Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind
by Al Ries and Jack Trout
The 1981 original: the mind is a battleground, there is room for only a few brands per category, and the way to win is to own a word or a position relative to the leader (Avis 'We try harder'). Dated examples, timeless logic, and the root of every positioning book since.
Read it if…
you want the original theory and the reason the concept exists.
Skip it if…
you want a modern method; see Obviously Awesome.
Three things you will actually use
- You cannot change the mind; position against what is already there.
- Own a word.
- If you are not first, reposition the leader or create a new category.
Do this first
Write the one word you want to own in the customer's mind and check whether a competitor already owns it.
Our verdict
The original, dated and timeless.
Compare with other Entrepreneurship books
Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Peter F. Drucker · Entrepreneurship
Innovation as a discipline.
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