Good messaging and positioning is what clearly differentiates you from the competition. This takes many forms:

• Company tagline
• Elevator pitch
• Company boilerplate, used in press releases and other communications
• 50- and 100-word product and company descriptions
• Telemarketing scripts

It provides the foundation for all of your marketing collateral and sales tools, including your web site content, corporate brochure, product data sheets, customer success stories, white papers, sales presentations, etc. One of the greatest challenges in high tech messaging and positioning is taking an intangible product or service—software—and communicating what it is and why it matters in a succinct positioning statement.

Too many companies base their messaging and positioning on their product features rather than market needs and value to the customer. To compound the problem, many use industry jargon that complicates the message. This includes technical language and hackneyed phrases such as next generation, leading edge, powerful, best of breed and state of the art. No one shops for software solutions based on their positioning as next generation or powerful.

Another common mistake in messaging that is particularly problematic is trying to invent a new product category, thus making your company the instantaneous "market leader". You'll end up spending more time explaining your category than selling new product.

In helping our clients create or enhance their messaging, our goals are to:

• Focus on prospects and their pain point—derived from research and validation
• Use straightforward but compelling language to describe what you do, for whom you do it, the problem it solves, and the value it delivers
• Tailor the value proposition to specific market segments and titles, each with distinct needs
• Differentiate from the competition, substantiating claims with facts
• Communicate using a conversational style that makes prospects want to learn more

Once we have developed and tested a company's positioning, our deliverables include detailed messages for specific audiences that focus on the needs of distinct markets and decision makers. These include direct marketing messages, marketing collateral pieces, and sales tools such as presentations or demos. The key to success is consistent, relevant messaging throughout all of your marketing and sales communications.

A clear, compelling value proposition that turns interest into action.