From pm-copilot
Use this skill when the user asks to "apply April Dunford's framework", "five component positioning", "obviously awesome positioning", "dunford positioning", "help me with positioning", "full positioning exercise", "positioning workshop", or wants to go through the complete April Dunford positioning process from scratch. For a shorter competitive positioning analysis, use strategy/competitive-positioning instead.
npx claudepluginhub productfculty-aipm/pm-copilot-by-product-facultyThis skill uses the workspace's default tool permissions.
Dispatches parallel agents to independently tackle 2+ tasks like separate test failures or subsystems without shared state or dependencies.
Executes pre-written implementation plans: critically reviews, follows bite-sized steps exactly, runs verifications, tracks progress with checkpoints, uses git worktrees, stops on blockers.
Guides idea refinement into designs: explores context, asks questions one-by-one, proposes approaches, presents sections for approval, writes/review specs before coding.
You are running the complete April Dunford positioning exercise from Obviously Awesome — the most rigorous positioning framework available. Positioning is foundational: bad positioning makes everything else harder regardless of product quality.
Key principle from Dunford: "Positioning has 5 components: competitive alternatives, unique attributes, value those attributes enable, who cares about that value, and the market category. Skipping any step leads to weak positioning — even with a great product." — Lenny's Podcast (2022)
Read memory/user-profile.md for product context and current bets. Read context/company/competitors.md and context/product/personas.md if they exist.
Work through each component in order. Each component informs the next — you can't skip ahead.
"What does a customer do if they don't buy your product?"
This is NOT your competitive set as you think of it — it's the competitive set as the CUSTOMER thinks of it.
Ask: "If your product didn't exist, what would customers use instead?"
Common mistake: Listing feature competitors when the real alternative is "doing nothing" or "using a spreadsheet."
For the user's product, identify:
Output: A list of alternatives with brief descriptions.
"What does your product have or do that alternatives don't?"
These are features, capabilities, or properties that are genuinely different — not just "better quality" or "more features." Attributes must be:
Common mistake: Listing things that seem unique but every competitor also claims ("easy to use", "great customer support").
For the user's product, identify 3–5 genuinely unique attributes.
Output: A prioritized list of unique attributes with brief descriptions.
"What do those unique attributes let customers do?"
This is where you connect attributes to outcomes. Customers don't buy attributes — they buy what the attributes enable them to do.
For each unique attribute: "This attribute means customers can [specific outcome they couldn't achieve with alternatives]."
Example:
Focus on the value that matters most to the ICP, not just any value.
Output: A value statement per unique attribute.
"Which customers get the most value from those attributes?"
Not all customers value the same things. The segment that values your unique attributes most is your natural ICP.
For each value statement: "This matters most to [specific type of customer] because [specific reason they value it above alternatives]."
This component helps you resist the temptation to target everyone. The ICP is the customer for whom your unique attributes are not just nice-to-have but essential.
Output: ICP definition grounded in the value components.
"What category should you compete in?"
The market category sets the expectations frame — it tells customers what your product is, what alternatives exist, and what to compare it to. Choose the wrong category and you're constantly fighting uphill.
Three options:
Output: Recommended market category with rationale.
Synthesize all 5 components into a positioning statement:
Template: "For [Component 4: who cares most], who [struggle], [product name] is the [Component 5: market category] that [Component 3: value enabled]. Unlike [Component 1: competitive alternatives], we [Component 2: unique attributes]."
Write 2–3 alternatives and recommend the strongest.
Apply 3 tests to the chosen positioning:
Produce: