What Most B2B Businesses Get Wrong About Messaging and Positioning

So many B2B companies get their 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 and 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 all wrong.

Are you trying to convince your buyer to enter your category, or to choose you?

There’s a big difference.

Messaging like “save time and money with our solution” is actually targeted at the category level. It’s generic.

It’s assuming your target consumer doesn’t yet have such a solution in their workflow and you’re trying to convince them they need it.

Would the consumer not save time and money by going with your direct competitor?

Is your competitor offering a solution that will cost them time and money? Not likely.

Messaging to choose 𝐲𝐨𝐮 is an acknowledgement that your target consumer is already convinced (or semi-convinced) they need a solution in your category, and now it’s about positioning your solution over your competitor.

What do you have that your competitor doesn’t?

Always assume you are competing with someone else.

People don’t browse B2B websites for fun. They are there to gather information, to compare and contrast, to be persuaded…

Your job then becomes:

1. How are we positioned in our category to stand out among our competitors? What do we offer that they don’t?
2. Craft your messaging (and other web assets) to convey that positioning and value proposition as clearly and concisely as possible.

Marketers will say you need to be outcomes or results based – using a JTBD framework – you look at pain points, triggers, and transformations (i.e. what’s at stake if they don’t find a solution).

These are all fine, but don’t stop there.

You need to be laser focused on how you stand apart among your toughest competition and do whatever is necessary to pry them out of your top competitor’s orbit.

👉 Think: “If I were a buyer for our solution, would I choose us?”