Positioning the Battle for the Mind

By Al Ries & Jack Trout

This is one of the essential marketing texts. Positioning is one of the central marketing themes and surely this is the classic book about the subject. Some time has passed since it was originally published and many aspects of marketing, most notably communications, have changed dramatically over this period. However, the importance of positioning and the ways in which it can be identified and developed have not changed to any significant extent.

The 2001 edition of the book has a new forward (by Phillip Kotler) but, aside from that, the book has not been changed. The inclusion of new examples and new forms of communication such as Internet-based channels would have brought the book up-to-date but their omission do not detract from the strength of the authors’ message.

Indeed, the need for marketers to develop strong positioning and, from there, incisive, relevant and effective communications strategies, is needed today more than ever. In an era of hypercompetition where the shelves are full of me-too products and consumer choice is often overwhelming, there is even more need to make your product, service or company stand out from the other offers available. All too frequently, it seems, this is ignored or forgotten in pursuit of quick sales. A short-term approach is not the way to build a brand or secure long-term success.

The authors approach the subject systematically defining positioning and its importance before analysing different paths to positioning a product or service. This clearly differs if your brand is a leader, challenger, established or new. What are the pitfalls in line extension? Then there follows a number of case studies that show how the different positioning approaches can work in practice.

Like the authors’ other works this is easy to follow. They have a knack of making you think and sometimes challenging what they have written. For example, some of their views on line extension could be questioned and examples where line extension has worked should be included alongside the countless examples of where line extension has meant brand dilution.

Review by Martin Payne