Positioning for tech companies. Author of the best-selling books Obviously Awesome and Sales Pitch.

April Dunford is the world's foremost authority on product positioning for B2B technology companies. As a consultant, April helps companies make complex products easy to understand and love. After a 25-year career as a VP of Marketing at various fast-growing technology firms, she has consulted with 300 technology companies, including Google, Epic Games, Postman, and others. April is the acclaimed author of the best-selling book, "Obviously Awesome," which delves into the art of positioning, and the newly released, "Sales Pitch," which unveils the secrets to crafting a winning sales narrative in the market.

April Dunford

ANNOUNCEMENT - The new updated and expanded Obviously Awesome is coming!!! 🎉 🎉 

I've been sitting on this one for a while, so I'm SUPER EXCITED to get this out into the world!! 

Almost 7 years ago, I published Obviously Awesome, my attempt at describing the process I use to position B2B tech products and companies. I didn't expect many people to read it. I was wrong. 

Since then, more than 100,000 people have bought the book, and countless companies have used the process. A few hundred did that with me directly, and many, many more of you worked through the process on your own using the book. I've learned a LOT over the past 7 years, and I decided it was time to bring those learnings back to the book. 

The new edition is coming in FEBRUARY (don't ask me for a specific date - it's Amazon's world, we're just living in it). Here's what's new:

📙 5 STEPS (not 10) - In the first edition, I describe 5 components of positioning and a 10-step process for doing it. Some of you really hated that the number of steps in the process wasn’t equal to the number of components. The first few steps were pre-work, and the final steps are work that follows the exercise. I have repositioned those steps (see what I did there), and we now have 5 components and 5 steps. 

📙 The PRE-WORK section has been expanded to include key decisions a team should make before beginning a positioning exercise. This is based on my work with clients, and I think it will greatly improve any team’s chances of success when following this process.

📙 I have included sections that are more relevant to MULTIPRODUCT companies grappling with how to position their products in a company with multiple offerings. 

📙 Some steps in the process have been significantly expanded—particularly the Differentiated Value step. Most teams told me they got stuck there. I hope this new, improved section helps to clarify the concept.

📙 The final section, What Happens AFTER a Positioning Exercise, has been greatly expanded. This new section reflects my current thinking on how best to create a sales pitch to test positioning and then turn that positioning into messaging.

📙 For the first time, there will be a HARDCOVER edition. Most of you won't care, but I have seen some seriously well-loved (but also beat-up and scraggly) paperbacks at conferences, and I decided some of you need a copy that’s a little more durable!

🎙️ To go with the book, I'm reviving the Positioning PODCAST and will release a new series of episodes that dive into the book's new material. 
✍ The same goes for the NEWSLETTER (always the best way to follow my stuff). 

A new podcast episode and newsletter article drop TOMORROW - links in the comments.

You don't want to start any positioning work before making a key set of decisions

1️⃣ Is now the right time? 
Do we have enough customer experience to understand how prospects make decisions? Have we worked with enough customers to know - at least at a high level - what makes a good-fit customer different from a bad-fit customer? If the answer is no, we might want to develop a positioning thesis and tighten our positioning after we have closed more business.

2️⃣ Are we clear who this positioning is for? 
Positioning for customers is not the same as positioning for investors or employees. If we start working on positioning and half the team thinks we are building a sales pitch, the other half thinks we are building an investor pitch, very bad things will happen. 

3️⃣ What exactly are we positioning?  
Are we positioning the company, a product, or a group of products? The answer to this question might require deeper thinking about your go-to-market strategy. Getting a clear answer to this question will save you from having to debate this point mid-way through your positioning work.  

4️⃣ Which persona are you positioning for? Teams outside the sales team may not understand what a deal champion is and may be overly focused on positioning for other personas. When we talk about "value," we need to be clear about who perceives it. 

If you don't make these decisions up front, I can guarantee you will regret it. I've seen many teams rush into positioning work, only to stop midway to debate these points and backtrack to redo work they have already started. 

(I'm covering this topic in more detail in the newsletter and the podcast this week - links in comments)

Kollectively 

We work with founders and CEOs to build results-driven business and brand strategies in tech and innovation sector.
•	Develop communications strategy and marketing plans for multiple technology startups and early stage ventures
•	Develop business positioning and key messaging frameworks for broad cross-section of businesses
•	Excellent track record of driving results: from strategic brand vision, through to multi disciplinary team management, software integration, implementation, delegation, management and analysis.
•	Advise clients and assist in the development of internal and external communication programs to rollout key branding initiatives
•	Created and facilitated multiple sales and marketing strategic planning workshops

Partner and Strategist

Our clients are market leaders and boundary-pushing innovators. We've worked with Fintech, Digital Health, IoT, Blockchain, Manufacturing, Accelerators and more.

Strategist

Women's Equity Lab

Limited Partner

Foresight Canada

Entrepreneur In Residence

The Forum

In addition to participating as a volunteer with FWE's HSBC Mentor Program, and acting as an occasional moderator and speaker for FWE, I was also responsible for the development of its integrated communications strategy, including a new website build and blog creation. This digital strategy served to significantly strengthen FWE's online presence and brand, as well as engagement with its community.

Mentor, Speaker

Futurpreneur Canada

Futurpreneur champions youth entrepreneurship across Canada by providing pre- and post-launch coaching, business resources, start-up financing and mentoring to empower young Canadians, age 18-34, to start and grow a businesses that contribute to sustainable economic development in their communities.

Current Mentee: 
Futurpreneur champions youth entrepreneurship across Canada by providing pre- and post-launch coaching, business resources, start-up financing and mentoring to empower young Canadians, age 18-34, to start and grow a businesses that contribute to sustainable economic development in their communities.

Current Mentees: 
Josh Bloomfield, CycleCity Tours

Business Mentor

LOI - League of Innovators

The RAISE Collective

The RAISE Collective built a dynamic community of women interested in early-stage and private-company investing. We foster connections between like-minded women investors and collaborate with partners to provide learning and investment opportunities, trusted resources and networking events.

Co-Founder

Sponsifi

Cause marketing is ripe for disruption. Sponsifi leverages the convergence of three major industry trends with an innovative approach to building customer loyalty. It is the next-generation cause/sponsorship marketing solution based on crowdfunding.

Advisor

Scoop® MAE Mobile Enterprise Apps Platform

Scoop automates any workforce-intensive Facility and Field process on one mobile platform so busy managers can gain access to real-time information easily, and share accurate reports on their operations anytime, anywhere. With accurate and current data, improved accountability, and powerful analytics business can manage risks and resources - and set strategy with confidence.

Hoseanna.com

As co-founder of a subscription e-commerce startup, Hoseanna.com, I created and launched a subscription commerce site for women’s monthly ‘must-have’ products. In addition to developing the brand strategy (brand voice, core values statement, positioning statement and key messaging), I co-created the investor deck and pitched investors, which resulted in successfully procuring $250K in seed money prior to launch. The company was privately acquired in 2014.
My partner and I managed all aspects of design and execution for the website. We developed a multi-platform marketing strategy including all social and digital channels. We developed an innovative PR and blogger strategy, resulting in several mentions in national women's magazines and well read blogs. Prior to launch we secured contracts with nationally-recognized brand manufacturers and wholesalers.

Katrina is a founder and partner at Kollectively, a strategic branding and marketing agency focused on the innovation and technology sector. She has over two decades of experience in brand strategy, marketing, communications, and startup strategy with both private and public companies.

A respected subject matter expert, Katrina has co-delivered brand and marketing-focused seminars for growth-stage tech companies to associations such as Viatec, Foresight Cleantech Accelerator, The Forum and W Ventures.

Passionate about supporting entrepreneurs, Katrina is a Board member of the Forum, and LP with Women’s Equity Lab, an Executive in Residence with Foresight, and a mentor with New Ventures BC. She also sits on the Economic Leadership Team and innovation working group for the District of Squamish in support of their vision for sector development in the green economy. She is a former board member of Make a Wish Foundation and Dress for Success.


Specialties: Brand Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Key Message Development; Traditional and Digital Marketing; Business Plan Development; Pitch Development.

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