The lead Project Manager at my company is an admirable guy. I like talking with him. Since I’m leaving the company, he recommended three different websites to me. They sound valuable.

Naturally, I don’t have time to really find out.

I used Chat GPT to give me the sparknotes on these three websites. Chat GPT kept reminding me of its September 2021 cutoff. I deleted the “who cares” and boldened the “I care” text. I’ll vaguely promise to revisit each of them later. Two relate to influencers in the business world, the other a concept.

April Dunford

April Dunford is a globally recognized expert in positioning and marketing strategy. She's well known for her book, "Obviously Awesome: How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It," where she shares her insights on the subject.

Importance of Positioning: Dunford emphasizes that proper positioning is critical in making customers understand your product's unique value. It lays the foundation for all marketing, sales, and product development strategies.

Context Matters: She teaches that the value of your product is perceived differently depending on the context in which it is placed. By positioning your product in the right market category, you help customers understand what your product does and why it's important.

Positioning is Not Branding or Taglines: Dunford clarifies that positioning is not just about creating catchy slogans or a great brand image. It's about deeply understanding your product, its unique features, who it is for, and why it is different/better than alternatives.

Five Components of Positioning: Dunford identifies five critical components of positioning: Competitive alternatives, unique attributes, value (and proof), target market characteristics, and market category. Understanding these components can help a company effectively position its product.

Positioning Process: Dunford offers a structured process to discover and validate a product's positioning. It involves understanding what customers love about your product, figuring out the characteristics of those customers, considering the competitive alternatives, determining your unique attributes, and defining your market category.

Iterative Process: Positioning is not a one-time event but an ongoing, iterative process. It should be revisited and potentially revised as the competitive landscape, your product, or the needs of your customers change.

Dan Martell

Dan Martell is a serial entrepreneur and an angel investor known for his expertise in building and scaling Software as a Service (SaaS) companies. Here are the key takeaways from Martell's teachings:

Clarity of Purpose: Martell emphasizes the need for founders to have a clear vision and purpose for their business. This clarity guides decision-making, helps maintain focus, and drives growth.

Value of Mentors: According to Martell, having a mentor or coach is crucial for an entrepreneur's success. A mentor who's been there before can provide invaluable advice, connections, and support.

Power of Networking: Martell stresses the importance of networking. Building relationships can lead to partnerships, client relationships, mentorships, and funding opportunities.

Importance of Metrics: Martell advocates for rigorous tracking of key business metrics. In the SaaS world, these might include Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR), Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC), and Churn Rate. These metrics help in understanding the business better and making data-informed decisions.

Customer Success: He places a strong emphasis on customer success. By ensuring that customers are satisfied and achieving their desired outcomes with your product, you can reduce churn and increase customer lifetime value.

Scalable Marketing Channels: Martell teaches entrepreneurs to identify and leverage scalable marketing channels. Once a channel has been validated and provides a positive return on investment, businesses should double down and maximize that channel.

Effective Team Building: Martell believes that a strong team is critical for a company's success. He talks about hiring the right people, developing a positive company culture, and fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility among team members.

Exit Strategy: As a serial entrepreneur, Martell often discusses the importance of having an exit strategy. He offers insights into the process of selling a business, from preparing your company for sale to finding the right buyer and negotiating a deal.

Mobius Loop

Mobius Loop is a concept used in agile development and design thinking to visualize a continuous process of discovery, options, delivery, and feedback. It encourages iterative work and ongoing learning and adjustment. The Mobius Loop has three main sections:

Discovery: In this phase, teams work to understand the problem, user needs, or goal. This involves research and gathering insights, often through user interviews, market research, and other methods.

Options: After gaining understanding through discovery, the team generates a range of potential solutions or strategies. This might involve brainstorming, ideating, and evaluating different possibilities.

Delivery: Once a potential solution has been chosen, it is then built and delivered. This could mean developing a new feature, launching a marketing campaign, or any other type of 'doing' to bring the solution to life.

The loop also emphasizes the importance of obtaining feedback at all stages. As such, it is seen as a continuous, infinite loop. Feedback should inform adjustments to the strategy or solution and can even lead to further discovery.

The Mobius Loop is particularly suited to complex problems or situations where needs and contexts may change rapidly, as it encourages ongoing adjustment and learning. It supports the philosophy of failing fast, learning, and adapting, which is central to agile and lean methodologies.

As with any method, the success of the Mobius Loop is dependent on the way it is implemented and used by teams. For it to work effectively, teams must be willing to continuously learn, adapt, and iterate.

What did I miss? A ton, I’m sure.