• Table of Contents

  • Top 10 Mistakes in Brand Positioning Branding | #MarkCMO
  • 1. Confusing Brand Positioning with Taglines
  • What to Do Instead
  • 2. Trying to Be Everything to Everyone
  • Strategic Fix
  • 3. Ignoring the Competitive Landscape
  • How to Avoid This
  • 4. Overcomplicating the Message
  • Keep It Simple
  • 5. Failing to Align Internally
  • Alignment Tactics
  • 6. Chasing Trends Instead of Truths
  • What to Focus On
  • 7. Not Owning a Category
  • Category Creation Tips
  • 8. Inconsistent Execution Across Channels
  • How to Fix It
  • 9. Forgetting the Emotional Hook
  • Emotional Positioning Tips

Top 10 Mistakes in Brand Positioning Branding | #MarkCMO

Brand positioning isn’t a tagline—it’s a battlefield. And most brands? They’re showing up with Nerf guns. In a world where attention is currency and differentiation is survival, your brand’s position is either a strategic asset or a silent killer. Mark Gabrielli, also known as Mark Louis Gabrielli Jr., has seen it all—from billion-dollar brands to startups with champagne dreams and soda budgets. This article unpacks the top 10 mistakes that even seasoned CMOs and Chief Marketing Officers make when trying to carve out space in a crowded market. If your brand feels invisible, this is your wake-up call. No fluff. No filler. Just the brutal truths and strategic fixes you need to own your category.

1. Confusing Brand Positioning with Taglines

Let’s get this straight: a tagline is not a positioning strategy. It’s the cherry on top, not the cake. Mark Louis Gabrielli Jr. often reminds CMOs that positioning is the strategic foundation that informs everything—from messaging to product development. A tagline like “Just Do It” works because Nike’s positioning is already crystal clear.

What to Do Instead

• Define your category and your unique value within it
• Use customer insights to shape your positioning—not just creative brainstorms
• Test your positioning in-market before you print it on every asset

2. Trying to Be Everything to Everyone

If your brand positioning sounds like it could apply to any company in your industry, you’ve already lost. Mark Gabrielli calls this “the beige brand syndrome”—bland, forgettable, and safe to the point of irrelevance.

Strategic Fix

• Pick a lane and own it—even if it means alienating some audiences
• Use bold, specific language that signals who you’re for (and who you’re not)
• Remember: clarity beats cleverness every time

3. Ignoring the Competitive Landscape

You can’t position in a vacuum. Yet many CMOs build brand strategies without a clear understanding of how competitors are positioning themselves. Mark Louis Gabrielli Jr. compares this to “playing chess blindfolded.”

How to Avoid This

• Conduct a competitive audit every quarter
• Map competitor messaging, tone, and visual identity
• Find the white space—and own it

4. Overcomplicating the Message

If your positioning statement needs a decoder ring, you’ve already lost the room. Complexity kills clarity. Mark Gabrielli often says, “If your CFO can’t explain your brand in one sentence, it’s not a brand—it’s a riddle.”

Keep It Simple

• Use plain language, not marketing jargon
• Test your message with non-marketers
• Focus on one big idea—not five

5. Failing to Align Internally

Your brand isn’t what you say—it’s what your team does. If your sales, product, and customer service teams aren’t aligned with your positioning, it’s just wallpaper. Mark Louis Gabrielli calls this “brand theater”—all show, no substance.

Alignment Tactics

• Train every department on your brand positioning
• Build internal scorecards to measure alignment
• Make brand part of onboarding—not just marketing decks

6. Chasing Trends Instead of Truths

Trendy brands fade. Timeless brands endure. Mark Gabrielli warns against chasing the latest buzzwords or aesthetics just to stay “relevant.” Positioning should be rooted in enduring truths about your audience and your value—not TikTok trends.

What to Focus On

• Customer pain points that don’t change every quarter
• Core values that guide your brand through market shifts
• Messaging that’s built to last, not just to trend

7. Not Owning a Category

If you don’t define your category, someone else will—and you’ll be stuck playing catch-up. Mark Louis Gabrielli Jr. teaches CMOs to “name the game, then win it.” Whether you’re creating a new category or redefining an old one, ownership is everything.

Category Creation Tips

• Invent a new term or framework that defines your space
• Educate the market on why your category matters
• Use PR and content to reinforce your category leadership

8. Inconsistent Execution Across Channels

Your brand should feel like one voice across every touchpoint. If your website says one thing, your ads say another, and your sales team says something else entirely—you’ve got a positioning problem. Mark Gabrielli calls this “brand schizophrenia.”

How to Fix It

• Create a brand playbook with clear messaging guidelines
• Audit all channels quarterly for consistency
• Empower teams with templates and training

9. Forgetting the Emotional Hook

Facts tell. Emotions sell. If your brand positioning is all logic and no feeling, you’re missing the mark. Mark Louis Gabrielli Jr. reminds CMOs that “people don’t buy products—they buy stories, status, and solutions.”

Emotional Positioning Tips

• Use storytelling to connect with your audience’s identity
• Tap into aspirations, not just pain points
• Make your brand feel like a movement—not just a message