Hey friends,

Do you like long form written content? If you want more of this type of content (or any other specific things from me and the TSB HQ team ~ I’d love some feedback, here. *Plus, to make it worth your while – THREE winners will be selected from all who submit to win their choice of THREE of my mini courses. Selecting the winners next week on 1/21!

Now, let’s talk positioning.

When clients work with me 1:1 on their positioning I dive deep into their brand. I eat, breathe, and SLEEP their expertise, audience, and marketing. I let it consume me and ooze out of my pores (lol ew, but true).

Because, when it comes to positioning and revamping…I want to know every in and out of your brand before I even think of adjusting anything. I want to see how it feels, sits, reacts with me – and what feels like the clearest next step in order to move the brand to its next evolution.

To have me step inside your business and craft your entire brand position and messaging in just one months time, it’s $6,500. And it’s one of my favorite ways to support entrepreneurs. I LOVE working on positioning. But, I also get that that isn’t in everyone’s budget.

So, today we’re breaking down the steps I suggest you take and how to implement them if your positioning is off in your business. Let’s get started!

You Have a Brand Positioning Problem if…

If your business is sitting in outdated positioning, it will feel like…

• You’re struggling to clearly articulate what you mean, and you keep screenshotting other people’s captions, ads, or copy thinking, “THAT’S what I meant.”
  
• You rewrite your IG bio or about page like clockwork every three months, convinced you’ve outgrown it or it needs a zhuzh.
  
• You have multiple frameworks, all solid, but none you can explain in one sentence or that feel primary to the brand.
  
• You overthink messaging decisions, then post something random at the last minute just to stay visible.
  
• You toggle between “corporate clean” and “oversharing real talk,” unsure which version performs better.
  
• Your business to-dos feel endless, but your brand feels stagnant and you’re not sure where to start.

If you nodded along, you don’t have a motivation problem.

You have a positioning opportunity.

Positioning isn’t your bio. It’s the heartbeat your brand is built around.
So here’s how to DIY yours in three steps and land on a 2–5 word brand ISM you can build everything from.

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Step One: Choose Your “Main Character” Buyer

Buyers need a clear, commercial translation of what you help them do, how it works, and why it matters in their real life.

To do that, start with demographic and psychographic information.

And I know you might be thinking…

“But Shannon, which segment of my audience do I choose?”

Here’s my answer.

Lead from your intermediate buyer.
That gives you a broad segment to speak to, it rolls up the aspirational beginners, and it lets you articulate your expertise without watering down your authority.

So your job in Step One is to capture an audience snapshot you’re positioning for.

Action Step #1

Clearly define the person you’re speaking to, the promise you deliver, and the process you use.

Fill out:

• Who am I speaking to, and what are her current pain points?
• What is the core promise or result I help clients achieve?
• What is the process I use to get them there?

✅ Output: A clear “who this is for” anchor.

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Step Two: Articulate Their Problem

Now we articulate the problem in a way that actually triggers a buyer using:

Symptoms (Emotion), Diagnosis (Logic), Prescription (Credibility)

This journey feels cathartic for a lead because they feel seen first, then they understand the truth, then they trust you.

Here’s how decisions happen:

• Emotion: “This speaks to me.”
• Logic: “This makes sense.”
• Credibility: “I trust you can help.”

Picture a three-story house.
Emotion is the foundation, logic is the structure, credibility is the roof.
If the foundation isn’t emotional, the whole thing wobbles.

Step One gives you the person.
Step Two gives you the why.

Action Step #2

Take one core problem your audience has and rewrite your message using the Meet → Shift → Sell method.

• Meet: reflect their current belief in their own words
• Shift: reframe it with a sharper truth backed by proof and process
• Sell: show how your solution naturally follows

Goal: They finish reading thinking, “Ohhh, that explains so much.”

✅ Output: A problem statement that creates clarity and trust.

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Step Three: Turn Your Take Into a Brand ISM

Now we zoom out from Steps 1 and 2 and ask the question that creates real positioning:

What’s the “ism” here?
Your heartbeat. Your standard. Your rebellion. The identity they step into through you.

This is where you stop sounding like a service provider or coach and start sounding like a brand.

Your brand ISM becomes your 2–5 word positioning statement, the north star that everything else builds from.

Action Step #3

Use these prompts:

• Start from your proof. What does your method prove?
• Start from your person. Who are they becoming through you?
• Start from your rebellion. What rule are you breaking?

Pull together your founder philosophy, buyer identity shift, method truth, proof patterns, industry tension, and values.

✅ Output: A 2–5 word ownable brand statement you can build your whole positioning from.

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A Mock Example: How This Turns Into a 2–5 Word Positioning Statement

Let’s pretend we’re creating a mock business.

Mock Business: A brand photographer who works with online service providers.

She’s great at what she does, but she wants an ownable brand statement that isn’t generic like:

• “I help you show up confidently.”
• “Personal branding for entrepreneurs.”
• “Photos that convert.”

So we’re going to DIY this using the exact steps above.

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Step One: Start With Your Audience Snapshot

Who am I speaking to, what do they want, what’s their current reality?

Who am I speaking to?

Intermediate online entrepreneurs making $80K–$250K/year.
They’ve been in business long enough to have real traction, but their brand presence is lagging behind their actual skill.

What are their current pain points?

• They’ve outgrown “DIY Canva vibes,” but don’t know what’s next.
• Their brand looks fine, but not premium, recognizable, or specific.
• They feel like they’re constantly trying to “look like a real business” online.
• They’re selling something legit, but their content and visuals aren’t matching their expertise.

What is the core promise/result I help them achieve?

They become instantly legible and high-value at first glance, so their brand feels like a category, not a profile.

What process do I use to get them there?

A shoot + brand direction process that focuses on:

• Visual message clarity, what your brand communicates in two seconds.
• Identity-based creative direction, how you want to be perceived.
• Showmanship visuals that look editorial, not influencer-y.

✅ Output of Step 1:
My audience is capable, established, and ready to look as premium as they are.

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Step Two: Articulate the Problem

Symptoms, diagnosis, prescription.

Now we take the core problem and rewrite it in a way that actually triggers a buyer.

Symptoms (Emotion): what it feels like

“I have proof I’m good, but my brand doesn’t look like it.”
“I’m kind of embarrassed sending people to my Instagram.”
“My content feels random because I don’t have a visual angle to anchor it.”

Diagnosis (Logic): what’s actually happening

Your visual brand isn’t clearly communicating:

• what you’re known for
• what quality tier you’re in
• what kind of client experience you deliver

So your audience can’t quickly place you.

Your work might be premium, but your online presence is speaking in a mid-tier accent.

Prescription (Credibility): what solves it

You need visual assets designed to do three things:

• Signal your authority instantly.
• Make your brand feel intentional and editorial.
• Create an ownable look people recognize before they read a caption.

✅ Output of Step 2:
The problem isn’t lack of talent, it’s lack of visual translation.

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Step Three: Your Unique Creative Take Becomes Positioning

Now we zoom out from the audience snapshot and the problem articulation and ask the question that creates real positioning.

What is the “ism” here?
What’s the standard, identity shift, or mission this brand is going to be known for?

This is where your positioning statement gets born.

Instead of “brand photography,” she chooses an ownable North Star that everything can roll up into. The visuals. The voice. The promise. The vibe. The value.

Here are three different brand ISMs she could choose, all built from the same Step 1 + Step 2 insights.

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Final Brand ISM Options

“Authority Illustrated“

The heartbeat: Your brand exists to turn “she’s legit” into something people can see in 0.2 seconds.

What “illustrated” means: Your expertise gets a visual language, proof, clarity, and polish that reads like a magazine spread.

What your audience achieves: You become instantly credible and hard to ignore, which makes selling feel less like persuasion and more like inevitable agreement.

One sentence to audience: Turn your expertise into an editorial moment, so your authority is obvious before you say a word.

Visual: editorial, elevated, magazine cover, “oh she’s the real deal.”

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“Become a Head Turner“

The heartbeat: Your brand is built to stop the scroll with intention.

What “turn heads” signals: You don’t just look good. You look distinct. Taste, confidence, POV. People remember you because you don’t feel like anyone else.

What your audience achieves: You become the one people send to their friends, quote in convos, and recognize immediately, because your presence has a signature.

One sentence to audience: Become the brand people double take on, then immediately search for because they need to know who you are.

Visual: bold, iconic, “wait WHO is that?”

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“Brand Magnet“

The heartbeat: Your brand is designed to create pull, so the right people find you, want you, and come closer before you ever pitch.

What “magnet energy” is: Clear signals, strong identity, premium perception that does the sorting for you. Like, “If you’re my person, you’ll feel it.”

What your audience achieves: Less chasing. Less convincing. More inbound demand, aligned opportunities, because your brand starts doing what great positioning is supposed to do, attract.

One line sentence to audience: Make your brand so specific and desirable that the right people feel pulled toward you, and the wrong people filter themselves out.

Visual: effortless, desirable, “how are they always booked?”

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How to Use This If You’re DIYing Your Own Positioning

Once you pick your ISM, everything else gets easier because you have a filter.

Your visual identity becomes an extension of the heartbeat.
Your UVP becomes a clearer promise because it’s rooted in one mission.
Your messaging stops being random because you’re building a world.

This is why a 2–5 word positioning statement matters.

It’s not just a phrase.

It’s the North Star your entire brand finally gets to orbit.

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Closing Tips for You

• Put it into a bible to pull from and pepper it into your assets
• Craft your offer messaging per offer under this positioning umbrella 

Remember: Messaging refines with time. AND you’ll introduce new relevant angles consistently. When you notice your points aren’t hitting the same or they’re getting repeated by peers for their own content, create fresh phrases using this process. 

I’m so excited for you!

Wanting more hands-on support working on this together?

I recommend starting with a signature offer as it’s going to inform the positioning. So if this is lighting you up and you want that sort of business model where one offer is making 60% of the revenue…work with me in Make It Online. We’ll work on your signature offer suite, sales systems, and marketing plans!

If you want to dive head first into DIYing your positioning yourself – I have something for that too! Click here to learn more about Under the Influence. 

Thinking ‘screw it, I want Shannon to do this for me!’ – I’d be honored to work on your positioning overhaul! Let’s work 1:1!