Are you telling your customers your product or service is a “better value” than those other guys? If yes, you need to hear this. 👇

Let’s say you built something strong. The product works. Customers get results.

But somehow, every deal turns into a price conversation.

You know you're worth more. You just can't seem to prove it in the moment.

A few years back, I worked with a tech team who had built something genuinely differentiated. Under the hood, their platform did things competitors couldn't

touch.

But when I asked what made them different, the answer I got back was: "We're a better value."

Better value. That's code for "we cost less." Which is code for "we don't know how to explain why we're worth more."

They weren't a commodity. They just sounded like one.

The result? They kept winning deals, but only when they dropped their price.

Every conversation became a negotiation instead of a decision. And they burned months of momentum trying to grow while leaving margin on the table.

Here's the pattern I see constantly.

Leaders skip the hard work of understanding their competitors.

Not "we know who they are." Not "we've seen their website." I mean really understanding what your competitors do well—from your buyer's perspective.

Most leaders treat competitive analysis like a checkbox. They list the names.

Maybe a feature grid. Then they move on to the fun part: talking about themselves.

But here's what happens when you skip that step.

You end up with differentiation that isn't differentiated. You claim things your competitors also claim. Or worse—you claim things your buyers don't actually care about, because you never asked what else they were considering.

The Blur Effect kicks in. Your value is technically real. But it's strategically invisible.

Here’s how to shift this.

You can't differentiate from something you haven't studied.

Positioning isn't about what makes you great. It's about what makes you different from the specific alternatives your buyers are weighing. That's a tighter question. And it requires you to take your competitors seriously—including what they do better than you.

This is uncomfortable. Nobody wants to admit a competitor has strengths. But until you do, your "differentiation" is just self-congratulation.

Real positioning starts with a harder question: What would my best-fit customer lose if they chose my competitor instead?

If you can't answer that with precision, you're not positioned. You're just hoping.

Here's the move.

Before your next pitch, your next board meeting, your next messaging conversation—do this.

Pick your top three competitors. For each one, write down two things they do well. Not where they're weak. Where they're strong. From your buyer's point of view, not yours.

Then ask: What do we do that none of them can say?

Not "what do we do well." What do we do that they cannot claim?

That's where your position lives. Everything else is noise.

One more thing.

Positioning gives you the raw ingredients. But ingredients don't win deals. Stories do.

What turns a positioning statement into revenue is what happens next—translating that differentiation into a message that your sales team can repeat, your investors can remember, and your buyers can feel.

That's what we build in an Actionable Messaging Playbook™. Not just your position. Your key message, your pillars, your proof points, your stories—everything your team needs to communicate your value without thinking twice.

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