I’ve been thinking deeply about positioning lately. It’s such a powerful part of marketing. A well-thought-out change in positioning can put a rocket 🚀 under your business—with no change in the core product.

A simple definition of positioning is "what a product does, and who it is for."

The roaring 1920s was an era marked by dramatic social and political change, particularly in the realm of women's rights. 

Amidst this, the American Tobacco Company faced a dilemma. How to convince the other half of the population—women—to smoke? Thereby doubling their addressable market.

Back then, cigarettes were predominantly smoked by men, and for women, the act of smoking was seen as a taboo, often associated with immoral behavior.

Enter George Washington Hill, the visionary president of the American Tobacco Company. Hill enlisted the help of Edward Bernays, a nephew of Sigmund Freud and a pioneer in the field of public relations, to craft a campaign that would revolutionize societal views.

Bernays, leveraging his understanding of psychology and public relations, consulted with psychoanalyst A. A. Brill. Brill suggested that cigarettes symbolized male power and that linking them to women’s fight for equality could be the key to changing perceptions. 

With this insight, Bernays orchestrated a PR stunt that would change history. He arranged for a group of elegant women to boldly smoke "torches of freedom" during the Easter Sunday Parade in New York in 1929, framing it as an act of defiance against male dominance.

The media was alerted in advance, and the next day, newspapers worldwide were abuzz with stories of the "torches of freedom." This stunt not only challenged societal norms but also marked a pivotal shift in the tobacco industry. Sales of cigarettes among women skyrocketed. 

Although we might question the moral aspects of the campaign, its results are undeniable. This campaign stands as a testament to the power of positioning.

Positioning is a small hinges that swing big doors. With clever positioning, even on a small budget and no fundamental change to the product, you can have an enormous impact on revenue.

Can you clearly articulate what your product does, and who it’s for?