Detractors may be impacting your goals negatively, and promoters may not be effectively leveraged. Engagement strategies may lack alignment with sustainability principles.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects a functional but under-optimized engagement strategy. While tools and systems may exist, their use may not be systematic or effective, limiting overall impact.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Indicate a strong engagement strategy. Detractors are addressed effectively, promoters are empowered, and engagement efforts align with sustainability, driving loyalty and advocacy.

Case study: Green Clean’s Engagement strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks the tools to measure engagement and struggles to address customer dissatisfaction. Detractors outnumber promoters, harming the brand’s reputation, while sustainability efforts are absent from its engagement strategy.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean uses basic tools like surveys but lacks a cohesive approach to managing detractors and empowering promoters. Sustainability is a peripheral concern, limiting its appeal to eco-conscious customers.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean leverages NPS and behavioral data to track engagement effectively. It proactively resolves detractor concerns, encourages promoters to share positive reviews, and integrates sustainability into its messaging, fostering strong customer relationships.

Conclusion

The Engagement sub-dimension highlights the importance of measuring and optimizing customer interactions to build loyalty, encourage advocacy, and align with sustainability. A thoughtful engagement strategy ensures that detractors are addressed, promoters are empowered, and the brand remains relevant in an eco-conscious market.

Sources

1. Harvard Business Review, 2003, https://hbr.org/2003/12/the-one-number-you-need-to-grow

2. Moving Beyond NPS, Medium, https://link.medium.com/OHO1Mz6IGY

3. Hubspot, The ultimate guide to your Net Promoter Score (NPS)

---

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas - Pains and Gains

Last update: 23/10/2024

The final edits focus on reviewing the scoring system and refining the Green Clean example.

In a nutshell

The Pains and Gains sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on identifying the constraints (pains) that block your customers from solving their problems and the delights (gains) that you can provide by addressing these constraints. By thoroughly understanding the pain points and potential gains, businesses can deliver solutions that resonate with customer needs and create a more positive overall experience.

For example, Green Clean customers may experience pain from the use of harmful cleaning chemicals and the difficulty of finding eco-friendly options, but their gain would be the peace of mind that comes from knowing their home is clean and safe for both their family and the environment.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is PAINS & GAINS, which falls under the CUSTOMER meta-dimension.

Introduction

The Pains and Gains sub-dimension is part of the Customer category in the Marketing Canvas. It focuses on understanding the constraints or barriers customers face when trying to accomplish their goals and the delights or positive outcomes they seek from resolving these pains. Identifying these elements helps businesses craft offerings that directly target customer frustrations while delivering satisfying results.

What is « pains & gains » ?

Pains are the blockers or frustrations that customers encounter when trying to achieve their goals. These pains can range from emotional concerns to practical obstacles that prevent progress.

Gains, on the other hand, represent the positive outcomes customers wish to achieve, including functional results (like efficiency or ease) and emotional or societal rewards (like feeling aligned with a cause or living up to their values).

For example, Green Clean customers may experience the following:

• Pains: Concerns over the health risks of traditional cleaning products, or the frustration of spending too much time cleaning.

• Gains: The peace of mind that comes from using eco-friendly products, or the satisfaction of contributing to a healthier environment.

Tools for Identifying Pains & Gains

Identifying your customer's Pains & Gains isn't a guessing game. Several tools and techniques can help you uncover these insights:

1. Customer Interviews & Surveys: Directly asking your customers about their experiences, frustrations, and delights related to your product or service is a simple yet effective way to identify Pains & Gains.

2. Focus Groups: This research method allows for an in-depth understanding of customer's perspectives. Hearing customers discuss their experiences can reveal Pains & Gains you might not have considered.

3. Customer Journey Mapping: This tool visualizes the process a customer goes through to achieve their JTBD, helping you identify potential Pains & Gains at each step.

4. Social Media Listening: Monitoring social media conversations about your brand or industry can yield insights into common complaints (Pains) and praises (Gains).

5. Feedback Analysis: Regularly review feedback from support tickets, product reviews, or any other customer touchpoint. This feedback often directly highlights Pains & Gains.

Let’s consider our example of Green Clean. Through a customer survey, Green Clean discovers that many customers are frustrated by the lack of clear instructions on how to responsibly dispose of the product packaging (a Pain). On the other hand, they find that customers appreciate the fresh, natural scent of their products (a Gain).

Translating Pains & Gains into Action

Addressing the pains that prevent customers from achieving their goals while also providing the gains they desire requires a comprehensive approach. Empathize with your customers’ experiences and remove the barriers standing in their way while ensuring your solutions offer clear benefits.

Questions to consider:

• What constraints block your customers from solving their problems?

• What annoys your customers during their interaction with your product or service?

• What could delight your customers and turn their experience into something positive?

• How can you measure your customers' engagement with sustainability goals?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Pains and Gains concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have clearly identified constraints blocking your customer from solving their problem and feel comfortable addressing them.

2. You have clearly identified factors that annoy your customer during the job map and feel comfortable addressing them.

3. You have clearly identified factors that could delight your customer during the job map and feel comfortable addressing them.

4. Your identification method of factors that annoys or could delight your customers does explicitly assess sustainability. (NEW)

View fullsize

Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Pains and Gains

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): A negative score suggests a disconnection in your understanding of the constraints or annoyances your customers face. This indicates a lack of insight into the barriers blocking their progress or the gains they seek, which may lead to ineffective solutions.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or a basic awareness of your customers' pains and gains. While you may recognize that constraints and delights exist, you are not fully addressing them. More research is needed to develop a complete understanding.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate a clear and thorough understanding of your customers' constraints and delights. You are confident in identifying and addressing the key pain points and gains, and you have the tools in place to measure customer engagement, especially in areas like sustainability.

Case study: Green Clean’s pains and gains

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean fails to recognize the core constraints or frustrations their customers experience, such as concerns over the environmental impact of cleaning products. As a result, their services fall short of addressing the fundamental needs of their eco-conscious customers.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean has a partial understanding of customer pain points. While they acknowledge that customers want safer products, they do not fully grasp the extent of the annoyance or frustration customers feel about transparency in ingredients or sustainability claims. This limits their ability to fully delight their customers.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean deeply understands both the constraints their customers face and the gains they seek. They recognize that their customers are concerned about using harmful chemicals and value transparency, eco-friendliness, and health. By addressing these constraints and providing clear benefits like peace of mind and environmental contribution, Green Clean fosters a loyal customer base aligned with their values.

Conclusion

Identifying and addressing the pains and gains of your customers is essential for delivering products and services that resonate with them on a deeper level. By focusing on removing the constraints that block progress and delivering meaningful delights, you can create long-lasting customer relationships and positive outcomes that extend beyond functional benefits.

Source

1. Value Proposition Canvas by Strategyzer, https://www.strategyzer.com/canvas/value-proposition-canvas

2. Outcome-Driven Innovation, Medium, https://jobs-to-be-done.com/outcome-driven-innovation-odi-is-jobs-to-be-done-theory-in-practice-2944c6ebc40e

---

More on the Marketing Canvas

Hack: Marketing Canvas and Triple Bottom Line

As Marketers, we are not excused for being complaisant with the world around us. It should have been always the case but today the situation is so critical that we need to take action.

REVISIT STEP 2 - SET YOUR GOAL

The original approach at Step 2 was profit oriented. Indeed, during this step, we recommend to set a financial goal (revenue) before starting step 3 which is the assessment.

The triple bottom line approach (wikipedia) as proposed by John Elkington consists of extending the bottom line concept with sustainable elements. In addition to Profit, Elkington proposed to add Planet and People. The Marketing Canvas Method can be easily hacked for integrating the Triple Bottom Line concept by simply changing the way Goals are set during step 2.

HOW?

At Step 2, you can define goal for Profit (original approach) but also goal for Planet and People. It is not fully clear for me whether a standard framework exists with clear KPIs linking Marketing Strategy and Planet/People elements. You can chose the goals that would specifically work for you when discussing Planet and People topics. Based on a very quick desk research, I identified few topics that could be used for defining objectives for Planet and People. It would be interesting to have your point of views and make this list more robust. Don’t hesitate to comment this post.

LIST OF GOALS FOR PEOPLE AND PLANET

• Energy Management: How could you reduce your energy consumption and use more renewable energy when executing your marketing strategy? Goal?

• Resource Management: How could you make use of resources for your marketing strategy in such a way that our next generation or in future there are no effects on the resource? Goal?

• Waste Management: How could you collect, transport, process or dispose of, manage and monitor various waste materials generated by your marketing strategy? Goal?

• Employee Welfare: How could you reinforce employee welfare when executing your marketing strategy? Goal?

• Fair Trade: How could you reinforce fairness in your marketing strategy through dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade? Goal?

• Cause Marketing: How can you better the society while executing your marketing strategy? Goal?

PROCESS

When you have defined these goals (e.g. CO2), you can apply the Marketing Canvas Method for assessing your current situation (STEP 3). Let’s take 2 examples from the 24 dimensions.:

• JOB TO BE DONE (CUSTOMERS): Is the knowledge of your customers’ job to be done helping you from achieving your goals?

• FEATURES (VALUE PROPOSITION): Are the features of your value proposition helping you achieve your goals?

By asking these questions, you have interesting discussions about your current ability to achieve these goals (like CO2) or not (Brake or Accelerator).

NEW TEMPLATE

Marketing Canvas Method and Triple Bottom Line

6 simple principles for your marketing strategy

6 simple principles that could help you when working on your Marketing Strategy

1. Goal: You should always start with a quantitative goal

2. Target: Who is your ideal buyer/user/persona you will be targeting with your action?

3. Action: Define the action you should do to for achieving your goal with your target

4. Execution & measure: Build, launch and measure your action.

5. Corrective action: fix the original action based on what you have learned from the execution.

6. Amplification (scaling): when you have fixed the action, you can scale it (growth hacking philosophy) and reach your goal.

Some companies are trying to be perfect before moving to step 4. While we should always do our best at step 1-3, I believe the most important are 4-6. Time is key and if you are agile, work in sprint and define a time limit for steps 1-3.

Marketing Strategy for Millennials from Marketing Cloud

Interesting Infographic from Marketing Cloud proposing 5 steps to creating your Marketing Strategy for Millennials. As you might have noticed, I am advocating the use of the Marketing Canvas for designing your Marketing Strategy. Let's check whether these steps fit into the process?

1. Step 1 is definitely a no-brainer. Data and customer knowledge will help you to be very specific when discussing canvas. Dimensions like Humans (if you want to uncover key insights and customer preferences), Journey (if you want to design great customer experience), Value proposition (if you want to design the most relevant offers) and conversation (if you want to be at the right place, right time with the right subject) will help you.
2. Step 2 is clearly identified in the canvas: Channel (in Journey), Content & Stories (Conversation), Media (Shared and Earned) and finally the global topic of conversations.
3. Step 3 is also covered in Engagement (word of mouth), Influencers (Conversations), Proofs (Value Proposition) and Moment of Truth (Journey)
4. Step 4 mentions that technology is key for millennials. It is true and it will influence preferred Channels (Journey), Media (Conversation) and Features (Value Proposition) but don't forget that Job To Be Done is why they engage with you and what problem they are trying to solve.
5. Step 5 is all about your Purpose (Brand) and  Listening (conversation). I am not a fan about education as I believe we don't educate customers but we engage them.

The conclusion is that the Marketing Canvas fits perfectly with these steps and can be applied for Millennials. Finally, I would like to mention that in the Budget dimensions, they are 2 important topics (capabilities and people) where you should invest for having the required tools and skills in your company if you want to do all of this.

More on Marketing Cloud: https://www.salesforce.com/products/marketing-cloud/best-practices/millenial-marketing-strategy/

Marketing Canvas, some tips about the process

Canvas works really well if:

1. Start with a clear ambition, S.M.A.R.T. and linked with the finance. One of the usual mistake when doing a marketing strategy exercise is to not properly link the marketing actions with the financial consequences. In the Marketing Canvas exercise, we genuinely start from the financial ambition for addressing this issue. This ambition is about growth and thus the canvas is about growth hacking your marketing strategy.
2. Start with a clear persona representing a customer cluster sharing the same Job To Be Done (problem to be solved by your offer). It could happen that you can't achieve your ambition with your current persona/segment (in classical strategy, it corresponds to a cash cow or a future dog). If it is the case you should consider another segment with another job to be done.
3. Assess the current situation of your marketing mix by asking the 28 questions as defined in the canvas. Define clearly if each dimension TODAY is helping you to achieve your ambition (it is an accelerator) or is not (then we define this dimension as a brake). Do this exercise in team as it will create a shared understanding of the situation and support your answers with facts. 
4. Backward thinking is a very powerful way of finding solutions to any problem. In this process, try to visualise/imagine how dimension(s) defined as BRAKES would look like if they would help you with your ambition. What is different? Could you describe it? Does it really help with your ambition? If yes, then you have one idea of potential solutions. Find as many ideas as possible.
5. Having generated plenty of ideas (some could even be yellow ideas aka impossible ideas), you should prioritise it in order to finalise your preferred vision of this future where your ambition is achieved. What are the actions you should do to transform this future into a reality: Start Doing, Stop Doing, Do More, Do Less, Simplify, Magnify? Brainstorm as a team and list all actions.

6. You now have identified all actions for building your future but you have to organise it into a comprehensive and feasible roadmap. Some actions are low hanging fruits while others require more time and effort. One way to do this is to use these 2 criteria: contribution to the ambition and effort. Congratulations, you now have a roadmap and a marketing strategy.

New Business Models in a Digital Future

In a world strongly influenced by new technologies, new business models are emerging for brands. We usually defined this new world as a digital world but what digital really means? In this presentation, I explore the impact of digital and propose some recommandations that could help defining new ways of creating and capturing value.

Questions you should ask with the Marketing Canvas

Below you will find a list of questions that will help you during the assessment of your marketing strategy with the Marketing Canvas. How does it work? You take the Canvas and go through all dimensions (after having defined your ambition - see article) asking all questions. You can have 2 potential answers for each question:

1. I don't know or No then it is playing against your ambition. It is a Brake and the colour is RED. This is something you should improve or change if you want to achieve your ambition.
2. Yes then it is playing in favour of your ambition. It is an Accelerator and the colour is GREEN. This is something you can leverage for achieving your ambition.

Customer Life Time Value

1. Is your MARKET growing? The market situation plays an important role when you are trying to grow. A saturated market will play against you while a new and growing market will play for you. Understanding this will help you when building your marketing strategy.
2. Is it easy and/or cheap to attract new USER ? Getting new customers has a price and could take time. If your customer acquisition is cheap and easy it will most probably play for you while if it takes time and/or it is expensive it will play against you when building your marketing strategy.
3. Are you maximizing the ARPU of your user? ARPU stands for Average Revenue Per User. It is a combination of transactions (how frequent people buy products/services) and prices (how much they pay when they buy something). If you believe you are maximizing the ARPU of your users, it will play for you. If not (or worst if it will decrease), it will play against you.
4. Is it easy to extend the LIFETIME (reduce churn) of your user? Keeping your users will generally play an important role in your financials. The more users you have, the more revenues are at stake. If keeping your users is expensive and difficult, it will play against you. If it is easy and/or cheap, it will play for you. 

Human

1. Is your current understanding of the JOB TO BE DONE of your users helping you to achieve your ambition? Knowing the Job To Be Done of your future and existing users is fundamental. This might help you to identify the untapped area or new insights that you could leverage. Could you leverage it for your ambition? If yes, it means that you can create value by addressing the job to be done.
2. Is your current understanding of the ASPIRATIONS of your users helping you to achieve your ambition? Knowing the aspirations of your future and existing users will help you to offer more than products or services and contribute to their lives. Do you know them? Can you leverage it?
3. Is your current understanding of the PAINS & GAINS of your users helping you to achieve your ambition? Getting the Job The Done has some pains (negative emotions) but also gains (positive emotions). If you have identified them and you are capable to leverage it, it will play for you. Otherwise, it will play against you.
4. Is the ENGAGEMENT of your users helping you to achieve your ambition? Knowing how much your users are engaged (NPS could help you) and being able to leverage it will certainly play in your favor. 

Brand

1. Is the PURPOSE of your Brand helping you to achieve your ambition? Having a purpose is probably the most important asset for your long-term business. Great companies are crystal clear about why they exist! Do you know your purpose? Is it robust enough and clear enough? Can you leverage it further for creating value? Not knowing or having a weak purpose will certainly play against your ambition. A strong purpose will help you when looking for extra value!
2. Is the POSITIONING of your Brand helping you to achieve your ambition? How to address your category will help you make choices and clarify how to stand out from the competition. Are you a leader (setting the standards), are you a challenger (playing the leader game but challenging it) or are you a game changer (redefining the game)? Can you leverage your positioning further (be more leader, challenger or game changer)? Not knowing this or answering no means that you need to revisit your current positioning for creating value.
3. Are the VALUES of your Brand helping you to achieve your ambition? Your values are your translation of your purpose into key behaviors. Most of the commercial activities are delivered through behaviors (from people or from systems). Do you know your values? Are they helping you for creating more value?
4. Is the IDENTITY of your Brand helping you to achieve your ambition? Your identity is how you translate your purpose into an image. Not having a clear identity or having an identity that couldn't be leveraged will block you when trying to create more value. 

Value Proposition

1. Are the FEATURES of your Value Proposition helping you to achieve your ambition?  Do you address the right functional features? are they aligned with your humans? Can you answer this question? Can you become more unique and different from the competitions? Not knowing if your features (functional characteristics of your products and services) could help you to create more value or answering no means that it will not help you when you will look for extra value.
2. Are the EMOTIONS of your Value Proposition helping you to achieve your ambition? Today, differentiation comes through emotions and not functional features. Do you know if you deliver the right emotional features? Can you leverage more the emotional dimensions in your value proposition for creating value? Answering yes means that you can create extra value through the emotional dimension of your value proposition.
3. Are the PRICES of your Value Proposition helping you to achieve your ambition? Your pricing can be a strong brake for creating extra value or a strong enabler. Do you know where your current pricing is creating value? Can you leverage it further? Being able to leverage your pricing for creating new value is a key asset for your future.
4. Are the PROOFS of your Value Proposition helping you to achieve your ambition? Do you have enough evidence that helps people understanding the value you create with your value proposition? Can you leverage your value proposition with more or better proofs?

Journey

1. Are the MOMENTS of your user journey helping you to achieve your ambition? Moments are the different steps a user is going through when he is trying to solve his problem. When using Mental Models, we can identify all key moments a user is going through and try to formulate the best brand experience possible. Do you know all moments of your users? Can you capture more value through these moments?
2. Is the EXPERIENCE of your user's journey helping you to achieve your ambition? As a Brand, you need to formulate a clear and articulated answer at each moment. These answers should reflect customer identity, satisfy the objectives and meet expectation. Do you have orchestrated answer (or is it random)? Can you capture more value through the experience of your user's journey?
3. Are the CHANNELS of your user journey helping you to achieve your ambition? The number of channels that can be used for transacting with a brand is growing. And each user is free to use channel(s) of his choice. Do you have an answer for all potential channels? Do you orchestrate these channels? Can you capture more value through these channels?
4. Are the MOMENTS OF TRUTH of your user journey helping you to achieve your ambition? Providing an orchestrated experience is already a great achievement. Next step is to transform some moments into Moments of Truth (also referred as like moments or wow moments). Do you know if you offer Moments of Truth? Can you capture more value through these moments of truth?

Conversation

1. Is the way you are currently LISTENING TO your users helping you to achieve your ambition? How can you have great conversations with your users if you don't listen to their voices? Do you systematically capture the voice of your users? Do you capture more value by listening to your users?
2. Are your CONTENT & STORIES for your users helping you to achieve your ambition? Monologues are no more working for engaging users with your brand. Should you have contents and stories? Do you know if you have content & stories? Do you capture as much as you can value through content & stories?
3. Is the current use of your MEDIA helping you to achieve your ambition? You can place your content & stories through different media: Paid, Owned, Earned or Shared? Do you know which media you are using? Do you capture as much as you can value through your media?
4. Are your INFLUENCERS helping you to achieve your ambition? People are trusting people. Do you know if you are using influencers? Do you capture as much as you can value through influencers?

Budget

1. Is your budget for Marketing FEES helping you to achieve your ambition? If you want to propagate your content, stories, and offers, you should balance your media investment between Owned, Paid, Earned and Shared. Have you well balanced your investments amongst these media? Is it enough for your ambition (have you compared this investment with your competitors) ?
2. Is your budget for Marketing PEOPLE (internal & external) helping you to achieve your ambition? To make things happening, you need a team (either insourced or outsourced). Do you have enough people for achieving your ambition?
3. Is your budget for Marketing KNOWLEDGE helping you to achieve your ambition? It is important to collect systematically enough knowledge through research, training, bootcamp or even consulting projects for achieving your target. Do you have properly invest in these topics for your ambition.
4. Is your budget for Marketing CAPABILITIES helping you to achieve your ambition? More and more marketers have a leading role when defining the technical roadmap of the company because of the impact on the customers (web site, mobile applications, automation, CRM and lead generation software, database, ...) Do you have invested enough in these topics for your ambition?

Future of Marketing is Love (by Mark Schaefer)

Future of Marketing Is Love

Interesting article from Mark Schaefer on Marketing and Love.

In a world of Infinite Segmentation where Brand building is out of control, all you need is love. People want to be acknowledged … and loved … more than anything. The vast technological opportunities at our doorstep are the way we can scale love.

The Marketing Canvas could help you navigating in this hyper-empowered consumer world! Don't know the canvas, discover it here.