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Positioning Statements. Is Yours Meaningful or Meaningless?

By David Kidd, BPR

A positioning statement or brand message provides the words that help listeners understand a radio station’s value proposition….. (City’s)  #1 Hit Music Station, Rock’s Greatest Hits, Feel Good, Better Music and More of It. It articulates the brand promise. Brand messages tell a story that gets listeners excited about what you’re offering. In the battle for listeners’ minds, clearly defined positioning is vital.

Persuasive brand messages are always brief and convey critical aspects of a station’s product offering. They often oversimplify concepts that, in reality, may be complex. This oversimplification is a good thing because the goal of a brand is to be noticed, remembered and desired. In an over-communicated world, the only way to get inside the minds of the listeners is to whittle away at your message until it comes to a sharp point.

Is your station’s positioner a compact statement that declares why the brand matters, what it stands for and how it is stands apart from its competitors? A core brand message communicates the values and key differentiators that define the brand. And above all else, it makes people in the station’s target audience sit up and take notice.

Critically, a positioning statement must be relevant to the audience.

Are you unsure if you’ve got your messaging right? Check your brand messages against the following criteria:

• Does your core brand message offer anything different from your competitors?

• Are your messages simple, easy to understand and compelling?

• Do your messages reflect reality? Brand messages must be based in reality to be believed. A little aspiration is ok, as long as the claim is plausible.

• Do your messages resonate with your target audience?

• Do they say anything interesting?