Positioning Canvas

If you’re here, you’re likely building something that matters — but clarity is slippery.
This canvas helps sharpen your thinking around who it’s for, why it matters, and why now.
Use it early. Use it often.

How to Use This Canvas

1. Pick one product or offer. Don’t try to position everything at once.
2. Fill it out in one focused sitting. Aim for clarity, not perfection.
3. Use your customer’s language. Avoid internal jargon and clichés.
4. Revisit regularly. Update the canvas as you learn from customers, experiments, and the market.

You can duplicate this canvas for different segments or product lines if needed.

1. Who Is It For?

Describe your primary user or customer as precisely as possible.
Avoid vague terms like “everyone” or “startups.”

• Target Audience (1 sentence)
  Example: “First-time founders launching a B2B SaaS in health tech.”

• What’s broken for them today?
  What problem do they experience, in their own words? What are the pains, frustrations, or risks?

• What have they already tried or are currently doing?
  Describe the status quo deeply — this is what you must displace.

2. What Is the Value?

Your product isn’t the hero — your customer is.
What transformation does your product enable for them?

• Before using this product, they…
  Paint the struggle: lack of time, poor results, frustration, inefficiency, risk, etc.

• After using this product, they…
  Show what’s improved: outcomes, emotions, capabilities, confidence, speed, accuracy.

• Core Benefit (in one sentence)
  Example: “We help real estate teams close deals 2× faster with automated lead insights.”

Try to anchor the value in something measurable (time saved, revenue increased, errors reduced) or emotionally resonant (peace of mind, feeling in control).

3. What Are They Comparing It To?

Know your real competition — not just companies, but behaviors, tools, workarounds, and even apathy.

• Direct alternatives
  Example: “Excel spreadsheets, agency retainers, manual outreach.”

• Indirect alternatives / non-consumption
  Example: “They don’t do this at all because they think it’s too complex or expensive.”

Be honest. If “doing nothing” is a major competitor, write it down.

4. Why Now?

Why is this the right moment for your product to exist?
Why should someone act — or invest — today instead of “later”?

• Recent shifts making this urgent or possible
  Examples: AI cost drops, new regulations, clear culture shifts, remote/hybrid work adoption, new infrastructure.

• What’s at risk if they delay?
  Examples: competitors get ahead, inefficiencies compound, opportunity closes, compliance risk grows.

Good positioning makes the cost of waiting feel higher than the cost of acting.

5. What Makes This Product Different?

Don’t say “we care more” or “we’re better.”
Show what’s structurally different in your approach, your insight, or your tech.

• Unique insight or belief
  Example: “The best B2B marketing starts with zero-click content, not lead forms.”

• How your product reflects that belief
  Example: “We track intent and share it, instead of gating it behind a form.”

• Proof of difference (if available)
  Examples: traction, testimonials, pilot results, proprietary data, tech advantage, defensible process.

Aim for differences that are hard to copy (data, distribution, deep expertise, community, partnerships, etc.).

6. Your One-Line Position

This is not your tagline. It’s a sharp internal compass that should guide every landing page, pitch deck, or demo script.

Complete this sentence:

We are the [category/type] that helps [specific audience] achieve [valuable outcome] by [unique approach].

• Draft your one-line position
  Example: “We’re the first data platform built for local political campaigns that surfaces donor-ready voter segments in minutes — no analyst required.”

You can maintain multiple versions for different segments, but keep each one crisp and testable.

7. Optional Notes: Personality & Voice

If relevant, capture how your brand should sound and feel.
This will guide your copy, design, and customer interactions.

Consider prompts like:

• Tone
  Trustworthy but bold? Calm and methodical? Energetic and disruptive?

• Positioning in relationships
  Like a peer, not a vendor? Like a strategic advisor, not a task-taker?

• A few “this, not that” examples
  Example: “Clear, not clever.” “Direct, not aggressive.” “Optimistic, not naïve.”

Getting this right is half the battle when you reach out to customers, partners, or investors.

Final Thought

Clarity isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the difference between traction and confusion, between belief and “we’ll think about it.”

This canvas won’t solve everything. But it will strip away noise and leave behind only what matters.
Take it seriously. Then move fast. Your idea deserves to be understood.

Wishing you clarity, momentum, and conviction — always.
From one builder to another.