Every product has three types of competitors - the hoard (everyone else in your space) the giant (the big market leader), and the ghost (the status quo) and you have to beat all three 1/
First you have to stand out from the hoard of competitors who look like you. Positioning strategically in a market category that puts your strengths at the center will help you stand out from the hoard. It focuses your sales/marketing so you only compete where you can win. 2/
However, even after you beat the hoard, you will have to beat the giant. This is the big company in your space. They are the "safe" choice that isn't perfect but good enough. To beat them you have to actively position THEM in a way that makes their strength a weakness 3/
The leaders are "established" but also "not innovative", they are "market leading" but also "general purpose," they're "feature-rich" but also "complex." You need to focus on buyers where the strengths of the giant are actually negatives, and position for that. 4/
Then after you beat the hoard and the giant you still have to beat the ghost. That's the status quo or "do nothing." I've seen research that shows a minimum of 20% of deals die here. Do nothing is even safer than picking the market leader because it requires zero effort 5/
To fight the status quo you have to give buyers a real reason to act right now. Strategic use of trends in your positioning can help break through this. It helps buyers see how your product lines up with bigger initiatives, and the downside of not acting right now. /6
You beat the hoards by positioning to only fight battles you can win, you beat the giant by positioning their strengths as weaknesses, and you beat the status quo by putting your offering in the context of a larger trend so buyers understand why they need to act right now /end
Also I can't spell horde. Man!
