Positioning does matter..

I met my friend Mia, a smart Lawyer, at the post office. 

She was posting about 4 dozen cards.

I asked her what was the occasion?

She said that these were Valentine cards & signed as "Guess Who" & sent to all the married men in & around her society.

She said that last year she had posted about 2 dozen & was lucky to have about 4 divorce cases.

So this time, she wanted to increase her business.

Sounds hilarious..  Well, jokes apart.. the above is an excellent example of positioning your product/services in the market.

Why does it matter so much to position your services/products in the market???

* It defines your identity (who you are are and what do you do).

* It opens up opportunities and lets you settle for a set of customers/clients.

* Lets you understand the competition and makes you "position" your brand in the market.

* Keeps growing you whether vertically or horizontally in the market.

Do we need to position the services/products at the startup stage?

* Yes. Yes. Yes. It is extremely important to position your product/services at the very initial stage of your start-up. Do not underestimate the power of positioning at the startup stage as it is very useful in determining the USP of your brand and also helps in getting to the market (Go -to-market) easily.

* It helps you to create THE IDENTITY of YOU (You is here the entrepreneur or the start-up services of your product/service). The lawyer mia is a perfect example of using her positioning in the market to get divorce cases (read it as biz growth).

Should Startups position themselves or use an agency to help them position in the market?

* Tricky question here -  as startups are sometimes not sure how and when they would be able to break even in the market and are normally shy of positioning their product/services as they fear they may lose to competition or things may not work as they have planned. Add to it, the shoestring budget that keeps them from advertising even in the smallest way.

* Startups should strongly focus on the positioning at the start (never mind the shoestring budget).

 e.g. If you are a great baker and want to supply cakes to the market, DO a thorough analysis how to position the cakes for a better business.

Do you want to supply to the wedding/parties?
Do you want to supply to corporate functions/events?
Do you want to give to retail stores?
Do you want to specialise for baking only for kids? We all know kids love cakes :)
Do you want to supply to maternity hospitals? ( The hospital can give a cake to the mother or the family after the child is born) . You can't measure the happiness writ on the receiver's face :)

The key to great positioning is Customisation and starting small with a set of clients.

* Mouth Publicity, social media helps a lot in startup stage. If clients are happy with your services/product, thank them personally and ask for testimonials. These help a lot again in positioning your brand in the long run.

Lastly do only startups needs positioning or do SMEs need repositioning their brand.. That will come in next post.

So, friends, keep reading and Keep positioning your brand. Well, we know that Positioning does matter.

Silent Relationship of your brand - DESIGN

Hi Friends,

This is my first post in many years. I am writing after a very long spell of "SILENCE". 

SILENCE is GOLDEN they say. Yes, indeed GOLDEN in today's world of constant chit-chats, media glares, digital marketing, and tweets.

Technology has definitely made us closer in terms of the social circle, business circle and probably relationships. A beautiful and loving relationship goes a long way in building or positioning your product or service in the market.  A relationship that lasts for years to come. A relationship that welcomes the change. A relationship that loves your brand come what may. A relationship between "You and the "Client". A relationship to "die" for...

What is such a kind of relationship? How do we define such a kind of relationship wherein the client and the supplier have a LOVE to die for?

Numerous articles have been written on defining the dos and dont's for fulfilling such a kind of relationship. Great books are available on the internet and in bookstores for filling and learning the basics.

I am going to share some of my personal experiences while I was SILENT. Being SILENT and observing people on being Founder of my startup "Gyany" has given me some valuable learnings.

As my core strength is designing and redesigning a brand identity for any company, below are some of the things that I would like to share:

* Get a thorough understanding of the design requirements. If it's a reference from someone, understand the basics before meeting the client. Thank the person who has referred you and keep him in the loop for further reference.

* Understand the requirements in depth e.g. why does he require a logo? What kind? what color? what is the purpose? Why does he want to sell his product/ service? Remember a LOGO is always a SILENT ambassador of your brand. 

* Certain things seem silly to ask, but pays well in the long run. e.g. If a company is already in business for past 15 years and survived the market till date, but facing challenges to grow ahead. Will require a different kind of designing and positioning than a startup firm. Reason - People know who they are in 15 years and we only need to work on the problem areas whee the company is lacking as well support them for their future endeavors.

* Startups, on the other hand, require a different kind of positioning or building up their brand. They require a design service to not only create stunning and meaningful marketing collaterals but an NEW RELATIONSHIP to be built with every CLIENT.

* Many times, designers are forgotten after they have delivered their BEST. This can happen because of less clarity, less communication, fewer payments as well.So, a satisfied CLIENT needs to be monitored regularly to keep up the things in a long way.Even after you have satisfied a CLIENT, still there is more to go. Keep in check if the client is happy with the designs, how is it helping them, how are they faring the market... Do they need any more services, some promotional stuff to keep them going. .. KEEP UP THE WORD.. (BE RESILIENT IF NEED BE.. BUT KEEP PUSHING)..

Understand - Analyse - Research - Design- Redesign- Process-Deliver = YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CLIENT/MARKET