Positioning is the place a product holds in customers’ minds compared with its rivals. To explain a positioning choice, you say where the business aims to place its product, why that place suits the chosen customers, and what the choice gives up.
This lesson follows defining a target segment, because you cannot position a product until you know who it is for. It belongs to marketing choices.
How do you explain a positioning choice?
Compare the product with the rivals on one or two features that matter to customers, such as price and style. Then show where the gap in the market is. The final step is to link the chosen place to the segment’s stated need.
A simple map helps. Put price on one side and distinctiveness on the other, and mark each rival.
Worked example
Batik Laman is a new T-shirt brand in Penang. It prints batik-inspired motifs on cotton shirts. The owner has found two rivals and surveyed 40 office workers.
| Product | Price | Style |
|---|---|---|
| Rival A, plain mass-market T-shirt | RM25 | Plain, not distinctive |
| Rival B, designer label shirt | RM120 | Distinctive, premium |
| Batik Laman, proposed | RM59 | Local batik motifs |
In the survey, 28 of the 40 workers said they would pay between RM50 and RM70 for a local-design shirt to wear on casual Fridays.
Step 1, find the gap. Rival A is cheap and plain. Rival B is distinctive and costly. Nothing sits in the middle with a local look.
Step 2, state the position. Batik Laman aims at “a distinctive local design at a fair mid price”.
Step 3, use the evidence. 28 ÷ 40 = 0.70, so 70% of the sample would pay in the RM50 to RM70 range. RM59 sits inside that range.
Step 4, give the trade-off. The mid position avoids a price fight with Rival A. But it risks being squeezed between the two rivals if customers see it as neither cheap nor premium. The business must keep the fabric and print quality high enough to justify RM59.
Notice that the answer used the rivals, the price range and the survey. It did not just say “good design”.
The mistake to watch for
A common slip is to claim a position that is contradictory or unsupported.
Mistaken answer: “Batik Laman should be positioned as the best quality at the lowest price.”
It does not compare with the rivals, and high quality at the lowest price would squeeze profit. Nothing in the case supports it.
The correction is to choose one clear position the case can support, and to name the rivals and the evidence. For example: “Batik Laman should aim at a mid-priced, distinctive local design. This fills the gap between a RM25 plain shirt and a RM120 designer shirt, and 70% of the surveyed workers would pay RM50 to RM70.”
Check yourself
Try each question on paper, then open the answer.
1. A rival sells instant noodles at RM1.80 and another sells a premium noodle cup at RM7.50. A new brand plans RM4.50 with fresh ingredients. State its position and one risk.
Show answer
Its position is a mid-priced noodle cup with fresh ingredients, between the cheap and premium rivals. One risk is that customers may see RM4.50 as too high for a quick meal but not special enough to match the premium cup. The business should show clearly what the fresh ingredients add.
2. A student writes: “Our product is positioned as premium because it is good.” What is missing?
Show answer
There is no comparison with rivals, no price or feature evidence, and no link to what the target customers want. A premium position needs support such as a higher price than rivals plus quality or design facts that customers value.
3. In the Batik Laman survey, 28 of 40 workers would pay RM50 to RM70. How many did not say this, and what percentage is that?
Show answer
40 − 28 = 12 workers. 12 ÷ 40 = 0.30, so 30%. This is a reminder that the mid price does not suit everyone.
Where this leads next
With a position chosen, the next question is price: compare price approaches in a fictional market. The marketing choices practice set mixes all five lessons later.
Positioning answers lose marks when they stay general. Our teachers can help you tie each answer to the case in online one-to-one Business tuition.