Author: remap_content_admin

The messages coming almost verbatim from clients and/or client’s end customers about painful problems they experience. Problem messaging is also the way you reiterate these problems in a way that can be used in your marketing, as in the case of the Anti-Testimonial.

History is written defined by the victors. And so are ideas.

Take the example of Article Group, a San Francisco-based product marketing agency. With their website decorated with the logos of Google, General Electric, and Amazon, they certainly have the patina of “victors”, at least in the world of creative agencies where big-name brands matter.

So it didn’t surprise me the other day that they made definitions the centerpiece of their newsletter article. 

Not only did they make definitions, but they also put them together, intentionally or not, into a micro-dictionary.

In consulting, we are instructed to reframe, reframe, reframe. Reframe the question, as in actually re-word it, get approval for how you have reworded it, then answer it. This is reframing.

By publishing a micro-dictionary of brand personality, Article Group is preemptively reframing this and related concepts. I’ll come back to this later in this article.

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There’s a similar principle at work if you have ever learned:

• a programming language
• a framework built on top of a programming language
• an application platform built on top of either or both 

Each of these three layers will have its own micro-dictionary consisting of a vocabulary that you must learn and absorb. In other words, you must learn not just the literal definitions of programming terms but absorb the thinking behind them; understand how they relate and are meant to be used in conjunction with the other terms that comprise the vocabulary.

Take the web application platform Drupal, which is built on top of the PHP programming language and the Symfony framework. In Drupal, you have to learn the definitions of some 200 terms to build applications. Node, module, hook, theme, etc.

Those words all have other meanings, both in the standard dictionary and in other contexts, in other frameworks. But in the Drupal world at least, they are objective and unchanging (in theory).

But the Drupal world has also created many subjective terms. These aren’t used to write code but to define what Drupal is to the world. They are equally important to Drupal’s survival. These terms talk about Drupal’s:

• technical architecture
• code/infrastructure management
• core competencies from a business perspective
• organizing principles and values as a community of people

They explain how it works to newcomers who want to become Drupal developers or (in theory) product designers, or why a patron business or institution should decide to invest millions of dollars in an un-ownable open source project. Or simply why you should hire a Drupal agency to build your presumably complex website or web application.

An example of such a term is “Community Open Source”, which refers to a subcategory of open-source, where a large (and presumably diverse and widely geo-dispersed) group of people collectively create a product. This is meant to differentiate from what you might call, Sponsored Open Source, where a single individual or company drives the project (eg. Linus Torvalds for Linux, or Automattic for WordPress). In the latter case, random-person-from-random-country can contribute, and sometimes they do, but they’re not shaping the direction of the product or coming anywhere close to contributing the majority of its codebase.

As a side note, most Community Open Source projects ultimately become Sponsored Open Source over time – and Drupal is no exception. Which makes for some riveting and sometimes hilarious forum threads.

But Drupal still tries to define itself.

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Drupal now self-categorizes as a “Digital Experience Platform (DXP)”. This is partly because it’s possible and even convenient to use Drupal to build any type of software, not just web applications.

Self-categorization is the creation of a new category of business that applies only to your own brand. This can be either an industry category, a capability/expertise category, or an audience category.

Self-categorization is both a brand identity exercise and a positioning effort. Its meant to influence how your audience thinks about your brand by preventing comparisons to competing brands in more generic categories.

It’s also meant to highlight a special trait, especially a special capability. As such, a self-categorization often becomes a brand’s de facto tagline.

DRUPAL™️
The Digital Experience Platform

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Back to Article Group’s micro-dictionary, which you might call the Article Group Micro-Dictionary of Brand Personality.

FWIW, the 4-term dictionary is as follows (these are Article Group’s definitions, not mine):

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Article Group Micro-Dictionary of Brand Personality

Brand personality. Every brand has a personality. And that this personality has its own anatomy. The key traits of that personality are voice, tone, and style. Properly defined and combined, these brand personality traits (a) collectively represent a product and (b) allows for flexibility in how the brand is presented to it audiences.

Voice is the rock-solid constant in the personality profile. It expresses the core traits of the product in language. Wherever the product speaks up — in display ads, thought leadership pieces, videos, shopping guides, social media and more — the well-defined voice is clear.

Tone is the sum of the ways a brand expresses itself to fit specific media and applications. [Sidenote: Maybe this definition needs work because right now it seems the same as their definition of style; another possibility – I have misunderstood what they meant]

Style is grammar, capitalization, formatting and other mechanics suited to given uses cases. With style, flexibility is important. A person doesn’t write a tweet the same way they write an email to a friend, and neither should a product. But no matter the platform, the voice must remain true to the product.

~

This is a great little dictionary and probably forms a subset of the larger dictionary that exists in the minds, writings, and conversations of Article Group. Part of the reason I wanted to share it with you is that it’s doable. 

A good place to start might be to follow Drupal’s example and self-categorize. For some of you, this will be incredibly easy, others not so much.

But even if naming the subcategory is easy, defining it might be hard. That’s where your micro-dictionary comes in. It might help answer those, “Ok and what does that mean” questions that are so common in our increasingly fractured economy of millions and millions of micro-specializations.

Have a good one and keep re-framing (:
Rowan

The creation of a new category of business that applies only to your own brand. This can be either an industry category, a capability/expertise category, or an audience category.

Self-categorization is both a brand identity exercise and a positioning effort. Its meant to influence how your audience thinks about your brand by preventing comparisons to competing brands in more generic categories.

It’s also meant to highlight a special trait, such as a special capability. As such, a self-categorization often becomes a brand’s de facto tagline.

The exchange of emotional and material needs by which a group of people collectively agree (or attempt to) on a set of outcomes.

Negotiation is not:

• rational exchange
• quid pro quo bargaining
• reducible to economic interests
• a problem-solving situation

Active listening is the close study and ongoing analysis of ideas, facial expression, body language, and tone of voice. In the context of negotiation, consulting, and other important business activities, active listening is the most intellectually demanding activity available; it’s high-effort and requires extreme mental discipline.

The universal human condition whereby unconscious and irrational processes distort the way that we see the world.

The neurological alignment of brains, as perceptible from brain scanning, that results from a mutual understanding of feelings and ideas. This understanding is created through good communication and observation of face, gestures, and tone of voice.

Neuroresonance is the physiological basis of empathy.

Whereas Empathy is more like a personality trait, Tactical Empathy is strategic negotiation behavior. It’s probing deeper and quickly – understanding the feelings and mindset of another at the moment and also hearing what is behind those feelings so you increase your influence in all the moments that follow. It’s bringing one’s attention to both the emotional obstacles and also getting an agreement done.

In theory, The ability to recognize the perspective of a counterpart and the vocalization of that recognition. In practice, paying attention to another human being, asking what they are feeling, and making a commitment to understanding their world

A quick note: the actual definition(s) of positioning are about 3/4 of the way down this rather long article (1200 words). Feel free to skip ahead! I first wanted to set up the definitions with some thoughts and examples of why to define important concepts.

Another note, because I often forget this—you don’t necessarily write because you have ideas. You write to get ideas.

This is true for writing a definition.

I obsess over definitions because they are how you describe ideas. The word is just the vehicle the idea rides in.

I’d wager that 99% of you use the idea of “active listening” in your work, maybe on a day-to-day basis. It’s an essential tool for two-way sync’ing complex information, requirements, ideas.

But do you have a definition of active listening in your head without your having written it down in your own words? Probably not. Probably you’re borrowing someone else’s definition of the idea of the word and, more importantly, the idea.

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Sidebar on defining terms in politics. Last week, political YouTubers debated whether a famous young politician was “corrupt.”

The first said, Look at what she did; she is corrupt.

The second said, No, that’s absurd. She’s never taken any money. Where’s your evidence? 

To which the first replied: Corruption doesn’t necessarily mean taking money. I looked it up and the dictionary defines ‘corrupt’ as comprising behavior in exchange for money or personal gain. That’s the point—she’s corrupted by personal gain.

The first then elaborated on the definition of corrupt, adding his own layer of definition. Of course, in doing so, he was reading from a script he’d written.

In other words, he articulated a unique definition to layer on top of “the dictionary” definition of a word. Why? Because corruption is an important concept in the work of a political analyst.

And through this definition writing process, he understood better what the idea meant, as did his audience.

I don’t know if this approach will get you a million YouTube subscribers, but I still think is a good model to follow.

BTW, he was challenged by his counterpart—who challenges you to define your terms, ie, your ideas?

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Let’s say you work for a CRM implementation and consulting agency, and your boss asks you to define “Marketing CRM” for an upcoming presentation. In a lazy state of mind, you go:

“Uhh.. a CRM software product for marketing”.

Or you do what we all learned in school, stuff your thinking with filler and fluff to make it seem more valid by virtue of word count:

“A CRM product that is designed to facilitate integrated, targeted marketing strategy and services.

Unfortunately, however, that sounds like 1000 other lame definitions of Marketing CRM. But there’s a solution to that problem.

First, take some time to sit down and write as much as you can on the subject, so that you come up with good questions, such as:

• Who is this definition for? What type of clients? What type of partners or other members of our ‘audience’?
• What definition do they currently work with, and what’s wrong with it?
• How do our competitors define this term? What’s right or
• \wrong with their definition?

Answers to the questions will form the ideas that flesh out your definition. Now cut out the filler and fluff. Editing is thinking. You may now end up with some sharp, useful thinking that inspires people to engage with you.

BTW, who is your boss and what does she want? We all have one, in one form or another.

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So anyway.

Now that we’ve talked about the value of defining key concepts, let’s define the one that probably matters the most to most of you: positioning.

Maybe your business, product, or organization is already well-positioned. But is positioning just a “status”? Or is it a status, a mindset, and a series of ongoing projects and processes?

Are your clients better positioned after they engage with your products and services? Can you tell them why they will be, or how to be?

B Lab, the organization that certifies and curates the B Corp community has always had good positioning, in all three senses of the word that I define at the end of this essay. (That’s why I got my prior firm “B Corps certified” 12 years ago.) But do its “Certified B Corps” members have great positioning? Or at least leverage their B Corps status in a way that improves their positioning? 

To the extent they don’t, I think a widespread misunderstanding of what the term means is partially to blame.

I’ve read most books about positioning, including the original by Al Ries. I’ve listened to podcasts on the subject and read articles. I feel that there’s often something missing, though.

Firstly, what is “the” dictionary definition of positioning? Your definition shouldn’t contradict (or ignore) those of the language authorities. Instead, it should layer a shade of meaning on top of the shades of meaning they already provide.

So let’s look at the premier English-language dictionary, the Oxford English Dictionary (OED).

Like other traditional dictionaries, the OED offers a good general definition of positioning (“putting a person or thing in a certain position”).

But its definition in the context of marketing is dated:

The identification of a product, service, or business as belonging to a particular market sector

This definition is a little incomplete, even when it comes to consumer goods.

And it’s way off in the world of B2B or complex and high-value B2C/B2P marketing.

In the latter world, the term positioning has three definitions because it is used in three separate ways; the first way is the de facto definition of positioning:

1. Perception. How a particular audience perceives your brand as opposed to alternatives. Perception includes how the audience thinks about it, feels about it, talks about it, and even engages with it financially or otherwise. This is the actual positioning of your brand vs. the desired positioning.
2. Strategy. The strategic activity of deciding on the desired audience(s) and positioning of your brand. This is an iterative and nonlinear process since desirable positioning frequently changes in response to market changes, including audience changes.
   Note that there’s no such thing as a single “positioning decision”; there’s only a positioning mindset and process. It is a semi-objective decision-making process to the extent that it hinges on basic market economics, as opposed to say, personal taste. That said, there’s some gut instinct at play in positioning strategy as well. But it’s circular, not linear.

3. Creative Expression. Orchestrating the transition from actual to desired positioning with creative work—ideas, words, images, sounds, or experience. This is related to, if not identical to, Messaging, Content Marketing in Thought Leadership format, and Design Thinking.

The first definition is, again, the real thing—the most important and central definition.

The second definition is what creative services consultants and agencies sell, mostly. The third definition is what they should sell. Or at least it’s how they should frame what they sell.

Have a great weekend, define what matters (:
–Rowan