Australian SMEs often struggle to cut through the noise. In a competitive landscape, simply having a good product or service isn’t enough. Effective market positioning – clearly defining where you sit in the minds of your customers – is crucial. And the foundation of strong positioning in 2026, and beyond, is deeply understanding and leveraging the actual language your customers use.

We’ve seen too many businesses create positioning statements based on what *they* think is important, or using industry jargon. This misses the mark. Customers don’t think like businesses; they think about solving their problems. To truly resonate, your positioning needs to reflect their world, their needs, and their vocabulary. This isn’t about dumbing things down, it’s about speaking directly to their motivations.

Here’s how to practically leverage customer language in your positioning development:

• Deep Listening is Key: Go beyond basic market research. Analyse customer reviews (Google, Facebook, industry-specific sites), social media conversations, and, crucially, transcripts of your sales and customer service interactions. What words do customers use to describe their challenges? What language do they use when they’re happy with a solution?
• Uncover the ‘Job to be Done’: Customers don’t buy products; they ‘hire’ them to do a job. Identifying this ‘job’ – the underlying need your product fulfils – will reveal the language they use to articulate that need. For example, someone buying a drill isn’t buying a drill, they’re buying ‘a hole in the wall’.
• Mirror, Don’t Create: Your positioning statement should *reflect* the language you’ve uncovered, not invent new terminology. If customers consistently refer to a problem as “time-consuming”, your positioning should address that directly, rather than using a business-centric term like “inefficient”.
• Test and Refine: Don’t assume your initial interpretation is correct. A/B test different positioning statements – using the customer’s language – in your advertising and website copy. Measure which resonates most effectively through click-through rates, conversion rates, and customer feedback.

As we move into 2027, the ability to authentically connect with customers will only become more important. By prioritising customer language in your positioning, you’ll build a stronger brand, attract the right customers, and ultimately, drive sustainable growth. Your next step should be to dedicate time to actively listening to your customers – truly understanding how they talk about their problems and the solutions they seek.