Could a Yoga Studio Say This?
Reject positioning language that any unrelated business could claim
- Difficulty
- Starter
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 98%
This specificity test evaluates whether marketing language says anything distinctive. The reviewer removes the surrounding context and asks whether an unrelated yoga studio could plausibly use the same line. If it could, the copy is probably generic aspiration rather than positioning. Phrases about helping people thrive, transforming lives, or unlocking potential often fail because they reveal neither the product nor the customer’s concrete value. The team then adds specificity about the audience, problem, mechanism, outcome, or category and repeats the test. Its usefulness comes from simplicity: rather than debating abstract standards of good copy, anyone on the team can apply one memorable question during day-to-day reviews.
Origin
The hosts described this as an internal maxim developed at HubSpot while reviewing copy and positioning. Extracted from Marketing Against The Grain.
Core principles
- 01Interchangeable language communicates no meaningful position
- 02Specific copy should reveal the product, audience, or value
- 03Simple maxims make abstract copy standards usable every day
- 04An unrelated-business test exposes empty aspiration quickly
How to run it
- 1
Isolate the line
Review the headline, tagline, or positioning statement without relying on nearby imagery or explanation.
Pro tip Paste it into a blank document to remove brand context.
- 2
Run the yoga-studio test
Ask whether a generic yoga studio could credibly use the exact same statement.
Pro tip Substitute another unrelated business if that makes the test clearer.
Watch out Do not excuse generic wording because the design makes the product obvious.
- 3
Locate the missing specificity
Determine whether the line lacks a defined audience, problem, mechanism, category, or outcome.
- 4
Rewrite concretely
Add the minimum information needed to make the claim recognizably yours.
Pro tip Prefer customer and outcome language over inflated adjectives.
Watch out Specificity should remain accurate and supportable.
- 5
Retest
Repeat the unrelated-business comparison until the line no longer transfers naturally.
Watch out Do not overstuff the line merely to make it unique.
In the wild
A project-management homepage says it is “helping humanity thrive.” Because a yoga studio or many unrelated organizations could make the same claim, the line does not explain the software, its user, or its concrete benefit.
→ The test flags the statement for a more specific rewrite.
Common mistakes
Defending empty aspiration
Positive emotional language is not positioning when nearly any organization can claim it.
Making specificity unreadable
Adding every product detail can produce a unique but overloaded line; include only the distinctions needed for recognition.
Is it for you?
Best for
Teams reviewing homepage headlines, taglines, positioning statements, and campaign copy.
Not ideal for
Legally mandated language or intentionally broad corporate-purpose statements that are not meant to sell or differentiate.
From the transcript
“could a yoga studio say this? If a yoga studio could say it, it's bad.”
“if this could be a strap line for a yoga studio, it's not good.”
“simple maxims like that at the end of the day do work like exceptionally well.”
From the episode
Revealing the 2024 Marketing Strategy of a $200M Founder