Positioning By Al Ries And Jack Trout

The marketing classic that introduced a word every strategist now uses daily. Short, sharp and still spot on.

In Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, Al Ries and Jack Trout made a simple but radical point: marketing isn’t a battle of products, it’s a battle of perceptions.

In a world overloaded with messages, people only hold a few brands in their heads for each category. Positioning is about claiming a place in that mind—and owning it. The book was built on a series of articles the authors wrote for Advertising Age in the early 1970s, and the ideas have shaped marketing strategy ever since.

It’s one of the most influential marketing books ever written, and at around 200 pages, it’s one of the easiest to read in a sitting.

Pivotal takeaways

1. Be first in the mind. It’s far easier to be first in a category than to convince people you’re better than the leader.
2. If you can’t be first, create a new category. Find a position nobody owns and make it yours.
3. Own a word. The strongest brands own a single idea in the customer’s mind. Decide what yours is.
4. Simplify your message. An overcommunicated society rewards the oversimplified message. Say less, more clearly.

Why it’s a must-read

At Pivotal, positioning is where every good brand strategy starts. Before we write an ad or design a page, we want to know what place a business should own in its customers’ minds. A brand that stands for everything ends up standing for nothing.

Written decades ago, the examples are vintage—but the logic applies even more in today’s crowded, noisy markets.

The line extension chapters are a useful warning, too. Stretching a strong brand across too many products can blur the very position that made it strong.

Rating: ★★★★★

Required reading for anyone responsible for a brand. You’ll never think about competition the same way again. Read it before your next rebrand, product launch or strategy day. It will save you from trying to be everything to everyone, which is the fastest way to be nothing to anybody.

Question for you. What one word should customers think of when they hear your brand? Share in the comments, and let’s test it.