Relying on narrative differentiation is obviously essential when products are essentially the same across you and your competitor set, but it's also a tough thing to do? Any advice?

This is a great question. Overall, product differentiation is key and one of the roles I really enjoy within PMM is having such a pulse and influence on what differentiates your product in the market - but it's not enough to just be different, it needs to matter to your customer and it needs to come to life in your marketing. This makes me think about my time at Old Navy where denim was our largest product category year over year. (Stick with me, this will translate to tech too, I promise). There are countless options for jeans and within the value fashion category, a few key competitors we had our eyes on. On factors like quality, fashion, value, preference on washes - we were head to head with our competitors. This is why our campaign work was critical to help break through. But in our latest focus groups as part of ad campaigns, we captured insights from customers that they really loved how newer cropped styles made them feel confident "showing off their ankles" as a transition to Fall. We were able to take this insight as key input into our creative brief and overall helped reinforce our positioning as the accessble fashion destination for denim. My point is, you might find that within your competitve set your product might have a large hurdle to differentiate in the category - you should always push 100% to build the best differntiated product for your customers - but equally important, it comes back to your customers and finding the greatest value to them and reinforcing it in your GTM strategy/approach.  

The narrative is a huge part of positioning. That's what frame your product's actual capabilities and determines which criteria are relevant or irrelevant. That said, I don't quite accept the view that we just have to cope with a world where our products are the same as competitors :) For sure, things move fast and no product differentiator can last forever... but we should be looking to take market positions and build capabilities that are unique and not rely only on narrative. 

Don't use corporate jargon and you're already 90% ahead of everyone else (if I had a nickel every time I read a company referring to their product as "industry-leading" or "robust"...).

How do your happiest, most successful customers describe your product? Use those words. Don't use different words for the sake of being different. Be CLEAR about what your product does, the pain points they solve, and show screenshots.

Talk to customers, read product reviews on G2, TrustRadius, etc. You'll notice patterns and might even be able to copy + paste their exact words in some cases.

You can't rely only on the narrative. But a strong one, especially one that frames up the problem and value you deliver as different / outsized, is critical to competitive success. But you know what else you need? Claim chowder. Proof points. Quantified impact. What actual results has your product proven to deliver? Weaving these into the narrative will help to make it more real, tangible, and create a sense of urgency for your audience. 

If you are relying on narrative differentiation alone, then the problem to solve is creating differentiated solutions rather than finding different stories to tell. Use competitive intel as a lever to get product, GTM, and operational strategy. Once you have that in place, you'll have differentiated offerings in the market, which is a foundational (and necessary) part of your narrative.

Ideally, your narrative should actually be doing the heavy lifting when it comes to differentiation. Features can easily be copied. As this question states, it often leads to products being essentially the same across a competitive set. The components of your narrative—the story and the reason why your product exists—can be the difference maker in conversations with prospects. What does your product stand for? What is the driving force behind your product strategy and the value you want to create for users/customers? You may have the same features as a competitor, but my guess is you don't have the same vision for solving your customers' problems. When that vision resonates with more customers, you'll find that it can make the difference between winning and losing. 

I totally agree that narrative differentiation is a difficult thing to do, especially in B2B SaaS markets that are crowded and when the tools do essentially a lot of the same things and accomplish the same goals for customers. 

In these situations, I usually come back to a very simple question: why do people buy from us? There has to be at least one reason your customers buy from you over your competitors, or you wouldn't have a viable business. 

• Figure out what those specific reasons are and build your narrative and positioning from that foundation
• If it's your customer experience, find customer quotes, case studies, Gong calls, etc. that will help you build that narrative.
• Find the right balance between using phrases and keywords that will ensure you're found when people are searching, but still staying true to your key reasons why you are different. 

You have to pick something to focus on. Find whatever edge you can and make it seem like the biggest deal in the world. 

You can also talk about the sum of the parts as the narrative. 

Another approach is if the products are similar, go after a different audience or go bigger on one specific industry. Become THE solution for one subvertical 

 I think there are loads of ways you can differentiate outside of product features.  

• Features: You offer something valuable that others don't within your product (e.g., automation)
• Customer experience: You have invested in UX and UI or for non-tech products the in-store or customer policy experiences deeply so that you provide a more frictionless user and customer experience. 
• Audience: There are alternative options on the market, but none that were built specifically for your audience (e.g. "designers", "small businesses", "The real estate industry" "diverse body types").
• Community and Brand: Perhaps your product is similar to alternatives, but you've built a better community around your product or a more engaging brand. 

Narrative differentiation is essential no matter what. No product speaks for itself and often comparing features can lead you down a "who wore it better" rabbit hole. Also, research actually shows people remember things better if they're part of a story. So your pitch will be a lot more memorable if your product features support the narrative of how you're going to change a customer's life for the better.

When I'm crafting competitive differentiation, I think about:

• What's the experience I'm selling and who is it for? Great positioning comes down to the value I'm unlocking for the customer, arguably the product is just the vehicle for doing that. So it's not just about the features, it's about how much time/frustration/money my customer will save and the wonderful fun they're going to have instead. Tell that story to the right people.

• Why have my existing customers chosen me? What drew them to my company? Win loss analysis is super helpful here and the more recent the data, the better.

• What's the stickiest spot for my sales team? What objections do they just not have answers to when it comes to certain competitors?

Here is a controversial statement: value communication beats narrative design. I know narrative and storytelling is a big topic in the product marketing world. But, I would encourage any reader here to invest in their ability to communicate value. here is why. From a sellers' perspective its nice to tell a good story. It has a feel good factor. And its nice to hear your own voice. However, one is focused on an output. A better story. But, the purchasing process is a rationale decision. A buyer needs to weigh up what am I getting at what expense level. This is an outcome decision. This holds especially true on the B2B side (vs B2C). Arguably value communication is a form of storytelling. Irrespective, a superior ability to inform how the acquisition of ones offering will change the acquires life makes you stand out. It automatically results in purchase preference.

So much for the philosophy of it all. If you are stuck at narrative differentiation. I would encourage the focus on non-functional aspects around mission, social good and community impact. One of my previous competitors had an inferior but credible offering. They beat above their weight by consistently doing two things 1. highlight why some of our features were not that important 2. highlight how they were investing some corporate profit % back into educational programs for girls. The former allowed them to draw us into their competitive battleground. And the latter made a difference in terms of undecided buyers.