Explain how you’d build a positioning document for a new product line. What sections would you include and why?

Anyone can list the usual sections. The interviewer is checking whether you know what each one is for and whether you’d produce a document that sales and product will open.

Expect this answer to be judged on strategic thinking. The rubric says a Strong answer on strategic thinking defines measurable outcomes and adjusts when results fall short.

1. Customer and alternative. Who it’s for and what they do today, which anchors everything else.
2. Problem and frame of reference. The problem in the customer’s words and what buyers should compare you with.
3. Capabilities with proof. Two or three things that matter, what each does for the customer and the evidence.
4. Competitors and messaging. An honest comparison, one headline, three supports and a list of claims you won’t make.
5. Open questions and owners. The unknowns, so nobody treats a draft as settled.

The details below are made up. Swap in your own story and figures.

“I’d keep it to about three pages because sales won’t read more. Say a payments company is adding invoicing. The document opens with the customer and what they do today, in this case freelancers chasing payments by email and spreadsheet. Next is the problem in their words, then the frame of reference, which tells buyers what to compare us with. I’d choose invoicing inside the payment flow over another accounting tool. After that come the two or three capabilities that matter, what each does for the customer and the proof, such as median days to get paid. Then the alternatives and how we honestly compare. Then the messaging, one headline, three supports and a short list of things we won’t claim. I’d end with open questions and an owner for each, since a positioning document that hides its unknowns gets treated as settled. Sales, product and design each review it before it’s final.”

“I would include the target audience, value proposition, key messages, competitive analysis and proof points. I would share it with the team so everyone is aligned on how to talk about the product.”

The weak answer lists sections without saying why each one is there. Explain what decision each section supports and who will use the document.

• Who signs off on the document?
• How often do you update it?
• What do people usually leave out?
• How do you keep it from becoming shelfware?

Draft a short answer to each and read them aloud. The follow-up questions guide has a method for keeping them tight.

• Messaging for a crowded category
• Repositioning or refining
• Positioning a me-too AI feature
• An AI-powered headline
• All messaging and positioning questions