Glossary
Unique attributes
The specific, concrete features or properties your product has that the alternatives don't.
Unique attributes are the literal differences between your product and the alternatives a buyer would consider. They live one level below differentiation: differentiation is what value you create, unique attributes are what features create that value.
The distinction matters because attributes don't sell. Value sells. But attributes are what you point to when a buyer asks "why is your value different?"
In Dunford's positioning canvas, unique attributes come before value: you identify the concrete features your product has that alternatives don't, then ask what those features enable the buyer to do (the value). Skipping straight to value without anchoring on attributes produces fluffy positioning that buyers ignore.
A useful test: for every claim in your value proposition, you should be able to name 1-2 unique attributes that justify the claim. If you can't, you're making promises the product can't back up.
Example
A unique attribute of Linear is "GitHub-native bidirectional sync." That attribute *enables* the value claim "your team never duplicates work between code and tasks." Without naming the attribute, the value claim sounds generic ("better integration"). With the attribute, the value is concrete and verifiable.
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