"Positioning" gets used loosely, which causes confusion. Two distinct ideas hide behind the word: market positioning and brand positioning. They are related, they overlap, and getting both right is what makes a business both findable and memorable. Here is the difference.
Market positioning: where you sit
Market positioning is about where your business sits in the competitive landscape - your segment, your price tier, your category. Are you the premium option or the value one? The specialist or the all-rounder? Market positioning answers "which slot in the market do we occupy?" and it is largely a strategic, rational decision. It flows directly from your target audience and competitive advantage.
Brand positioning: how you feel
Brand positioning is about the place you occupy in the customer's mind and heart - the associations, emotions and personality attached to your name. Two businesses can share the same market position (say, premium coffee) yet have completely different brand positions: one warm and artisanal, the other sleek and modern. Brand positioning answers "what do people feel when they think of us?"
Why the distinction matters
Market positioning makes you strategically coherent - the right product, at the right price, for the right people. Brand positioning makes you chosen - it is why a customer picks you over an equally-priced rival. You need both: sound market positioning without a distinctive brand is forgettable; a strong brand in the wrong market position is loved but unsustainable.
They must align
The two have to tell the same story. If your market position is premium but your brand feels cheap, or your brand promises warmth but your service is cold, customers sense the mismatch and trust erodes. Message consistency across both is what makes the positioning believable.
Getting both right
Start with market positioning - decide, with evidence, where you compete and why you can win there (positioning your brand). Then build the brand positioning that makes that slot emotionally compelling. Strategy first, feeling second, both aligned.
Revisit as you grow
As markets and brands evolve, both positions can drift. Check periodically that where you sit in the market and how customers feel about you still match your intent - and each other.
Learn to align market and brand positioning on the Marketing Strategy and Concepts course, or go deeper with Digital Branding Strategy, at London School of Business UK - enquire today.