Medium-Advantage Positioning
Win new categories by amplifying what the medium does uniquely well.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 96%
Medium-Advantage Positioning starts by cataloging what a new format can do differently from its incumbent rather than asking how closely it can imitate the old experience. Marketers translate differences—such as lower entry prices, unlimited digital display space, portability, community access, or reduced insurance and installation needs—into concrete customer value. They then lead with the advantages that make participation easier or expand what users can do. This approach neither dismisses the traditional medium nor claims that every novelty is inherently superior. Its mechanism is comparative but constructive: isolate distinctive properties, connect them to unmet needs, demonstrate accessible entry points, and let the new medium complement or expand the established category.
Origin
Discussing digital art and NFTs, Taylor argued that marketers should emphasize freedom from physical-space constraints and other distinctive advantages instead of resisting what makes the medium different.
Core principles
- 01A new medium should not be judged only as an imitation of the old one.
- 02Differences become positioning advantages when tied to user value.
- 03Lower entry costs and fewer physical constraints can expand participation.
- 04Marketing should explain the medium's distinctive benefits honestly.
How to run it
- 1
Catalog Differences
List the structural differences between the new medium and the established alternative without initially judging them.
Pro tip Include ownership, access, storage, cost, portability, and community behavior.
Watch out Do not limit the comparison to visual appearance or feature parity.
- 2
Translate into Benefits
Connect each meaningful difference to a user problem, aspiration, or reduced barrier.
Pro tip Use specific scenarios rather than abstract technological claims.
Watch out A technical distinction is not automatically customer value.
- 3
Choose the Sharpest Advantages
Prioritize benefits the incumbent medium cannot offer easily and that matter to the intended audience.
Pro tip Lead with two or three advantages rather than an exhaustive feature list.
Watch out Novelty alone is not a durable positioning claim.
- 4
Show Accessible Participation
Demonstrate realistic entry prices and simple first actions that let newcomers experience the advantage.
Pro tip Use examples below the category's sensational headline prices.
Watch out Highlighting only expensive outliers reinforces exclusivity.
- 5
Position as Expansion
Explain how the medium can complement, broaden, or create a pathway into the established category.
Pro tip Show progression between digital and traditional participation when evidence supports it.
Watch out Unnecessary attacks on incumbents can alienate adjacent enthusiasts.
In the wild
Taylor contrasts New York's limited wall space and the insurance and installation demands of physical art with digital collections that are not constrained in the same ways and can begin at modest prices.
→ Digital art is positioned through distinctive accessibility and ownership benefits rather than as an inferior physical substitute.
An event company stops apologizing that its conference is not physical and emphasizes searchable recordings, global access, instant translation, and persistent topic communities.
→ The digital medium attracts people underserved by location-bound events.
Common mistakes
Imitating the Incumbent
Trying to reproduce every legacy constraint prevents the new medium from expressing its strongest advantages.
Selling Technology Instead of Value
Customers care about what the medium enables, not merely the architecture underneath it.
Leading with Extreme Prices
Sensational examples can obscure accessible entry points and undermine the expansion argument.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for digital, decentralized, or otherwise novel products competing with familiar physical or legacy alternatives.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal when the new medium offers no meaningful customer advantage or its differences create greater costs than benefits.
From the transcript
“I think really highlighting what makes that space special is what marketers will have to lean into.”
“And what's so cool about digital art, you're not limited by space.”
“And I think instead of pushing away what makes it different, embrace what makes it different and what makes it special.”
From the episode
Rethinking your Market with Everette Taylor (CMO of Artsy)
Everette Taylor