Obviously Awesome: April Dunford’s Positioning Method for Products That Sell Themselves

If customers cannot place your product in a mental category, they will invent the wrong one—or ignore you. April Dunford’s Obviously Awesome treats positioning as a deliberate process: start from real alternatives, isolate unique strengths, translate them into value, pick the market context that makes that value obvious, then align messaging and sales.

Source note: This article is an original practitioner synthesis of themes from April Dunford’s Obviously Awesome. It is not a reprint. Figures are educational illustrations of the positioning flow; support the original book for workshops, examples and nuance.

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0. Why this book still matters​

Positioning workshops often devolve into tagline theatre: brainstorm adjectives, vote on “platform vs solution,” refresh the homepage hero, wonder why win rates do not move. Dunford—veteran of multiple B2B repositioning exercises—shows that positioning is context setting, not copywriting.

When positioning is wrong, every downstream function pays tax: longer sales cycles, confused product roadmaps, mis-hired sales profiles, and SEO that attracts the wrong buyers.

Three commitments organise the work:

1. Positioning is a business strategy choice—not a marketing paragraph.
2. Customers compare you to alternatives—including spreadsheets and status quo.
3. Category teaches buyers how to evaluate you—choose it deliberately.

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1. Part I — What is positioning?​

Figure: educational illustration from Part I of Obviously Awesome (Dunford).

1.1 Positioning as context​

Positioning answers: What am I? For whom? Why pick me vs alternatives?

Positioning is	Positioning is not
Context that makes value obvious	A tagline brainstorm
A cross-functional agreement	A marketing-only exercise
Grounded in real alternatives	Fantasy competitive maps
Input to messaging and sales	A paragraph buried in a deck

Test: Can a smart stranger understand who it is for, why it wins, and against what—in under a minute?

1.2 The five (plus one) components​

Component	Question
Competitive alternatives	What would they use if you vanished?
Unique attributes	What do you have that alternatives lack?
Value (and proof)	What outcomes do attributes enable?
Target market characteristics	Who cares a lot?
Market category	What frame makes value obvious?
Relevant trends (optional)	What macro shift adds urgency?

Figure: the staircase flows alternatives → attributes → value → best-fit customer → category → trends.

1.3 Positioning baggage​

Teams carry positioning baggage: old taglines, founder stories, analyst labels, legacy categories. Dunford insists you must let go of baggage that conflicts with customer reality—or you will decorate a broken frame.

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2. Part II — The 10-step positioning process​

Dunford’s full process includes team and vocabulary steps practitioners often skip at their peril.

Step 1 — Understand the customers who love your product​

Start with happy customers, not aspirational personas. Who already gets it? Interview them before debating category.

Ask	Why
Why did you buy?	Real value, not assumed
What did you compare us to?	True alternatives
What almost stopped you?	Objections to address

Step 2 — Form a positioning team​

Cross-functional: product, marketing, sales, founder/GM. Positioning fails when marketing writes it alone and sales ignores it.

Step 3 — Align positioning vocabulary and let go of baggage​

Agree terms: alternative vs competitor, attribute vs feature, category vs vertical. Kill sacred cows that contradict customer interviews.

Step 4 — List your true competitive alternatives​

Ask: If we didn’t exist, what would customers do?

Include:

• Status quo / manual process
• Spreadsheets and docs
• Agencies and consultants
• Hire-a-person
• “Do nothing”
• Internal build

Not just logo competitors on a battle card.

Step 5 — Isolate your unique attributes or features​

What do you have that alternatives lack—or cannot match economically?

Attribute type	Example
Technical	Citation-locked RAG on private corpora
Delivery	Pursuit-to-value methodology with eval gates
Data	Proprietary benchmark for regulated CS
GTM	Outcome-based pricing tied to handle time

Step 6 — Map attributes to value “themes”​

Group attributes under 2–4 value themes buyers care about—not feature lists.

Attribute	Value theme
Eval harness + human override	Risk reduction
30% handle-time reduction in pilots	Operational efficiency
Audit log + policy citations	Regulatory compliance

Step 7 — Determine who cares a lot​

Best-fit customer characteristics—traits of accounts where value is 10×, not 10%.

Vague ICP	Best-fit characteristics
“Enterprises”	Regulated mid-market, >50 agents, audited SOPs, Tier-1 volume pain
“AI teams”	CISO-mandated governance, no shadow LLM policy yet

If everyone is a fit, no one is.

Step 8 — Find a market frame of reference​

Choose the category that puts your strengths at the centre.

Category choice	Effect
Known category	Faster comprehension; harder differentiation
Subsegment (big fish, small pond)	Dominance in niche
New category	High education cost; high reward if you win

Figures: Dunford’s visual metaphors for how context changes what customers perceive (educational illustrations from the EPUB).

Step 9 — Layer on a trend (carefully)​

Trends add urgency when credible:

• Regulatory shift (EU AI Act, model risk management)
• Cost pressure in customer service
• Talent shortage in niche skills

Trend-washing: Claiming “AI-first” without unique capability → commodity.

Step 10 — Capture positioning so it can be shared​

One-page canvas: alternatives, attributes, value themes, best-fit, category, trends. Version it. Sales and product sign it.

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3. Styles of positioning (choose deliberately)​

Style	Description	When
Head-to-head	Win in existing category vs leader	Clear superiority on buyer criteria
Big fish, small pond	Own a subsegment	Leader ignores niche
Create new category	Teach market a new frame	Strong budget + patience
Custom hybrid	Borrow known category + sharp wedge	Common in B2B AI

Rule: Category choice affects sales motion, pricing power, SEO, analyst narrative, and hiring—not just homepage copy.

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4. Part III — Putting positioning into play​

4.1 After positioning: what happens next​

Function	Action
Product	Roadmap prioritises attributes that deliver claimed value
Marketing	Messaging hierarchy from canvas
Sales	Narrative + battle cards per alternative
Success	Onboarding matches best-fit profile
Pricing	Aligns to value themes

4.2 Sales narrative structure​

1. Category context (teach how to think about the problem)
2. Why alternatives fail for this buyer
3. Unique value themes + proof
4. Best-fit confirmation (“this is for teams like yours because…”)
5. Next step

Pair with SPIN Selling: Problem hypotheses come from positioning; Need-payoff validates value themes.

4.3 Website and collateral​

Element	Source
Hero	Category + best-fit + primary value theme
Proof	Step 6 evidence
Comparison pages	Step 4 alternatives
Case studies	Step 1 lovers

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5. Common traps (expanded)​

Trap	Symptom	Fix
Starting with category	Months debating “platform”	Start Step 4
Feature dumping	Buyers lost	Value themes (Step 6)
Everyone is ICP	Spray and pray	Step 7 exclusion
Aspirational category	Education burn	Big fish or hybrid
Copying competitor language	Sameness	Attribute → value chain
Positioning by committee fiction	No customer quotes	Step 1 interviews
Quarterly repositioning	Sales amnesia	Version canvas; change rarely

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6. AI product example (worked)​

Element	Weak	Stronger
Alternative	“Other LLMs”	Manual review + rules engines + generic chatbots
Unique attribute	“We use GPT”	Citation-locked answers on private policies with eval harness
Value theme	“Productivity”	Risk-safe efficiency in regulated Tier-1
Best fit	“Enterprises”	Regulated mid-market, >50 agents, audited SOPs
Category	“AI platform”	Agent assist for regulated customer operations
Trend	“AI is hot”	Supervisor scrutiny on model risk in banking

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7. Consulting proposition example​

Position against staff augmentation, strategy deck shops, and pure tech vendors.

Element	Example
Alternatives	Big four staff aug, offshore build shop, internal COE
Unique attributes	Pursuit-to-value method, eval systems, industry accelerators
Value themes	Time-to-production, governance-ready, measurable ROI
Best fit	Regulated enterprise with board AI mandate and thin delivery bench
Category	AI solution engineering (pursuit-to-value)

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8. Half-day workshop agenda​

1. Interview synthesis review (45 min)
2. Competitive alternatives list—include status quo (45 min)
3. Unique attributes inventory (30 min)
4. Attribute → value theme mapping (45 min)
5. Best-fit customer filter—who is out (30 min)
6. Category options scored (45 min)
7. Optional trend layer (15 min)
8. Draft messaging + sales openers (30 min)
9. Roadmap implications assigned (15 min)

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9. Consulting and AI pursuit translation​

Pursuit artefact	Positioning input
No-bid / pursue	Best-fit match
Discovery guide	Alternatives + problem themes
Proposal hero	Category + value theme
Demo script	Attributes → benefits per theme
Pricing	Value theme anchors

Negative cases

• Repositioning every quarter → sales cannot tell a consistent story
• “We’re different” without attribute proof → disbelief in procurement
• Category too broad → 18-month education cycle you cannot fund
• Ignoring status quo alternative → lose to “do nothing”

Health check

• Alternatives list includes status quo and internal build
• Every claimed value traces to an attribute
• Best-fit customer excludes someone specific
• Category makes value obvious without a 20-minute lecture
• Sales and product signed the same canvas version

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10. Competitive alternative interview guide​

Use in win/loss and customer development calls:

Question	Captures
What did you use before us?	True alternative
What would you do if we shut down tomorrow?	Status quo + build
Why did you almost not buy?	Objections + frame gaps
How do you explain us to your boss?	Category in customer words
What result would make this a no-brainer?	Value proof threshold

Document verbatim phrases for messaging—do not marketing-sanitize.

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11. Category scoring matrix​

Score each candidate category 1–5:

Criterion	Weight	Category A	Category B
Makes unique value obvious	High
Buyer knows how to evaluate	High
You can win references quickly	Medium
Education cost affordable	Medium
Analyst/SEO alignment	Low
Competitive intensity	Medium

Pick the frame you can win, not the frame that sounds largest.

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12. Repositioning triggers​

When to rerun the 10-step process:

Signal	Action
Win rate drops in core segment	Revisit best-fit (Step 7)
Sales cycles lengthen	Category may be wrong (Step 8)
Product roadmap drift	Attributes no longer unique (Step 5)
New alternative emerges (e.g. native AI in platform)	Refresh Step 4
Merger or new product line	Full canvas

Avoid reactive repositioning after every lost deal—look for patterns.

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13. Capstone — positioning canvas​

Fill before any rebrand or major pursuit:

1. Top 3 alternatives (customer words)
2. Top 5 unique attributes
3. 2–4 value themes + proof each
4. Best-fit characteristics (include anti-fit)
5. Category choice + style (head-to-head / niche / new)
6. Trend (if any)—one sentence, factual
7. One-sentence positioning statement
8. Sales opener (30 seconds)

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14. Step-by-step deep dive — all 10 steps​

Step 1 — Customers who love you (expanded)​

Activity	Output	Time box
Interview 5–10 delighted customers	Verbatim quotes	2 weeks
Extract “before state” struggles	Problem language
Map what they compared you to	Alternatives list seed

Negative case: Interviewing only churned users first—you learn exit reasons, not positioning strength.

Step 2 — Positioning team (expanded)​

Role	Responsibility
Product	Attributes truth
Marketing	Category + messaging
Sales	Alternatives + objections
Founder/GM	Final category call

Step 3 — Vocabulary + baggage (expanded)​

Baggage type	Example	Release criterion
Legacy tagline	“We’re a platform”	Fails customer interview test
Founder vision	“Change the world”	No buyer comprehension
Analyst label	Gartner quadrant obsession	Misaligned with wins

Step 4 — Competitive alternatives (expanded)​

Alternative class	Include?
Direct vendor	Yes
Internal build	Yes
Manual process	Yes
Spreadsheet + intern	Yes
Do nothing	Yes

Step 5 — Unique attributes (expanded)​

Attributes must be provable and differentiating vs Step 4 list—not table stakes.

Step 6 — Value themes (expanded)​

Theme	Proof types
Efficiency	Time/cost study
Risk reduction	Audit, eval metrics
Revenue	Pipeline, conversion lift

Step 7 — Who cares a lot (expanded)​

Define anti-fit: accounts where you will lose or deliver poorly—sales must disqualify.

Step 8 — Market frame (expanded)​

See Section 3 styles; score with Section 11 matrix.

Step 9 — Trends (expanded)​

Good trend: regulatory deadline. Bad trend: “AI” with no capability link.

Step 10 — Capture + share (expanded)​

Version the canvas; quarterly review; no silent drift in sales decks.

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15. Messaging hierarchy from canvas​

Level	Content	Example
L1 Category	Frame	Agent assist for regulated CS
L2 Primary value	Theme #1	Risk-safe efficiency
L3 Proof	Metric	30% handle-time reduction
L4 Attributes	Mechanism	Citation-locked RAG + eval
L5 Differentiator vs alt X	Battle	vs generic chatbot: audit trail

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16. Consulting proposition worked example​

Step	Consulting AI practice
Alternatives	Staff aug, offshore build, strategy-only decks
Attributes	Pursuit-to-value, eval harness, industry accelerators
Value themes	Time-to-production, governance-ready, measurable ROI
Best fit	Regulated enterprise, board AI mandate, thin bench
Category	AI solution engineering (pursuit-to-value)
Trend	Model risk supervision tightening

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17. AI product anti-patterns by step​

Step	Anti-pattern	Symptom
4	“We compete with OpenAI”	Buyer confusion
5	“We use transformers”	Not unique
7	“All enterprises”	Long cycles, losses
8	“AI platform” category	18-month education
9	“Digital transformation wave”	Trend-washing

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18. Quarterly positioning review agenda​

1. Win/loss themes (30 min)
2. Alternatives refresh (20 min)
3. Attribute drift vs roadmap (20 min)
4. Category still winning? (20 min)
5. Messaging updates assigned (10 min)