One sneaky thing destroys positioning exercises.

And it disguises itself well.

It’s not out of malice or ill will...

But if left unchecked, it will burn out your team and resources – with nothing to show for it.

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Startups typically come to us with clear positioning problems:

❌ People read the website, but don’t really get it

❌ They get it, but not why they should pick them

❌ They need to “educate the market” so they buy

❌ They have too many segments and can’t prioritise

❌ They have too many products and can't explain the suite

So...

→ We run the whole project.

→ We address the problems.

→ We define the positioning.

The team seems excited.

But then, out of the blue 😰

This talk begins:

→ "Now we need some validation”

→ “We could do some A/B-testing"

→ "Let's test to see if the positioning works"

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Here’s why that’s a big fat red flag.

It is possible to test the positioning…

But for sales-led B2B startup, it just takes about two years:

→ Updating all sales & marketing collateral (Months 1-3)

→ Run marketing campaigns (Months 3-6+)

→ Fill your pipeline with ICP leads (Months 6-9)

→ Pitching ICP customers new messaging (Month 6-12)

→ Track leads & revenue KPIs over 12-24 months

→ Finally try to evaluate if positioning  is “working” (after ~2 years)

Being data driven is great.

But it’s not possible in this context!

So if someone’s knee-jerk reaction is “testing & validation”...

That’s usually a sign of a lack of conviction.

Just disguised as being “data-driven.”

And fair enough.

Maybe they’re actually not totally bought in with the decisions that were made.

But for the team, that can be deadly.

See, what tends to happen is that the “testing the positioning” turns into a rigged game between those who believe in it, and those they can never convince.

That lack of conviction will come out as the devil’s advocate, and endless fuzzy expectations of indisputable proof that cannot be met.

So if you’re second-guessing the positioning, be honest about it both to yourself, and your team.

Figure out if there is something realistic that could turn you into a believer, or if you actually need to go back to the drawing board.

But don’t say it’s about having a “data-driven approach” to testing or validation, because that will simply lead the entire team astray, chasing something that cannot be achieved.