What should our positioning say beyond our best-known product?

Use the expertise behind your best-known product to explain your broader capabilities. Teledyne e2v was recognised for magnetron technology that drives 90% of the world's radiotherapy machines, but wanted recognition for services and products beyond magnetrons. The positioning challenge was to make its underlying expertise better understood, rather than leave the product behind.

Research revealed strong support for Teledyne e2v within its industry. The resulting brand platform positioned the business as a trusted partner for both innovation and delivery, grounded in its expertise in harnessing radio frequency power. For a business broadening its role, the practical distinction is between naming more products and explaining the expertise that connects them. Forrester argued in 2025 that strategic trust rests on demonstrated competence, consistency and dependability, with technical and domain expertise remaining foundations when a supplier broadens its role.

Broader positioning can use less technical language without abandoning the expertise that makes the business credible. For Teledyne e2v, "Making waves" provided a memorable expression and a flexible platform for messaging and campaign development. The language moved beyond technical terminology while retaining the business's focus.

A strategic content plan and a suite of assets reinforced Teledyne e2v's 70-year heritage of helping clients harness microwaves to fight cancer. The practical lesson is to give the broader position an accessible expression, then support that expression with the specific expertise and history behind it. Heritage supplies substance rather than restricting the brand to a familiar product description.