The Power of Positioning

I’m an idiot.

And so are most of the creators on Twitter.

I say this facetiously, but what I’m trying to get at is…

The knowledge gap between the top creators and beginners like me isn’t as wide as you’d think.

We’re all as monkey-brained as each other.

This is something I’ve come to learn after talking to many of the top creators, and reverse engineering what has made them successful.

Their success can ultimately be boiled down to one key factor.

Positioning.

So…

What is positioning and how can we use it to our advantage?

In the context of a content creator on Twitter, positioning is the strategic process of establishing a unique identity and shaping how you’re perceived by your target audience.

There are many ways to go about positioning yourself, but there are a few key elements that I’ll cover in this newsletter:

• Branding

• Content Strategy

• Perceived Value

Let’s dive in 👇

Branding

Your branding is the first thing that people take note of when they come across your profile.

It is also what will stick in their mind when they think about you.

So it goes without saying that it’s extremely important to nail it.

I’ve only just recently finalized my branding after (not a word of a lie) 20+ different rebrands.

But the results so far have been nothing short of amazing.

Here’s how I established a unique and compelling brand:

• Choose my niche

• Identified a power word/words related to my niche (I chose Magnetic)

• Built my branding strategy around these words (Colours, Design, Copy)

• Kept the branding consistent throughout all of my content mediums (Twitter, Medium, Newsletter, Digital products etc)

The goal here is to become known as the [insert power word/words] person.

For example:

• Sebastian Rozga is the “Monetize on autopilot” person

• Jon Brosio is the “Build your tribe” person

• Lessa Raebiger is the “Become the brand” person

My goal is to be the “Become Magnetic” person.

This is reflected through my branding, and my content strategy, which we’ll move on to now.

Content Strategy

Having a strategic approach to creating content pays massive dividends as it pertains to positioning.

After your branding, your content is the thing that will set you apart from other creators.

This is extremely important and can be the make or break between growing your account with authority or being another creator tweeting into the void.

It’s important to utilize a content strategy to set yourself apart from other creators and position yourself as an authority.

I like to tell myself “Don’t throw sh*t at the wall god dammit.”

I try to have intention behind everything I’m posting.

So in saying that…

Here’s how I use my content to build authority:

• Learn new skills or gain knowledge relevant to my “niche”

• Share what I’m learning about said skills or acquired knowledge

• Share the failures I experience along the way

• Share how I overcome these failures in an actionable format

Doing this shows that you’re actively learning about something that can take your audience from Point A —> Point B (Point A being where they are now, and Point B being their desired destination).

People are a lot more receptive and trusting in someone who is actively guiding them through their own lessons and experiences, rather than pretending they’re an expert.

For example, when I write my threads I will frame my hooks like:

“Here is how I did X and how you can too”

Rather than:

“This is how you do X”

These small adjustments have made a massive difference to how my content is received and has helped me build a relative level of authority.

As Kieran Drew says: “Be the guide, not the guru”

But to further set yourself apart on Twitter, you need to establish your own identity rather than be a copy-and-paste version of another creator.

Here’s how I establish my unique identity:

• Close my laptop and go and do cool sh*t in real life

• Share what I did through storytelling and photos/videos

• Lean into my own interests and quirks (steak, my hatred for treadmills)

• Polarize my audience by dropping hot takes around these interests/quirks to garner a reaction

All of these things culminate into content that is memorable to your audience and helps differentiate you from other creators.

I’m sure at this stage, my audience is well aware of my love for steak and hatred for treadmills.

And when they think of those things, there’s a chance that I cross their mind.

But at the end of the day, your unique identity will only get you so far.

What’s really going to get the wheels in motion is the value, or perceived value you’re providing to your audience.

So that leads to my final point…

Perceived Value

This is something that took me a while to wrap my head around.

When I first started, I thought I had to be an expert to be able to provide value and build authority.

But this couldn’t be further from the truth…

Once I learned that positioning, building authority, and even marketing/sales are all about perceived value…

Everything changed.

So, what is perceived value and how do we increase it?

Perceived value refers to the subjective judgment made by your audience regarding the usefulness, relevance, and quality of the content you provide.

Gaining it is relatively easy, and relates back to what I outlined in the previous section…

Learn valuable skills/knowledge and share what you’re learning.

Even if you only have a minimal understanding of a topic, and are just sharing the basics, you’re still providing value.

This ties back to the notion of helping people “one step behind you”.

If you can take someone from Point A —> Point B in regard to their knowledge level on a topic, they’re going to look at you as an authority because YOU were the one that raised their knowledge level.

You don’t need to have all of the answers, you just need to be able to teach someone at least one thing that they didn’t already know.

And as you continue to raise your knowledge level and share what you’re learning, you’re simultaneously raising the knowledge level of your audience and building authority.

This is how you position yourself as a “guide”.

And trust me…

You aren’t going to do this by posting platitudes and sweet nothings.

And finally…

If anyone would like to work with me 1-on-1 to accelerate their growth and acquire a monetizable skillset, fill out this form and I’ll get back to you! 👇