Positioning worksheet template for packaging suppliers
Use this positioning worksheet worksheet to explain who the offer is for, what problem it solves and what evidence supports choosing it. It is written for packaging suppliers and starts with an illustrative offer: a packaging development and supply order. Replace the assumptions with evidence from your own business before using the result.
Leave with a testable positioning statement and a list of evidence needed to support it.
Start with a real buying situation
For the worked example, the audience is an operations lead launching a physical product. Their problem is that design, packing efficiency and transport requirements are not aligned. The desired practical outcome is a specification tested against the actual product and packing process.
The example is deliberately bounded: minimum order quantities and artwork approval affect the schedule. That condition should influence the promise, scope and next step rather than disappear from the marketing copy.
| Illustrative offer | a packaging development and supply order |
|---|---|
| Buyer question | Which failure matters most: damage, packing time, shelf fit or presentation? |
| Possible evidence | a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results |
| Useful asset | a packaging specification and approval worksheet |
How to complete your positioning worksheet
- Name the customer and the situation in which they need help.
- Describe the alternative they use today.
- Choose the most relevant difference your offer can demonstrate.
- Connect that difference to a useful customer outcome.
- Test the statement in conversation and ask people to repeat what they understood.
Worked example
These entries are illustrative planning material, not research findings or customer results. Keep the structure and replace the content with verified details.
| For this customer and situation | Packaging suppliers buyers, especially an operations lead launching a physical product, dealing with this issue: design, packing efficiency and transport requirements are not aligned. |
|---|---|
| The current alternative | An existing provider, an internal process or no change. Ask which alternative the buyer actually uses. |
| Our relevant difference | A clearly scoped offer and visible evidence: a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results. |
| Evidence we can show | Use a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results; check whether it answers the buyer’s uncertainty. |
| The short positioning statement | For an operations lead launching a physical product, our a packaging development and supply order helps work towards a specification tested against the actual product and packing process. Evaluate it through approve a sample and a limited packing trial before the full order. |
Review before using it
A useful operational measure in this example is pass rate against the agreed sample and packing checks. That does not automatically make it a marketing attribution metric. Define the source, period and owner before drawing conclusions.
- Does the statement distinguish the offer without inventing a claim about competitors?
- Check the delivery assumptions: Confirm specifications, tooling ownership, tolerances, lead times and reorders.
- Use evidence rather than promises. Do not make unsupported sustainability or recyclability claims.
- Discuss the draft with someone who understands the buying situation. Start with: “Which failure matters most: damage, packing time, shelf fit or presentation?”
- If the next step is a trial, define its purpose. One possible starting point is to approve a sample and a limited packing trial before the full order.
Common mistakes and a better review
Do not fill a missing fact with an impressive-sounding number. Mark it as an assumption, explain how you will check it and give that check an owner. A short, honest document is easier to use than an elaborate plan built on unknowns.
| Watch for | Words such as innovative or premium add little when they have no observable meaning. |
|---|---|
| A real buyer concern | We need a smaller order at the same unit price. |
| Useful response direction | We can compare material, tooling and production setup costs, then price a smaller batch or an alternative specification. |
| Evidence to collect | The buyer’s own account, a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results, and records relevant to pass rate against the agreed sample and packing checks. |
Your working sheet.
Make the exercise your own. Notes are saved in this browser when storage is available. Download a copy to keep; avoid confidential information on a shared device.
Example: Packaging suppliers buyers, especially an operations lead launching a physical product, dealing with this issue: design, packing efficiency and transport requirements are not aligned.
Example: An existing provider, an internal process or no change. Ask which alternative the buyer actually uses.
Example: A clearly scoped offer and visible evidence: a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results.
Example: Use a physical sample with dimensions, material and agreed test results; check whether it answers the buyer’s uncertainty.
Example: For an operations lead launching a physical product, our a packaging development and supply order helps work towards a specification tested against the actual product and packing process. Evaluate it through approve a sample and a limited packing trial before the full order.
Review your work
This is a reflection checklist, not an automated assessment.
Questions
How do I adapt this for my packaging suppliers business?+
Is the filled example ready to publish?+
What should I do after completing the worksheet?+
Illustrative business worksheet. No customer results, market rates, traffic volumes or performance benchmarks are implied.
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