Decisions to Make Before a Positioning Exercise

Jan 22, 2026

Clear decisions to make before starting a positioning exercise are unpacked in short, practical segments. The conversation covers when to keep positioning loose for unlaunched products, how to choose whether to position a product, platform, or suite, and why you must pick the right audience—customers or investors. It also highlights aligning company and product positioning and finding the champion persona.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Positioning Is A Thesis Before Launch

Unlaunched products require a positioning thesis, not final positioning.
April Dunford warns theses are educated guesses until market signals arrive.

ADVICE

Keep Early Positioning Flexible

Keep positioning deliberately loose at launch to see where the market pulls you.
Tighten positioning only after you learn from initial customers and usage.

ADVICE

Do A Positioning Readiness Check

Run a positioning readiness check before starting the exercise and ask: is now the right time?
If the product is unproven or you're entering a new market, build a thesis and sell first, then refine positioning.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

In today’s episode, I dive into the decisions teams need to make before they ever start a positioning exercise. I explain why positioning readiness matters, how unlaunched products lead to positioning theses rather than true positioning, and why clarity around audience, scope, and personas is essential. Also, this episode sets the foundation for a new mini-series tied to the second edition of my book, Obviously Awesome, focusing on what I’ve learned after hundreds of positioning workshops.

You will learn:

(01:34) Why I decided to release a second edition of Obviously Awesome after six years of client feedback.

(04:35) How the positioning methodology has evolved from ten steps to five steps and five components.

(08:38) Why unlaunched products should focus on a "positioning thesis" rather than a final positioning strategy.

(09:58) The benefit of keeping your positioning loose before launch.

(13:00) Why it’s vital to distinguish positioning for customers from positioning for investors.

(15:59) Why single-product companies should treat company and product positioning as the same thing.

(17:51) Strategies for deciding whether to position a lead wedge product, a platform, or a suite of products.

(22:26) How to identify the "champion" persona.

—

Connect with April Dunford and learn about practical positioning that accelerates marketing and sales:

Work with April: https://www.aprildunford.com/contact

April’s newsletter: https://aprildunford.substack.com/

April’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aprildunford/

April’s Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/aprildunford/

April’s Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/aprildunford

April’s TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@positioningshow

—

Mentioned in this episode:

* Obviously Awesome, Second Edition (forthcoming).

—

Get April Dunford’s books and audiobooks:

Obviously Awesome: How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It.

Sales Pitch: How to Craft a Story to Stand Out and Win.

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/49l0ZRY

Amazon Canada: https://amzn.to/4ac9hgt

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3vosDzQ

Apple Books: https://apple.co/3xihSzC

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=%22April%20Dunford%22&c=books

Barnes & Noble: https://www.bn.com/s/%22April%20Dunford%22

Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/contributors/april-dunford

—

The Positioning with April Dunford podcast: Want to make your product stand out in a crowded market? It all starts with great positioning. Using April’s battle-tested methodology, she'll teach you the nitty-gritty of positioning so that you can unlock better marketing and sales performance.