Positioning Workshop · For MSSPs & Security Leaders

Diagnose the real problem. Then build the strategy.

TheCMO.ink diagnoses the real problem, defines the right market, and turns positioning into go-to-market — in one single-page strategy. For MSSPs who need a clear, evidence-based route to growth, not another generic marketing playbook.

See the three routes How it works

Toolkit £249 · Workshop £4,950 · Sprint £12,500 — all excl. VAT.

SOUND FAMILIAR?

Technically excellent. Commercially invisible.

Most MSSP founders don't have a marketing problem. They have a diagnosis problem — and every pound of tactics spent before the diagnosis works against them.

SYMPTOM 01

"We do everything" pitches

Your homepage lists 14 services. Prospects can't work out what you're best at, so they assume you're best at nothing.

SYMPTOM 02

Referral dependence

Growth relies on word of mouth because nothing in your marketing gives a stranger a reason to choose you over the incumbent.

SYMPTOM 03

Price-led deals

When buyers can't see your differentiated value, price becomes the only tiebreaker — and margins pay the bill.

THE METHOD

Diagnosis first. Strategy second. Tactics last.

Unlike generic agencies or tactic-first growth partners, we start with diagnosis and strategy before execution. Each step builds on the last, so the order matters — and it ends on one page, not a sixty-slide deck.

  1. Competitive alternatives

    What would your best customers actually do if you didn't exist? Not the theoretical competitor list — the real shortlist, including "do nothing" and "keep the in-house guy".

  2. Distinct capabilities

    The things you genuinely do that the alternatives don't. We separate real differentiators from table stakes everyone in the sector claims.

  3. Differentiated value

    For each capability we ask "so what?" until we hit business value a buyer would pay for — then group it into two or three themes you can defend.

  4. Best-fit customers

    Which accounts care most about that value? We define the characteristics of your ideal client so sales and marketing stop chasing everyone.

  5. Market category & the one-page plan

    The context that makes your value obvious — then positioning connected to go-to-market on a single page your whole team can work from, plus a pitch storyboard for first call to proposal.

A proven B2B positioning sequence, built for managed security — and stress-tested against evidence-based marketing science, not gut feel. Diagnosis before prescription, every time.

THREE WAYS IN

Pick the route that fits your stage and budget

Same method at every level. The difference is how much of the heavy lifting you do — and how fast you get to a position your market believes.

Do it yourself

The Positioning Toolkit

For early-stage MSSPs and security teams who want the method and can run the process internally.

£249 one-off · instant download

  • Full positioning canvas & worksheets
  • Pitch storyboard template
  • Step-by-step facilitation guide
  • Worked MSSP examples
  • 30-minute video walkthrough
  • Full £249 credit against a Workshop within 90 days
Buy the toolkit
Most popular · Do it with me

The Positioning Workshop

For MSSP leaders who want it done properly, with the leadership team in the room.

£4,950 full-day workshop + deliverables

  • Pre-work: customer & win/loss review
  • Facilitated full day with your team
  • Completed positioning canvas
  • Pitch storyboard, ready to test
  • Written positioning brief for web & sales
  • 30-day follow-up call
Book a discovery call
Done for you

The Positioning Sprint

For founders who want the research, the strategy and the messaging handled end-to-end.

£12,500 4–6 week engagement

  • Everything in the Workshop, plus:
  • 8–10 customer & lost-deal interviews
  • Competitive & market category analysis
  • Full messaging hierarchy & homepage copy
  • Sales deck rebuilt around the new pitch
  • 90-day implementation support
Enquire about a sprint

All prices exclude VAT · Workshop and Sprint start with a free 20-minute fit call — no pitch, no obligation.

Paul Alves - Fractional CMO
YOUR FACILITATOR

Run by a Fractional CMO who speaks security, and speaks founder

I’m Paul Alves — a Fractional CMO with 24+ years in B2B marketing across cybersecurity, SaaS, telecoms and IT. MSSPs are my primary market, so the examples in the room are your market, not generic SaaS theory.

My rule: diagnosis before prescription. We start from evidence — your customers, your win/loss data, your real alternatives — and only then decide what you should stand for.

24+ yrs B2B marketing Mini MBA in Marketing Brand Management certified MSSP primary market
QUESTIONS

Before you ask

How is this different from a branding exercise?

Branding decides how you look and sound. Positioning decides what you compete against, who you're for, and why you win. We do the second one — the first gets much easier afterwards.

Who needs to be in the workshop?

The founder plus whoever owns sales, service delivery and marketing — usually 3 to 6 people. Positioning agreed by one person and ignored by the rest is worthless.

We're pre-revenue. Which route should we take?

The toolkit. The workshop and sprint work best when you have real customers and real lost deals to learn from. Pre-launch, the DIY route lets you draft a positioning thesis you can test cheaply.

What do we walk away with?

A one-page strategy connecting positioning to go-to-market, plus the positioning canvas and pitch storyboard behind it. One page your team works from, not a 60-slide deck that gathers dust.

Do you guarantee results?

I guarantee a rigorous process and a position your team agrees on and can defend with evidence. Nobody honest can guarantee revenue — anyone who does is selling you positioning theatre.

Stop being the market's best-kept secret.

Choose your route — toolkit, workshop or sprint — and give your buyers a reason to choose you that isn't price.

Choose your route