Competitive Positioning Map
Type: template
Stage: Stage 2: Positioning Proof
Difficulty: beginner
A two-axis matrix for plotting competitors by price and audience specificity — visually identifying open territory, underserved segments, and emotional angles that no one owns yet.
Overview
The Competitive Positioning Map is the fastest way to see your market clearly. Instead of reading a list of competitor features, you place every competitor on two axes — and the white space in the chart becomes your strategic opportunity. This Creately template gives you a pre-built 2×2 grid with drag-and-drop competitor placement.
What this template does
The template provides a two-axis grid where you plot every competitor — including 'weird' competitors like spreadsheets and manual processes — based on two attributes that matter to your buyers.
The output is a visual map that makes three things immediately visible:
• Where competitors cluster (the crowded center you want to avoid)
• Where the map is empty (the open territory that may be your positioning opportunity)
• Where your proposed positioning sits relative to everyone else
The Creately version includes pre-labeled axes and competitor shape placeholders, making the initial setup fast even if you've never built a positioning map before.
Choosing your axes
The axes you choose determine what the map reveals. The most common mistake is choosing axes that don't reflect real purchasing criteria.
Effective axis pairs for Stage 2:
• Price (low → high) vs. Audience specificity (generic → niche) — useful when your differentiation is serving a specific segment at an accessible price
• Self-serve (no sales call) vs. Sales-led (requires a rep) on one axis; Simple (fast to implement) vs. Powerful (deep customization) on the other
• Consumer-focused vs. Enterprise-focused on one axis; Feature-narrow vs. All-in-one on the other
To choose: identify the two purchasing criteria your target buyers use most when evaluating options in your category. Those are your axes. If you're not sure, run five customer interviews and listen for what criteria they mention when comparing alternatives.
How to run the exercise
Step-by-step:
1. Open the Creately template and relabel the axes with your chosen attributes
2. List every competitor you've identified — direct competitors, weird competitors, and informal alternatives
3. Place each competitor on the grid based on your best assessment of where they sit on each axis
4. Plot your proposed positioning
5. Identify the emptiest quadrant that has actual buyers in it
6. Ask: is there demand evidence for the open territory? (Check Keywords Everywhere search volume and community activity)
If the open quadrant has verifiable demand, that's your positioning hypothesis. Validate it with a Carrd landing page test before committing.
Using the map with customers
The positioning map becomes more valuable when you show it to five potential customers and ask two questions:
• 'Where would you plot the tool you currently use for this?'
• 'Where on this map would your ideal solution sit?'
The gap between their answers is your positioning opportunity — stated in the customer's own frame of reference, not yours. When customers point to an empty quadrant and say 'I wish something existed there,' you have both the positioning direction and early customer validation in a single conversation.