If your members could only use four words to describe your business, what would they say?

And if you had to do the same, what words would you use to describe your space?

Good positioning makes it easy for someone to summarize your value proposition in just a few words.

In other words, good positioning lets you be “pigeonholed”. 

Being pigeonholed isn’t a bad thing, despite how it may sound. It allows people to know where you fit in the market, which is the essence of good positioning.

It also makes it easier for people to refer you to others, which is always a welcome benefit.

A quick thought experiment

Imagine a world where marketing was comprised exclusively of four-word positioning statements.

Your space had four words and your competition had theirs. Prospects had to use just those statements to decide where to work.

Would your four words be specific and interesting enough to make people choose you? Would they turn any heads?

Good positioning is a signal. It reduces risk for your ideal members by showing them whether you have focus. And if so, it also tells them whether your focus is spent on their highest needs or not.

Focus is an indication of quality for those you aim to serve, and there’s no better way to focus your value proposition than by trying out this thought experiment (and then living by it).

What four words would you choose if that’s all you had to sell your space with?

P.S. Mine would be, “I fill coworking spaces”. It’s not perfect, but it tells people what I do better than most other words I could use.

H/T to Mark Evans for the original idea of a “four word story“.