What it means:
Features are what your product does. Benefits are why your customer should care.

Example:

• Feature: “Integrates with 40+ dispatch platforms.”
• Benefit: “Never miss a trip again.”

How a good one looks:
A good feature explains function. A great benefit triggers action.
If your customer has to figure out the value themselves, you haven’t gone far enough.
Always ask: So what?

What it means:
Your dream customer, but real. A set of traits that define your most successful buyers.

How a good one looks:

• Specific industry, size, stage
• Real pains, not theoretical ones
• Buying behaviours and triggers
• Not “anyone with a budget”

Pro tip: If your ICP doc could apply to 90% of LinkedIn, start again.

What it means:
Messaging that comes from real data and customer signals — not guesswork or “cool feature” syndrome.

How a good one looks:

• Pulls from behaviour, interviews, usage trends
• Turns raw data into sticky storylines
• Makes customers feel seen, not sold to

Avoid:

• “Let’s just say we’re AI-powered”
• “Marketing by internal opinion”
• “We’re sure this matters. Probably.”

What it means:
The words you use to tell your product’s story — headlines, CTAs, product copy, decks, and more.

How a good one looks:

• Starts with the customer’s world, not your roadmap
• Uses language they’d say out loud
• Gets to the point (and the value) fast

What it means:
Positioning is the strategy. Messaging is the output.

• Positioning is where your product lives in the customer’s brain.
• Messaging is what you say out loud.

Think of it as:

• Positioning = internal compass
• Messaging = external megaphone

Quick check:
If your messaging feels fuzzy, your positioning probably is too.

What it means:
A character that represents a real buyer within your ICP — with goals, blockers, KPIs, and a to-do list.

How a good one looks:

• Operations Olivia — wants to reduce dispatch errors
• Founder Frank — needs to show revenue velocity
• Procurement Priya — hates vendor lock-in and long onboarding

Why it matters:
You’re not selling to logos. You’re selling to people who want to go home with fewer tabs open.

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What it means:
How you present and sell your product — plans, tiers, pricing, naming.

How a good one looks:

• Easy to understand
• Easy to compare
• Easy to choose

Bad packaging:

• Confuses more than it clarifies
• Leaves buyers wondering if they’re “doing it wrong”

What it means:
The space your product owns in your customer’s mind — relative to their alternatives (direct, indirect, or status quo).

How a good one looks:

• Names your audience
• Frames their problem
• Pokes at the cost of inaction
• Plants your product as the obvious choice

Hint:
If you can’t explain your product without naming a competitor, your positioning isn’t clear yet.

What it means:
Templates or models that help you structure your product’s story.

Classics include:

• April Dunford’s 10-step
• Gartner’s 7 Ps
• CLEAR™ and CORE™ (yes, the Ideas in Pixel ones)

How a good one looks:

• Sharp segmentation
• Crystal-clear alternatives
• Anchored in reality, not aspiration

Use when:
You’re stuck saying, “We’re kind of like X, but also not…”

What it means:
A model where the product sells itself. The user signs up, gets value, and upgrades — often without sales involved (until later).

How a good one looks:

• Free trial or freemium
• Clear onboarding path to value
• Usage triggers upsell or expansion

But note:
PLG is not “just launch and hope.” It’s just as much marketing — just in product form.

What it means:
The space your product owns in your customer’s mind — relative to their alternatives (direct, indirect, or status quo).

How a good one looks:

• Names your audience
• Frames their problem
• Pokes at the cost of inaction
• Plants your product as the obvious choice

Hint:
If you can’t explain your product without naming a competitor, your positioning isn’t clear yet.

What it means:
The bigger story your product lives in — and the shift it rides.

Structure of a good one:

• The world is changing...
• That creates a problem...
• If we don’t fix it, here’s what happens...
• Enter: your product, stage left.

How a good one looks:

• Starts with a movement, not a menu of features
• Creates urgency
• Feels fresh, not forced

Your job:
Make your product feel like the inevitable response to the moment we’re in.